I thought I had this sorted but alas I do not.

At first I thought it was the fuel pump filter. Pulled and cleaned, seemed to have gotten better but symptoms retuned the next day. Tried SeaFoam; seemed to improve but then symptoms returned within a day or so. Next thought was the fact I had been running it on 89 rather than the 93 we have here in central IN. After two full tanks of 93, still same situation. Tried adjusting Power Commander low end buttons; first, all the way lean - made it worse, then tried all the way rich. Adding fuel actually made it rideable, so I thought it might be a leak on the intake side; ruled that out this evening - still runs poorly.

Assuming I do this correctly, here's a link to a short video so anyone interested can listen to the idle. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Smf9RtwOaPs

Do you have a manual timing wheel?

Do I have an OE problem or aftmkt problem?
1. I remove the aftmkt product out of the loop.
2. I remove the hot side of the PC, because the inj's are still grounded if I remove the ground only at the PC.
3. The only way to find out is to listen to turtle or chase your tail like a loose battery cable you refuse to check.

Signed,
Not my bike

Injectors and fuel system seems not to be the problem. spark plugs, stick coils, wires? Crakshaft sensor? timing rotor like Grn said?

If you want to remove the PC, I would try putting in a zero map first which should give you the same effect but lots easier than pulling that bloody main wiring harness apart...unless the connection there is the whole problem.

"Signed,
Not my bike"...LMAO.

I would start investigating what Rook suggested starting with the spark plug, then coils and wires.

It has a rough idle that sounds like a cylinder is cutting out once in a while but you can also hear the problem when you run it up to 2500 rpm. This is happening through the rev range.

No backfires tells me your mixture and timing are probably ok. Have the throttle bodies been sync'ed?

* Last updated by: ahhlou on 7/1/2017 @ 6:41 AM *

Describing sounds on the internet is difficult but it's normal for all Kawasakis to have a "lopey" sounding undertone at idle. If you sit on the bike and listen to the idle, it sounds like there some kind of exhaust drum beat going on in the background. It's very rhythmic but it does not follow an absolute pattern. Kruz has owned 4 Kaw sportbikes and they all do it. This is caused by the the AFR jumping back and forth between two cells in the map. because the engine is under 0 load, the rpm spins up and down responding to fueling differences in two adjacent cells. Mine also has a stutter when held at around 2500 rpm but I only encounter that in N. You can see both of these in my video (5:20) and I hear it in your video, too.

It does sound like you might have a couple prolonged periods stumbles, maybe not running on all cylinders. I just wanted to show you that your engine idle sounds pretty normal so you don't go chasing red herrings. If it is unrideable, obviously there is some problem but it sounds fine for the most part when idling
(at least it does to me).

* Last updated by: Rook on 7/1/2017 @ 9:03 AM *

When you are riding the bike does it jerk or is it just the sound you are hearing?
Not sure if it's the same but I have something similar, and only started hearing it after I changed exhausts from standard to aftermarket. Mine actually surges every now and then. I have tried everything on the fueling side within the PCV to no avail. I also tried various pipes. The Yoshimura R55 full setup was the smoothest idle. Now with the Titanium Arata on, it does it again.
However If I hold two fingers against the outlet of the exhaust pipe the surging settles down and it idles a lot smoother. This makes me believe that it could be a lack of back pressure, just don't know how to fix it without restricting the exhaust in a negative way.

It doesn't affect my riding, in fact the bike is super smooth even with the sound. it's just resonance So I have learnt to live with it. The idle still peeves me, but hopefully Romans will come up with solution this summer.

Alright!Now that's a cool vid of your AT.Good job Rook...I don't think mine fluctuates maybe that much.It's stays fairly smooth.Could be just the muffler killing the sharpness sound(s).Again,good vid.Now I know what you've been talking about...nice;)I do think when adding an aftermarket freer breathing exhaust the idles do change.I don't really know how to describe it,the factory mufflers I think help the engine get the right backpressure or something.

That's interesting Untamed...you posted your comment just before (but it came up while I was posting mine) I did...so that's TWO then that think similarly about the stock exhaust and backpressure.I've got a Brock's 4 into 1 full system on mine...it's pretty darn smooth at idle.

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 7/1/2017 @ 9:44 AM *

Fantastic vid Rook, thank you.

Untamed, the sound I was trying to highlight (to what degree of success, I'm not sure) was what I call, "the need to clear it's throat". While I'm certainly not looking for a perfect idle, it's during these "phlegmy throat" sounds, the bike is very jerky. So much in fact, when I come to what we here in Indiana call a "round-about", I have to drop all the way down to first gear to keep the bike from falling over. Whatever is causing this abrupt cutout is associated with that sound as it idles. It becomes far more pronounced on the road between 1000-3000 rpm only. Anything 4K and above, the bike runs magnificently.

Alright, so the POD (Plan of the Day for the non-Navy types in the audience) is to pull the plugs to inspect their condition then verify the correct map was installed. If plugs look good and correct map was installed, I'll load a zero map to see how that goes.

