CRAP!! HELP ME PLEASE!!! Won't run good!

[Bowtied]

Okay guys, my xs11 (79 model) has been sitting in the damn garage for like a week now. Well seeing as how it's been raining i havn't even stepped foot in there cause i'm afraid i'll get pissed and go for a ride in the rain.

Anyways, i started it up this mourning to take it to work at 715am. Well i couldn't keep this thing running for NOTHEN! I could twist the throttle all the way up and i got NO RESPONSE from the bike. And when you pull the choke all the way out and let it idle it still just chokes out and dies. I'm not sure whats going on right now. Anybody know? Or i'm off work today anyone that knows how to work on these things wanna come help a guy out? I need to get this thing running so i can drive it. I really want to ride this thing today. The new girlfriend wants to go for a ride on it. Anyways, if you know what could have caused this let me know.

It ran fine when i parked it. Just been sitting about 5 days or so. Whenever the rain started happening. Thanks fellas.

[Hawkins]

Check for gas in your oil.

[prometheus578]

"First thing to do...."

Quite bragging..."I got a girlfriend!"
We old divorced guys don't like that.
Now then... we'll assume that nothing(note the spelling) major has occurred, such as a loose timing chain jumping a tooth when you first tried to start it.
The only other thing that can produce an immediate change would likely be fuel related.
Now, as I know that you always seek out and read everything that I write... you'll recall from about a week ago I wrote about me trying to start my bike... and not having enough fuel in the tank. (Oh, there was enough to ride it home... but parked on the sidestand, all the fuel in the tank went to the left, carbs on the right then starved)
So... what you need to do now is, grab your handy dandy 10mm wrench and open up two of the carb bowl drains. Use a plastic cap from a spray can to catch the fuel in. (... helps if you cut the cap down a little to fit underneath the carbs)
Ok, about an equal amount of fuel from carb #1 and carb #4...
we should have enough fuel and now shall look elsewhere.
Actually, the first thing that should always be done with a bike that doesn't start is to check the spark plugs.
If they're black and fouled, just that alone could be the problem.
Believe it or not... fouled plugs that still fire, can start acting up when the weather changes... moisture-laden air, etc.
Oh, back to the fuel in the spray cap for a moment....
I like using white plastic caps... If you see a lot of sediment in the bottom of the cap, chances are that the jets at the bottom of the bowls and plugged with crap. Those jets supply fuel for the "choke" circuit.
It's my contention at this point that the bike is only running on a few cylinders.
If the choke's fuel is plugged, then those cylinders will not be firing well at idle/warm-up. And as they're not warming up, the engine stumbles and won't sustain itself.
There may be nothing wrong with the other fuel circuits... you just can't get past the "choke stage" to find out.

[Bowtied]

Okay well i got it to run. I was able to run around the block (got it up to 35ish mph). I had it in prime mode i think is what it stands for. There's off on reserve and prime. Anyways it ran for a bit around the block then when i wanted to go to the parts store for some vacuum line (one line is compressed and it gave me HELL last time it split on me).

But now then, i checked what i thought was oil. But theres a screw cap on the right side of the engine and if you take it out you can actually stick your finger all the way in there and not feel anything but "motor" parts. However the little window that show's how much oil is in the sytem is showing to be full. So am i losing oil in the transmission or what? Cause i'm not sure what the hell is up? But right now it runs half way decent. I'm pretty low on gas so tomorow i'm gonna try and fill'er up and see where that gets me. I always use premium when i fill up. Is that bad or good? If i can give any more insight i will just not sure what you want to hear and don't feel like writing a novel here. Thanks fellas.

[Montreux_Blue]

Originally posted by Bowtied
theres a screw cap on the right side of the engine and if you take it out you can actually stick your finger all the way in there and not feel anything but "motor" parts. However the little window that show's how much oil is in the sytem is showing to be full.

The "screw cap" is where you put the oil in. Did you look at the window while on the kickstand or center stand?

[oldyam80sg]

So am i losing oil in the transmission or what?

The cap on the right side that screws onto the bike is where the engine oil is.The bike should be checked not on the side stand but when it is level.I don't think i can stick more than 2 fingers where the oil goes in.I believe that the trans and engine oil is one and the same.

[oldyam80sg]

You said that the bike is running.I would spritz the pipes with water to see if all cylinders are firing.If they all steam then i would check something else.

[Bowtied]

Okay when i checked the little window thing there my dad was holding the bike straight up. And it was full. However the little screw cap where i was talken about says oil 3000cc next to it. And i don't see anywhere else the oil would go.


Is the engine oil and tras oil the same? And if so shouldn't i be able to feel the oil on my finger when i stick my finger in the hole where the screw cap is?

[ClarkGriswald]

Manual says to put the bike on the center stand, run it for a bit and then let it sit for a bit.. then look at the window..

[Bowtied]

I kinda did that lol. I drove it around the block a bit and got it hot. Then 5 minutes later pop pulled up and then i noticed how to check the oil.

[bikerphil]

oil

You should not be able to touch the oil thru the filler cap. All the oil is way down at the bottom in the oil pan. The oil level should be no higher than the top line of the window when bike is level. Trans and engine share the same oil.

[Montreux_Blue]

Re: oil

Ok, so you have adequate oil. Did you pull out the plugs and check them for color? Also you said fuel was low, if you have a gas can around pour it into the tank. Then try starting it up.

[trbig]

So you say the oil is full... How full? If you don't see it on the sight glass window and it goes up past the top of that, you have too much. If you have too much, you may have fuel leaking into your gas from a leaky needle valve. A leaky needle valve will make one run way too rich and run like crap... if at all.

Tod

[Bowtied]

I ran the bike a bit this mourning for about ten minutes or so. Just driving it around the neihborhood. Now i've got it on the center stand and i checked the oil and it's still full. Not over full just full. It's at the full line. So i don't think its low on oil. And the shop changed it right before i got it. So the oil only has maybe 500 miles on it. The plugs were brand new from the shop (which i know that don't mean much cause anything can cause them to foul out or whatever). But i think it was just sitting for so many days it may just be tempermental. It really feels like the vacuum line split on me again but i checked it and it seems to be ok. It's looken a little compressed. So i plan on changing it today and hopefully that'll fix the problem. And i need some gas. So we'll see what happens i guess. Thanks for the help fellas!

[Hawkins]

well, despite how it appears sometimes, machines don't have feelings, so something mechanical or electrical is causing you trouble. You say it was running fine when you parked it, so something happened over that period of time.

As I suggested in my 1st post, my guess is gas in your oil. It's the most logical thing that could change while the bike is parked, and it doesn't take much to make it run like crap. Take off your air cleaner and see if there is gas in that. Try to get out a sample of oil and see if it smells like gas and feels thin. Maybe a syringe with some hose it would work, or a turkey baster or the like. Pour a drop on some metal and see if it lights easy. Or just change it again. I know it's only 500 miles, but you won't be the 1st XSive who has had to do it. If there is oil in the gas, then you have to fix the probelm causing the gas to leak through the carbs, which can be a combination of leaky needle valve o-rings, sticky floats, wrong float height and leaky petcocks.

Someone suggested moisture causing plug misfire, so clean the ceramic on the plugs and coat them in dielectric grease. Check all your ignition connections, especially at the spark box and the coils.

Check your pickup coil wires. Lots of posts here about those, just do a search.

Good luck.