Got my V Force Thursday night and took it out this morning for the first ride. With a full tank of gas, I left camp and went about a quarter mile and it died. Tried to re-start and nothing. Checked the whole thing over and double checked the fuel valve and it was in the ON position. Tried to start again and it would turn over but not crank. Waited a few more minutes and tried with the choke on and got it running. Rode a while and noticed it seemed hot but the fan would not come on. When the motor seemed hot, it would sputter and try to die out, but I could keep it running by staying in the gas. Several times, I stopped to let the motor cool, as I want to break it in right. The fan never kicked on until over an hour into my ride.

Later in the day, the shifter would not shift into reverse. I was needing to back up on the trail it would NOT go into reverse. Got back to camp and tried again. It will not go into reverse.

Not sure what is going on, but I had noticed on my test ride at the dealer that it sputtered and died, but I thought it was out of gas. The way it sputtered on the trail today when the temp got high makes me think it is running too rich.

Any ideas? It is definitely going back to the dealer Monday morning. I don't usually let them touch my machines, but this is rediculous. Don't mean to scare any of you guys from buying one, just want to state my experience so far.

 

Not sure about the stalling troubles, but as far as the Revese issue goes, you need to apply the rear brake before you try to shift into reverse (I assume you already know that). Even if you are doing this, it might have something to do with the sensor (Or what ever they used) not working correctly. Just a thought.

 

I am guessing that the reverse thing has something to do the brake adjustment . I have to push the peddle
kinda firm to release the reverse lockout.

Sputtering from the time it was on the Dealers lot ..... I am guessing there is a lack of fuel ( runs better when the choke was applied )... not about being too rich.

The carb system on this bike... and the P650 uses a "fuel enricher" ... not a "choke". A choke shuts off air
flow to richen the fuel mixture. A fuel enricher opens up a port that allow more fuel to be added.

As for the fan not running ..... did the temp light ever come on ??

 

If you're holding the idle speed too high, it won't shift into reverse. But it is more likely to be the brake adjustment.
Get that brand new machine back to the dealer and tell them to fix it!

 

It could have been my fault on the reverse thing. I'll make certain to try the brake and see if that does it. Still baffled on the fuel system thing, though. Have any of you guys noticed your fuel tank under pressure when loosing the gas cap? I opened the cap and it spewed like a sealed plastic gas jug in the sun. None of my other machines have ever done this, so I'm wondering if maybe the tank vent is plugged up. I called the dealer's service manager before they closed today and he said it sounds like a pinched vacuum line. This is something simple I hope, but it definitely gets worse as the motor gets warmer.

 

The fuel tanks do build pressure ....... my P650 does the same thing. normal....

 

I went out and tried reverse again. It works fine with the brake applied. Must have had a BRAIN FART [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-blush.gif[/img]

I'm not knocking the maching at all, it is very impressive. I'm sure it will be a simple fix to the fuel issue.

BTY, I stopped at a dealer yesterday to pick up a spare set of spark plugs just in case. Can you believe they wanted $12.87 for 2 plugs??? I said "No, thanks". Got home and looked in the Rocky Mountain catalog and they list the CR7E as specialty plug for $3.99 ea vs. the regular NGKs for $1.89. Anyone know what is special about it?

 

When I first got my prairie, the idle was set so low, that it was hard to keep running as well. You definitely need to be stopped holding the brake to shift gears, but it almost sounds like your bike needs the idle turned up. Mine was hard to shift at first and always required a slight blip of the throttle to get it to shift. As soon as the idle was up a bit higher, it's been perfect. Not saying for sure that's your problem but worth checking IMO...

 

OK guys, here is the update. I dropped it off at the dealer this morning and they spent lots of time riding it today. They got it to reproduce the dying engine when riding at speed and hitting the front and rear brakes together, which is what happened to me. The sudden stop, along with the diving front end from the front brakes, causes the fuel to slosh forward in the bowls and create a sudden starve for fuel when the pick up goes dry.

They also think that the sudden stop, the auto tranny cannot backshift fast enough and it creates an effect of locking up the brakes on a manual shift without pulling in the clutch, which stalls the engine. They said the only way to remedy that would be to loosen the torque converter, which would take away from the engagement on acceleration. Don't want to do that.

The fan cycled normally, though they were riding it pretty hard. So much for my easy break-in.

The reverse was definitely my fault by not depressing the rear brake. The lead mechanic did the same thing and could not get it into reverse until I told him to hit the brake first. Just a rookie mistake on a new machine. Neither the Polaris nor Suzuki require hitting the brake to go into reverse, so it just took some getting used to it.

The Gecko tires should arrive tomorrow and I'll be leaving for Little Sahara. Can't wait to try it on the dunes!

 

Your dealer isnt right about your quad. I can take both my 700's and lock the binders up so hard she stands on the front wheels and mine dont die or sputter. It sounds to me like yours was like my wifes when we got it. The idle micture screw was set all wrong. Tuned her up adjusted the idle no more sputtering.