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Blackie · 25-04-22, 08:23 PM

Good evening! Thank you for letting me join the forum.
I'm having problems with my bike and I'm hoping someone will know what may be wrong.

I have a 2005 SV650s which has ran perfectly for 15 years until this idling problem.
This bike is standard except for a Delkevic slip on that was installed 5 years ago. It ran 3 years with no problems after this change was made.

I have a problem where the bike now has issues idling without stalling. This has been going on for 2 years now, though admittedly covid meant I haven't been out on the bike so much.
This seems to only happen when the tank is getting lower on fuel. It runs well with a full tank, then after a bit, it's a pain in the neck. (after filling it while on the side stand, the problems start around 35 miles used from full.)

Issues experienced when fuel is lower:

The engine seems to run rough, almost raspy, like the bike has a cold.
Every now and again it runs ok for a couple of junctions, then it goes to crap at the 3rd.
It won’t idle most of the time, with the revs lowering to 900 max, causing it to konk out.
I can often smell fuel.
The bike runs a bit "farty"(? lol), maybe even a little jerky, in first and second gear / lower speeds.
When I'm out on the open road, the bike runs well. I'd say around 30mph+ it runs fine. I couldn't bet my life on it, but I don't think there is any difference to it's upper speed peformance compared to before this problem.

Other observations:

The bike seems to run rich, there is a layer of soot inside my exhaust. It never used to run rich like this and I never used to smell fuel.
With a full tank the bike idles at the correct 1400 revs.
It feels like the bike runs progressively worse as the fuel goes down.
I might be imagining it, but the bike sound is worse and feels more front of the bike when its low on fuel and having problems vs more central & rear of the bike when the tank is full. This might be complete nonsense! But it's the feeling I get, so mentioning it incase it's significant.

Things I've done to try fix it:

I changed the easier fuel filter but this made no difference.
The bike got worse after a year, to the point where I'd run it 70mph for a few miles and when I came to a junction after this, the bike would just DIE and it'd take 2 or 3 attempts to get it running again, having to rev the heck out of it to stop it continously stalling. I changed the spark plugs, which were quite sooty, and this seems to have stopped this high speed / bad stalling problem (but not the overall idling problem).

My dad is wondering if it's the TPS sensor that needs replacing. Unfortunately TPS sensors are around £100 each, which is a lot to spend on a guess.
Any clues where to start?

Any guidance would be amazing. Thank you.

(**** FIXED - IT WAS A DUFF BATTERY ****)

25-04-22, 08:23 PM	#1
Blackie Banned User Join Date: Apr 2022 Location: Usa Posts: 8	sv650s K5 won't idle when petrol isn't a full tank (running rich) Good evening! Thank you for letting me join the forum. I'm having problems with my bike and I'm hoping someone will know what may be wrong. I have a 2005 SV650s which has ran perfectly for 15 years until this idling problem. This bike is standard except for a Delkevic slip on that was installed 5 years ago. It ran 3 years with no problems after this change was made. I have a problem where the bike now has issues idling without stalling. This has been going on for 2 years now, though admittedly covid meant I haven't been out on the bike so much. This seems to only happen when the tank is getting lower on fuel. It runs well with a full tank, then after a bit, it's a pain in the neck. (after filling it while on the side stand, the problems start around 35 miles used from full.) Issues experienced when fuel is lower: The engine seems to run rough, almost raspy, like the bike has a cold. Every now and again it runs ok for a couple of junctions, then it goes to crap at the 3rd. It won’t idle most of the time, with the revs lowering to 900 max, causing it to konk out. I can often smell fuel. The bike runs a bit "farty"(? lol), maybe even a little jerky, in first and second gear / lower speeds. When I'm out on the open road, the bike runs well. I'd say around 30mph+ it runs fine. I couldn't bet my life on it, but I don't think there is any difference to it's upper speed peformance compared to before this problem. Other observations: The bike seems to run rich, there is a layer of soot inside my exhaust. It never used to run rich like this and I never used to smell fuel. With a full tank the bike idles at the correct 1400 revs. It feels like the bike runs progressively worse as the fuel goes down. I might be imagining it, but the bike sound is worse and feels more front of the bike when its low on fuel and having problems vs more central & rear of the bike when the tank is full. This might be complete nonsense! But it's the feeling I get, so mentioning it incase it's significant. Things I've done to try fix it: I changed the easier fuel filter but this made no difference. The bike got worse after a year, to the point where I'd run it 70mph for a few miles and when I came to a junction after this, the bike would just DIE and it'd take 2 or 3 attempts to get it running again, having to rev the heck out of it to stop it continously stalling. I changed the spark plugs, which were quite sooty, and this seems to have stopped this high speed / bad stalling problem (but not the overall idling problem). My dad is wondering if it's the TPS sensor that needs replacing. Unfortunately TPS sensors are around £100 each, which is a lot to spend on a guess. Any clues where to start? Any guidance would be amazing. Thank you. (** FIXED - IT WAS A DUFF BATTERY *) Last edited by Blackie; 08-05-22 at 07:13 PM.*