Motorcycles, Snowmobiles, Go-Carts, ATV's and Golf Carts - Volusia not starting!

I tried to start my bike a few days ago and it wouldn't turn over. I charged the battery and tried again. It sounded like it wanted to turn over but didnt. So, I took a look at the spark plugs and they were completely black. I believe this means the bike is running with a rich mixture. But even with new spark plugs in place, the bike still wouldn't turn over. Is the problem dirty carbs? Maybe a starter problem? No fuel getting to engine? Help!

need some more info, year of bike.

did it just stop running or this been sitting awhile.

black can be rich, it can mean fouled out plugs also. Depends on how much cranking you did.

were the plugs just black or wet also ?

how old is the gas in the bike ? is the bike turning over like it should, not a low battery ?? if the battery has failed, it might turn over but not fast enough.

Id change the plugs and make sure the battery is good, 100% full charge and good fresh gas. Then if it dont start, could need a carb kit or cleaned. but you also need to make sure you getting good spark.

Check the spark, buy pulling out 1 plug and touch it to the head, so you can see the spark , just dont crank much tho, cuz its still pumping fuel into the cylinder, if no spark, make sure its a good plug, if it is. then its a coil issue or electrical issue.

More info need to better help you.

sporty

The plug can tell you alot... Was it Oil/gas fouled or was it carbon fouled? After all that cranking, you may have just flooded it. Id say go to sears and spend $5 on a spark tester, and you will be able to see how strong the spark is. Put a compression gauge on it... Maybe you dont have any compression. It could be a bunch of things.

Jim

Thanks for the responses. The year of the bike is 2003, and yes, the gas has been in it for a while. I don't recall if the plugs were wet or not, but they were definitely black. I bought a new battery that came pre-charged and put that in and still no luck. Even after just a few attempts to crank, I can smell gas. I never noticed that before. Like I said before, I did replace the spark plugs. It just won't turn over, but all the lights, signals, etc are working. How would I drain the gas from the tank? There are no fuel valves on these bikes. Thanks for your help!

ya it could be back gas then, that new of a bike.

Look for the fuel line from the petcock of the carb, just take that off and drain into a can or something.

If you have another hose that the petcock fuel line can fit into and run down into that line, to the ground.

Theres also a good chance the plugs are fouled out from the over fuel on them, even tho bad fuel. Ya if that fuel is over 90 days old, its bad.

sporty

let us know if thats all it is, is the fuel.

suzukigrl, you can siphon the fuel out. Basically, All you need is a gas tank and some fuel line. Put the gas tank on the ground, and stick one end of the line into the bikes tank. Suck some fuel, then quickly put the end of the hose into the gastank. Gravity will cause the fuel to drain into the tank,a nd the draining fuel creates a vacuum in the hose, so it continually sucks fuel until the one end is exposed to air. when you suck it, you just need to suck the fuel about halfway through the hose, as long as the level of the fuel is lower than the tank.

When your cranking the bike, stick your ear near the exhaust and listen for compression. It should sound like some sort of "thumping" as the motor is turning over. If you dont hear it, hook up a compression gauge. Id start by replaing the fuel, if that doesnt work listen for compression.

If you have compression and it wont start, take out a plug, pour in a small amount of marvel mystery oil, spray a LITTLE bit of starrting fluid into the cylinder, tighten the plu real quick and immediatly try to start it. You should probably hear it at least TRY to start. If so, that would indicate you have spark. This is the ghetto method for those who dont have a spark tester :D .

