Start-Up / Loss of Power Problems - HELP!!!

[varatiki]

Hi. I'm new to the forum, and am in some need of help with a few issues that I have with my wife's 1999 GZ 250. Not entirely sure if there is any overlap between the two main issues aside from loss of compression... but I'll get into that shortly after I give you as much background as possible. I’ll apologize in advance for the length of this post, but I figure the more information, the better.

About a year ago I picked up this bike used with a branded title as a beginner bike for my wife. Although I knew that it was considered totaled previously, it checked out mechanically after inspecting it and running it around a bit. I bought it in Portland, then drove it 300 miles up to the Seattle area in the rain without any problems aside from running out of gas a few miles from home (mental note, no low-fuel warning light like my bike). Since then it has run well until the beginning of the summer.

I think the awareness of problems started with the bike dying occasional when it came to a stop. This has since gone away as far as I know. I wasn't there at the time, but it sounded to me like it slowly sputtered to a stop, and then would take some effort to get started again. The second problem that got me to do some work on it happens when riding at freeway speeds. At 60-70mph, it seems to lose fuel to the engine and cut back quite a bit, almost as if there was a fuel governor on the bike. After the speed drops a bit (or perhaps the time passing is the remedy) it catches again most of the time and can carry on. Once or twice the loss of power occurred at 30-35mph. My wife says that she can feel it coming on, but I don't know whether she was simply cruising or accelerating when it happens. My guess for the cause of this is the fact that the previous owner chopped off a good chunk of the exhaust pipe to make it "sound" better... but is killing the back compression. This power loss issue still exists (I haven't replaced the exhaust yet - and will go back to OEM).

However, as a result of this, I tooled around on the bike a bit. In July with about 12,500 miles on the bike, I changed the oil and filter, replaced the fuel line, inspected the brakes, cleaned the air filter, and tightened, cleaned, and lubed the chain. It seemed like this fixed the problem initially but found later that it still exists. Next round of repairs in late August included completely draining the fuel tank to get rid of any water in the fuel (because the problem seemed to only happen when the fuel tank was about a third full or less). FYI, the timing was horrible on this because the tank was near full when I did it. YET, when done, I couldn’t see any signs of water in the fuel at all (I emptied it into a large pan). Just to finish the job though, I added SeaFoam to a new tank of gas. Since then I have installed a new battery (that I fully charged for 8-10 hours or whatever was specified on the trickle charger that I used) and replaced the spark plug. The bike seems to run better, but same problem on the freeway. Again, my guess Is that a new exhaust pipe might fix this. Your thoughts?

Now, as of tonight, the bike won’t start on its own. The bike wasn’t driven for 2 months, but was started and ran for at least 15 minutes every 7-10 days or so. I last ran it 5 days ago after having to jump start it because my wife couldn’t get it to start and drained the battery. Slaughter me now, but I didn’t know that jumping it with the car on is a bad idea… and I’ve done this a few times in the past because it failed to start before draining the battery. Anyway, it’s been dipping down into the 30-40 degree range at night, but was 52 degrees out when it didn’t start tonight. Pre-starting it, I set the fuel to “PRI”, fully opened the choke, and then hit the start button. I couldn’t get it to start at all. Usually starting the bike takes a bit of an effort and the starter(?) has to crank over quite a bit before slightly catching, then dying. Repeat, then catches a bit more… dies. Repeat while cranking on the throttle a bit, then it possibly catches and runs this time or the next. That’s normal for the bike (or with whatever problem causes it not to fire up right away – if this isn’t normal I need help here too). After reading through the forum, I saw that somebody describes the starter as making a “whirring” sound. Not the case here. If it’s meant to be a “whir” this bike emits a much slower turn as it “normally” starts. Like counting: 1.. 2.. 3.. 4.. 5.. In comparison, tonight it sounded like 1…………… 2…………… 3……………… 4, THEN sounded as if the starter had turned (on each count, it sounded like it tried, but didn’t quite get there). I didn’t check to see if the headlight completely dimmed when I was trying to start it, but the bike didn’t run out of juice as if the battery was dead before I gave up. The green ignition light came back full every time and I was able to repeat the process multiple times. I tried setting the fuel to both “On” and “PRI”, and yielded the same result. It definitely felt different from when the battery has died previously. I gave up on the bike starting itself, so I tried jumping it with the car (again… oops because I had the car on). Once hooked up to the car, it fired right up. I then ran it for probably 10-15 minutes before shutting it off. After turning it off I waited about a minute, then tried starting it on its own without being hooked up to the car. Same exact problem starting it that I had at the beginning of tonight.

