Starter Valve Syncronization - VTEC

[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv01.jpg[/img]

• VTEC Starter Valve Synchronization
• K&N filter Install
• Airbox snorkel modification

Preparation

Remove the tank screws and prop up the tank. Unscrew the 7 screws on the top of the airbox, remove the tube to the flapper.


Remove the airfilter and unscrew the 8 screws on the velocity stacks, lift the airbox out of the way. I had to remove the wire to the flapper solenoid to accomplish this but I did not have to remove any other tubes or wires to lift the airbox up out of the way.

Remove the velocity stacks notice that the stacks are different sizes, they are offset so that the short ones are on the inside and the tall ones are outside. Front tall on the left short on right, back short on the left tall on the right.
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv08.jpg[/img]

Disconnect the hoses to the PAIR Valves front and back
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Back
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If you have a rubber cap plug up the open ends of the PAIR valve tubes, we did not so we stuffed in a plastic bag.
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv19.jpg[/img]

There are 4 starter valves connected to a 5 way tube connector, they take air from the airbox and bypass it into the intake manifold in place of a choke. They must be balanced by equalizing the vacuum pressure so they run evenly and run smoothly.
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv21.jpg[/img]

Here is a clear view of the 5 way connector
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another view
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv09.jpg[/img]

Remove the 4 tubes from the 5 way connector and connect them to your a 4 way vacuum tester, I use a motion pro mercury tool
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv13.jpg[/img]

They are difficult to reach and if you lose them you have to fish them out
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv14.jpg[/img]

make note of the tubes in relation to the starter valve location as they are related. connect the tubes to the number on the vacuum tool
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv15.jpg[/img]

Here they all are connected
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv16.jpg[/img]

Connect an electronic Tachometer

I have a multi use tool that has a built in tachometer
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv12.jpg[/img]

The ECM computer has a tach lead wire that gives off pulses that an electronic tachometer can read, I just shoved the lead in behind the connector, it is the yellow and green wire on the gray connector, and set the tool to 4 cyclinder.
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv10.jpg[/img]

Ground the tool anywhere on the frame
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv11.jpg[/img]

Start up the bike and warm it it up to operating temp. Then set the idle speed to 1200 rpm, Craig's bike was only at 1050 when first measured. The idle adjustment is on the right side
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv18.jpg[/img]

Begin balancing the valves, They are numbered #1 left rear, #2 left front, #3 right rear, and a non adjustable #4 valve at the right front side. turn the valves one at a time to get them all even with #4 and adjust the idle to 1200 until they are all even, clockwise to lower and counter to increase the vacuum pressure.

[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv17.jpg[/img]

Remove the tools and reconnect the 5 way connector, replace the airbox and reinstall the velocity stacks.

K&N filter install
Remove the rubber gaskets in the groves of the top and bottom of the airfilter

[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv02.jpg[/img]

The K&N has a built in gasket just set it into the groove.
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv20.jpg[/img]

Snorkel Modification

I also have a K&N on my VFR, I was cleaning it last month and found that the filter was dirty only on one side so I cut away a portion of the snorkel to get a more even distribution of air and still get the laminar flow.

I cut the rubber at the first ridge and left the top of the snorkel material, cutting at an angle.
[img=600]http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/uploads/vsnyc/vtechsv03.jpg[/img]

The modification increased my normal tank mileage by 20 miles to a tank of gas extra. But I did not notice a loss of torque at low rpm and a slight increase in power.

Ok ...great write up. This looks pretty straght forward. My dealer quotes 2.5 hours @ $68.00 :blink: Piss on that! What do I need to buy? The Vac. tester, is this avilible at Napa? How often does this need to be done? Every time a change is introduced to the intake tract?

A (stupid?) question --

When you hook everything up and fire up the engine, do you temporarily put the airbox and filter back on?

Or do you just hope the air is clean for the five minutes you're running it, and don't drop any rings into the throttle bodies?

You leave the airbox off. FWIW, you can't reach the adjustment screws at all with it on...

Hey Slammer, where would I find one of those vacuum testers?? I can't seem to find one on the net . . . the motion pro website dosen't seem to have them either <_<

N8sVFR, Jul 20 2005, 02:53 AMHey Slammer, where would I find one of those vacuum testers??  I can't seem to find one on the net . . . the motion pro website dosen't seem to have them either  <_<

You can order them at Dennis Kirk:

http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/product_cata...leafCatId=41804

http://www.carbtune.com/ I have one and they are flippin great!

Thanks guys -- appreciate it!!

I finally synchronized my starter valves last weekend after picking up the Motion Pro vac gauge. With Slammer's write-up and my Service Manual as references, the job was pretty easy. Thanks Slammer for identifying the green/yellow lead for the tach. Here's a picture of where my vacuum pressures were before I adjusted them all to the #4 cylinder. The starter valves had never been synch'ed since I bought the bike, which now has 20k miles on it.


