Please allow me to introduce myself

I,m a man of wealth and taste..........well I have just bought a baby GRiSO so that accounts for the taste! The minister for War and Finance (SWMBO) may have other ideas about the wealth part though.
This will be my 5th or 6th Guzzi, the others being round barrels, I also have a T3 Cali at the moment as well. My name is Ian, and I'm an engineer for Airbus in Australia. Anyway, looking forward to learning lots of new stuff, and getting to know you all.
Cheers.
Ian

Welcome. Pics! Now!

G'day Ian
Welcome from us all down in Tas
Enjoy your GRiSO and stay safe

G'day mate welcome.

Thanks, Ian, for focusing on your day job, too, as thanks to you and others Kathi -- my own CFO & SWMBO -- arrived safely at IAD last night from Seattle on an Airbus.  

Oh, and welcome.  

Bill

Welcome Ian!

Welcome to the Ghetto!!

Welcome, Ian, from the other side of the world.

Thanks for the warm welcome from everyone.
It looks like I shall be using the technical knowledge of the forum dwellers sooner than I thought.
This morning the bloody thing wouldn't start, well that is it started then cut out as it wasn't idling properly then wouldn't farkin start.
Checked the fuses, all good.
Tried the clutch, side stand, and kill switches. No difference.
All I got was the fizzing of the injection system and a clunk from the starter.
Fuck,fuck,fuckety, fuck.
Took the car to work, get home key in the ignition, and she fires straight up as if nothing was wrong!!!
I'm in the process of checking all the connections and will look into the wiring mod I have read about, but intermittent electrical problems leave me cold. Trouble is I now don't trust the bike not to leave me stranded.
Did I mention I am royally fucked off?
Confused of bogan mountain.

Well Bogan mountain shall rejoice,
"Startus Interuptus" thread here will tell you all you need to know.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Luigi back at the factory has been producing the same wiring loom for all Guzzi's since he was a boy.
"Cozza datza da way we haza alwayza dunnit."

Regards,
Bogan Brother No.2

In this case it is also very likely to simply be dirty contacts on the battery terminals. If these are grotty and the battery is a bit weak then when the starter starts drawing big current the voltage will drop below threshold for the day and it'll turn everything off. Then, after a few seconds, it will fire up again when the draw is off, the dash will fire up again and it will all look good.

Clean the terminals thoroughly and the cable ends. Also check the earth strap mount at the starter motor.

Pete

Thanks for the responses Ghezzi and Pete, just to clarify the battery is brand new as it did the same thing on Monday so I fitted a new battery Tuesday, and the terminals are spot on and tight. They have now been done up and undone about a hundred times tonight.
So fora I have checked the earths and cleaned the contacts on the following
ECU, starter earth point on the engine case, slight corrosion on the bolt but the terminals are good, the 4 way connector from the starter and kill switch, all fuses and relays.
So reconnect battery and it starts first hit, then the same as before it stumbles and cuts out, then just clicking.
So check voltage at the starter solenoid 12.8v, clean and tighten the small earth lead and test on the bike while unbolted and it spins right up. Bolt back onto bike and it fires up. Repeat starts and I can't duplicate the problem. Now that sounds like it's fixed but we are talking Italian electrics here, so a pound to a pinch of shit that it will fuck up at the most innoportune moment, most likely at night, in the rain, out the back of beyond.
My thought so far is it doesn't seem to like it when I press the button and let it self start, if it stumbles and stops it won't start again, like a sulky bitch who doesn't like being played with. It seems to need a prod of the button and a bit of throttle to keep the revs up until it's firmly in its stride, not long just a few seconds until I can tell it's happy idling.
My apologies for the lengthy post, but I am starting to regret this bike, and I love riding it, so I want it fixed!!!

Ian p wrote:

Thanks for the responses Ghezzi and Pete, just to clarify the battery is brand new as it did the same thing on Monday so I fitted a new battery Tuesday, and the terminals are spot on and tight. They have now been done up and undone about a hundred times tonight.
So fora I have checked the earths and cleaned the contacts on the following
ECU, starter earth point on the engine case, slight corrosion on the bolt but the terminals are good, the 4 way connector from the starter and kill switch, all fuses and relays.
So reconnect battery and it starts first hit, then the same as before it stumbles and cuts out, then just clicking.
So check voltage at the starter solenoid 12.8v, clean and tighten the small earth lead and test on the bike while unbolted and it spins right up. Bolt back onto bike and it fires up. Repeat starts and I can't duplicate the problem. Now that sounds like it's fixed but we are talking Italian electrics here, so a pound to a pinch of shit that it will fuck up at the most inopportune moment, most likely at night, in the rain, out the back of beyond.

Hi Ian,
I had *almost* exactly the same issue with my 2008 GRiSO which had been flawless since the day I bought it (apart from shagged suspension and tyres, but that's all fixed and another story).
I had ridden it 35km thru hilly roads and had a magnificent ride, pulled into see a friend who is a auto electrician and a hour later, the GRiSO refused to start, it cranked and cranked, and nothing. We decided it may be the little plastic joiner on the furl pump (in the fuel tank), so I pulled it out, but it was perfect. I gave up and went home leaving my bike at my friends shop. Next morning it started first pop and has been flawless since and I've done about 1000km I guess.

Nevertheless after around 20 bikes, the GRiSO is by far the most enjoyable bike I've ever had and I'm now 62 years old. I'm never selling my GRiSO and I've only had it around 14 months.

So what's the good news for you?

Imagine you'd just bought a BMW with the digital suspension, brakes etc, and it has the same problem as your new GRiSO ?, where do you start, how do you get the service info, codes, special test gear ? who do you go to, what will they charge, where are they ?

Sure this problem is a worry, but you *can* find out what's up, all the info is available, there is a dedicated cabal of GRiSO riders who will help you find the problem, and you have the easiest bike on earth to work on. *that's the good news*

Remember the old saying 'hard start, easy finish? "

Oh, by the way, got roller tappets ?

Cheers, and welcome to Grisoland,
Terry

It's an 850 Terry, he doesn't have to worry about that.

Really though the electrics on the later bikes are all pretty reliable. The two main bugbears are dirty terminals and the old 'Startus Interuptus' problem caused by Guzzi's perennial weird ignition wiring. Neither are difficult to fix.

As for it being reluctant to start and idle? My guess is it's never been tuned properly or someone has fucked about with the TB's in ways they shouldn't of.

I dunno where you are, I'll have to check, but I'll bet Michael or I could have it purring in a trice.

Pete

What Pete said. I reckon she just needs fondle of her throttle bodies and she'll be sweet.

Thanks all for the positive responses and suggestions. I was hoping to get the bike down to Mr Ropers magical emporium in the not too dim and distant future. I just need to get it starting reliably as it's a 3 1/2 hour journey.
Last night I had it starting repeatedly, but when I got to it this morning no starts again.
I figured the battery might be a bit low so stuck it on charge for a bit, then it's started just fine.
I am now just going to put it back together and hope. I am stumped.
One last thing, I can't for the life of me work out which wire to remove from which relay. And does the relay connection go straight to the battery via a fuse?
Thanks again for all the help guys, I don't feel quite so stranded now!