The 1st time riding my KLX after taking it off the truck from the dealer. 1 week later, it took almost 5 minutes to start. The barrery sounded like it was going to give up but she started. From that time on I shut off the gas 1 block away & it dies in the driveway. All it takes to start now is turn on the gas , pull the choke, plip the throttle once & hit the starter.

Done!

 

I tried the deej thing with the fuel shut-off as well..and it does work..my bike too is hard to start, even if it sits just a few days, but today it fired right up after I turned on the gas, waited a few seconds, twisted the throttle once, pulled on the choke..hit the button and vrooom...started right up...I know that sounds like a lot, but really it isn't

Just one question though..as I waited for the bike to run itself dry of gas today, I was thinking (I hate it when I do that)..Is running the bike out of gas bad for it? ie..when it's running out, is it running leaner/hotter because it's getting less gas?

 

I doubt it's bad for it for that short amount of time, but yes, the last few seconds of running it is running extremely lean and pretty hot. When I had my O2 sensor in my head-pipe I watched the reading as it ran out and it would go very very lean as the fuel ran down and the engine finally sputtered out.

That's what made me think that perhaps it's not the gas or carb at all, but maybe it's the plug or more specifically the fuel residue on the plug and it being somewhat wet after a normal idle shut-off in combination with the very cold cylinder head and thus the reduced volatility of the gasoline that causes the hard starting. But if you run the fuel dry, that would at least eliminate the wet plug and it would be nice and dry and crisp and ready for a hot spark for the next start-up. My KTM seems to start up fine on the coldest day I've had here, so I can't really test that theory though.

What about folks with those Iridium plugs - do you have the same hard starting problem on cold mornings?

When I lived in colder weather climes, I always preferred starting fluid. One squirt into the air intakes and the engine fired right away, even in sub-zero F temps. Probably the best thing when it's that cold, though, is to preheat the whole engine with a space heater or something so your oil is flowing a bit better for that initial start. Here in central NC, though, I haven't had to worry about cold starting very much at all.

 

Hey Brian, that is interesting to say the least. I like how you are thinking this thing out. I should try and let the bike sit for two weeks and then put in a fresh plug. But how could I go two weeks without riding, I mean that's like going with out........well you know Besides my alternator just went south in my Dodge truck. I pulled it today and am going to drop it off at a shop where this guy is like rain man when it comes to this stuff. He can rebuild it for cheap and the parts he uses are better than stock. Anyway that means I'm committed to riding the bike everyday to work. Oh sure I was already committed to riding, but now I have no choice.[8D] Maybe someone who has a hard time getting the bike started...........wait a minute!! I have two more bikes in the garage, DUH!!! OK I'm going to try it and see what happens. I'll let you know what I find out. I'm sure the wife won't mind me riding her bike for a while. I mean as long as its below 70 she's all "its too cold" Then I'm all like "then why did I put the heated grips on then?" Anyway I am really excited to try this new theory. I'm not sure what the fix is but its interesting figuring stuff out. Later all, I guess I shouldn't have had that 5th cup of coffee. I think I typed this in 49 seconds.

 

Well, there's little doubt that running the carb dry when you stop the bike cures the problem. I'm just skeptical that it's caused by the gas going bad. Like most real world problems, it true answer is probably that it's a combination of things and that combination puts it just over the edge of starting and if you eliminate or reduce the effects of just one of the factors, the starting problem is solved.

 

OK, then why can you get the bike to start right away by draining the float bowl then filling it with fresh fuel? How can you turn a blind eye to that? Are you going to tell me thatsomehowthe sparkplug magically gets cleanedduring thatprocess? Iridium plugs would only be something that compensates for something going bad with....yes....the fuel.

I think your're getting a bit too deep on this one. Why are people not willing to admit that something happensthat is DIRECTLY relatedto the fuel? [&:]

 

No need to get cranky. I never said I had all the answers. But bad gas doesn't explain it all the observations either. For example, I'm pretty sure Deej said the TW200 in his garage doesn't have this problem. So unless he puts different gas in that bike, how do you explain that, Mr. Feynman? So ... what's different? Maybe spark plug type? Compression ratio? Could be any number of things. But the gas in the two bikes is the same. One starts, one doesn't.

 

For those that live in the colder climates and have a hard time starting, are you using the same jetting as you do in the warmer months. I know for one that I need to rejet for the cold months. The only thing that is saving me right now is that my air filter is really dirty and richening thing up a bit. This weekend it is getting cleaned and rejetted.

 

Cranky....is that a pun?


I agree about the gas having nothing to do with it. I have three bikes and they all have different tolerance for sitting.

The KLX will start instantaneously up to about a two week period. It starts getting hard to start after maybe three weeks.

The BMW will start instantaneously within a month or so. Longer than that, it will start but it will take a few more cranks and it make cough and sputter but will start.

The CBR will start no matter what. It has always started instantaneously.

I used to have a 1992 XT225 Serow and if it sat for more than 2 weeks, it was literally impossible to start without starter fluid.

Of course I always keep a battery tender and keep the batterys charged when the bike sits.


This idle period is during the winter only when we have snow on the ground or it's below 20F. During Spring/Summer/Fall, none of the bikes will sit more than a few days at the most.

 

Ok, so 'cranky' is my new label, I guess I'll embrace it whileI ask you the same question.

Bike doesn't start. You do nothing other than change the fuel in the carburetor bowl and it starts instantly.

How can you tell me that fuel has "nothing to do with it." [&:] That statement borders on ridiculous. Betcha I could put a battery tender onmy KLXand it won't make a difference. The KLX isn't the only bike it happens to either.

And, Nobrakes, maybe some bikes are more sensitive to the problem than others, but nobody can convince me that fuel doesn't play a part. I'd say it plays a major part.