Jim

I do hear a thumping noise when trying to start the bike. So hopefully the compression is all right because I don't have a compression guage. The spark plugs I used to replace the other ones had been sitting in my tool box for a while. Do they go bad after a certain amount of time if not used? I plan on draining the old gas out of the tank, replacing it with fresh fuel, getting new spark plugs, and then using the marvel mystery oil and starting fluid. Can I get this starting fluid at an auto parts store? I did try taking the plugs out, putting them in the sleeves and pushing the base against the engine while hitting the ignition button to look for a blue spark like the owner's manual said to do. I saw nothing and tried it a few times. I'm guessing that means maybe just the plugs were bad? Or does it mean that there's a problem with the ignition system? Let me know what you think. I appreciate your comments and suggestions. :)

Thumpin's good... compression!! Plugs dont go bad by just sitting. Maybe once in a GREAT WHILE you will get a bad plug, but the chance of having to bad plugs is slim to none. Plugs just wear out, from being used for a while. The "sparK" just slowly damages the electrode, and so your spark gets weaker, there has to be ALOT of time on a plug for it to not work anymore. The method for checking spark that sporty posted is pretty ghetto :D ... you gotta know exactly what your doing with it. Id say run to sears, HF, autozone, RS strauss, or any other autoparts store and pick up a spark tester. usually around $5-$8. There are two types, inline and clip on. You want an inline. Basically, you plug the boot into one end of the tester, and hook the other end to the plug. it just has a little window in itwhere you can see the charge arcing the gap. Hook it up, turn the lights off an crank it.

Starting Fluid is also called "ether" It comes in an aerosol. Be VERY carefull with this stuff, because if too much is used, you can burn up all the oil in the cylinder and then you run into internal problems. Thats why you pour in the M M O. Id say about 1-2 tablespoons, no more. Just rock the bike to work it around inside real quick, spray some starting fluid through the spark plug hole, tighen it up, and try to crank it. This method Is what I do whenever I dont have a spark tester. I also have been known to use a small amount of motor oil. Either would work, but the spark tester is best.

Let us know how it goes!

Jim

When I first had trouble getting the bike to start, it did start for a few seconds and then would immediately cut out. It did this a few times and then wouldn't turn over but made a sound like it wanted to start. After that is when I replaced the battery and put new plugs in. It never has turned over again, but still sounds like it wants to start. So maybe I do have spark and something else is wrong? lol I know I am driving you guys crazy with this. But it will kill me to have the dealer come tow the bike in for repair, and I will end up spending a fortune. If you think I still should get a spark plug tester, I will. :)

Well if it already started, your ignition is fine. Id say you have problems with the carb (or fuel system if its EFI)

Is is carbuerated or is in fuel injected? take the plugs out, and let it sit for a little while to air out. Then, crank the motor over for a little while. As its cranking, you should be able to smell fuel.

If not, You might have problems with your fuel pump. It could be ANYTHING. What happened when you ran into this problem... were you working on it? Has anybody messed with it? Gotta let us know, this could give a clue.

I dont mind... xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


Jim

i know this is a stupid question to ask about such a new bike but is there rust on the flywheel? if so that can cause you spark to be weaker then normal. i would also get some spray carb cleaner and spray it in the carb (if it has one) ifthis doesnt work and you see spark then your going to need to take the carb off and bring it into a car place like peb boys ad ask them if they can "dip" it into their cleaner. that should work but if not let us know

you are not bothering us, heck dealers are not cheap.

I would try and empty the float bowls on the carb.

there is a screw on the side of each carb and usally a small whole not to far away from that. try draining the carb and you weill have to crank a few times to get it going.

If it still dont go, then time to clean the carbs.

If it's popping, then I doubt there is a spark or timing issue. just a carb issue.

I know you might think it is hard to clean a cabr but its not.

I asume those are nkg spark plugs, I not they are not cheap, But they do foul easy.

If it popped, you are getting spark, maybe not all cylinders, a plug might be fouled.

I hate to even say this, but I was taught the hard way if it has spark or not, hold on to that plug and crank once, you'll know !



just taking your time really.

all the bike shop does, or what we did, was take it apart, spray with some carb cleaner and take out all rubber items and let it soak in cleaner. then spray again and put back together, most of the time we did not even touch the idle or mixture screws.

If we did, is just start counting how many turns it takes to turn it all the way in and then remember thats pretty much where they need to be when you put them in, just screw all the way in and back out those same amount of turns.

Never over turn in the screws tho, just tell is starts to fell a little tight

If that dont work, then it looks like perhaps shop time.

we charged $75 for carb cleaning, so if he quotes you some high amount for carb cleaning, shop around.

Sporty