(IMG:http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1121896211/gallery_4615_470_262145.jpg)
Starter valves prior to synchronization


One final step in the procedure that wasn't mentioned by Slammer was resetting the ECM self diagnosis data per the Service Manual. I did this final step by shorting the PGM-FI service check connector with a jumper wire as shown in the Service Manual. Slammer, do you feel this step isn't necessary, or did you just forget to mention it?

Thanks for the write up. I tackled this on my 02 VTEC today with my new Motion Pro carb tool.

A couple of things you might be able to help with.

With the carb tool what do you use to actually connect the carb tool hose to the starter valve hose? The tool came with 5mm metal tubes but with a nut and thread on one end. I just screwed the threaded end in to the starter valve hoses.


(IMG:http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1123928457/gallery_3406_615_954.jpg)
5mm Motion Pro carb tool connectors Do you screw the threaded end into the hose?


With resetting the error codes, where do you find the jumper connection? The picture in the manual doesn't give you any reference point for where on the bike it is. It is clear on the 5th gen but not the VTEC.


(IMG:http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1123928457/gallery_3406_615_1563.jpg)
Service Check Connector Where is this on a VTEC?

Those brass threads are for actually threading into a carb port, since you are not doing that but rather connecting to another hose you will need to remove the nut and just force the hoses on the bike over the threaded part till it seals.

That service connector is right below the fuse box on the right front of the bike.

The Brits - on their website - have made a truely HUGE issue about how the starter valves should NOT be syched all the same. They believe there was a miss-print in the vtec service manual which omitted the 20mm difference there should be between the 4 starters. The 5th gen has the 20mm difference & those specs were left out in the vtec service manual - the Brits show the two pages in the respective service manuals & it does look as if the text has been left out of the vtec manual compared to the 5th gen. They believe that svynchronising them all together gives the snatch throttle at small openings & that bringing in the starters in sequence makes the throttle much smoother. Basically you start with a V-twin then 10mm later have a V-three & then another 10mm later a v-four.

I did the throttle body synch on my '04 this evening. For bonus points, I did it with a homade oil manometer tool.

Take lots of 3/16th clear plastic tubing, and two T-junctions. Make four long tubes (6 ft), one short tube (6 in). Connect the bottom of the Ts together with the short tube. Connect the long tubes to the other T connections. Mount this nonsense on an upright 2x4 with the Ts at the bottom and tubes coming up to the top, so it looks kinda like a TB sync tool. Now fill this halfway with oil (I used bright blue fork oil) and get all the air out. Clamp the four ends closed (I used some plastic pinch clamps I found at the homebrew shop).

Go for a ride to warm up the engine. Pull the stuff off the bike. Attach the ends to the starter valves. Start the bike. Since the bike died immediately, adjust the idle speed upwards, start the bike, and then back it off to 1200rpm once the computer decides to stop trying to make it run right and the tach jumps to 4k.

I used the tach instead of a third-party electronic thing. I'm not sure how wrong that is.

Since the hoses are clamped, nothing much should be happening. Now, unclamp #4 and one of the adjustable ones. Be ready to slam them shut again lest you suck oil into your intake. I had no such problems, though. You should see things moving calmly in a direction if they are out. Adjust until nothing is moving anymore. Repeat with the other two adjustable valves.

Now the oil levels in the tubes are all over the place, but you can unclamp the reference and any other valve and not much happens. At this point you're probably done.

But, what I did now is stop the bike, disconnect things, and equalize the oil levels again. Then I reconnected and fired up the bike. I then unclamped all four tubes at the same time. At this point, #3 was pulling the oil very slowly higher. I adjusted it two more clicks and everything stopped moving.

I declared the starter valves "synched."

Refitting is the reverse of removal.

I'm not a particularly experienced mechanic, but I have half a brain for such things. I'd recommend if you have any inkling to do this yourself, you go for it and don't look back.

Time invested: 3 hours
Money invested: ~ $10 for tubing and fittings
Doing it your darned self and knowing it's done right: priceless.

tok tokkie, Aug 15 2005, 10:57 AMThe Brits - on their website - have made a truely HUGE issue about how the starter valves should NOT be syched all the same.? They believe there was a miss-print in the vtec service manual which omitted the 20mm difference there should be between the 4 starters.? The 5th gen has the 20mm difference & those specs were left out in the vtec service manual - the Brits show the two pages in the respective service manuals & it does look as if the text has been left out of the vtec manual compared to the 5th gen.? They believe that svynchronising them all together gives the snatch throttle at small openings & that bringing in the starters in sequence makes the throttle much smoother.? Basically you start with a V-twin then 10mm later have a V-three & then another 10mm later a v-four.