Obviously I am trying to avoid taking it to a shop, so any help would be much appreciated!!! Should I try fully charging the battery with the trickle charger again? Otherwise where should I start? I don’t yet have a voltage meter so I haven’t checked the battery or the electrical system (will have to look up how to do this or re-read a few posts on here to learn how to do this).

THANK YOU!

[JWR]

If the battery is low on power, it will not start.
The engine will turn over, but not fast enough.

I can not help you on the running problems, I have never had any issue with mine.


Jerry

[alantf]

I know you've drained the tank, but when you said that you'd run out of fuel, it set me thinking. The gz has a reserve of sorts, so you should have been able to keep going. Attached to the petcock (inside the tank) is a short pipe. In "run" fuel flows into the top of the pipe, until it drops enough to be level with the top of the pipe, when no more fuel will flow down it. Switching to "reserve" lets you use the fuel that is sitting at the bottom of the tank, below the top of the pipe. This is also where the gunge sits, waiting, so you could have got some "bigger" gunge in the carb than the carb cleaner could shift. Also, it's not unknown for the pipe to fall off, so that you're ALWAYS using the fuel from the bottom of the tank, & you have, in effect, no "reserve". BTW don't forget that the LONG side of the petcock lever points to whichever setting you want.

You may well have an electrical problem (battery?) but it also seems like you may have a fuel problem too. Best of luck. :2tup:

[Easy Rider]

You may well have an electrical problem (battery?) but it also seems like you may have a fuel problem too. Best of luck. :2tup:

:plus1:

Some thoughts:
Your (main) starting problem is the weak battery. If you let it get TOO low and stay there TOO long......you can kill it. So, yes, by all means, charge it up good as a starting point. Sounds like you might want to invest in a Battery Tender or similar "maintainer" (which is different than a plain charger) if the bike will sit un-ridden for more than a few days at a time.

Starting it and letting it run every few days is NOT a good practice; one reason being that it will not sufficiently recharge the battery at idle.

Unless it is EXTREMELY cold....like below 30F, starting usually works better with 1/2 to 3/4 choke. Full choke (closed is the term) should only be applied for a couple of strokes of the engine......then opened a bit.

When you drained the tank, did you also drain the float bowl ?? If not, you probably should.

If you don't know the age of the air filter, I'd advise a new one....even though they are rather expensive.....they can become clogged and you can't really tell it. NOTE: it works backward from what you would expect and the dirt actually accumulates INSIDE......so to clean, you blow on the outside and shake out the center.

Pipes could be a factor; won't know for sure until you find a set of stockers. Stock air filter is more important than stock pipes.

If all else fails, my personal recommendation is to get the Seafoam OUT and use some "real" carb cleaner. If you haven't seen my opinion on that in a previous post, I'll be happy to repeat it. :whistle:

Your post was perfect......in that (I suspect) you didn't leave out ANY important details.
Much better than most. :roll:

Keep us posted with your progress.

[varatiki]

I know you've drained the tank, but when you said that you'd run out of fuel, it set me thinking. The gz has a reserve of sorts, so you should have been able to keep going. Attached to the petcock (inside the tank) is a short pipe. In "run" fuel flows into the top of the pipe, until it drops enough to be level with the top of the pipe, when no more fuel will flow down it. Switching to "reserve" lets you use the fuel that is sitting at the bottom of the tank, below the top of the pipe. This is also where the gunge sits, waiting, so you could have got some "bigger" gunge in the carb than the carb cleaner could shift. Also, it's not unknown for the pipe to fall off, so that you're ALWAYS using the fuel from the bottom of the tank, & you have, in effect, no "reserve". BTW don't forget that the LONG side of the petcock lever points to whichever setting you want.

