The previous owner of my 2004 RR put in 93 unleaded (european) so i guess this is 93 RON. The 2004 1000rr manual i downloaded calls for 95 + in this bike. Now my question is: The bike seemed ran perfectly on 93 at least from what i could tell. So I decided to try Shell 95 Vpower. From cold with 95 unlraded i noticed i needed to give a little blip of throttle before the bike would start. I also noticed smoke from the exhaust until the exhaust warmed then it stopped. I did not have this with 93 unleaded. Now my thinking is that perhaps 95 unleaded back in 2004 when this bike was built was different than the 95/vpower unleaded petrol that is sold today ? Thats why the previous owner reccomended 93 ? As the bike seems to run fine on 93 no start up issues no smoke. Should i go back to 93 unleaded? And why is the bike smoking on startup with 95 and somewhat battling to start.
No specific knowledge to be honest, but very much doubt there is any difference in the fuel spec between 2004 and now. Think of the issues that would cause if there were I would suggest run it to empty with what’s in and then fill with 93 for the next couple of tanks - see if that improves the start and reduces the smoke. If it does great, if it doesn't then its not the fuel and you need to investigate other potential causes of the start and smoking.
Mate, if you know the bike runs fine on 93 with no start up problems and no smoke you've answered your own question.
This again? What colour smoke? Are you sure it's not just water vapour? Also you are at altitude, non of us are in the UK, the country is mostly flat by comparison, so we have no experience of running bikes or cars above 3000 ft.
Thanks all answers was helpfull. Bladey indeed i will go back to 93 thx Coda smoke was white and i could smell.the fuel. Never happened with 93 unleaded. Im at 5000 ft asl. Will go back to 93 thx hopefully i did not damage something going 95
You smelled unburnt fuel. That's normal at startup because the system is enriched for easier starting. Probably a co-incidence. Not possible. The difference in octane is tiny and the fuel injection map makes up for any differences. Edit: One other thought. If you have a LOT of white smoke on start up and it's not water vapour, then the other possibility is a head gasket failure, letting coolant into the combustion chamber. Again it's not likely changing fuels caused this, but head gaskets can go at any time, especially on an older, higher mileage vehicle.
The 2004 blade does not have a knock sensor so i assume it cannot remap for fuel type. With 93 fuel i never had smoke and i never smelled the fuel as much as when i put in the 95 for the first time. It would be really bummed if its headgasket, i dont see any coolant loss looking at the reservoir..? but like mentioned this only happened for the first time when i put in 95 fuel. It never happened with 93.. I also had to give it a little blip before she would start from cold with 95. On 93 i just crank and she starts just fine.
If there was a head gasket failure, one way to tell for sure would be look at the oil. You'd see light brown creamy/foamy deposits. If your oil is ok, then your head gasket is probably ok. The only conclusion I can come to is that the 95 you used is contaminated in some way. It's not as uncommon as one would think.
I know you said she seems to run perfectly. If it definitely is perfect then great, happy days. No need to read on and sticking to 93 should be the end of it. However. How does your throttle feel when she’s running? Smooth and linear ? Are there any random signs of a miss, a hesitation or have you encountered the bike unexpectedly stalling ? Curious that’s all.
Thanks Coda i will check the oil hopefully it would show through the glass level view otherwise i'll open the cap and shine a light inside it. Holding thumbs all is ok and if i put 93 i hope all would hopefully go back to normal. Wes...bike runs perfectly smooth and linear throttle, even on the 95... if have topped out at 254km/h on sunday fastest ive ever gone with this bike with absolutely no signs of any sort of hesitation as she screamed to life the motor ran very strong. Btw not going that fast any time soon again i really got a sense of just how fragile one as a person is at that speed ... i cannot say that i did not have a non adrenalitic experience it was explosive ! But the bike ran perfectly.
I just touched that mark then immediately let go of the throtlle... i was not on a track... fuel prices have also gone through the roof so i guess in some way its a good thing to keep the wrist disciplined from now on. And should only be done on track if i were to do it again its really stupid otherwise... havent ridden her again yet so i guess i will only see how she performs when i fill with 93 again. Hope she'll be ok..thx for the help/suggestions !!
No judgement from me. If you wanna do 150+ on a public road, well who am I to say anything? We're not even in the same country, it could even be legal where you live...
