Ruckus Fuel Pump Questions

[tesla106]

Hello all,
First post here, thanks for having me.

I have some questions about the function of the fuel pump on these Ruckii.  I had a scoot come in with a failed fuel pump.  Verified its failed according to the service manual (resistance out of spec, doesn't pump fuel, rattles around like crazy when you shake it, just blows fuses as soon as you turn the bike on), so I ordered a replacement expecting to just bolt it up and "problem solved".

I bolted up the new one, and no such luck.  What i'm finding is, when I turn the key on, the 12V leads to the fuel pump go on and simply stay on.  The fuel pump sort of clicks / actuates once, but then thats it.  No click click click click like im used to.  Its not until I shut the key off that the pump actually PUMPS, the diaphragm or whatever is in there must collapse and it actually squirts a bit of fuel thru.  So If I were to turn the key off and on, the thing makes its normal noises and actually acts as a pump.

When I take the pump off the bike and put 12V to it on a standalone gravity feed fuel tank, same deal... if you supply 12VDC to these things, it seems like they just pump once, instead of running continuously like they ought to.  So they act as a valve, in that they'll allow fuel to pass thru, but they don't actually pump it.

I have two new fuel pumps here, granted they are not OEM, that do the same thing... if you supply 12VDC, they "open", allowing gas thru, but not actually pumping.

So my question is this... is the scooter (the ECU, a relay, or something else) supposed to actually send continuous 12VDC to the pump, and it should work?  OR is it supposed to send PULSED 12VDC to the pump, to keep it click click clicking?  The service manual says that it should simply supply 12VDC continuous, and if it does, all is well in the electrical side of the fuel pump system.  Again I'm surprised by this because none of the fuel pumps I have here seem to run well on continuous 12VDC.  Is there a mechanism within these things that is suppose to make them self-oscillate?  IE, if you supply continuous 12VDC to them, should they self regulate somehow so they actually do run?  Wondering if the ECU is supposed to send a pulsed signal instead of a continuous one...?

See where I'm at here?  Not fully sure what these things are supposed to do/how they are supposed to operate, and without a reference bike around its tough to say.  Thanks for your thoughts..
-Steve

[marusho]

So sad that there are no replies to this question about this basically undocumented Honda model. If you did find out anything, please post it. Now, for posterity, I'll explain why I am in an even worse pickle. My OEM pump failed at 1000 miles, apparently a common thing. Why would I buy a known bad brand (Honda)? So I got a $15 one from ebay. Went thru the hell of wrestling it into place (what were those "engineers" thinking, placing that godawful plastic crapola around it?) When I turned it on it was noisy, it pumped fuel, but it never stopped clacking. I have no idea if the original one ran continuously since it was quiet. Anyway, the racket was too distracting so I ordered another Chinese one. This time I snipped away the worst of that plastic cover, the purpose of which escapes me. This one did the 5-second click thing each time I turned the key (my habit is to go thru this ritual 3 times to fill the bowl). I turned over the engine for a long time and then checked. I found there was no gas being pumped. Worse, the 5-second clickety action was gone. Now the electrics work for only a fraction of a second when I turn the key and the pump does not click even once. I tried unplugging the pump, checking the 20A "main" fuse, and one of the two 10A fuses. Lost 15 minutes of my life when I dropped a fuse into the bowels. Also had to be careful pulling a fuse with a pliers right next to my + terminal on my LiFePoEiEiO battery. Swapped the two identical Imron relays. The wiring diagram characterizes these as "main relay" and "load cut relay" (you can't make this stuff up). There doesn't seem to be such a thing as a "load cut relay" so maybe they were trying to say "fuel pump cut relay", which is a thing. . . . That's where I am now. I have no idea what to do next. I've built plenty of computers and wired my house, but there is documentation for those pursuits. I have the service manual, which looks thick enough that it could have had some useful information, but they didn't have their heart in it and it's rubbish. My Ruckus is licensed and insured but I could save some money by dropping this expense. I can't go to the dealer because the only one anywhere near me left such a bad taste in my mouth when I went thru the purchase process that I swore I'd never return (Coleman Powersports, Falls Church, VA).

I started this adventure to see why my Ruckus no longer started, found that the fuel pump was bad, swapped it, went for a test ride and while it idled and ran OK at full speed, it couldn't accelerate without bucking. In the past that meant the 1 micron hole in the jet was plugged up so I went thru the hell of removing the 10 things that are connected to a Ruckus carb to get it on a bench. Sure enough the jet was plugged so I had high hopes that it would start and run now. I have no idea how this jet could be plugged up. I have installed a petcock and scrupulously run the carb dry after each ride. This story picks up with the total lack of scooter function described above. Some of this nonsense would be eliminated if the company would allow Americans to have the fuel-injected model, but even though no automobile has been sold in the US with a carb for 25 years, Honda foists this ancient technology on us.