You may well have an electrical problem (battery?) but it also seems like you may have a fuel problem too. Best of luck. :2tup:

Just to touch on this one really quick. I ran out of fuel while in the "On" position when originally bringing it up from Oregon. I just ran her up to over 200 miles on the tank and was expecting a low-fuel light as I am accustomed to (brain fart). Once I switched it over to the reserve tank, I got it fired back up, stopped by a gas station, switched the petcock back over to the "On" position and drove the rest of the way home without incident.

When I drained the tank, I know that it was as empty as I could get it and only drops would have remained (the tank was physically detached from the bike and I rotated/shifted it until all the fuel was out and I couldn't hear any more sloshing or motion inside). I also recall that there was a screw in what I'll call the top of the engine that I removed that further drained a little fuel after tracing the fuel line from the tank into the top of the engine.

[Easy Rider]

I also recall that there was a screw in what I'll call the top of the engine that I removed that further drained a little fuel after tracing the fuel line from the tank into the top of the engine.

I wouldn't exactly call it the top of the engine but that's probably the drain screw on the carb float bowl. Sounds to me like you got a good drain.

[JWR]

I may have missed this, but spark plug???

What color was the end... brown I would think.

Jerry

[mrlmd1]

You can jump the bike with a car battery all you want, but DO NOT have the car engine running or the car's alternator output can fry all the electronics on the bike. Any 12v vehicle battery can jump the bike to start it, just leave other engine off.

[alanmcorcoran]

Varatiki,

I am whatever the opposite of a mechanical genius is, but a lot of your issues are similar to ones I experienced on my GZ. I can't say for sure, but I think they were ultimately resolved by a thorough cleaning of the carburetor. Unfortunately, there was a lot of other stuff done (with valves, the emission canister, even a prior carb cleaning) so the waters were muddied. There are lot of posts on here about the dangers of drilling holes in the pipes and messing around with the exhaust in general - most having to do with adjusting the richness of the mix, and your shortened pipes may have contributed to an improper fuel mixture - which, over time gunked up your carb. I tried a couple cans of Seafoam to clean mine, but it took a dealer actually getting in there (twice, or three times) to get to get me back to clean running. I think I effed mine up by over filling the oil, but I'm not sure about that either.

In any case, if you feel competent enough to do a thorough cleaning of the carburetor, I'd recommend that. Make sure you use the appropriate amount of choke and your idle is set properly, etc. (sounds like you have that covered.)

The carb problems lead to idling problems and starting problems, which lead to the battery drain, and it sounds like you have been right down the same path.

[trykemike]

You have received some good answers. I noted that you stated that the exhaust had been modified. On all motorcycles any change in exhaust requires a corresponding change in fuel mixture to a richer setting. There is a post in the How-To section describing carburator modification in detail. The bike runs lean from stock. I experienced the same "gasping" sensation on my bike stock but richening the mix solved that issue. Jump starting proved that the battery is currently low.

[varatiki]

Thank you all for the feedback. I am a little slowed down by the Thanksgiving holiday but will get back to the problem next week most likely. Last night I charged the bike battery on a trickle charger but have yet to install it again as I have been gone all day. I will be sure to post an update on things when I am back around next week!

[varatiki]

Well, some good news and some of the same. After installing the charged battery it fired up successfully. However, it takes a minute or two to get it to catch and continue running. The bike cranks if that's the correct term, but my instinct is that the fuel is not combusting right away when trying to start it. The electrical is definitely there, but slow to start/catch. Each time that I have described in these posts, I have set the petcock to "PRI" when starting. When driving it around it seems to miss here and there, or looking at it another way, seems to surge inconsistently when trying to accelerate. It's not 100% of the time through acceleration, but is definitely noticeable as increasing speed. Once it warms up, it definitely does better. I have also checked the current crossing the battery terminals while holding a medium-range rpm on the bike, and it read as 13.12V. As I recall, this is in the correct range...?

