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Concerned 919 Owner

7K views 60 replies 17 participants last post by  Wolf 
#1 · (Edited)
Haven't tried Lucas since the sea foam works so damn well.
But don't overdue it with the Seafoam. That shit is hard on rubber seals/hoses/gaskets if too concentrated.
A bit concerned after reading those comments. So I've always been blowing a little black smoke (Fuel) for a while. Recently I tried Lucas because it was much cheaper than seafoam in a large quantity. Now I am blowing a huge puff of white smoke when torquing the throttle for a wheelie or hard acceleration out of a corner. (Looks like I just did a burnout) Very concerned that the gasket may have finally given way.

Hoping it's the cleaner breaking everything loose and burning it off but the smell is almost sweet. Also noticed my oil level (while resting on a stand) is slightly lower.

If it is the gasket: I would like to upgrade the pistons and other internals while I'm in there getting my hands dirty. Searched high and low but can't find any aftermarket pistons/parts for a 919. Safe to assume they aren't made for a niner?

Any and all feedback/constructive criticism-(Clorox) is greatly appreciated. :flowers:

<Small puff of smoke
 
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#5 ·
people don't have to turn their heads.
You don't feel better having stretched your sternocleidomastoid for 5 seconds? :innocent:

The most likely cause of puffs of white smoke would be valve stem seals / guides. Black smoke is caused by a fuel mixture too rich. Neither of these symptoms IMHO could be caused by Seafoam.
Crap, :banghead: Valves seem more likely now that you mention it. I'm at 54k. I'll give that a go now. Thanks Ken!
 
#3 ·
We're talking fuel system cleaners, right? I think the thing to avoid is letting the stuff sit in a rubber fuel line or carb bowl for extended periods. Just ride the treated tank out asap. I have used Techron (believed to be the harshest) for years and never had a problem. The most likely cause of puffs of white smoke would be valve stem seals / guides. Black smoke is caused by a fuel mixture too rich. Neither of these symptoms IMHO could be caused by Seafoam.
 
#17 ·
I want a third opinion on the hid glare.
 
#22 · (Edited)
Forgive me. :innocent: I was half joking and kinda knew this would open a reflector can of worms. Just so ya know, my old bike pictured had projectors for high and low beams as well as projector style fog lights mounted down low. They were not overly offensive to oncoming traffic.


The PIAA driving beams I converted to HID are reserved exclusively for Bambi and I sincerely hope they're offensive as hell. I recall the time a buck jumped over a concrete barrier in front of me on US87 between Clayton and Raton NM at around 1am. The temp was in the high 20's and I might not have been found for hours. The buck did an about face back over the barrier about 40 yards in front of me. So I don't care if they're "legal" but I do not use them anywhere near oncoming traffic. I wouldn't run highway speed in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night without them. :flowers:

My 919 still has a halogen headlight.
 
#32 · (Edited)
#33 · (Edited)
Well crap! :banghead: I replaced the FPR part # 16740-MCZ-013 from Partzilla for $59. Fired her up and still blasting smoke! So I opened the valve cover
... Everything is within specs at 54k miles! .005-.006 on the intakes and .009-.010 on the exhausts.

The spark plugs were wet and black. It it just a matter of needing new plugs?
 
#37 ·
how long did you run it after replacing the FPR... I could see it taking some miles to clean everything out... Also, fresh plugs couldn't hurt
 
#51 ·
I wouldn't put iridium plugs in anything that didn't call for it to start with. Especially not a motorcycle engine.

What's your schedule like for Friday? Mine's relatively clear and I think the roads should be clear enough to roll up there.
 
#40 ·
"... Everything is within specs at 54k miles! .005-.006 on the intakes and .009-.010 on the exhausts."

When Ken talked about maybe worn valve seals and guides being the issue, that is not eliminated by doing a check on the valve clearances - it's great that they are in spec, but you could still have an issue with wear on those parts letting oil past and into the combustion chamber.

It would be interesting to know what happens to your exhaust colour when you open the throttle after coasting down a long hill with the throttle closed.

If you have wear in the guides and seals, the vacuum in the engine will suck oil past those worn seals, and when you open the throttle afterwards, there will be a pale blue smoke in the exhaust, as the oil gets burnt off all at once.

Can you get a friend to follow you along and check it out, somewhere? Are there hills in Dallas? Or a long downhill off-ramp?
 
#41 ·
It would be interesting to know what happens to your exhaust colour when you open the throttle after coasting down a long hill with the throttle closed.

If you have wear in the guides and seals, the vacuum in the engine will suck oil past those worn seals, and when you open the throttle afterwards, there will be a pale blue smoke in the exhaust, as the oil gets burnt off all at once.

Can you get a friend to follow you along and check it out, somewhere? Are there hills in Dallas? Or a long downhill off-ramp?
Haven't put the valve cover back on yet and would prefer to check the guides and seals now rather than later. Is there a quality walk through thread in here showing how?
 
#45 ·
#50 ·
Well, if you are carrying your front wheel all the way through fourth gear even just sometimes, your quart of oil could just be lost out of whatever means it uses to get through to the airbox. Basically you are tipping the engine up backwards, and letting the oil pour out. Maybe you want to reconsider that mode of riding.

As to the wet plugs, how much running had it done before you pulled them? Was it warmed all the way through? Had it been idling for a while?

Your original concern was black smoke, wasn't it? So you might still have a rich-running condition - too much gas being put into the engine, which fits with your wet plugs. The oil in the airbox resolves the newer puffs of white-ish smoke - that's the airbox oil getting involved in the combustion process.
 
#55 · (Edited)
I was actually just coming back to ask about the wheelies that you so often mention... lol and depending how much build up of fuel in the lines/gunk on the plugs/ etc it could take a while to clear out, I wouldn't call it not fixed until I went for a decent run, fully warmed it up, and took it to hard redline a few times... That being said, the new information makes me a little more worried... My front wheel has been known to lose contact with the ground from time to time, and I have found oil in my airbox pretty much every time I've looked, but I've never been a quart low... Has this happened before? I've seen videos of some bikes after they've ridden a long wheelie just puffing smoke like its on fire for a few minutes after they're set down from all the oil that's been dumped into the airbox, so it's not totally unheard of, and if it's something you do regularly, I could see burning up a decent amount of oil.

Edit: like this [ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7N6XCYLhdE[/ame]
 
#60 ·
Dropped by his place this evening. The bike wasn't operational - he had the cam cover off and the plugs out - so I couldn't sniff the exhaust to see what it was. Judging by the plugs he had out and the air box plus what I could see down the plug holes, it looked like oil fouling and everything that came with it. He's going to install new plugs when they get here (or borrow the ones off his father's 919) and then see what he gets.

Oh, and he told me he didn't see any objectionable glare from my HID. :D
 
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