Has anyone heard more about not synching the valves all the same?

ProMed, Dec 13 2005, 07:52 AMHas anyone heard anymore about not synching the valves all the same?

I never subscribed to that idea since the airboxes are different from the 5th gen to the 6th gen VFR's The starter vavles on the VFR800 5th gen use different length vacuum tubes all connected to the starter valves on the right side of the bike. The VTEC is different cause it uses the same length tubes on a 5 way connector under the airbox. I beleive it is the length of the tubes that makes up for the difference in the 4 starter valves in the 5th gen, secondly the manual doesnt say specifically to use the same method as the vtec.

The manual for the vtec literally says

"Adjust each intake vacuum pressure with the NO. 4 cylinder"

it doesn't make a specific refrence to a differentiated pressure for the valves, as the 5th gen bike does, it says to me - 'make them equal'. Every vtec I have worked on ran better with them equal! Of course its almost impossible to actually them equal anyway as the mercury is always tossing about, its just a matter of getting them as close as you can. I mean if it was a miss print dont you think they would have corrected it after 4 years with a revised manual?

HispanicSlammer, Dec 13 2005, 10:02 AMI never subscribed to that idea since the airboxes are different from the 5th gen to the 6th gen VFR's  The starter vavles on the VFR800 5th gen use different length vacuum tubes all connected to the starter valves on the right side of the bike.

Thanks! :beer:

HispanicSlammer, Dec 13 2005, 08:02 AMI mean if it was a miss print dont you think they would have corrected it after 4 years with a revised manual?

I'm not sure I would give them that much credit. Another question is, why are the bikes delivered without being synched either at the factory, or dealer?

fallzboater, Dec 13 2005, 08:20 AMI'm not sure I would give them that much credit.  Another question is, why are the bikes delivered without being synched either at the factory, or dealer?

Cause the $660 dollars you paid in handling and assembly didnt cover Bubbas 10 minute smoke break.

Where can I get a tachometer? I have searched and searched, and everything I come up with is some gauge to fit aftermarket to a car that is not digital and has 50rpm resolution.

What is the model number/manuf. for this multimeter you have Miguel?

Got a buddy with an old dwell meter? 15.00. Glad I kept my'n after selling all of my old cars.

OK guys, I'm doing my valve sync and I'm concerned that the engine won't idle while I'm trying to do it. However, the engine is cold - is it critical that it's warmed up?

kaldek, Apr 1 2006, 06:32 PMOK guys, I'm doing my valve sync and I'm concerned that the engine won't idle while I'm trying to do it.  However, the engine is cold - is it critical that it's warmed up?

Wow I guess nobody who's read this so far has done their valves. Well anyway, just to add a little more info, this is the state the engine is in when I've tried:

- Engine is cold
- MAP sensor is disconnected (vacuum lines hooked up to sync. tool)

So for you other guys, your engines were warmed up I assume. Did the bike start fine and immediately idle at normal revs?

kaldek, Apr 1 2006, 02:32 AMOK guys, I'm doing my valve sync and I'm concerned that the engine won't idle while I'm trying to do it.  However, the engine is cold - is it critical that it's warmed up?

Yes. Wait...am I a victim of an April fool's joke?

intrcptrrdr, Apr 1 2006, 10:33 PMYes.  Wait...am I a victim of an April fool's joke?

WTF? Mate, I actually really need the help. This aint no April fools joke - besides it's way past 12pm on April the 1st here!

kaldek, Apr 1 2006, 06:38 AMWTF?  Mate, I actually really need the help.  This aint no April fools joke - besides it's way past 12pm on April the 1st here!

Easy now, it was an innocent gaff. Sorry. It is indeed very important that your bike be warmed up so it will idle. As you make adjustments the idle will change some as well. Keep it at 1200rpm. Although it is best you use a digital tachometer it is not imperative. The bike's tach will suffice. HS's procedures above are taken from the manual and when I did mine I used both this thread and the manual.

My bike did not want to start or idle until warmed up. I had to give it gas while cranking to get it to crank at all, and that took a few tries. After it had run for 30 seconds or so it would idle on it's own.

kaldek, Apr 1 2006, 06:28 AMWow I guess nobody who's read this so far has done their valves.  Well anyway, just to add a little more info, this is the state the engine is in when I've tried:

- Engine is cold
- MAP sensor is disconnected (vacuum lines hooked up to sync. tool)

So for you other guys, your engines were warmed up I assume.  Did the bike start fine and immediately idle at normal revs?

Yes! I haven't done my'n yet, but having done it on other bikes, you must have it warmed up.

