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Limp Mode

I did last month (70mph). Turning bike Off then back on corrected check engine light; could not duplicate, hasn’t manifested since. Scary when it happened.
 
rangerreece said:
I did last month (70mph). Turning bike Off then back on corrected check engine light; could not duplicate, hasn’t manifested since. Scary when it happened.
Click to expand...

My experience was at 60-mph and shortly after a passing maneuver on a two-lane highway. I was hoping that one "reboot" would be the end of it, but the engine warning light appeared the following day after I started the engine to exit the garage. Again, the warning light cleared after a reboot.

Of course, I'm concerned about engine damage, but the lingering fear that "Limp Mode" may occur in a situation where you can't exit the roadway is disconcerting.
 
36654 said:
...Of course, I'm concerned about engine damage, but the lingering fear that "Limp Mode" may occur in a situation where you can't exit the roadway is disconcerting.
Click to expand...

If anything, limp mode is ultra conservative, so you're unlikely to do Engine damage, because limp mode is stepping in to keep you from doing any.
 
36654

For what it’s worth... after it happened I did a little research on my Facebook groups (recently left FB permanently) but I saw on several RT pages that the cause may be the oxygen sensor or that flapper valve close to your exhaust cone, may be sticking shut. A lot of RT owners had pictures of that component spring hinges being lubricated with some WD-40 or similar spray lube and fixing the problem. Hope this helps, as it was very disconcerting for me. Had the cruise control set, manifested itself with an immediate loss of power with lack of throttle response. Had to find a median on the left to pull into as there was no shoulder on the right.
 
I had it happen twice during a decent from Mt. Evans in Colorado. Pretty disconcerting when it first happened. One of my riding partners was the service director for a multi-auto dealership owner and he felt it occurred when the engine operating system algorithm detects an imbalance in fuel and air mixture. This happened at 1000 miles into a 4000 mile trip and I never had the issue again (nor have I had it since then). Mt. Evans has the distinction of the highest paved highway in the U.S. (over 14,000 feet) so it's likely the thin air could have caused the issue. I had the bike checked out by my dealer upon my return and while the fault showed up, they weren't able to diagnose any problem.
 
I know it's too early in this thread for humor, so only a short note - friend had same problem, solved it with two Viagra applications...no more "limp mode". Hang in there.
 
rangerreece said:
For what it’s worth... after it happened I did a little research on my Facebook groups (recently left FB permanently) but I saw on several RT pages that the cause may be the oxygen sensor or that flapper valve close to your exhaust cone, may be sticking shut. A lot of RT owners had pictures of that component spring hinges being lubricated with some WD-40 or similar spray lube and fixing the problem. Hope this helps, as it was very disconcerting for me. Had the cruise control set, manifested itself with an immediate loss of power with lack of throttle response. Had to find a median on the left to pull into as there was no shoulder on the right.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I'll check that out. On some of the GS forums, they've focused on a throttle position sensor.
 
99% of the time limp mode has to do with some electronic gizmo glitching up and you almost need to have a GS911 with you on (extended) trips...
 
rangerreece said:
For what it’s worth... after it happened I did a little research on my Facebook groups (recently left FB permanently) but I saw on several RT pages that the cause may be the oxygen sensor or that flapper valve close to your exhaust cone, may be sticking shut. A lot of RT owners had pictures of that component spring hinges being lubricated with some WD-40 or similar spray lube and fixing the problem. Hope this helps, as it was very disconcerting for me. Had the cruise control set, manifested itself with an immediate loss of power with lack of throttle response. Had to find a median on the left to pull into as there was no shoulder on the right.
Click to expand...

I read about this as well. Decided to clean and lube the flapper, spring and cable (at the motor) at every final drive/spline service. I'm using a copper anti-seize spray rated for up to 1500 deg. F. Pipe is already off at that time and its easy to do.
 
brorke said:
I read about this as well. Decided to clean and lube the flapper, spring and cable (at the motor) at every final drive/spline service. I'm using a copper anti-seize spray rated for up to 1500 deg. F. Pipe is already off at that time and its easy to do.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice. I’ll add this to my service schedule, Lube is never a bad thing unless it’s between your tires and pavement.
 
FWIW, I have had a bit of trouble with anti-seize once the “carrier” dries. The dry out can be from age, heat or a combination of both.
There are some great high temperature greases and some gun oils that work well for high temperature, reasonable lasting friction control.
You can put some of what your using in a spot under the hood of your car and check for lasting viscosity if you want. I find it gets a bit paste like when the carrier evaporates.
Worth checking.
OM
 
Annie’s 2017 R12GS had a similar problem while running down the highway at 60 MPH. Engine went to idle and did not respond to the throttle. A restart solved the problem and we rode to the dealership in Seattle about 100 miles away. They said it needed a new TPS that would have to come from Germany. It was Saturday at closing time and the TPS wouldn’t be ordered until Tuesday and could be 4-5 days to arrive. We decided to ride to our dealership in Missoula. Made it to Spokane and the TPS was failing every 20 miles or so and we stopped. I rode home and got my truck and trailer and towed it to Missoula; they saw it immediately. 20 minutes later it was fixed. It required a change to the TPS software. That was over 20k miles ago and it has not reoccurred. Glad I didn’t sit in Seattle for a week at a motel while waiting for an unneeded part.
 
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