What's that burning rubber smell?

nerSTeve

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So Dede's got about 5K on her new to her 2005 ST1300 now. Not always, but most days after riding or coming to stop in traffic she says she can smell what smells like burning rubber faintly. I'm thinking a little bit of spilled oil on the muffler... I've only smelled it once and I guess it did smell more like rubber than oil. Any idea what I should be looking for? Never smelled this on my 2006 or my 2007.
 

Mellow

Joe
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Hard to say... obviously, the first thing to look at is if anything is touching the exhaust... Could even be a boot touching something. Could also just be some plastic that flew into an area and got stuck.. you may have to pull the lower black fairing to give it a good look... make sure the coolant overflow bottle is full, if it gets low, the headers will actually melt the bottle.
 
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Remove the left side fairing and inspect the wiring up on the left side of the frame near the front of the tank, this area is known for having shorts and melting wiring etc.
She's not putting the heel of her boots anywhere near the pipes is she?
 

T_C

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Check the bottom of her footwear. My GF like to rest her boot on my muffler on the way to RockSToc 1.
boot.jpg
 
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SupraSabre

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I had that smell twice, once when my headlight modulator roasted and another when a 30amp relay for my bluesea went belly up.

I replaced the modulator, not other issues with that. I think it's still working on my old '05. The other issue I resolved by placing it with a 50amp relay.

Happy hunting! :eek:4:
 
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Put the bike on the centerstand in neutral and see if the rear wheel spins freely.
 
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I found that one of the drain hoses behind the engine had somehow gotten about 4" longer (??? any ideas on that one???) and was touching the exhaust creating that smell.
 

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Joe
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I found that one of the drain hoses behind the engine had somehow gotten about 4" longer (??? any ideas on that one???) and was touching the exhaust creating that smell.
Sounds like it is unplugged from the source...
 
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Yeah - and I'm trying to figure out what the source is...

The thing is - the hose is not loose (I gave it a tug and figure it would fall out - but it still is firmly attached to...something. It just got longer - like it had been wrapped around something and that loop come out of it.
 

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nerSTeve there is a small plastic splash shield of sorts just forward of the rear tire my 2006 ST1300. It is VERY CLOSE to the tire.
Maybe yours is rubbing a little on the tire? Doesn't cost anything to check. You can see it from the left side without removing anything.
 
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Inside the left middle fairing, there are two small arms/tabs, that retain the large group of wires housed in the plastic sheath. Often times, folks don't know that these arms/tabs are supposed to hold the wires away from the hot engine, and they don't get assembled correctly, pushing the wires against the engine/frame area, and it melts the rubber cover over the wires. I have found a few of them melted and burned dark brown due to heat. Make sure this group of wires is secured in this holder before you push the middle fairing back into place.
 
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nerSTeve

nerSTeve

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Thanks for all the tips guys. Was hoping it was her boot, only so I wouldn't have to go in. Looks like I'm going in.
Maybe I teach HER how to do it....
:think1:
 
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