Cough, cough...now I feel better...

[DrEvilR1]

OK, guys and girls...this may seem an like an inane question, but...here it goes;

I bought my 1999 R1 over the summer of 2002. My previous ride of comparable displacement was a late 80's GSXR1100, which I rode at sea-level. Yes, I'm one of those dreaded SoCal transplants everyone bitches about. I had never owned a "modern superbike" until this purchase.

Although impressed with the power of the "R," I knew this thing would pull harder in lower elevation and chalked up any "assumed" loss of power to the altitude.

I was riding the R1 on Sunday. I had an open road with no traffic in sight...I cracked open the throttle. I noticed a sudden loss of power around 8K RPM, the motor coughed, for lack of a better adjective, and immediately regained power...a friggin' motherlode of power

The bike runs like it is reborn. I went home and pulled the plugs. They are a normal gray color and don't show signs of being run too lean, nor too rich.

My questions are these:
Should I assume there was a clogged jet and now everything is as it should have been?
Could this be indicative of a problem that needs attention or further examination?
Should I just smile and be happy that the motorcycle God slapped this thing on the ass and brought it to life?

Again, thanks for any feedback, suggestions, advice, and insight. Many of you have volumes more experience than me, so your help is appreciated.

[Anonymous]

Have you ever cleaned the carbs out? Even running some of that stuff you pour into the tank would help, though you should really pull the tank and air box, and clean them proper. They do gunk up after a while... Does sound like a fuel issue tho.

Cleaning the carbs out is easy, you just need some tools and carb spray. I'd be happy to show ya sometime if yoiu're not feeling adventurous.

[Anonymous]

It might have something to do with all the additives they're putting in the gas this time of year... Did this ever happen in the summer?

[DrEvilR1]

This never happened over the summer. The (percieved limited) power has been consistant throughout. The delivery of power has been smooth both when I roll on the throttle, or when I abruptly crack it open. The motor has idled at about 1100 RPM with no significant dips or peaks during idle.

I had the thing Dyno'd in November. The power was about 10 less than what I thought it would be at alttitude - 122.0 - and the air fuel mixture was a nice smooth line throughout the powerband.

The motor still idles at ~1100, now it just gets to 10K a hell of a lot faster than it did previous to "clearing its throat."

[DrEvilR1]

Mr. Forsythe. It would be appreciated when we've both got some free time. In the interim, I'll read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance again.

Although I am fairly mechanically inclined, most of my inclinations lean toward auto suspension, not motorcycle carburetion.

Work has me slammed against a wall, legs spread, and naked for the next couple of weeks. Let's plan something in a bit...lunch and beer is on me

[Anonymous]

Sounds good, drevil. I even have a bit of time after the parade Saturday (not a lot, but enough) if you want to mess with it then... I just live about 10-15 min south of LoDo.

[DrEvilR1]

I definitely don't want to come across as unappreciative, although, it's my wedding anniversary and the wife, albeit cool as hell, wants me home after the parade so we can go out on the town.

Thanks a million and we'll make it happen soon!

[Anonymous]

The bike runs like it is reborn.

I missed this when I first read your post. I don't think it's fuel additives anymore. Clogged jet or faulty plug would make more sense (except I can't see how a faulty plug could automagically fix itself).

Seeing how it was a Sunday when this happened, maybe it was the motorcycle God that slapped it on the ass and brought it to life.

[DrEvilR1]

I love you, Motorcycle God... Now that you've breathed about 10 more horses into my R1, can you please bring more oxygen to Denver?

I promise I'll never again watch porn , and never, never drink martinis on my lunch hour ever again.

Thank you.

Amen,

DrEvil

[rocktboy]

as an r1 owner i'd like to say that there is also a good chance that your exup valve and/or cable was "stuck". basically they did not open or open completely at higher rpm and when they suddenly "unstuck" at high rpm the sudden rush of power is exactly what you described. I've had that happen once and since then I've taken apart the exup valve assembly and lubed the cables and the valve (real simple 20min job). It never happened again.

[DrEvilR1]

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!!

That makes perfect sense.

Since my biking jones will have to be placated by laying a wrench on the bike rather than my arse this week... I'll do what you described with the EXUP valve.

Thanks to all for your feedback and Rocktboy - Thanks for the tip!