[Oil Burner]

So I bought my 2002 at the end of the fall in 2019, and I only got a few rides in before the winter set in. I had to address a couple things right away. It had a bad pop/backfire upon deceleration, which I found to be the seal on the rear cylinder exhaust pipe. I redid the exhaust and changed the mufflers, then rode it until the salt hit the streets.

Over that winter, I replaced the tires, the chain and sprockets, did the rear wheel spacer mod, did the Werks clutch basket, replaced the broken turn signals, and a bunch of other minor stuff.

Rode through this past summer and it was good for the most part. A few running stumbles and it's always felt rough. Been playing with the TFI adjustments to hone in on it. I added a voltmeter and an Admore lighting kit to the topcase over the summer, and decided to tear it down for real and go through it. Removed the necessary fairing pieces and the radiator so I can check/adjust the valves. Checked and torqued the slack adjusters. I have already cleaned up some of the wiring under the seat, but I got a good laugh this afternoon that had me shaking my head. One of the previous owners added a compact air horn. I knew where it was, and there was a relay strapped to the side of it, so I figured it was done fairly well. I was mistaken. Whoever added it unplugged the factory horn and used that for power and ground. No other power source, though. They literally powered the latching coil of the relay and the load circuit of the relay with the factory horn connector and circuit. So, in effect, they actually added even more load than they would have if they had just run the factory wires right to the air horn motor with the minor amount of load from the relay. Well done . How it actually worked, I don't know. I also found that the grip heater controller was wired directly to the battery. I just about gutted all of the added accessory wiring this afternoon so I can redo it correctly. I figure that the Strom isn't worth much, cash wise, these days. May as well get it as correct and reliable as possible and ride it all over the place. Even when it isn't exactly right, it's still a hoot to ride.

 

[Oil Burner]

 

[Oil Burner]

Not sure why the pics posted twice. Maybe I was shivering. LOL. Darn chilly in the unheated garage tonight, I must say.

 

[BackPacker]

If the horn was just added to the circuit, like you describe, then the first time the owner pressed the horn button, he may have blown the fuse and replaced this with a higher-current fuse. If that was done without upgrading the wiring, then the wiring and not the fuse may now be the weak link. Worst case this can set the bike on fire (although that would require prolonged application of the horn - not very likely). But since you're redoing the wiring properly anyway, might be worth checking your fuses are still stock, or bring them back to stock.

You seem to have a good grasp on what the bike needs. Not mentioned in your post though is TPS adjustment/replacement, Throttle Body Sync and adjusting the idle to about 1300 RPM. Those are major causes of rough running. Other than that, a bit of rough running at low RPMs is normal. The bike should smooth out considerably above 4000 RPM.

 

[Oil Burner]

Thanks for your reply. I didn't list everything, because typing has never been my strong point . During the last winter riding hiatus, I did adjust the secondaries and sync the throttle bodies. My TPS tested OK, but I do believe it needs to be replaced. I have had more than one occasion where I'd get the famous warm engine stall. I do have the idle speed adjusted up, probably closer to 1500 at the moment. It seemed to help keep it out of what I call the "glitch zone". A TPS is on the winter to-do list, as well as re-synching the throttle bodies. I plan on doing the fuel pump mod with external filter as well, since the tank is off anyway.. From reading many posts, I expect that fuel delivery volume will increase (I never did measure my output, but at 48K, I expect the internal filter to be somewhat restricted). I figure that once the valves are set, The TPS is replaced, the fuel volume is sufficient, and the sync and secondaries are set, I should be able to dial in my fuel tuner and have a decent running bike. I do understand that these tend to run a bit rougher at lower RPMs; this engine really likes 4500 and up! I'd rather have the lower RPM rumble of this V-twin than the bar and footpeg buzz that seems to be so common on inline 4 bikes.

Again, thanks for your thoughts. I have definitely researched this bike a lot. Between here at Stromtrooper and over at ADV Rider, there is enough info on the first gen Strom to keep a guy busy for awhile.

 

[PineLaneRider]

Oxford heated grips recommend connecting directly to the battery.

 

[Solarguy]

Yeah, there's 20 ways to do accessory wiring wrong, and 1 or 2 ways to do it right.

 

[Oil Burner]

Oxford heated grips recommend connecting directly to the battery.

If that's the case, so be it. But I prefer a dedicated, fuse-protected ignition circuit for high-draw accessories. I doubt anyone from Oxford will come give me a jump start if I forget to shut the grips off . I've read that they allegedly auto-off somewhere around 11.5 volts, but I'm not too comfortable with that.

 

[PineLaneRider]

If that's the case, so be it. But I prefer a dedicated, fuse-protected ignition circuit for high-draw accessories. I doubt anyone from Oxford will come give me a jump start if I forget to shut the grips off . I've read that they allegedly auto-off somewhere around 11.5 volts, but I'm not too comfortable with that.

