Hello!

I read many threads here about broken ETS. But I have not read so much about symptoms. Here is what happened to my bike two days ago. It is a Deuce 2003 FXSTDSE. First ride after winter. Rewired the harness in handlebar, and everything works as before.

My first ride. Engine started normally. After a short ride, the check engine light lit up. Went off, and then turned back on and off. Seemed like it turned on when I was driving slowly. But also lit up when I accelerated heavy.

When the light was on, the bike did not run "normal". Here are the symptoms:

1. High idle without any throttle on. Normalized after a while
2. Almost impossible to start when warm. My two buddies had to push me to start once. Misfire when try to start when warm.
3. Starts normal when cold and runs normal when cold.
4. Gasoline consumption seem to be higher than before.
5. There is a stored error code, but I am not able to reset it or read it.
6. I have not found a way to reset codes on a 2003 Softail. I can access the codes by holding the reset odo buttom in when turning the ignition on. Code d02-d10 show "clear". Code d01 show "d01set"

Anyone? Should I replace the ETS, measure the resitance or any other smart trick?

 

^^^What he said. It's easy to replace. Did it on my 07 in about 10 minutes. It's on the back side of the front cylinder. Just don't over tighten it..

 

Until you waste your time and money only to find out there was nothing wrong the sensor because you didnt know how to test it and find out you actually have a wiring problem!

 

Hi. So you actually have the solution to check the ETS? Could you please share?

 

Its a thermistor, heat it up, resistance changes known amounts per degrees...chart is in the ED Manual!

 

I stopped at a sketchy gas station out in the country and shortly thereafter started having symptoms like the above. Bike started and ran well while cold. After riding long enough to get the engine fully heated up, I would get an intermittent check engine light. Sometimes it would come on for a mile and then go off. Sometimes it would stay on for 10 miles and then go off. It never came on and stayed on constantly. There were some stutters and occasional misfires which would then stop and the bike would run fine. On a few occasions the engine would stop when I stopped at a stop sign or gas station and have difficulty re-starting. Gas mileage was essentially normal.

I ran the diagnostic codes and got a P0118 code which, according to my electrical diagnostic manual, indicated that the engine temperature sensor (ETS) was reading high. I read about all of the conditions that can cause the sensor to register high and attempted to fix those conditions. But the symptoms persisted.

After some time, and more reading (including this thread) I concluded that MAYBE, rather than the sensor DETECTING a problem, the sensor itself WAS the problem. Since the part only costs $38, I decided to switch it out even though there was no way to visually detect that the sensor was bad and I don't have the equipment necessary to electrically test the circuit or the sensor. (The new one looked the same as the old one.) The replacement was easy except for the access (it's between the two jugs and a deep socket barely squeezes in. But aside from that, the swap was easy--detach the horn, pull back the sensor wiring boot, unclip and remove the sensor cable connector and unscrew the sensor. It took maybe 5-10 minutes. I took it the bike out for a test ride and everything was good. But since the problem only appeared after the engine had been running a while and was fully hot, I went out with my buddies on a longer ride yesterday afternoon. (The buddies were there for help if the bike died and wouldn't restart.) And the bike ran perfectly the entire time. No stutter, no misfire, no check engine light. The problem is FIXED!

If you are throwing the P0118 code and have these symptoms, I suggest replacing the sensor before taking the bike into a dealer for what would undoubtedly be an expensive diagnosis (and other threads suggest that often they don't identify the sensor as the problem).

One question remains for me--was the bad gas (a) in my head, (b) a coincidence that just happened at the same time as the sensor failure, or (c) the cause of the sensor failure (maybe by causing the engine to run so hot that it damaged the sensor)? Any thoughts?

 

Duplicate post

 

is there a picture of where this thing is ?

 

Don't have a picture, but it's on the left side of the bike. Back side of the front cylinder just below the rocker box. You'll have to remove the horn to get to it. Don't over tighten it.

 

I thought it was on the rear cylinder, or does temp sensor different from the ETIMS sensor ?