Triumphrat

aldtech

I would like to introduce myself and say Hi.

I would also like to ask some questions.

I have read some Trophy posts and have seen some people refer their bikes as a model T3 or T4 or something to that effect and was wondering what that meant and what my '01 Trophy 1200 was?

I also seem to be suffering from the gas starvation problem and would like some insight. I just took by bike out of storage yesterday (04/07) and went on a short ride and after a brief period I started to notice a hitching type reaction when ever I gave it some gas at lower RPMs. It would also stall/shut off as soon as I made a stop. Is this indicative of the gas starvation problem? I tried opening the gas cap and there was a definitive pressure release when doing so but that had no effect on the stalling.

I have just bought the bike last year, new leftover floor model and right after I bought it I also experience a major problem when operating the bike, it would not idle and when driving the engine performed very choppy like the timing was off or a cylinder was not firing. I lost my bike for 8 weeks to the dealer who returning it back to me and was unable to explain what exactly the issue was. They ultimately replaced the carbs which solved the issue at that time but have absolutely no clue what was wrong.

Does anybody here have an idea? I am not to happy with the bike right now and am quite disappointed because this was a dream bike for me. It doesn't even have over 500 miles on it yet.

A very frustrated owner,

AL

[ This message was edited by: aldtech on 2004-04-09 08:25 ]

ikonoklass

Al, isn't it still under warranty?

trophyrider00

First of all Al, welcome to the site.

Now to try to answer some of your questions. T3 and T4 refer to the types of engines. The T3 is the first generation 885cc 3 cylinder engines and the T4 is the 1180cc 4 cylinder engine. These were the original modular engines that Triumph had in their bikes until the advent of the T5 series that first appeared in 1997 in the Speed Triple and Daytonas, and now power those two models along with the Sprint and Tiger. All the Trophys either have the T3 or T4 power plants.

On the subject of the poor performance of your bike, I am not exactly clear if the problem was resolved by getting the new carbs on there or not. My 900 did the same thing when I first bought it. I had to take it back and get the carbs adjusted. I wish I had an intelligent answer for you for something to check, but I don't. The one thing that does bother me though is the fact you had to wait 8 weeks to get your bike back, and you were obviously not taken care of. I would advise finding another dealer to do business with if that is feasible.

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Scott

Ride, Eat, Sleep, Repeat.

Your carbs are dirty (gummed) from sitting in storage. I had the same problem (I bought my 2001 from a court seizure with only 26 miles on it - it sat for 2 years). Even if you use Stabil, modern gas is so poor that it breaks down after 3 months, give or take. I got this from Yamaha dealer support after I had to have my snowmobile's carbs cleaned out for the third time in 3 years and freaked out on the service department. I learned a trick from one of my pilot friends who also rides - at the end of your riding season, runs out of gas. Put it on reserve and then pour in 2 gallons of 100 LL (100 low lead) and drive around for 25 miles or so. Then just put it away. 100 LL is aviation gas that is $3.00 a gallon and available at any small airport. It is a higher grade fuel that does not breakdown or cause deposits. Think about it - Cessnas are usually lucky to fly twice a month and the FAA does not want gummed carbs dropping them out of the sky. I did this with my boat engine and snowmobile and all has been fine. Hope it helps you. A carb cleaning, including removing, replacing and synchronizing, runs about $300.

aldtech

The bike was bought last year in June as new which carried the standard 2 year warranty.

I did not take it to the dealer that I bought it from, Riverside Triumph in Somerville MA, but to another Triumph dealer closer to where I live, Nault Windham Triumph in Windham NH. The 2nd dealership was not too happy about having to service a bike under warranty that they did not sell and tried to make me take it back to the original dealership. That alone was a major turn off that any dealership would not service their product regardless of who sold it. I have never seen that with cars or the other motorcycles that I have owned.

There is a 3rd dealership local to me, Great Bay Motorcycles in North Hampton NH, that also has a Rat Association so I am thinking of going to them for future service and this hitching problem if I cant resolve it in the next few days.

Bedford - I think you are right in regards to the carbs being gummed particularly on the first incident when the the bike was initially bought but even then it did not happen until a month after I bought. I will say that when it had its first issue it was on a hot day and I was at an advance rider's training course and there was a lot of short rides at low RPM which may have loosened the residual in the carbs that ultimately fouled the entire system. That is basically what I have concluded particularly since the mechanic who worked on the bike stated that the carbs were all gummed out, but even after cleaning them they still could not get the bike to settle down.

This is why I am hoping that it is the gas starvation issue and that a simple tweak will set me on the road to nirvana. If I have to loose my bike for 6-8 weeks again the bike is gone. The Great Bay dealership has won numerous Triumph awards so I am hoping that they will not let me down. They are a further trek to get to but I think that the RAT association will be worth hooking up with. What bites is that a close friend works at the Windham dealership and I risk the chance of dis-ing him by going somewhere else. He was not too happy when I got the bike at another dealership and not through him. Now this.

Thanks for any and all help and comments.

Ride On.

AL


[ This message was edited by: aldtech on 2004-04-09 08:10 ]

porsche996

I realize this may not pertain to the Triumph, but since it's still a Mikuni carb, it might.

I have another bike, a Honda Nighthawk, that developed symptoms very similiar to what you're talking about. I do all my own mechanic work, so I took the carbs apart, stripped them down, cleaned them with carb dipping acid, put it all back together, but the darn problem kept going.

Eventually, I tracked it down to the fuel petcock. It's a vacuum acuated petcock, same as the Trophy. For some reason or another, the vacuum bladder on the petcock was shot, so a new petcock was in order. Basically, fuel couldn't enter the carbs fast enough, so there was a hesitation when you gave it throttle, and when you came to a stop (or pulled in the clutch), the bike would shut down. There wouldn't be enough vacuum pressure at low rpms to keep the bladder open enough to replenish the fuel in the carbs. Ever since that got replaced, I've never had that problem again.

And to the aviation fuel tip for storing a bike over winter, that's the second best way to keep the bike clean all winter long!! The best way? Buy the right cold-weather gear, and ride year long...

MickMaguire

Go to Great Bay rather than Naults. I am not just saying that because Great Bay advertise here. You won't find a better dealer locally.

You are either experiencing deposits in the carbs or there may be an issue with coils / ignition pickup.

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Mick...

Just remember; an awful lot of the free advice you will get on forums is worth exactly what you paid for it. There will always be somebody trying to convince you to do something really stupid, just because they did it or want to do it.

Just for the record, I do agree that the AV gas is the second best method - I ride all year as well. The Av gas goes in the boat in the winter and the snowmobile in the summer. The electric vest keeps the carbs clean.

aldtech

Thanks for all the replies and I will post the what effective action was used.

Thanks,

AL

jimballard

One other thing to check out is the "tip-over valve" which can have the same effect on the motor. Mine has been removed and my buddy's 01 900 needed it done as well.
Check and see if that's the problem before you get too far into the carbs. I gave up on my dealer's service dept. and have been using Great Bay with no complaints.

Good Luck: Jim

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Jim Ballard

The older I get, the faster I was....until lately!! (Speed IS the fountain of youth)!