Fuel Sarvation 1986 Voyager

[bamboozer]

Got the bike to turn over, drained the tank as best I could and drained the carbs, put in fresh fuel. Spins nice and fast but will not catch. Got it started with starting fuel but it quickly dies, after a few attempts it would putt along with a poor idle and then die. With the starting fluid it revs nicely and sounds good. Any recommendations for this problem? I'd replace the fuel filter but it seems like a big deal from what I've read in the manual. All help appreciated. Thanks!

[doug of so fla]

Fuel filter is very easy to replace. Just remove left side chrome triangle cover remove 1 bolt & wriggle out the small white reservoir, the filter is right there.

Check for a kinked line & remember which fuel line goes where, & which is inlet & out let, Having a couple of "Forceps" to pinch off lines helps, and gas in tank at low level as possible.

You may also pull out fuel pump and check to make sure it is working properly. The fuel pump is a very common problem on the older XII's it is a simple fix by just cleaning up the points . I think in the "Tech Tips" you will find simple instructions on both the filter & pump . Just take your time and ask questions here, these are a very common problems with the 86 XII.

Good luck & Ride Safe..

[bamboozer]

Thanks for the tip, shop manual makes replacing the filter sound like an ordeal.

[bamboozer]

Unable to remove the small catch tank so far, very little room to work in and so far I can't get the coolant tank to move far enough out of the way to pull it thru. The catch tank is free and moveable, once I removed the inlet hose, but so far no luck getting it out.

[triton28]

Both the lower air box white plastic breather tank and coolant tank as well only have 1of a 6mm bolt each holding them on, apart from the obvious hose connections.
The coolant reservoir tank is usually the hard one to free from the grommet on the rear of the lower airbox.
It is the same spear point/grommet setup as the chrome and painted plastic side covers so be careful pulling on the rear tank mount!
The top hose of the coolant reservoir is the overflow and the lower hose is the inlet.

[bamboozer]

Thanks, was afraid to pull too hard on the coolant reservoir, it is a festival of hoses in that area.

[ekap1200]

Both the lower air box white plastic breather tank and coolant tank as well only have 1of a 6mm bolt each holding them on, apart from the obvious hose connections.
The coolant reservoir tank is usually the hard one to free from the grommet on the rear of the lower airbox.
It is the same spear point/grommet setup as the chrome and painted plastic side covers so be careful pulling on the rear tank mount!
The top hose of the coolant reservoir is the overflow and the lower hose is the inlet.

Here is a little tip for those stubborn " spear point/grommet " fasteners . I always keep a spray bottle with apx 4 times the amount of car wash solution to water in one of them. I always spray it behind the covers I want to remove, the soapy water will aid in removing those pins from the grommet.
If your starving for fuel, either your not getting any thru the tank , due to debris and or large amounts of rust , to your filter and pump.
Or your pump is shot or just jamming up from rust that has passed thru the filter. Or the filter has not been changed out and is long over due.. Or some - one has carelessly changed out the air filter and let whatever crap was around the edge of the air filter drop down into the air-box and it worked its way into you carbs and the fuel is there but not going thru.
Or the 90 degree tube on the bottom of the fuel tank is kinked. If you have been reading most of these forum posts you should have come across the one on how to run the fuel pump without cranking the engine over. Don't waist your time by removing a good pump for the points unless you know its not pumping. Have you inspected the wire connections of the right side ? Run the pump only , and you can do this also with one or more of the carb bowl drains open get a visual of the amount of fuel that it is supplying . It is an easy job to replace the fuel filter, unless that area has not seen a cleaning in years and is a filthy mess behind the engine. To safely pinch off the tanks fuel line get yourself a pair of needle nose vise grips and slip some vacuum line over the jaws. Apply just enough pressure to keep it from leaking and to avoid damaging the fuel lines , they should be a grey silicon hose and the one has two different size ends on it. Get oem if still available if you find you need them or someone has buggered it up and used automotive hose with a hose clamp on the tank fitting. There is not much clearance between that hose with a clamp and the swing arm when she bottoms out with OEM air shocks. Hence the bent fitting at the bottom of the tank....
Clean air/ clean fuel / good spark and compression ,
Gene Kap

You did not mention what the fuel from the carb bowls looked like.... any signs of rust or debris come out ?