Tonight it was about 40 degrees outside when I went out to start it (not the first time since putting the battery in it). The engine caught after a few attempts and would cycle a few times, then would die and have to be started again. Standard procedure for this bike, but not sure if it should be. But on the way to work, my wife called and the bike had died and she couldn't get it to start again (the bike had probably only been on for about 5 minutes at the time). Don't have much of an explanation for it yet, or what it or she was doing, but I am assuming it was due to the surging feeling/loss of power that I described above. I rushed to arrive there and showed up about 5-10 minutes after the bike died. It started up right away for me, and no problems on the way back aside from the fact that I showed up in jeans and tennis shoes and the ride home was far from a warm experience... I have also noticed that when turning off the bike the chopped exhaust tends to burp.

Now I am trying to assess what my next step should be on the bike. I consider myself an average mechanic and am hoping to do as much of the work as possible. Right now I am considering cleaning the carburetor. Yet, as I have introduced Seafoam into the tank - but have yet to finish running through that tank of gas, should I be even close to expecting results from that? Otherwise, how difficult is it to clean the carburetor? I am going to hold off on the air filter for now as on-site instincts are leading me toward other suggestions (and cheaper). Also, with a chopped exhaust, would you recommend playing with the fuel mixture or returning to a stock exhaust? What are the odds of the exhaust system being the root of the problem? I have looked into this fix a bit and have found that the OEM exhaust is upwards of $300. Hoping to sell the bike as a learner's ride for $1300-1500 when all is in order again, so that's quite a hit to get it running smooth. Is there any agreement out there as to what my next move should be? Thanks again!

[varatiki]

I may have missed this, but spark plug???

What color was the end... brown I would think.

Jerry


I have changed the spark plug and the problems still exist.

[alantf]

Knowing the bike (I've had mine for over 2½ years) & with no real evidence, my gut instinct is carburettor problems. For some reason the gz seems to have a more temperamental carb than any other bike I've ridden. I can't get carb cleaner over here, so I use fuel additive every 3 or 4 tankfuls, & it really does make a big difference. If you're happy stripping the carb, I'd say go for it.

I've always ridden with the stock silencer, so I don't know exactly how much difference a chopped down one would make, but the concensus of opinion is that it's not a good idea without carb mods. :)

[mrlmd1]

You do not need to put the petcock in the PRIME position to start the bike unless it has been sitting for quite a while, like many weeks. And you only have to have it in that position for a short time to refill the carb bowl, if it was empty, then put it back to RUN. You may be flooding the carb and that's why it is difficult to start. And don't use full choke to start it, maybe 3/4, and slowly turn it down (off) over a minute or two as the bike warms up. You should not need the choke on for more than a 1/2 mile- 1mile of riding, which should be only 5 min or less when starting out for the first ride of the day. The next time you start it, you probably don't need any choke, unless it has sat for many hours in really cold temps. The bike should start within a few revolutions of the engine and not need long cranking, so you haven't solved your problem yet, but be sure you are trying to start it the right way.

[Easy Rider]

The bike should start within a few revolutions of the engine and not need long cranking, so you haven't solved your problem yet, but be sure you are trying to start it the right way.

:plus1: on all that.

I find it somewhat interesting that you never mention the choke in all of your posts. You NEED the choke for a cold start.

You also need to inspect the air filter and box and boots on both sides of the carb. The filter is an essential part of the carb mixture setting; anything that bypassed the filter....like a hole in the box, filter not seated or leaks at the boots will adversely affect the performance.

You can use the air filter as a diagnostic tool of sorts. Remove the filter and run it. If it runs worse, then the mixture is about right or too lean. If it runs better, then something else is causing it to be too rich.....like a stuck choke/enricher.....or the filter itself might be plugged.

In the end though, I suspect your carb is still gummed up a bit. If you haven't already, you need to drain the tank and bowl, put in about 1/2 tank of fresh gas and some "real" carb cleaner.....like Berryman's B12 Chemtool or Original Gumout. Put in the amount recommended for a full tank into just a half (giving twice the recommended concentration). Start and run until warm. Let it sit overnight. Repeat a time or two as needed. If/when you notice some improvement, fill the tank the rest of the way.

