Ohh, a question I know the answer to. Us Boaters take our Batteries WAAAYYYY Serious, no walking in the ocean Batteries hate the heat...and he said Arizona ... lol

Even though battery capacity at high temperatures is higher, battery life is shortened. Battery capacity is reduced by 50% at -22 degrees F - but battery LIFE increases by about 60%. Battery life is reduced at higher temperatures - for every 15 degrees F over 77, battery life is cut in half. This holds true for ANY type of Lead-Acid battery, whether sealed, gelled, AGM, industrial or whatever.

 

Yes, that's why I took it in for service. I was puzzled too. On 30 degree mornings it is REALLY hard starting. Then it warms up to the 60's in the afternoon and about 2 hours after sundown I was almost stranded and wondered how hard it was going to be to push start this little guy at work.

I wondered if my motorcycle was jetted correctly and the service guy said the same thing at 9:00am in the morning when he started mywarm motorcycle. The service ticket came back with some carb tweaks, a recommendation for a battery tender , a 15 minute warm up period before i ride, and to leave the headlight on for while to heat the battery when it is turning over so slowly the head light dims when it turns over.

Since he confirmed the charging system was working correctly, I'm down to a couple of options:
[ul][*]a different battery that doesn't freeze (I might get lucky and find a military motorcycle battery somewhere that doesn't freeze and holds a charge in cold weather) or[*]a kick starter[/ul]
I like the e-start but, it isn't reliable right now. I don't really want to push start my motorcycle after working all day so I need get one of the two options above taken care of. I don't want to carry a can of starting fluid with me either but, that's part of plan right now in case I have to push start this hard starting lovable green wonder.

 

Your mechanic scares me. Idling a motor like this for 15 minutesis just foolish. Plus the charging system output is barley able to keep up with the basics, let alone charge the battery at all. What carb tweaks were done? Either the thing cranks fast enough to start it or it does not.Why go to the carb unless there are further separate issues. Also the headlamp should dim when it turns over. No heating of thebattery is needed, and especially if it involves using up the energy in it.

Can we getback to basics? Does your KLX fire upquickly under all conditions? I have a feeling likethe battery is getting run almost deadbecause of longcrank times, thenit justdoes not charge the battery fast enough onyour ride to work. Also, was your battery load tested? If not a load/capacity test could tell us wonders about the root of the problem.

 

My motorcycle is really hard starting when it's cold (mid-40's). It runs really rough until it heats up. When it's cold, any throttle at all will kill the engine.

The battery was load tested and checked out fine. The carb idle was adjusted and I'm not sure what else. It does run better when it's warmed up (less hesitation off idle).

When my motorcycle is cold, the battery turns it over pretty slow. When it's warm, I'd guess it turns over twice as fast. Maybe the engine oil is too thick when cold? []

Regarding charging capacity, dual sports don't have a lot but, how much does it really take to power the headlight and few other light bulbs?

 

cv/carb. no pump/no raw gas/story over.

 

just a thought

 

If you are running 10-40 per the manual then your oil is fine. I can go out on a 20 degree day and it will turn over a little slower than normal but not lazily slow. I think you are falling victim to a weak battery and the fouled gas in the carb dilemma. The bike should start within 20 seconds even on the coldest of days above 0. If it runs like crap until its totally warmed up, try backing out the idle/air screw an 8th turn and try it again on a cold day. If its marginally better give it another 8th turn and so on. At 2.5 turns out my bike fires up quick when cold and I can take the choke off in about 30 seconds. And its ready to go shortly thereafter, but thats too rich as later when hot it will idle down and stall out. I'm near 2.25 or 2.125 presently and it takes a little longer to warm up but it has a smooth idle when hot and doesn't die out.

 

I pretty bummed. I've had lovely weather to ride in and my motorcycle hasn't started since I got it home from the dealer.

I guess I will do the free mods to it, and take a shot at re-jetting it. If all elsefails, I'll rent a pick-up and take itto a different dealer about an hour away.

 

Whoa...please explain whats wrong with your bike.....I had to charge the batt a couple times....but I could always ride, even before the kickstarter....come on tell us

 

Hey Sid, lets start over. Shut off the gas, drain the bowl, charge the battery and then open the fuel, pull the choke and hit the button. It should start. We gotta get this figured out for you. Are you running the gas out after you ride it? It has to be something as simple as one of those things. Don't worry buddy, we won't give up as long as you don't