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03 Heritage Springer EFI stalls on deceleration

The plastic hoses in the tank, convoluted, were known for getting holes in them.
When the tank is down below 1/4 You can look into the filler with a flashlight and cycle the run switch on to energize the pump. Watch for any misting and the sound of fuel spray.
I changed them along with the fuel filter on a 03 RKC that I had with around 20,000 miles on it.
Made a big difference.
 
Ribeye, and Joel,
This is interesting info I've never known about. So, Joel you're saying use your cigarette lighter to peer into the tank? Just kidding... But seriously now, in my mind a loss of pressure would make OP's bike run bad on acceleration too wouldn't it?
 
The tube gets pin holes in them with the fuel level low as you look into the tank with a light ( not a road flair )
You can see a bit of fog and may hear a spray sound.
Pressure and volume become affected and when bad enough and can cause extended crank or a couple tries to get it started.
I also was experiencing back firing on deceleration and once in awhile at shut down, along with the lean exhaust smell in the garage .
These conditions are what got me looking for the cause.
 
Do you think that condition is caused by the tubes not being submerged for long periods? Or can all of us within certain years just expect them all to eventually fail due to the inferior material failing?
 
You can do a fuel pressure test. Pin holes in the fuel lines will cause reductions in fuel pressure. I don't remember what they should be. My aging memory banks seem to speak about somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 PSI, but don't trust me. Find out what really should be.

Now, if such is true, then the cold engine settings may compensate a bit, but when the engine warms up, you can have stalling upon deceleration, and a flat acceleration. After stalling, starting is apparently fairly easy, but a resumption of stalling and sputtering manifests after warm-up. Please note that issues such as this are compensated for until the system runs out of overhead, then problems show up, and you may even have a bit of code throwing, that is hard to nail down. Don't ask me how I know. If you are carburated, and not injected, disregard my input.

As I stated, When I discovered mine, I replaced the lines, but put the old lines around the new ones, so the rubbing in the tank will have to rub through more material before holes form. No problems since. It is not inferior material. It is fuel line placement/orientation in the tank. No rubbing, no rub holes. The original lines are just a bit long, so slack is available to rub, unless carefully aranged.

Enjoy,
Rich P
 
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Guess I've been lucky so far. But, if it works, it don't need fixin. I just gotta remember if I have any problems like those mentioned to look at the lines inside. Thanks for the info!
 
A good indicator of holes (loss of fuel pressure)in your tank lines is when your bike runs perfectly fine with a full tank.
However, when the fuel level drops below the hoses, air instead of fuel is sucked into the holes and you get those issues you describe- say when the level drops to half a tank. Or below the level of the hose where the pinholes are.
If it does have this symptom; you can take the cap off and have a listen for any hissing or gurgling, and you could also look for bubbles or liquid disturbance in the fuel.
As RibEye said: if yours has carbs then obviously this is not your issue.
 
ThunderRogue said:
So, does anyone know when HD fixed this problem? What years are affected?
Click to expand...
If you have always run ethanol free fuel you won't have the perforation problem. I did with my 07 when it was a year old. Easy way to tell if it is perforated is to open the gas cap and cycle the ignition when the fuel pump starts you will see the gas really moving in the tank
 
The OPs symptoms do not point to a pin hole in the internal fuel line which has been a problem but not a pandemic. The OP's symptoms do however point to a dirty IAC port. The symptoms of loss of fuel pressure due to a pin hole in an internal fuel line are as described above by biscuit; the bike will run fine on a full tank but when fuel level drops to about a half tank, the misbehaving starts. The fixes for the problem are described above and Ribeye's idea of using the old line to protect the new is a good one.

Waiting to hear from the OP if he has cleaned the IAC port and solved the problem.
 
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