Jump to content

washed bike, now stutters


Casper

Recommended Posts

I took my 01 Katana down to the local you wash place. I washed the bike really good, and everything was fine. I rode home and had no problems. The next day, I rode the bike downtown from Dublin. As I got to around 670 and Neil, it started to sputter. I would cruise, but if I gave it gas it sputtered. As I got off on Cleveland Ave, as soon as I put it in neutral, it died. I couldn't start it. Put the choke on and it started fine. Turned the choke off and it was fine. It rode the rest of the afternoon without problem. Then last night I rode up to Kenton. Everything was fine on the way up. On the way back however, it did the same thing. I had to pull into the rest area on 33 between here and Marysville. Let it sit for ten minutes or so, and it was fine for the rest of the ride home. Now today it started doing it again. My initial thought was water in the airbox. But by now that should be dried out. I'm lost. I have no idea if its even related to me washing the bike. I've been through a tank of gas already and filled up, so its not bad gas. Any suggestions?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm no bike mechanic guru, but in my honest opinion your problem stems from the fact that you went to Kenton. Your bike, being telepathic, (like most bikes) knew this and said "What the fuck is in Kenton?!? Hell with that, I'm tappin out," or something to that effect. Solution: Don't go to Kenton. :D:D:D And it has been my experience that washing a bike is the worst thing you could do. First time I did it, lost my map. Second time, brand new Qualifier went flat. Third time, bent both fucking wheels and almost lost the bike. I have learned my lesson. My bike likes being a dirty little whore. And as such I ride it that way. (You dirty, dirty Gixster) :twisted:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

look for water under the plug boots and a around the plugs also plug the plugs

No water under the plug boots nor around the plugs. What does "plug the plugs" mean? Sorry if that's a novice question.

More info: My airbox has a drain tube. That's normal. However, it has a plug in the end of the drain tube. That's odd (at least with what I've seen). The plug is factory, I checked. I pulled the plug, and oil and water drained out. That's odd. About a 1/4 cup of the water/oil mix drained out. WTF? I rode for about an hour tonight after unplugging that drain hose and now everything seems to be fine. I figure I'll pull the airbox tomorrow and replace the air filter.

So now the question is, "why in the fuck is there oil in my airbox"? The water is most likely from me washing the bike. But where did the oil come from? My possible answer: About a month ago I changed the oil. I over filled it because I'm a fucking idiot. The owner's manual said 4L, so I put in 4L. My dumbass didn't see the 3600mL marking on the engine casing. So I started it with 4L of oil. It smoked like holy hell. That's an easy one... blow by. Drained the oil and filled with 3.6L. No more smoke, and it ran fine. Sweet. Could the oil I drained from the air box be from the blow by? I've seen that happen in cars more times than I can count. I can only assume this is the correct answer. Just figure I'll post it up on here to get a few more opinions and for others to see incase this happens to them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

sorry pull the plugs maybe you fouled one you will have oil in the air box it normal on a kat

this is why i never powerwash my bike i always hand wash it

+1 +1 NEVER POWER WASH, AND IF ALL YOU DID WAS HIT THE PLASTICS WELL, THATS NOT MUCH, SO USE YOUR HOSE AT HOME :) MY 2 CENTS

(opps sorry for th caps...not shouting)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am going to school to be a motorcycle tech and the worst thing in the world you can do is wash a bike with a power washer!!!!!!!!! If you did that there is a good possiblity you sprayed alot of the necessary lubricant and such from your engine along with getting water around your plugs and fouling them up. Also you could have blown some gaskets or seals that create compression in your cylinders...all of which is a bad thing..lol But without hearing the bike run or lacj there of starting I can't say much more then only use a regular hose no power washers...lol they are the devil for bikes. But good luck with your issue if you haven't resolved it yet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Okay, here's the update:

After I thought it was going to be okay, it did it again. This time worse. So, Jason (droptop) and I pulled the tank and drained the gas. I replaced the fuel filter. Put it back together. Put good fuel in. I just happened to notice bubbling from around the choke actuator on the #1 carb. Eric (nether93) told me that is most likely from the float sticking and flooding the carb. Makes sense. The choke is at the top of the carb. Fuel isn't supposed to be up there, yet fuel is bubbling out. Okay. So I pulled the tank again. Pulled the carbs. Drained the carbs. Pulled the bowl cover from the #1 carb. Sure enough, there's calcium/lime deposits. Ah, so now the story gets better. How does water get in the fuel? Bad gas? Bad seal around gas cap? I'm not sure, but either way there was most certainly water in my gas. So I popped the covers off the other carbs. Sure enough, same thing. So I cleaned the carbs out really good, and made sure the floats and needles weren't sticking. I finished this up last night. Tonight I rode the holy hell out of the bike. I rode every way I could trying to get it to fuck up. Nothing. No stuttering, nothing. So, is it fixed? We'll see. I rode for about an hour and a half tonight with no problems. I'm going to ride to work tomorrow and see how it acts. I think I've found the problem though and fixed it with the help of Jason (droptop) and Eric (nether93). I'll post an update when (if) I get home after work tomorrow. Thanks guys.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

water can also get in the tank if you dont plug the...damnit....we just went over how to wash bikes today...I know it's dumb but some people had no clue on how to wash bikes....and they are going to be tech's.....remember that when you go to a dealership...lol but it can get in the gas tank true like a relief valve or something along those lines...sorry I can't be specific...long week getting screwed over by the school seems they like to take your money but not give you money they owe you. also it could get into the carb if you dont have a tight seal... around the carb. But those are just words from a tech in training....sorry again for my lack of technical jargin.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 years later...
I'm no bike mechanic guru, but in my honest opinion your problem stems from the fact that you went to Kenton. Your bike, being telepathic, (like most bikes) knew this and said "What the fuck is in Kenton?!? Hell with that, I'm tappin out," or something to that effect. Solution: Don't go to Kenton. :D:D:D And it has been my experience that washing a bike is the worst thing you could do. First time I did it, lost my map. Second time, brand new Qualifier went flat. Third time, bent both fucking wheels and almost lost the bike. I have learned my lesson. My bike likes being a dirty little whore. And as such I ride it that way. (You dirty, dirty Gixster) :twisted:

one of the best OR quotes of all time, what happened to this guy?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...