So I'm in New England and we had a pretty bad winter this year. I was a bad owner and left the GS outside all winter (I know).
A couple weeks ago I tried to start it and the battery was dead (not completely dead but on its way). Ok.
I pulled it out, and the water is a little low (maybe down 1/2"), so I added some water and put it on the trickle charger. Next day, it started up ok and I ran it for about 10 minutes.
Today, I tried to take it out for real. It took some time to start and the battery seemed weak. But it started and warmed up. When I tried to drive it around the block, it just sagged and died and didn't have juice to restart.
What's the likelihood I f&*&ed up my battery in the cold? Battery was new last year, by the way. Or could it be the alternator? Seems odd that the bike would run fine til fall last year, then the alternator dies over the winter.
Probably killed the battery. Have you checked the voltage?
Ok, an update:
Got home, started the bike up. It idled/warmed up for about 10 minutes. It wasn't running great, but I set the idle a little higher and was able to cut the choke off completely.
Took it for a spin around the block once. The second time I went around the block it started running bad, sagged and died and I had to push it home.
So if my electrical system is problematic, I could be getting a weak spark and the engine would run rough, right?
The other thing is, once it's running, the bike shouldn't have conked out if the alternator was good, correct? In theory, I should be able to run the bike without the battery at all, I would think.
Quote from: twelvepoint on March 17, 2011, 04:21:39 PM
...So if my electrical system is problematic, I could be getting a weak spark and the engine would run rough, right?
The other thing is, once it's running, the bike shouldn't have conked out if the alternator was good, correct? In theory, I should be able to run the bike without the battery at all, I would think.
Most vehicles don't run well or at all with a dead battery. If your battery is pretty bad it will be putting a large drain on the charging system, not leaving enough to run the bike well. Have you checked the voltage?
I'd suggest you to check the negative thin cable going out your battery negative pole. Mine got bad and the bike started acting like yours, after that I lost one pulse generator coil and my stator. A little pricey to get it in working order again.
The strange thing is your battery able to start the bike, but not to keep it running. I've never seen something like this caused by a bad battery, not even with an almost dead battery.... the first thing on a bad bettery is it not being able to crank at all..
Quote from: zirconx on March 17, 2011, 04:31:14 PM
Quote from: twelvepoint on March 17, 2011, 04:21:39 PM
...So if my electrical system is problematic, I could be getting a weak spark and the engine would run rough, right?
The other thing is, once it's running, the bike shouldn't have conked out if the alternator was good, correct? In theory, I should be able to run the bike without the battery at all, I would think.
Most vehicles don't run well or at all with a dead battery. If your battery is pretty bad it will be putting a large drain on the charging system, not leaving enough to run the bike well. Have you checked the voltage?
Getting in there with a meter is my next step, for sure.
This might be a red herring , but...one other thing I noticed is at idle, I could pull the plug wire off the left side, and the engine would still run, but if I pulled the right wire, the engine would die. If I revved it up to about 4K, it would run ok just one cylinder, either side. Seems like that could be a carb sync issue or dirty carb, but maybe there's an ignition issue, too.
I'm due to replace the wires anyway. Are there any other ignition components that might need attention?
GAS: I'll definitely check the battery negative strap.
Quote from: GAS on March 17, 2011, 04:34:49 PM
The strange thing is your battery able to start the bike, but not to keep it running. I've never seen something like this caused by a bad battery, not even with an almost dead battery.... the first thing on a bad bettery is it not being able to crank at all..
Yes, I thought the same thing. It was weird even after dying this morning, it could crank up again later in the day. Maybe there's a point where the battery recovered enough to restart the bike and run it for a bit, but it couldn't sustain the ignition after a point. Seems unlikely, but I guess that's why I'm asking, ha.
I think there were some instructions here for testing the alternator, so I'll check that out.
Quote from: twelvepoint on March 17, 2011, 05:07:50 PM
This might be a red herring , but...one other thing I noticed is at idle, I could pull the plug wire off the left side, and the engine would still run, but if I pulled the right wire, the engine would die. If I revved it up to about 4K, it would run ok just one cylinder, either side. Seems like that could be a carb sync issue or dirty carb, but maybe there's an ignition issue, too.
I'm due to replace the wires anyway. Are there any other ignition components that might need attention?