[alanmcorcoran]

V,

I pretty much agree with all of the above posts, but with one refinement: Once my carb was hosed, it tended to stay hosed, even though I had put carb cleaner in the tank. I rode mine for a while with it in the hosed condition, including three round trips to a dealer that is about 35 miles away. I got used to all of the same sort of crap you are adjusting to (it was ridable but it was also very irritating.)

Bottom line, I recommend you either service the carb yourself or take it to a competent and honest mechanic.

I also recommend you go back to the stock pipes - it will make it easier (maybe even legal!) to sell and will eliminate another constant source of possible carb problems.

There are a lot of people on here that sort of thrive on screwing around with the bike, but they enjoy that aspect of it and are willing to put in the time and aggravation that goes along with making modifications. You seem to be more interested in providing your wife with trouble free transportation and I think she'd be happier with the stock exhaust.

One last note: When mybike was stalling a lot, it occasionally quit right as I entered an interesction, forcing me to push it out of traffic duck walk style. One time this happened I burned a real nice hole in my fancy touring pants as I had stretched my leg back while in mid push to a place it normally wouldn't be and touched the inner shin to the the tailpipe. You don't want this to happen to your wife, especialyy if she's not wearing fancy touring pants. Get the carb fixed and you will enjoy riding it a lot more.

Good luck and let us know how it comes out.

[varatiki]

Well, here's the update and NEW problem. I started it up on Friday after it not running for about a week and a half, and it DID fire up immediately (only thing done since last post is adding Seafoam and then riding it around a bit). But, within a few minutes it died and wouldnt' start again. Plenty of juice in the battery this time around though. Without another option, I took the bike on a nice romantic evening walk to the gas station. Along the way I determined that my wife had apparently left the petcock on PRI the last time she rode it and this had completely drained the fuel tank except for the bowl. I filled up the tank there, adding Seafoam to the mix once again... but then it wouldn't stay running. The first time it ran the longest, the second attempt at starting it, it ran for a shorter period of time until it wouldn't run at all. I have more or less determined that it is not getting fuel for some reason but have absolutely no idea why. I haven't put the stock pipe on it yet (and was heading to my parent's garage to do this when the new problem started - part and tools are there)... and am actually trying to get the new OEM exhaust on it by Wednesday.

HOWEVER, I can't get the bike to stay running now. This morning it started up immediately without the choke and not touching it since Friday, so I ran inside to gear up. But, same deal - I heard it die before I was coming back out the door. It seems to run off the fuel in the bowl, then die and can't get fuel anymore. I checked the vacuum hose on the back of the petcock and that's still connected at both ends. It was set to RUN, and I didn't hear anything else unusual when it was actually running. After dying, I set it to PRI for a little while then tried starting it again. No luck, but I think I might have flooded it. Either way I'm not too confident that it will run after getting past the fuel in the bowl. An odd symptom that is either new or that I've never noticed before is that when having it on PRI for too long it will start spilling fuel onto the ground through the overflow line. I really don't feel like pushing it the 17 miles to my parents' house, so any ideas would be appreciated. Otherwise, anybody want to buy a bike? :)

[alanmcorcoran]

Not running the bike for a while generally does not improve its running when you get around to it. I had to nurse mine back from a long lay off. Spent the better part of an hour just trying to get it to run at all. You probably will need the choke, and you probably will need to just let it run without any load for a while. You may also need to goose up the idle setting (I didn't mess with mine this go round - trying to keep the various factors simple.)

You should not need to set it to prime for weeklong or even a month long break. you might be fouling/flooding the ignition.

See if you can get it started with the choke full on, and then don't touch the throttle once it's running. And make sure you have thoroughly educated yourself about the petcock positions (it is NOT intuitive!) Let it run for a good half hour before you attempt to twist the throttle. Mine took nearly 60 miles of WOT riding to start to get better and didn't really get back in the groove until I had gone through a full tank of gas (about 140 miles.) A six mile ride won't help much.

If none of that works,take it to a dealer and have them flush he tank and clean the carb. Good luck.

If you get a new bike, get FI.

[Sarris]

Replace the vacuum hose from the petcock to the carb. A cracked vacuum hose will act like. No vacuum shuts the petcock, hence no "off position"

Good luck.

