Temp. taken out of storage, problems start

[bradleymaynar]

Okay. So it was 22F this morning and the bike started with the choke on. It died once, but after pulling the choke all the way out again, it ran fine. I left the choke on for approximately 30 seconds as I backed out of the drive. And once I started moving forward, pushed the choke in completely. It was real sluggish for about the first mile until the engine warmed a bit. By the time I'd gotten to work (another mile and a half), it was running fine. The only thing I did differently for the first mile today was to run the bike at higher RPM's.

It looks like the temps are gonna go back up next week\\/ . So it'll be a while before I can give you a report on the teens and single digit start ups.:-D

Brad bt

[ShirleySerious]

I'm gonna go check out my bike in a few minutes, and if it looks like it needs a new battery, I'm still screwed. The seat is still stuck closed if you can remember, so I have to work on that before I replace anything. But I will try to let it warm up longer.

[Nerobro]

You can access the battery behind the left side cover. You do not need to remove the seat to take care of that. :-) In fact, if the seat is open, you can't even get to the battery terminals to unscrew it.

Is the bike an E or an L?

As for that kickstand, yeah I have spares, but I'd reccomend bugging planecrazy about it first. He's got some welding equipment and the best fix for what happened is welding a bolt in place of the "prong" A welded on bolt won't accidently come off :-)

[ShirleySerious]

Well thing is, I can only get to the terminals and unscrew them if the seat opens. I wish I had a picture to explain, but on my 550E, the battery is toward the left side of the bike and the terminals are facing right. My friend's father is a locksmith, so I can probably ask him to fix that, but for now I have to cross my fingers and hope the battery doesn't go bad from the cold.

And the PO broke off the little rod on the kickstand and welded it back on and the day after I bought it, it snapped off again and I lost the rod. To weld something on my bike would require me to take it some distance, and that's not gonna happen in this weather. Since I'm not using it, the kickstand can wait till spring.

As for my earlier issue, I went and started it with the choke on and let it run for 10 minutes then turned the choke off. It runs fine now and the electric start even works, but I'm sure letting it idle for 15 minutes didn't charge the battery enough for that to happen next time.

[tconroy]

Well thing is, I can only get to the terminals and unscrew them if the seat opens. I wish I had a picture to explain, but on my 550E, the battery is toward the left side of the bike and the terminals are facing right. My friend's father is a locksmith, so I can probably ask him to fix that, but for now I have to cross my fingers and hope the battery doesn't go bad from the cold.

And the PO broke off the little rod on the kickstand and welded it back on and the day after I bought it, it snapped off again and I lost the rod. To weld something on my bike would require me to take it some distance, and that's not gonna happen in this weather. Since I'm not using it, the kickstand can wait till spring.

As for my earlier issue, I went and started it with the choke on and let it run for 10 minutes then turned the choke off. It runs fine now and the electric start even works, but I'm sure letting it idle for 15 minutes didn't charge the battery enough for that to happen next time.

Get a new battery. Just make sure its the right one for your bike.If you go to advance auto or orielly they can look up the make model and year to get the right one.It sounds like that your only problem.What did it idle at when you warmed it up?it should be from 1000 to 1200 rpm's,but no more than that.

[Nerobro]

I have a 1980 GS550E too. To get the battery out all you need to do is undo that rubber strap and tug on it a bit. it will come forward an inch or two, then you can get a screwdriver into the terminals on the top. :-) You really don't need to open the seat for anything but cleaning the air filter. Or maybe accessing the toolkit.

[bonanzadave]

I have a 1980 GS550E too. To get the battery out all you need to do is undo that rubber strap and tug on it a bit. it will come forward an inch or two, then you can get a screwdriver into the terminals on the top. :-) You really don't need to open the seat for anything but cleaning the air filter. Or maybe accessing the toolkit.

A Tool Kit ! There might be a spark plug tool under that damn seat.

[silverhorse47]

I don't know your bike at all, but on mine I can get a needle nose plier on the cable is activated by the seat lock, and if I yard on it the latch pops open. Maybe a version of this would work for you.

S.

[ShirleySerious]

We'll I'd like to be able to open the seat because I keep all my insurance and registration in that little "trunk" thing in the back. I hope I can get the battery out somehow, but it still doesn't change the fact that the seat's broken. If I go there today, I might be able to take some pictures to show you my dilemma.

[Nerobro]

you can "break" into your seat. It's locking mechinism is just like a door lock. If you're so kinky... you could just drill out the lock. I have spare locking mechinisms too ;-) I'll need to check to see if I have any keys that fit them. Only two screws hold in the lock mechinism. But those screws are covered by the tab on the seat.

[ShirleySerious]

I just put in a new battery and now it's running normally. It's 60 degrees today, so I didn't need too much warming up time. The remaining problem is the seat lock. I went to my friend's house because his dad is a locksmith and he took the lock off and said it's busted from being worn over 30 years. So I need a new seat lock. Does Suzuki still sell locks for older bikes or am I better off getting one as a spare part?

[Nerobro]

I'm fairly sure the parts are still available. I "may" have a complete lockset around here. I have three 77-80 GS550's.. and I only intend on keeping one on the road so I don't need the other two locksets. You'll need to get back to me later this week on this. I won't have time to try out my keys untill wednesday or thursday.

[bradleymaynar]

So I need a new seat lock. Does Suzuki still sell locks for older bikes or am I better off getting one as a spare part?

Yes. I was checking mrcycles.com last night trying to find a solution for you and found that all of the seat lock parts are available. Their price is roughly $45 for a new seat lock.

Brad bt