This really sounds like you've already lost one signal generator coil, your bike is running on one cylinder, just the right one. When that happens the bike won't rev above 4RPM under load, and won't have any usable power. My bike showed EXACTLY the same problem.....
Quote from: twelvepoint on March 17, 2011, 05:13:37 PM
Quote from: GAS on March 17, 2011, 04:34:49 PM
The strange thing is your battery able to start the bike, but not to keep it running. I've never seen something like this caused by a bad battery, not even with an almost dead battery.... the first thing on a bad bettery is it not being able to crank at all..
Yes, I thought the same thing. It was weird even after dying this morning, it could crank up again later in the day. Maybe there's a point where the battery recovered enough to restart the bike and run it for a bit, but it couldn't sustain the ignition after a point. Seems unlikely, but I guess that's why I'm asking, ha.
I think there were some instructions here for testing the alternator, so I'll check that out.
To test the alternator just unplug the three wires and measure resistance with the engine off(resistance measured between pair to pair should be as low as 2ohm, open circuit means bad stator). resistance between each lead and ground should be infinite.
With engine running the voltage measured between each pair at 5000RPM should be higher than 65V AC.
Try first to test you signal generator pick up (right side round cover) open it (three bolts) and test the coils, there are two of them, measure resistance between the two poles of each coil, it should be near to null on both them.
Engine running on one cyl, could be as simple as a loose spark plug wire at coil. Check to see if both are bonded tight into coils or if one (left) is loose and will turn. If loose tighten it up turning into coil and see how it runs. If it won't tighten unscrew from coil and cut 1/4" off wire and screw back into coil.
Quote from: gsJack on March 17, 2011, 05:29:34 PM
Engine running on one cyl, could be as simple as a loose spark plug wire at coil. Check to see if both are bonded tight into coils or if one (left) is loose and will turn. If loose tighten it up turning into coil and see how it runs. If it won't tighten unscrew from coil and cut 1/4" off wire and screw back into coil.
Yes, makes sense, first things first!!! Do this before opening the signal generator...
I've had what you describe, pulling one lead kills motor at idle, will run on either at higher revs. Problem was blocked idle jet, solution was drain the bad carb, 2 min job. good luck! When its cold and you have the choke on it runs OK, because its getting fuel through the enrichment jet (the choke is not really a choke, it adds more fuel through a seperate jet).
Sounds like good advice, everyone. I'll check the wires and fuel system first. We had a very bad winter here and I bet some cleanup/tuneup is necessary.
How often do you all replace the plug wires? The bike has 10K, and those wires might be original...
Did you drain all the gas or did you add Stabil or something in the fall? I think the only electrical problem you will have is a toasted battery.
Quote from: Big Rich on March 17, 2011, 07:31:32 PM
Did you drain all the gas or did you add Stabil or something in the fall? I think the only electrical problem you will have is a toasted battery.
No, I didn't do anything. I was a bad owner :oops:
Ha! I'm sure your bike is weeping on the inside for it. Drain the tank, clean the petcocks, pull the carbs and scrub them, and get a new battery. Your riding season depends on it.
After a few weeks of questionable weather, I got a chance to pull the battery and recharge it. It started right up and I was able to take it on a couple half-hour rides. I think the issue was when I initially started it up, I drained the battery to the point where it wasn't able to recharge. Does that sound plausible?
Another spring cleaning question: I still am running gas from last fall. Should I put either some dry gas or Stabil in it to help clean things out? I drained some gunk out of the bowls and got a new inline filter.
It runs ok now, with two little issues:
1) There was a little bit of hanging idle happening, but once it warmed up it went back to normal
2) Also when the engine was running cold, there was a sound coming from the top of the engine that sounded like a quick blast of pressurized air. Any clue what that is?
Thanks
Unless gas costs 50 bucks a gallon where you live, drain it all and get fresh stuff. Clean the carbs and petcocks (deja vu?).
Was that popping sound rather loud? It's your engine back firing from the carbs- which means they need cleaned.
I finally had a good day to take the carbs off and give them a good cleaning. In doing so I noticed the cap I had on the vacuum port (the one that normally has a hose that goes to the petcock - I removed the vacuum shut off on it last year) was missing. So I recapped the carb fitting and now it's running way way better. I recharged the battery again and it seems strong, but I'm not going to do any long trips for a couple weeks just in case. Thanks for all the advice!