problems again

[xsscooters]

The bike started doing the same thing again. 1st and 2nd cylinders are'nt firing or are flooding . I cleanded the carbs a couple of weeks ago and its ran great since rode it over 200 miles this weekend. I'm sure its a carb problem now but why would two carbs flood at once i know what to look for but what links the 1-2 carb together? When this happens its both at the same time.

[prometheus578]

When you cleaned the carbs last time, what did you find?
The only link between carbs 1&2 is that they share a petcock.
Now, both are flooding?
Do you have in-line fuel filters?
Have you ever taken the petcocks offa the tank to see if they still have their 'screen tower's on them?
Warn float needles that aren't sealing, or rust and crap passing from the tank to the carbs can can lodge between the needle and seat and not regulate the flow of fuel, hence flooding.

[xsscooters]

carbs

When i cleaned them suprisingly they were very clean . I don't have fuel filters yet i'm gonna put some ont hough . the inside of the tank is very clean i know that does'nt matter i'll take them apart again i just thought it was really odd that they both always flooded at the same time. Thanks for the reply.

[DiverRay]

Check the top "T" fitting. the vent for the two carbs are common, and if it's blocked, you will flood. Do a quick test, as the hose should go into a small fitting on the front of the air box. Make sure the fitting is clear, and the hose is clear as well.

[dwain61]

Just an idea but if you park your bike on the sidestand and you have not yet rebuilt your carbs everytime you park it for a while it will be flooded on those two left-hand carbs. They can be clean as a whistle but if they do not have a good needle and seat the xsive fuel will flood them. If they are rebuilt than I apologise.

[xsscooters]

sidestand

You said exactly what i was thinking about the side stand . However it does'nt start flooding until 2-3 miles and i always turn the gas off . I'm not sure about the vent hose i have'nt checked that but i can't do the test your talking about because it has pod filters on it.

[dwain61]

You may also want to check the enrichner (choke) circut. The slide can sometimes get stuck inside the carb body and allow a continuous flow. This would cause the bike to run well when starting because it needs the extra fuel when cold but when it gets warmed up it will flood. Good luck to ya!

[DiverRay]

If you have pods, then you may just have a hose, or just the "T". Sometimes little bugs like to try and build a home in places like that!! You can just blow gently into the vent, and make sure it doesn't take much to move the air.

[xsscooters]

different

Been working on the bike all evening there are alot of things different on this bike . For one there is only one vacum advance hose the one coming to the motor also only two gas lines are connected to the tank the other line just runs from one side of the tank to the other. it all seems to work though its just nothing like in the Clymer manual .I took the carbs off and cleaned them again there was some trash in the bowl of one . Its running great now not sure for how long .

[xsscooters]

won't start

Went to ride the bike today now it won't start . Its like Jeckel and Hyde it is ok one day and horrible the next. It just turned over and backfired also there was a " CH" sound coming from the 1-2 cyclinder battery went dead before i could tell . I posted yesterday about evertthing being different on the carbs compared to the manual . I know theese could be some of the problems but why would it run perfect for a 200 mile trip Sat with the same set up and it not effect it....

[xsscooters]

ideas

Anyone have any tips that might help ?

[79XS11F]

Sounds like my bike last summer. If I parked it for more then a day it would not start and if it did it was very rough running until a few miles were put on it. It was an on and off sort of thing and i never knew when it would act up. I took the tank off it to start trouble shooting the electrical and carbs. I use clear fuel lines and connect then together while the tank is off the bike. When I went to put the tank back on the bike a few days later I noticed about an ounce of fuel in the lines. Turned out that the fuel petcocks were leaking and flooding the engine when the bike was not running. Was worse when parked on the side stand. Check it for something this simple.
Rob

[xsscooters]

thanks

I will check that . Does anyone have any ideas as to the way my fuel lines are set up ? Also does it need the extra vacum hoses ?

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Scooters,

You don't need any other vacuum hoses. The one you have is the only one needed for the vacuum advance. Your petcocks are gravity feed, the PO or you removed the Octopus, so the lines are feeding directly to the carbs. The front ports are the PRIME ports, they aren't really needed without the Octopus, so that's why they are plumbed together with that joining hose!

So....now as to why your bike won't start, not enough info to determine. Are your petcocks slowly leaking and flooding carbs?

You've found trash in the bowls after the 2nd cleaning. You haven't, or I don't remember whether you've put on any fuel filters to prevent further contamination from the tank?

If the battery was weak so that it ran down from repeated starting attempts, then it may have been low enough to not adequately fire the TCI! You can run a fair distance on just the battery, or if it's just barely charging, you can run farther, but will eventually drain it.

Did you try jumping it from a spare car battery? Hopefully you're charging the battery now, and IF it starts with it charged, then you may need to recheck the charging system?

The tipover switch can also be intermittent, you can take it out of the loop. Had an Xsive a few years ago from Canada at an XSEast rally, bike would run a while, then die, then run again, then die, Randy=Elec.Guru talked him into removing the switch, worked fine right after that, and got him back to Canuckland!
T.C.

[xsscooters]

The bike started tonight i think i have it finally narrowed down to a petcock problem sometimes its flooding on 1-2nd and sometimes its not getting gas . its still making the "CHHH" sound my best way to desribe it. Its on the 2nd cylinder i can't tell if its coming from the exhaust or back through the carb i have tightned bot and they are tight.