[bamboozer]

Thanks for the tip about the spear point grommet, once I knew what I was looking for I was able to give it a soapy blast of water and work it free so I could get the catch tank reservoir out. I can see the pump and filter, no proof yet but the filter may well be the original one. For some reason the search function will not work for me so I cannot find the post about running the pump by itself. Discharge from the carb float bowls did not contain any debris I could see, will attempt to change out the filter and take it from there. Guessing that running the pump by itself is a matter of jumping the connection, but I'll leave that alone until I know more. Should note that while the motor runs (with starting fluid) it sounds healthy, hitting on all cylinders.

[cranky]

.. from another post: So I disconnected the starter relay and held the starter button. The fuel pump did its job and "tick, tick, tick" until the carbs were full

IIRC, you go from the left side of the battery down and you will find the starter relay, disconnect the power and the starter won't
grind, but the other circuits will run the fuel pump... from what I've read......

[bamboozer]

Got the search function working and found the thread, going to try it first thing tomorrow. But first I've got to get that fuel filter out of there.

[VoyKimmer]

Fuel filter is easy to change. Just held in by a rubber clip type band. I change mine every year. I use the Napa 3011 gold filter. It's a direct OEM fit and no modifications necessary.

[bamboozer]

Replaced the fuel filter with the famed Napa 3011 filter, old filter was indeed old and a little dirty but the flow of fuel was not impeded and it still won't start. Where should I look next? The fuel pump? Should I hear the pump running when I turn the key to the on position?

[bamboozer]

Tried removing the clip of two wires from the solenoid, hit the start button and still heard nothing. When this all got going I couldn't get it to turn over, but when I turned the key I could hear some sound from the pump which would stop, I assumed it had reached full pressure.

[cranky]

.. NOT a wrench... BUT, methinks "the bug" is at hand.... I'd be lookin' for a new pump... JM2C

[bamboozer]

I'll take the old one out and have a look at it, read somewhere you can clean the contacts and get it running, but hard not to notice a lot of them do fail as well.

[cranky]

Almost at the bottome of the xii tech tips... search on fuel pump....

Fuel Pump Point Access
Pics By Fritz Wells (The Masked Rider)
Text by Gary Schill

When you might think that your fuel pump has bought the farm, it is probably a 90% chance that the only problem is just dirty or pitted fuel pump points. When the points don't make good contact, the pump doesn't work, and your bike will not start or may not run properly if it does. The Voyager fuel pumps (Voyager XII's)

[Mr Jensee]

Bamboozer the internet is your friend. I got a spare fuel pump brand new on Ebay for less than $20 bucks. Look there before you start ordering a new one from a dealer or someone like Bikebandit.com.

And Gene I sure wish I lived closer to you. Your knowledge of the Voyager makes me think you could fix my transmission problem. However I am taking it to the guru in Florida at the first of the year.

[bamboozer]

How do I access the points on the fuel pump? Still trying to wrestle it out of it's bracket but I see no way (yet) to get it apart.

[ekap1200]

How do I access the points on the fuel pump? Still trying to wrestle it out of it's bracket but I see no way (yet) to get it apart.

Did you try to run the pump first before you set off on removing it ?
What did the filter look like, was it clogged ?
does the fuel flow freely out of the gas tank hose ?

When you posted you drained the tank the best you could,,, where did you drain it from the bottom hose or did you siphon it out from the fill. All the crap and water will be at the bottom of the tank, draining it out from the lower hose is the only way to be sure what is in there going to the filter...
Gene K.

[ekap1200]

Tried removing the clip of two wires from the solenoid, hit the start button and still heard nothing. When this all got going I couldn't get it to turn over, but when I turned the key I could hear some sound from the pump which would stop, I assumed it had reached full pressure.

I guess I should have read this first..... remove the plug to the field of the solenoid, key on , run on, open a carb drain into a container. press the starter button. The pump should run as long as you hold the start button in with key on/run on and a carb open to keep the pump from building pressure.
you will need to get the location of the screws to remove the cover on the pump. I thought is was here somewhere in the forum. someone here should be able to walk you thru it. If you can get to a point where your ready to just run the pump ;you can tap on it gently enough and see if it frees up or is in need of some point cleaning issue.
you may need an assistant wiggle the wires from the key or fuse box or other wires from up front. it could be a open wire condition..