:cool:

[mrlmd1]

Leave the damn PRIME setting alone, don't touch it unless the bike sits for MONTHS. That is not your solution and possibly is your problem. I have had the bike sitting for way over a month and it starts instantly without resorting to PRIME. Leave that alone. Like I told you before, you only put that on for 30 sec-1 min to fill the carb bowl, then turn it off back to RUN. You are not helping anything leaving it on there and are probably flooding the carb, plus dripping gas all over the floor.

[Easy Rider]

Leave the damn PRIME setting alone, don't touch it unless the bike sits for MONTHS. That is not your solution and possibly is your problem.

You are kind of dancing around the real problem here; close but no cigar. :)

It should be perfectly OK to leave the bike in PRIme....as long as the float and needle valve inside the carb is working right.......which in this case, it obviously IS NOT. You of course lose the REServe function when set to PRIme and you lose a safety if the float fails (like this case).

The biggest clue is the gas coming out of the overflow and the second clue is that bike starts and runs OK for a minute after sitting a LONG time......allowing the excess gas in the intake to evaporate or run down into the crankcase.

A new float and/or needle valve assembly should fix the problem......or there might be a little piece of "crud" stuck on the seat keeping it from fully closing.

Sometimes you can service the needle valve and seat by loosening the carb boots and rotating it a bit to get the bowl out to the side so it is easier to remove and get to the necessary parts without removing the whole thing.

After you get the fuel leak figured out, you need to change the oil IMMEDIATELY.
Right now, you have a very dangerous situation......with the fuel leaking out.
Extra care needs to be taken to NOT leave it in PRIme (or not to use PRIme at all) until the carb is fixed.

[varatiki]

Well, the bike is at it again (or still...). I've since taken it into the shop where they replaced the float needle, a kinked diaphram, and cleaned out the carb. The oil was also changed along with a new filter. Prior to taking it to the shop I replaced the chopped exhaust pipe with the stock model, so it at least looks sharp again. The trip to the shop was inspired by it dying on the way to work on it, and then not being able to start it again. Another symptom that was noticed at this point was that when set on PRI while trying to start the bike up again, fuel was dumping onto the ground through the overflow hose. That has since gone away, but is more background information that might help.

So, currently it will start up and catch... sometimes taking a few rounds to keep it running using the choke. After 30 seconds or so, I can turn off the choke and will stay running on its own. Once warm though, it will start smoking a little from the bottom of the engine (seems like a slight leak around the oil drain plug) which isn't noticeable once you get moving, if you can stay moving. With solid, consistent throttle, it will rapidly surge at various power levels like it is trying to catch as if it is dying (while moving). Well, it is dying actually. This is the prelude to it only staying running, and struggling to do so, with the throttle all the way open and in neutral. If trying to reduce the throttle (which is not proportional to the RPMs as I recall - wide open throttle seemed to keep it at a mid/slightly high rev) at this point, the bike with die. The only effective way within a minute to get it going again is to turn the choke back on and put it in PRI. After running again (seemingly normal), I would ride it through the parking lot probably about 200 feet at 15-20mph and it would then repeat the dance of death all the way through - inconsistent power while trying to accelerate and then dying if not opening the throttle all the way (at a stop).

My wife rode it to work a few times since the shop and has had the same surging power issue while on the freeway at 55-60mph. It died a few times while cruising along, but she was able to start it again. The last time it died 4 times on her way home (about 6 miles total... at 4am). She made it ¾ of the way trying to ride it normally, then did the last ¼ of the way with it on PRI. I’m not sure if that solved the problem or just got her home. Each time she had to start it again, she tried without the choke, then with the choke, then let it sit for a minute with the PRI on before it would start again. Again, anybody want to buy a bike?

Help!

[varatiki]

As additional thoughts... the shop is a Suzuki dealership, was aware that the pipe had been chopped previously and that I had replaced it without knowing if the previous owner had re-jetted it.

[blaine]

Did you check the screens on the petcock? Sounds to me like you are starved for fuel all the time. Also check for rotted fuel hose. It can look fine on the outside but be gone inside.

