Oil light came on

[Swinborg]

So today was a shame down ride and something quite strange happened.

I was over taking a car revs where about 3700 rpm speed was about 70mph.

I had the throttle pinned to the stop and it just ran out of puff!  Did not accelerate any more.  For a very brief moment the oil light also came on and went off.

I pulled over checked for leaks and oil levels - all fine.

I set off again and it was pretty much back to normal - pulled as hard as I would expect it to (I have a Ducatti 900ss which feels about the same performance and looking at 1/4 miles times the valk is a little slower, but similar).  So as a subjective test it felt about the same.

So any ideas on why power dropped and engine light came on?

[RonW]

Honda has a rev limiter to prevent the pistons from flying out of the engine. I'm not quite sure on the Valk though. The way it functions is it shuts down the engine or ignition. But when you roll off the throttle the bike comes immediately back to life.

[Skinhead]

Oil light coming on indicates loss of oil pressure.  You didn't bump the kill switch by chance, or have a loose connection?  Also check for kinked or plugged fuel tank vent, it sounds like the fuel delivery was interrupted, but if the bike was in gear and the engine turning over you should have still had oil pressure.

[RonW]

I was going to say if the rev limiter shuts off the ignition there's no oil pressure, but the spinning engine should keep spinning the oil pump from momentum. Or does it?

Find a straight road and in lower gear, keep holding full throttle even after you whine out the gear. (kinda fun actually albeit on my other bike which I did just to verify there's a rev limiter) If the rev limiter kicks in then look at the oil light.

[Challenger]

Your not going to hit the rev limiter at 3700 rpm, nor will hitting the rev limiter cause the oil light to come on.
Your loss of power symptoms sound like a fuel flow problem Check your tank vent as suggested or you could need a new cover set in the petcock.
Amanual oil pressure gauge is the only way to find out if you actually lost pressure or you have wire harness or sender problem. Interesting problem, please keep us updated on the cure

[sandy]

Challenger is probably right. When you have wide open throttle, the vacuum drops. If there’s any flaws in the petcock vacuum system, fuel flow will be interrupted.

[RonW]

A ruptured cover set does exhibit those symptoms (quote) ..... ran out of puff (end quote) when you roll on the throttle hard. Not the oil light though.




Cody at Motorcycle MD suggests to inspect this part of the diaphragm too.

[Swinborg]

Hey Ron!

Hope your doing well!

Thanks for the advice,  might I ask where might I find those parts?  Have you a diagram or like?

[RonW]

Btw, Max, are you going to make the deadline for the trip?

Cover sets are on the oem FUEL TANK page. Oddly they're cheaper than ebay but if you like faster delivery & free delivery, ebay is the way to go.

[Swinborg]

Well it’s getting there…..
….tickets are booked so now it’s just a case of building up the miles on longer trips and seeing what needs to be done to ensure reliability.

The trip has been extended a little….

Check out the map!

https://maps.app.goo.gl/iBKoAxbm6u6qDBM39?g_st=ic

I figured better spend the time riding than on a ferry..

Uk, France Belgium Luxembourg Germany Switzerland Andorra Italy Spain & Portugal

10 countries in 2 days!!!!

I am not booking hotels just see where the wind takes me and who I meet along the way!!! Europeans tend to take pity on the weary traveler!!!

[RonW]

Awesome!

[Jims99]

What year is your bike? The earlier models have issues with sending unit misread. There’s an upgrade you can do in shop talk to fix. 2 of mine tend to come on for a second or 5 once in awhile. Sometimes cold, sometimes hot. I haven’t bothered fixing because I know it’s ok. I also agree with the others about fuel and petcock issues.

[Valker]

What year is your bike? The earlier models have issues with sending unit misread. There’s an upgrade you can do in shop talk to fix. 2 of mine tend to come on for a second or 5 once in awhile. Sometimes cold, sometimes hot. I haven’t bothered fixing because I know it’s ok. I also agree with the others about fuel and petcock issues.

That's for the temp light, not the oil pressure light.

[Swinborg]

It’s a 97.

I took apart petcock today, unfortunately the rebuild kit was really dissimilar to the oem one so I cleaned up diaphragm and reinstalled.  I tested and seems ok. Opens flow real easy, so it’s a toll road and a speed test tomorrow!  Glad I got tank off as I put in a usb charger cable under the tank.

[Steel cowboy]

I have gone with the “none vacuum” model used by Honda. It is a manual petcock and has to be turned on and off. It is a direct replacement to the Valkyrie’s vacuum petcock. You can reinstall the factory chrome shut off knob on it too. I have had it on my bike for over two years with no issues. Since I turn off my fuel every time I turn off the engine.

Honda 95-98 CBR600F3 CBR600 CBR600SE CBR600SJR

[Swinborg]

Oh that sounds great!

The idea of not having the faulty diaphragms ruining your day!!! Don’t suppose you can point me in the direction of a part number?

Max

[Valkorado]

The K&L is another less expensive option for a no vacuum setup.  

https://www.ebay.com/itm/314531098126?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=f8IGlM0eTuC&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=EkcgiTXYSz6&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

Maybe not genuine Honda, but much better quality than other knockoffs.  Japanese made.

[Challenger]

Oh that sounds great!

The idea of not having the faulty diaphragms ruining your day!!! Don’t suppose you can point me in the direction of a part number?

Max

Honda 16950-MAL-601 PETCOCK ASSY. CBR600 95'-98'

[RonW]

Anybody knows whether the K & L includes a new strainer (inset photo)? On a different thread, somebody stated that the strainer might get damaged when you pull the assembly from the tank.

[ridingron]

I can let you know about the strainer when mine gets here (all ready ordered).

The other thing is, if you run out of gas, you won't kill the battery (creating vacuum) waiting for the carbs to fill back up.  Recently BTDT.

[ridingron]

Anybody knows whether the K & L includes a new strainer (inset photo)? On a different thread, somebody stated that the strainer might get damaged when you pull the assembly from the tank.

Mine (K&L) came today. A new plastic strainer (removable) that is 5" tall and the brass standpipe is 3" tall. I haven't removed my Honda valve yet and I don't recall what the Honda lengths are.

[idaida98]

Bought a ebay petcock 3 yrs ago installed it and it leaked,no responce from the seller.

[ridingron]

Mine (K&L) came today. A new plastic strainer (removable) that is 5" tall and the brass standpipe is 3" tall. I haven't removed my Honda valve yet and I don't recall what the Honda lengths are.

Honda has different part numbers for the plastic screen piece (Valk vs. CBR600). When I pull my Valk valve I will try to determine the difference.

[Swinborg]

Interesting to see how you get on!

Have you fitted it yet?

Max

[ridingron]

Interesting to see how you get on!

Have you fitted it yet?

Max

No, I'm working on an auxiliary tank set up. I'm going to cut into the fuel line just after the main valve. It'll be a week or 2.