The Oxford wiring is fuse protected and has that automatic shut off built into the controller. If you have the controller wired hot it will remember your last setting when you restart. All that being said, I wired mine through my aux fuse box and they need to be turned on each time I restart the bike. I don't trust the auto off either...

 

[PerazziMx14]

When I get a new to me bike I got through it no matter if a service was just completed by the seller. I also do service a bit more through than a general service a shop would do.

By going over the bike with a fine tooth comb I get to really familiarize myself with it and know its in as good a mechanical shape as it can be.

 

[Solarguy]

If that's the case, so be it. But I prefer a dedicated, fuse-protected ignition circuit for high-draw accessories. I doubt anyone from Oxford will come give me a jump start if I forget to shut the grips off . I've read that they allegedly auto-off somewhere around 11.5 volts, but I'm not too comfortable with that.

I used to think I would just remember all that stuff. I don't think that any more, so I take steps to make systems as robust and foolproof as possible.

 

[Oil Burner]

The photos I posted above were last night, right when I got the bike apart to that point. I know someone has been there at some point, because there was chalk/crayon marking on the inside of the radiator shroud indicating the color of the connector that is attached to each mounting hole. I had a little time this morning, so I decided to check all of my clearances. While they all are within spec, most are on the tight side of that spec. I may as well open them up toward the high side of the clearance. Some might say, Why bother? I might, too, but I have to take the cams out anyway. I found that when I'm dead on the FT mark, my front intake cam is off a tooth . Well, that probably explains some of my "rough running" feeling. It's tough, because all owners say that there is normal vibration at lower RPMs. When it's your first Strom, how do you know how "normal" yours is? I always felt that mine was rougher than it should be. Hopefully, straightening this out brings it closer to being the way it should be.

 

[PerazziMx14]

Yeah, there's 20 ways to do accessory wiring wrong, and 1 or 2 ways to do it right.

Tell me about it. This is what I puled form one bike. Thankfully none of the factory wiring was molested.

The tell tale sign of the arm chair wiring technician is the use of cheap aluminum automotive crimp connectors or the vampire wire splicers sealed with 20 or 30 wraps of electrical tape.

I prefer to solder all the connectors use sealed bullet connectors and/or Posi-Taps. Heat shrink tubing and proper plugs for connecting multi pin components.

 

[D.T.]

I think you are going to see DIY hack jobs a lot more often in the future. I blame Youtube and this internet forum.

I'm probably an offender myself.

 

[stickerbush]

The tell tale sign of the arm chair wiring technician is the use of cheap aluminum automotive crimp connectors or the vampire wire splicers sealed with 20 or 30 wraps of electrical tape.

I prefer to solder all the connectors use sealed bullet connectors and/or Posi-Taps. Heat shrink tubing and proper plugs for connecting multi pin components.

Wow that looks like a mess!

I've always heard that good quality crimp connections are preferable to soldered terminals, reason being that the wire at the solder locations becomes inflexible and can break with repeated flexing. All of the connections in the wiring harness are crimped from the factory, not soldered. A quality crimping tool and good connectors are worthwhile investments for doing wiring modifications on motor vehicles.

 

[PerazziMx14]

Wow that looks like a mess!

I've always heard that good quality crimp connections are preferable to soldered terminals, reason being that the wire at the solder locations becomes inflexible and can break with repeated flexing. All of the connections in the wiring harness are crimped from the factory, not soldered. A quality crimping tool and good connectors are worthwhile investments for doing wiring modifications on motor vehicles.

The only wiring on my bikes that really moves with any regularity is the SAE and heated gear pigtails. Power wiring to things like grips, aux lighting sits pretty static as it held in place with zipties.

 

[Gert]

Another site that has good technical info on the earlier model V-Strom, is V-Strom Riders International - Index. Sadly while the VSRI site is no longer as active as it once was, it still has a few regulars / visitors reading up on the posted info.

 

[Oil Burner]

Another site that has good technical info on the earlier model V-Strom, is V-Strom Riders International - Index. Sadly while the VSRI site is no longer as active as it once was, it still has a few regulars / visitors reading up on the posted info.

I should have mentioned that site as well. I'm not a member there, but I've followed several links to there from here and ADVrider. Good info there. Some of the threads are quite old, and as such, the pictures are gone, but still useful info.

 

[DesertBike]

I replaced my TPS over the summer and need to check my secondary TPS.

Also need to do a valve clearance check. Need to read through some how-to's and watch some videos first. I believe there's no way to do the front cylinder valves without draining coolant, and no way to do the rear without lifting the tank. Oh joy.

The good news is that pretty soon my SO is going to have her DL650 set up, so I can maybe borrow it occasionally while I'm waiting for the inevitable unanticipated parts shipment.

 

[ratbikerandy]

Found a good local independent shop that only charges $80 hour which is reasonable these days. For things I can't or don't want to tackle, glad I have an option.