Engine cutting out
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Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 46
Likes: 0
From: westfield mass
Engine cutting out
Hi I got a 2001 sportster 1200 custom. And Iv been having an issue with the engine cutting out on me. It seems to be very random and intermittent. When I take the bike out and Fire her up she runs great. After riding great for quite some time she'll just die on me. But sometimes I can start it back up before I even stop moving other times I come to a complete stop and she still won't start. I let it sit for abit recycle all the switches and she'll fire up againSometimes Othertimes she has to sit for quite sometime. Sometimes i take it out and she won't give me any trouble others times it happens multiple times. Sometime it even happens just idling at a light. Sometimes it dies for just a sec backfires and she's back up. Other times I'm on the side of the road cranking it and messing with switches to get it to fire back up. I believe it is an ignition issue because the tachs reading is fed by spark and when it dies all my electronics stay up but the tach drops to zero till she fires back up. I was leaning towards ignition module seeig the bike has 47k on it. But I don't want to spend uneeded money, hoping someone here can help point me in the right direction
Cruiser
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 230
Likes: 0
From: Orange County, CA
Before proceeding, make sure you disconnect the main fuse (big one) or the negative terminal on the battery to be safe. And seeing as how the connector runs under the front of the frame where a lot of debris and water make a mess - it'd be wise to use some dielectric grease on the connections - you don't need much. I use dielectric grease on any electrical connection that I work on for motorcycles, including the spark plug boots and fuse prongs where corrosion is known to build up slightly. A note on using dielectric grease: silicone-based grease will help BLOCK OUT moisture, not get rid of it, so it could also BLOCK *IN* moisture and worsen corrosion issues. Make sure there isn't any moisture behind the grease. When removing the CPS you may see that it's totally burnt up (melted).
Last edited by starforbrian; Apr 7, 2015 at 10:07 PM.
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 3,126
Likes: 550
From: Springfield, IL
Mine had a split in the face of it. They are around $50 or so, I got mine from my local Indy, he had it in stock, Sporty have a tendency for this to fail.
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Road Warrior
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 1,420
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From: Columbus Ohio
I had the same thing happen on my older sporty. It was the ignition switch. If you have a lot of keys hanging off the keychain it eventuallly can cause problems. Mine would gently die, randomly, anywhere as if someone had hit the kill switch. I would turn everything off then turn it on and it would start up again with no problem.
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Thread Starter
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Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 46
Likes: 0
From: westfield mass
I had just replaced the ignition switch (with an oem Harley one matched to the bikes vin) right before winter, and I only have one other key on there and its for the padlock i use to lock the steering. And if it was the ignition switch I figure it would fire right back up again and sometimes the bike won't even after messing with the switches.