Author Topic: Scooter issues  (Read 1474 times)

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young gun

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on: February 19, 2015, 06:53:05 am
Hi all,

Apologies I know this is not a scooter forum but I inherited one from my father when he passed away, he used to use it for trips to the shops etc. Anyways, I have found it to be convenient when the Bullet decides to throw issues (which tend to be on a monthly basis). Well this time, my rear exhaust bracket broke (2nd time) and rather than import another one, I have decided just to get the thing fabricated and be done with it. In the interim, I'm on the scooter.

So I have 2 strange issues, not too sure if they are related at all. When I open the throttle, the motor seems to surge. So its almost like the petrol takes a second or 2 to get to the cylinder head, once it gets gas it pulls again. This has happened before and it was fixed when it was serviced, it seems that the problem has returned. I asked the mechanic what it was and he said he just made an adjustment, whatever that means. The next issue, the wheel doesn't stop spinning when the throttle is closed?! there's not a lot of power going to the wheel at this point and my weight is generally enough to keep it still but once on the stand that little wheel just spins?!

About 2 days before all this happened, I got onto the bike, started it and it started shooting out petrol out of a pipe connected to the carb (tbh I have no clue what it does, I always thought it was an overflow pipe). I found that the pipe had corroded and was leaking petrol out, I replaced it and now these issues.

Again, I apologize if this is out of line asking questions on a scooter on an Enfield page, but really this is the only community I speak about bikes so...maybe somebody has experience with it. Its a Chinese scooter so I get the quality ain't great, but it was my dads purchase, sadly one that he never got to really use. He passed away 2 weeks after purchasing it?! Its pretty much brand new with I think, 900kms on the clock! And taking it to the dealer is not really an option, its past its warranty period (it was in his estate for about 8 months before being passed onto me) and they tend to charge a fortune to look at these things?! Its cheaper to get my Enfield serviced than it it to get the scooter looked at!

Any ideas or advice would be appreciated. Hopefully the exhaust bracket is made quick so I can start riding the Enfield again :D
« Last Edit: February 19, 2015, 06:55:33 am by young gun »


High On Octane

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Reply #1 on: February 19, 2015, 11:23:27 am
Sounds like the carb is gunked up.  Is it a 2 stroke or 4 stroke?  If it is a 2 stroke and has pre-mixed fuel, you will need to drain the fuel system and tear the carb apart and get all the crap out of it.  If it is a 4 stroke you may get away with running some Seafoam or other quality fuel treatment thru the fuel system.  It may need a carb disassemble no matter what.  Generally when fuel starts dumping out of the carb like that, it is the float needle that is stuck, and is also a good indicator that other jets in the carb may be gummed up as well.  From what I hear, there is nothing to those Chinese scooter carbs.  A bit of a PITA to get to, but not much for parts once you actually take it apart.
2001 Harley Davidson Road King


young gun

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Reply #2 on: February 19, 2015, 11:32:11 am
Thanks for the reply! Its a 4 stroke. I'll see if I can get some carb cleaner and see if theres an improvement. If there is then its carb clean time :) The carb is actually super easy to get to, its the one thing on the bike that doesnt need to whole thing taken apart to access :D


Vince

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Reply #3 on: February 19, 2015, 06:37:47 pm
     Your problems are related to the time it sat. You must disassemble the carb for a thorough cleaning. Petrol is shooting out of the overflow pipe because it IS overflowing. It does this because the float needle and seat are gunked up with dried gas.
     The lag in acceleration is because the pilot (idle) circuit is also plugged up. Your "mechanic" reset the idle high enough for the bike to start running on the mid-range circuit. Hence the wheel always spins. On the center stand you should turn the idle speed down to the point where the wheel stops spinning under no load.
     Cleaning is more than taking off the float bowl and scraping out some gunk. EVERY jet and adjustment screw must be removed from the body. They must be cleaned. The now open passages in the carb must be cleaned. The float needle seat must be polished and the float needle must be cleaned and replaced. Then proper adjustments for idle mixture and speed must be made on a running bike.
     When a carb is this bad there is NO external repair or adjustment or additive that will fix it. Running around with a high idle can cause handling issues in corners, particularly slow tight ones.
     Also, Tight valves cause weird running issues. Adjust them while the carb is soaking.
    Find a different mechanic.


young gun

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Reply #4 on: February 19, 2015, 07:44:39 pm
Thanks for the reply Vince. The mechanic was suggested by the local dealership but yeah I'm inclined to agree with you, I won't be taking it back! Luckily I got the rear exhaust bracket back today so the Enfield is back up and running :)

Shame the poor scooter only gets ridden once a week or so, so it really doesn't get ridden as much as it needs to. I'll take you advice and clean the carb out. Thanks!


gizzo

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Reply #5 on: February 19, 2015, 09:00:59 pm
See if you can find a fuel injection workshop that has an ultrasonic cleaner,get them to do your carb. Pull it apart first. Or, get some yamalube carb dip. You soak the parts in it and it cleans then up really well. Condolences about your dad.
simon from south Australia
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young gun

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Reply #6 on: February 20, 2015, 04:13:19 am
Thanks Gizzo :)