So I was riding on the Autobahn to get to some nice country roads, breaking in the engine a bit more with full throttle for a short while, when suddenly speed dropped and it seemed the VTec setting was stuck in the 4 valves mode. Then the oil lamp came on, and the engine started to sound like an old Harley in idle.
I could roll off the Bahn and found I couldn't start the engine anymore. Dash went dark when trying, engine seemed stuck. After cooling off for a while, it started again, but sounded very unhealthy, like something was loose. So I had to have it towed to the dealer. Great afternoon..
p.s. 1120 km, it just had its first service 100 km ago.
I would talk to the dealership and ask them what they did. And what the problem was. I mean it's either their fault or it is a big failure and it should be warrantied.
Do they come with roadside assistance? Or did you have to pay for that tow??
Good luck.
C
Aren't the vtec valves activated by oil pressure, could there be too much oil in since its service?
Aren't the vtec valves activated by oil pressure, could there be too much oil in since its service?
There's a Pressure relief Valve in the lubrication system so excess oil should never Produce excess Pressure in the system. Besides that, VTEC activation Requires Several parameter Requirements be met in order to trigger activation: 6400 Rpm + 64°C engine temp. Oil Pressure is not a Parameter the ECU actually Takes into Account. Even Though oil Pressure is Required to actuate the extra Valves, the system Apparently Uses that Programmed minimum engine temp to Assume there is Enough Pressure. Still, due to the relief Valve excess pressure shouldn't be a Problem or there'd be all sorts of Other (worse) Problems.
It's Probably more likely an electrical Problem or it's electronic (ECU)... rather than Mechanical.
Sorry I can't help more.
Please keep us posted on what you learn. I just passed 1000 miles on the VFR I obught a few weeks ago.
No! So sad to hear. Keep us updated and lets hope the dealer just didn't put some connector back properly when they did the service ... or something like that.
(I'll be using the german Autobahns in two weeks, so I don't want any bad vfr-karma. :wink: )
SCHEI................... :-(
The Honda dealer should take good care of you and your bike.
If not, document what has transpired and write to Honda HQ in Japan. They will be very keen to ensure customer satisfaction is written in CAPITAL letters.
They even shipped a VFR1200 engine to Nigeria.....
So for now, be assured this sour period will pass...
(I would be 'king livid....)
Thanks guys. The senior mechanic wasn't in this morning, but they told me from my description it sounded like a problem with a valve spring. Anyway, they will be getting spare parts by express service and will contact me this afternoon for a status update. Clearly covered by warranty of course.
The towing service though was called in by Honda with their "mobility guarantee", which covers the 1200F but not the 800F here. They could not find my VIN in the system and said they would cover the cost under reserve. Hope I'm not getting a bill.
If you get the bill just hand it in to your dealer, they really should pick that up for you!!
5 year warranty if you service at the dealer,in my world that means that the dealer (honda)will pick up the bike at NO cost if something happens after service! I suppose we will see if thats the case here.
And another thing if my engine started to sound strange i would gun it to make sure it was dead in ever sort of way so there would be no question repair-vs exchange engine!
2 years warranty here. And the dealer would not cover the bill if one came, though their employee made the mistake of forwarding my call to Honda. They would pick it up for free (in fact they did so when I had a problem with the NC that was not covered by warranty), but not on a Sunday. However, Honda called an external service.
Of course, I remembered today that I do have free service from my insurer..
Talked to the mechanic now, he said this was an extremely unusual case (the motors are know to be very durable), valve damage is likely, and they have to ask Honda on how to proceed now.
I feel your pain especially now when the season is starting in europe(well northern europe atleast) we all love our bikes but something makes me wonder if honda has left their high quality line and start to chip away their good reputation? :( I meen the engine failures of 1200 MY 2010 and now the NEW 800??! I really hope it is just a few cases and not all our bikes that have bad quality :(
I will bet that it is something the dealer did or didnt do at the service 100Kms before.
Did you check the oil level?
Sounds like it siezed to me.
I did not check anything so shortly after the service. The mechanic suspected this as well, but he said the oil level seemed ok. What about the coolant, is it exchanged at the 1000 km service?
Engine coolant is replaced every 3 years,hope you get a new engine and a fat check for the standstill for the time the bike is standing at the shop.
You're not getting a cheque here. I'm just glad I still got my trusty NC.
I just feel sad for you, Emil. New bike and the best part of the season (at least imho). :unsure:
I hope things will make out for the best - and soon! Good thing you have the NC now. Completely bikeless would be bad.
So any news about the engine?
No news (senior mech is on vacation this week), but I have a question: which temperatures are normal for this bike with full throttle for short amounts of time (speed going up to ~200 km/h), or in city traffic? I wonder if there was a cooling problem, i.e. thermostat not opening the larger cooling circuit. I quickly saw it going up to 110° several times.
On my 2006 vfr i had a temp around 104 in slow city traffic shorter periods then fans would bring it down to around 95 so i dont think its a link to your problems but 110 is a bit on the high side i think..Hope your bike get the treatment it deserve and that you will be back on the road with it soon .
With faster speeds on same bike i never went over say 95 i think on highways and such since the wind cools the whole engine not just the radiator.
My current 2015 is around 85 degrees when driving within the speed limit havent driven so hard yet since i have only driven it 360 km so far so not had first service yet.
My 2015 also hangs around 85C. Highest so far stuck in traffic was 100C.
Mine usually hangs quite steady at 78 C...
Mine sits around 78-80 most of the time but on a hot day (37degC) when we were touring at about 120Ks it went up to 95.
I was not concerned because the conditions were horrendous and the engine was still tight
Bear in mind that if you have lost coolant in the engine your temperature gauge may not register the true temperature because the sensor is not in contact with the coolant.
I hope that you did not lose your coolant.
The dealer sent a video of the now strange sounding engine to Honda, who basically said you're on your own.
They will work overtime to get something done. Source of the problem remains unknown for now.
The dealer sent a video of the now strange sounding engine to Honda, who basically said you're on your own.
Sad but NOT your concern.
It must be contractual agreed beween Mother Honda and the dealers that it is the operational responsibility of the dealer to deal with warranty costs (especially as it happened after they worked on the engine).
So symphatise, but demand nothing less than a full fix and compensation....
Yes sure, the dealer had just hoped Honda had already heard of this problem and could speed up the process. Which they can't, so the senior mech will have to find the time to dismantle the engine. Not an easy thing at spring / early summer season.
Stuff that I would want a new crate engine replacement on such a new bike even if the dealer has to pay for it everything points to them causing the damage in the first place
I mean if ittakes 15- 20 hours of mechanics time to find the problem and the associated parts costings
Time to go see a lawyer
Well, relax. I'm already paying lawyers on several issues that piss me off. This is not one of them, not yet.
I want the bike back with an repaired engine, I don't care all that much if it was replaced or not. I *am* going to test the repaired one on the Autobahn, and if it is not "full throttle proof", as we say, I will quickly find out.
I would have thought that if this is a first for Honda then they would want to investigate it for themselves, and also give you a new or equivalent bike to ensure good customer relations, rather than leave it up to a possibly inept mechanic that may have caused the issue in the first place.
Call me naive.
It would be nice if it was that way, but while the main company in Japan is known for such actions, the local subsidiaries aren't.
In the domestic NC forum, we had someone with a damaged DCT (same part as the regular gearbox) shortly after the warranty period. No goodwill.. they leave this to the dealers here, who write down less working hours than they actually worked on the bike, etc.