To the question of TB balancing, it's not been done and I have no plans to do so. I've read all of Rook's experiences and agree with him 100%, that doing a TB balance offers little to no improvement. I also base this from 10 years of regularly balancing the carbs on my Yamaha Vmax. The difference being, I don't mind doing Max's balance work because the adjustment screws are very easily accessible; the antithesis of the ZX14.

More updates to follow once available.

All the best-

Devin

While you have the coils out check the Pri and 2nd winding resistance against SM spec values.

POD = Ping Of Dept's.
Balanced Pings = Within Spec.
Pings Balanced - No Codes present.

Parasitic Pings = Slowly I turn...
Coughs due to colds ... Step by step.

Who Dat Knocking at my door?
The Pharmacy with your riding supplies of each time you ride = POD [Pop-O-Dose]

Primary coils do not clean up after OP mentions it runs fine after 3k. Manup pills is the answer is: love the map.

Signed,
NOLTT

So Mr 44Magnum, the Hub has diagnosed your condition as a lack of or small balls. They have a meds for that ....

Happy 4th to all!

Funny guy Rudy ;)

Turns out the map file was for a stock exhaust setup. I uploaded the full-system Muzzy map and it already sounds more 'calm'. Road test results will follow.

https://youtu.be/JWzf_6ClKtE

Devin-

LOL sounds better already...Actually, you run a video of a bike and say it sounds like something's wrong and all the sudden, everyone starts to here the normal weirdness of a 14 idling and thinks it's running poorly. All I heard in the first video was a couple longer lulls. I might not have noticed had you not said it sounded strange.

What I have been told by Brock and other tuners is that a race filter makes no discernable dif in AFR for almost any riding situation. It will give you a couple more peak hp and that's where the tuning might be ever so slightly different. The mapping is no different for stock or aftermarket.

* Last updated by: Rook on 7/1/2017 @ 4:14 PM *

You'll notice your new map is all 0s in the 0% TP column. That is normal practice because usually it is best to let the bike figure out its own fueling needs at 0% throttle. The previous map may have had the 0% column tuned and that was your week idle problem. If the other map had no values in the 0% column, the mapping has not changed for 0% TP. I hope the rest of the range is better for your exhaust.

glad that was all it was!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWzf_6ClKtE&feature=youtu.be

MPPC = Mappisscrap. The classic internet 'buddy, can yo spare a map, my mappiss...'
MP = Manpills. Known not to enlarge or shrink testicles, but to 'see I told you so.'

Thank you for your services

* Last updated by: Hub on 7/1/2017 @ 8:04 PM *

So am I Rudy, thanks man.

Rook, yeah it's definitely a nuanced sound which on one hand, at least it wasn't an enormous problem. While on the other, sometimes those are easier to find.

Hub, yes, I do believe you alluded to the map being suspect early on.

Road test update proved to be pleasant; the symptom is still there but very much improved. Now that I have two maps to compare, I'm going to do a quick calc on the areas having changed from stock to the Muzzy map then make further tweaks to see if I can get more smoothing (i.e. TP% 2 and 5 throughout the 1500-3000 rpm range.)

You are a lot safer at low rpm running lean than high rpm but I'd want an AFR gauge to see where I'm at before doing manual adjustments.

Time for a dyno tune to finish her off

I hear ya Rook, I only made fairly small adjustments and Rudy I think you're right as well.

The adjustments I made did in fact improve even further so I thought I'd go just a little more to see if I could clean up the 2000-2250 range, but I made it worse. Fair enough, I found the failure point and scrapped that map then went back to my original revision; I'll ride it there for awhile and see how things go.

The guy that does my tires has a magazine write-up posted on the wall of his shop for his turbo '06 14. He'll be the guy that does the final tweak should I decide to do so.

Thanks again guys-

Devin

* Last updated by: 44magnum on 7/1/2017 @ 11:15 PM *

If the target AFR tables are different, there might actually be some pretty big changes required over and above the variation between stock v Muzzy.

If you compare stock map cells that are tuned for 12.5 AFR to same cells in Muzzy map which are tuned for 13.5, there's going to be a big difference in those numbers. The intake flow is different + maybe one tuner went more aggressive in AFR at some rpm and less at others.

Alright gentlemen, I do believe I finally have the winning revision.

The long and the short goes like this. The stock exhaust/stock air filter PCIII map is quite rich in the 2000-3000 rpm range for the 2% and 5% throttle positions. (This was the map installed from the time I bought it and is why I was having the previously mentioned symptoms which started this thread.) The full-system Muzzy map is lean to nearly the same magnitude as the stock map is rich, which is why I was still having s few issues, prompting me to do my own adjusting.

At first I was under the impression, "If the Muzzy map reduced the symptoms, let's keep headed in that direction" but using an additional 50% magnitude in the same direction didn't improve smoothness as much as I would have liked. After reading thread after thread, and watching video after video, it finally dawned on me, "Split the difference between the Stock and Muzzy maps; both maps are at the furthest extents of where you want to be."

Bingo.

As of tonight at 1212, the only symptom left was in the same TP range of 2% and 5% at 2000 rpm. I came back in the garage, added 2% to both of these TP's and it's as smooth as it's ever been. This is also with the engine temp being hot enough to kick the fan on (which is where I've had the most trouble).

We shall see...

Devin-