[JWR]

Are you saying that you left the shop with it running no better than when you took it in???

Did the shop set the floats? Sounds like it is way LEAN.

[varatiki]

A reply to the last two posts, plus an update...

I have not checked the screens on the petcock, but I did replace the fuel hose back in September.

It ran solid after leaving the shop, but then had issues with the power loss on the freeway afterward. This wasn't a consistent/reproducible issue that I brought it into the shop for. They were aware of it, but it wasn't the primary issue. Not sure if they set the floats or not.

TONIGHT'S UPDATE:
I checked the vacuum hose visually for leaks but couldn't see anything that looked suspect. I didn't have an appropriate tool to get in there and be able to take it completely off the bike for inspection, so I did the best I could after pulling the tank off. So, visually it looked okay. At the same time I tried the cheap fix and replaced the spark plug since I had one on hand.

After putting it all back together, here's the weird thing that threw me off and made me start thinking that it might be an electrical issue... When I started it up, it fired up fine and a lot quicker than earlier (but it was probably still remotely warm and had been run today). I let it run for a while to warm up before putting around the parking lot a bit. However, RIGHT when I first up-righted the bike it died. I checked the fuel level since I knew it was a little low in the tank, but when leaning the bike either direction it still covered the opposite side of the tank from the direction I was leaning it, so it wasn't too low. Because of this I tried to repeat the event. I started it back up and then let it run for 15-20 seconds, then up-righted the bike. It took about 5 seconds after standing it up, but same thing, the bike died. Perhaps the kill-switch on the kick stand has a semi-short in it that may be periodically cutting the power to the bike? Your thoughts?

[varatiki]

Are you saying that you left the shop with it running no better than when you took it in???

Did the shop set the floats? Sounds like it is way LEAN.


A second response to this... I had JUST replaced the exhaust on the bike prior to taking it into the shop (which I did with the bike on a trailer). The bike was never up and running with the new/OEM pipe on it, which I was thinking might fix lost compression from a chopped pipe and thus fix the power loss/sputtering on the freeway.

[JWR]

A reply to the last two posts, plus an update...



It ran solid after leaving the shop, but then had issues with the power loss on the freeway afterward.

Your thoughts?


Still sounds like the carb is running out of fuel.

[Easy Rider]

Did you check the screens on the petcock? Sounds to me like you are starved for fuel all the time.

:plus1:

Now that it is not leaking gas, it is perfectly OK to run it on PRIme.....for a while, until you get this last problem figured out. If you do that, then switch it to RUN at night......just incase.

[Bunch of other stuff deleted. I like the side-stand switch idea now.]

[Easy Rider]

Perhaps the kill-switch on the kick stand has a semi-short in it that may be periodically cutting the power to the bike? Your thoughts?

Good catch. :2tup:
We've been there before.
Now that you mention it, the symptoms match.
Certainly worth checking.
If the wires aren't loose, I'd be tempted to replace it.

[Water Warrior 2]

If it is the side stand switch I would just clean and lube the plunger that does all the work. A lot of road crap gets kicked up under the bike. The best view of the switch is from the right side of the bike.

[Easy Rider]

If it is the side stand switch I would just clean and lube the plunger that does all the work.

Yes, a good temporary solution; WD 40 would be a good cleaner...BUT, seeing as how the bike won't RUN if it isn't working, I don't think I'd trust it once it starts going bad. IIRC, a new one is less than $20.

[Viirin]

I had the same problem with the engine dying and then struggling to get going with that slow 1..........2........3.......4 likeness you described above. At the time i was working a lot more hours so like an idiot i kept brining it to the shop and getting the carb cleaned but the problem kept coming back. It wasn't until some of the guys on here told me about the stand pipe being the only fuel filter the bike had and when i got some free time i took the tank off and there it was floating around in the fuel tank letting all the gunk into the carb. I drained the tank and jammed it back into the petcock and stuck on a fuel in line fuel filter (highly recommended in my unprofessional opinion) and i haven't had any problems with the bike since last summer (touch wood). Seems like a simple problem in hindsight but it caused me so may head aches.

Vii