Right - job done! My valves were already well in sync and I basically needed one tiny twiddle of cylinder No. 2.

As for the whole "warming it up" thing, I found that it absolutely did need to be warmed up as everyone stated, and it also would not idle for about 10 seconds after starting even then. I had to hold the throttle open a bit, and during this time the engine revs went up/down, up/down, up/down. After about 10 seconds suddenly the engine switched to constant revs and I was able to let go of the throttle - at which point it idled happily. It must be that just after starting the engine is really relying on the MAP sensor to keep it ticking over, until it settles down.

During reassembly I forgot to reconnect the MAP sensor vacuum line (as usual) so had a small fright for a few seconds before I realised my mistake. It's important to reset the ECU diagnostics data after the job, otherwise you'll have all sorts of error codes in there (because you had the MAP and IAT sensors disconnected) which will still be around when you have a *real* problem. Ergo, clear 'em out - which requires removal of your front fairing.

kaldek, Apr 1 2006, 06:47 PM clear 'em out - which requires removal of your front fairing.

I think you can get to the reset through the right meter panel or by removing one of the inner plastic covers by the meter panel also.

Surprised your valves were sync'd, had you done it or had it done before?

a bit of info i learned...If you have a power commander you can use the tach feature that it has as this also feeds off of the ecu.

jeremy556, Apr 2 2006, 11:38 AMISurprised your valves were sync'd, had you done it or had it done before?

Yeah it had been done at the 48,000km service (24,000km ago) by the dealer.

kaldek, Apr 1 2006, 11:47 PM... Ergo, clear 'em out - which requires removal of your front fairing.

You can reset the 02+ models without removing the front fairing. You only need to remove the right side fairing. It is a reach to get to the PGM-FI system service check connector, but not a real problem to get a paper clip in as a jumper wire to short the system. It is on the right side of the bike under the front fairing ahead of the ECM. I have done it a couple of times, and it saves a bit of work.

I just did the starter valve sync, and here's a few tips that aren't mentioned, but will make things easier on you.

1. Don't use a dial guage vaccuum sync tool (unless you know how to.) The mercury guages are much easier to use. If you do use a dial guage one, make sure you use quality valves between the guage and the vaccuum ports. This will help eliminate the needle flutter and enable you to actually sync the starter valves.

2. Those adjustment screws are impossible to reach. I found that no matter how long or short of a screwdriver I used, it just didn't want to bend around the fuel rail. I found that using a 1/4 drive 7mm deep socket with a u-joint and a 3 inch extension on the end worked flawlessly.

3. If you plan on removing the PAIR valve, the size cap you'll need to plug the valves are 1/2" for the PAIR valve and a 5/8" for the airbox nipple. 5/8" will work on the valves too if 1/2" can't be found.

4. USE AN EXTERNAL TACH! DON'T RELY ON THE DASH BOARD TACH! Getting the engine to idle at 1200 rpm is crucial to adjusting the starter valves right. I figured I just rely on the dash tach to set the idle and found myself not able to get the #1 valve sync'd. You don't need a fancy digital tach. An old school dwell meter with a tach will work perfectly. I picked one up off of ebay for $10 w/shipping. Once I hooked it up I found that the factory tach was close to 600 rpm off.

Not sure this is the right topic, but did a search on idle speed and this was the closes I found.
I just gone done with replacing my thermostat, coolant and oil. All is back together and temperature problems are fixed, but the bike wants to idle around 1700 rpm. The manual says 1300 ?100. Is there an adjustment setting for the idle on a 5th gen?

there is an idle adjuster down low on the right side just forward of your oil service plug. you will see a little black wheel tucked up in the fairing

767fixer, Apr 13 2006, 07:51 PMthere is an idle adjuster down low on the right side just forward of your oil service plug.  you will see a little black wheel tucked up in the fairing

Not sure what you are thinking of? I was trying to adjust the idle speed on my 5th gen. Anyone else looking, the service manual shows it as the throttle stop screw. Lift the tank and on the right side, there is a 8mm screw just below the air hoses and in front of the fuel line. Turning it counter-clockwise lowers the idle. I probably knocked it when I was changing the thermostat. Problem seems to be fine now, idle is set to 1300 rpm. If I am totally off base, please let me know.

Okay, so I did the valve sync a few weeks ago and I'm pretty sure I didn't do it right. I just finally found my factory manual (I hate moving, you can never find stuff) and after reading through it I'm confused on one part of it. It says to "Temporarily connect the MAP sensor vaccuum hose and connector." What do I temporarily connect the vaccuum hose to? Obviously the MAP sensor on one end, but the other end is connected to the 5-way valve that now is not connected to anything. It was mentioned earlier to disconnect the MAP, but the manual says connect it. Which is right or does it matter?