Lack of acceleration. Runs fine

[tylert2156]

I have a 1980 850g. At certain Throttle angles it will feel like there is power. But at other angles, theres no power. It wont rev higher than 3500. Plus it doesnt want to go any faster than 40mph. it will but it takes forever. I am not sure where to start. I have already cleaned my carbs out and checked their operation. I couldnt find another post that seemed to fit my needs. Thank you for your help
-Tyler

[cowboyup3371]

Welcome to the site. You've found a wealth of information and hundreds of years of combined experience.

To start with, when you cleaned the carbs did you just spray cleaner into them or did you disassemble them, replace the orings, dip each carb body and jet for 24 hours, thoroughly ensure all the jets are cleaned, set the float height properly, and synch them?

Basscliff will be along later with his unofficial official welcome with links to a bunch of different maintenance recommendations. Follow those, read the Top 10 Newbie Mistakes thread, and look through Nessism's carb cleaning tutorial. You do that and you'll have a great running 31 year old bike.

[tom203]

More clues please! Is this bike new to you? Are you running a stock airbox with air filter installed? As cowboyup said, these carbs require a thorough cleaning for happy times.

[Nessism]

Are you running a stock airbox with air filter installed?

Waiting for someone to chime in with this comment.

[TheCafeKid]

Well, where to start is to arm yourself with as much knowledge as you can.
Nessism has some links there in his signature line that will star you off with some nice weaponry. Before you do anything, read. Cleaning out the carbs isn't enough. They'll likely need rebuilt. It isn't as scary as it may sound. And if you read throughly first you'll see how easy it is. Youre going to want to take care of all off the items in his, and BassCliffs lists. If you do, it will not only equate to a fine running enjoyable machine, but it will also give you much insight on maintaining your GS for the future. Do those things and that bike will last as long as you wish to ride it.
So, step one:
Read. Arm yourself with knowledge
Step two:
Ask questions about things you may not understand
Step three:
Act on the information you learn

Attacking things without a good base of understanding will only make things more difficult and frustrating. And you can waste a good deal of time and money going at it all cock handed.

Many a member has failed to simply read and learn and end up giving up because they only make things worse tossing money at it hoping for a silver bullet fix.

Good luck!

[BassCliff]

Greetings and Salutations!!

Hi Mr. tylert,

The links below lead to a wealth of information. If you fix everything correctly the first time, you and your bike will be insanely happy. If you take any shortcuts, and I mean any shortcuts, you and your bike will be very frustrated.

Let me dump a TON of information on you and share some GS lovin'.

I just stopped by to welcome you to the forum in my own, special way.

If there's anything you'd like to know about the Suzuki GS model bikes, and most others actually, you've come to the right place. There's a lot of knowledge and experience here in the community. Come on in and let me say "HOoooowwwDY!"....

Here is your very own magical, mystical, mythical, mind-expanding "mega-welcome". Please take notice of the "Top 10 Common Issues", "Top 15 Tips For GS Happiness", the Carb Cleanup Series, and the Stator Papers. All of these tasks must be addressed in order to have a safe, reliable machine. This is what NOT to do: Top 10 Newbie Mistakes. Now let me roll out the welcome mat for you...



Please click here for your mega-welcome, chock full of tips, suggestions, links to vendors, and other information. Then feel free to visit my little BikeCliff website where I've been collecting the wisdom of this generous community. Don't forget, we like pictures! Not you, your bike!

Thanks for joining us. Keep us informed.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[jaywelchy]

Look under my post ... I just went through this with a new-to-me GS550. Very similar behavior.

Bike started and ran great up to 4K. The sometimes power/sometimes not at different throttle positions was the same as you ..

I rebuilt carbs .. no luck. The PROs at the bike shop(!) rebuilt them 3 times, no luck or change.

I finally rebuilt using the tutorial, the advice and knowledge in here, and followed it all meticulously.

Walla ... now it runs great and all is good.

Details .. its all about the details.

Good Luck!

Jason

[tylert2156]

Waiting for someone to chime in with this comment.

yes. its all stock. the bike is new to me. i have also found the fuse block is getting hot. i have a repair manual, but it is no help on any of this. should i take it to a shop and let them go through it?

[BassCliff]

Hi,

If you bring your bike to a shop they will take your money and really mess up your bike.

You have a 30 year old motorcycle that needs 20 years worth of maintenance. Do it all correctly the first time so you and your bike will be insanely happy. Just go through the maintenance tasks as listed in your "mega-welcome" and see the supporting documentation on my website for "how to" information. You'll find lots of GS850G lovin' on my website.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[tom203]

yes. its all stock. the bike is new to me. i have also found the fuse block is getting hot. i have a repair manual, but it is no help on any of this. should i take it to a shop and let them go through it?

New to you...usually means you have no idea what has been done to the bike. Be suspicious and head to Basscliff's site - beware the electrics on these bikes.. Have you actually looked inside air filter box? many times a airbox will pick up residents if it sits unused.

[verboseone]

Hi,

If you bring your bike to a shop they will take your money and really mess up your bike.
---
BassCliff

I couldn't agree more. I ended up pushing over a thousand dollars to a shop to not fix my bike. Finally took it in my own hands and got it running the way it should. If you are the least bit mechanically inclined to the work yourself. If you mess it up a little don't worry. The mechanic would have too. Only difference is you didn't have to pay labor. Great learning experience.