Boom Vader Motorcycle Engine Vapor Lock, What?

I’ve noticed engine performance issues with my Boom Vader, a Grom Clone motorcycle, and my Boom Vader would stop running right in the middle of riding. After a few web searches, I keep getting results saying my motorcycle engine is in vapor lock. The number of responses I got for my problem and people saying it’s vapor lock confused me.

How Is My Boom Vader Motorcycle Engine Vapor Locking?  

Well, I first discussed motorcycle engine vapor lock in an earlier post: Let’s Talk Motorcycle Engine Vapor Lock, and now going to discuss my Boom Vader problems. Taking both of these posts and addressing if my motorcycle engine is vapor locking.

OK, Background To My Motorcycle Behavior Problem.

My Boom Vader motorcycle is brand new. I had some issues with the bike’s initial assembly ( Boom Vader / Grom Clone Assembly Problems & Concerns ), but these problems are typical of a Grom Clone motorcycle. A Grom Clone isn’t a real Honda Grom, so we live with the flaws of the Chonda bikes.  

Although I had these initial concerns about the new motorcycle, I don’t think the joint problem and symptoms are vapor locking.

Well, the behavior I noticed on my bike is weird. And here is what I saw.

First, the ‘vapor lock’ behavior started after riding my bike for a while, and I have been going further and further with my rides as I get more to get out. The only thing I changed on my Boom Vader was the front sprocket, and I upgraded it to a larger sprocket( Boom Vader (Grom Clone) 17t Front Sprocket Upgrade ) and stopped babying the motorcycle. Well, still keeping RPMs still under 8k. 😀

My Boom Vader had a couple of oil changes, and I figured with my slow break-in process, with lots of idling, heat and cool steps, and slow riding around town, I could start opening up the motorcycle on the road. Especially I increased the top speed from stock ( Stock Boom Vader’s Top Speed Test ) to now with the new 17t front sprocket( 17t Upgraded Front Sprocket Boom Vader Top Speed ).

FYI, I measured the break-in period by engine run time and miles, not just miles alone, so please don’t flame me if you think it was too early. If I am mistreating my little Grom Clone, please leave feedback. I would love to learn more. Thank you.

So, the problems started when I was riding longer and faster….. here they are.

Is This Vapor Lock? My Boom Vader Flawed?

I noticed this while riding; after a while, I felt power decrease. I saw this decrease towards the top end, say > 95% twist throttle open. I still think this has something to do with how lean the stock carburetor is set up, but still, this was one of the first symptoms of lost power I felt.

FYI: What is True Vapor Lock?

As I rode longer, it felt like I was running out of gas. The engine lost power till it started ‘chugging.’ I was unsure now if the stock carburetor was not running lean but now running rich. This drastic swap in carb behavior doesn’t happen on level roads, so this has to be a new problem.

I would pull over to the side of the road and wait. Look over my motorcycle, and check the carburetor choke position. Ensure the fuel stop on the carburetor was open. Check the fuel gauge. I checked all, but couldn’t find the problem.

Each time found nothing, but after a while, I did notice something weird. After being on the side of the road, with the motorcycle turned off during my roadside checks, the bike came to life right away once I got around to restarting.

It was as if the problem affecting my Boom Vader had fixed itself. I did nothing to change anything on my motorcycle, but the motorcycle started up with no issues.

So what was consistent with my Boom Vader problems were this:

• Loss of power and almost stalling after riding a while.
• I couldn’t find anything wrong.
• The bike started up each time after being allowed to rest.

Boom Vader Stalling While Riding, Search Results.

The results were many, but many pointed to a problem of vapor locking occurring in the engine. I have to say; I was confused by the claim my motorcycle engine was vapor-locking.  

I had the same symptoms you would expect with vapor locking but didn’t have the apparent causes of vapor locking.

Common symptoms of what I was experiencing and those of vapor locking were: Loss of power, stalling out, and being able to restart after the engine cooled down.

These similar symptoms made me wonder if I was having vapor locking problems with my motorcycle.  

However, I couldn’t find common vapor locking conditions. My fuel lines were far away from any engine hot spots. These lines were in the air stream, allowing passing air to cool them off.  

Also, the days I was stalling out were both very cool and warm days. Outside air temp had no difference in how often the bike would lose power after a long ride.

What Grom Clone Vapor Lock Tip Helped Me? Maybe?

I read one post where a person said the Boom Vader, like many Grom Clone motorcycles, would vapor lock and the easy fix was to open the gas cap.

Does the gas cap open reverse vapor lock?

My shade-tree-mechanic brain stalled with this advice and conclusion. 

Now, of course, I tried it; when I lost power, I would pull over quickly. Stop the engine and open the gas cap. Pretty much each time, the bike restarted with no problem. 

When I continued riding, I would do the gas cap opening and closing technique if it again stuttered and lost power.

For now, the gas cap idea was novel, and the bike restarted, but then again, it did with each time I just walked around the bike checking lines. Maybe clapping my hands over the bike will fix the loss of power issues.

FYI: Boom Vader Motorcycle Gas Cap Stuck Off

My Plans:

I have more experiments to try with the loss of power and stalling, but for now, I don’t feel my Boom Vader is having vapor lock issues.

If you have any ideas or suggestions, please comment below. For now, I have a few experiences I plan to do and will post the results. I can’t imagine why no one has posted a real fix for such a common problem.

Thank you, Ride Safe, Ride Fun!

Click To See My Recommended

Boom Vader Gen 2 Upgrades