Sticky throttle

[j2x]

Folks, the throttle sleeve felt like it had a lot more friction when it was twisted when I rode her this morning.  It just felt like it required a little more pressure to roll on and once on, would only very slowly roll off when I took my hand off. 

Is it just because I haven't ridden her in a few weeks and/or because it was 30 degrees when I rode to work this morning?

What do you recommend?  I don't recall this being an issue when I rode her last month.

Thanks,
J2x

[Bob E.]

Do you have a throttle lock?  I had a Vista-Cruise throttle lock that would do that from time to time.  I took it off and installed an Audiovox Cruise Control.  Much happier now!!

Either that or maybe you need to lube your cables?  You should check it out though before riding it much. I had my throttle hang up once and it was scarey!!!  I had neglected to install one of the cable clamps on the cruise control install and had the cable get pinched in the carb throttle linkage.  Luckily I was on the interstate and had time and room to get it shut down before anything bad happened.  But my heart was beating pretty hard when it was over.

[timk519]

+1 on checking the cable lubing.

[clintsdivco]

If you have a throttle lock it could be that it needs lubed in the area where the three allen head screws are.  I had that happen to mine and sprayed some Deep Creep (by Seafoam) in the area where the set screws clamp down on the grip and it freed right up.

Clint

[j2x]

Inside the throttle assembly was pretty dirty.  Cleaned it up with some WD-40 then fed some 3-in-1 oil down inside the cable sleeve. 

Now the throttle is COMPLETELY responsive.  No hesitation at all no matter the position of the bars.  I've never had a throttle on any of my bikes that was this responsive.  Very nice and simple.  Thanks!

[timk519]

 

[cookiedough]

If you have a throttle lock it could be that it needs lubed in the area where the three allen head screws are.  I had that happen to mine and sprayed some Deep Creep (by Seafoam) in the area where the set screws clamp down on the grip and it freed right up.

Thanks Clint and others who have commented.  I too have the Vista Cruise throttle lock and ever since I bought the bike, I always have noticed the throttle not letting up when I take my hand off the throttle/handlebar entirely when trying to slow down coming into a town and it always has never let up like it was catching and had to put my hand back on the throttle to let it up with very little force.  Guess it needs some cleaning/lube.  I am not a big fan of the throttle lock anyways since it never holds going uphill and slows down the bike from say 60 to 55 mph.  Going on a straightaway though, it is pretty good at keeping speed even.

[JetDriver]

Toyota wasn't involved in this, were they?

[don07tncav]

Jetdriver, didn't subcontract the engineering out to Toyota on the throttles? 

[clintsdivco]

If you have a throttle lock it could be that it needs lubed in the area where the three allen head screws are.  I had that happen to mine and sprayed some Deep Creep (by Seafoam) in the area where the set screws clamp down on the grip and it freed right up.

Thanks Clint and others who have commented.  I too have the Vista Cruise throttle lock and ever since I bought the bike, I always have noticed the throttle not letting up when I take my hand off the throttle/handlebar entirely when trying to slow down coming into a town and it always has never let up like it was catching and had to put my hand back on the throttle to let it up with very little force.  Guess it needs some cleaning/lube.  I am not a big fan of the throttle lock anyways since it never holds going uphill and slows down the bike from say 60 to 55 mph.  Going on a straightaway though, it is pretty good at keeping speed even.

The three set screws in the Vista Cruise Control can be tightened to create more resistance so that the throttle has to be manually returned.  They can be set to counteract some or all of the carburetor return pressure making it easier on the wrist muscles on long rides.

Clint

[wewaman]

I am also having the same problem on my 03 standard.  My question is do I totally remove the 3 set screws to lube. or just loosen them? also how do I lube the cables,  do I need to take them off at the handle bars where they come out at the metal bend in the cable? 14mm I think. any and all help is greatly appreciated.

 Tony in Florida

[mello dude]

Thanks Clint and others who have commented.  I too have the Vista Cruise throttle lock and ever since I bought the bike, I always have noticed the throttle not letting up when I take my hand off the throttle/handlebar entirely when trying to slow down coming into a town and it always has never let up like it was catching and had to put my hand back on the throttle to let it up with very little force.  Guess it needs some cleaning/lube.  I am not a big fan of the throttle lock anyways since it never holds going uphill and slows down the bike from say 60 to 55 mph.  Going on a straightaway though, it is pretty good at keeping speed even.

[mello dude]

I have the throttle lock too and its set on kinda tight on purpose. When I twist open the throttle has a tendency to stay open where you leave it and then when I want to  shut down I just manually twist it shut. (I have a throttle rocker on it too.) I have grown so used to it I dont want to go back to a "normal" throttle operation. It makes the bike very pleasant to ride and saves wear and tear on my wrist.

 

[JetDriver]

Vista's Throttle Lock seems to be a "compromise" set-up.  If you adjust the pressure so that your throttle returns to idle quickly and smoothly, then when the lock is engaged, it probably won't hold your speed very well.  So, you tighten the lock to increase the pressure and it'll hold your speed better, but when you disengage the lock, the throttle is a little sticky.  You have to experiment and find the best compromise between the two situations for your personal taste.  Like mello dude, mine is adjusted so sometimes I have to manually "help" it return to idle.  No big deal, once you get used to it.  It's a rather big deal until you do get used to it.  Keeping the friction area on your throttle clean makes a big difference.  If that last part doesn't make sense, look at their website installation instructions, specifically step 9, maintenance.   http://www.soundoffrec.com/docs/zkeybfmdvsn0rjzz55w5ba3z1.pdf