won.t start

[hardwareman]

won't start.70 degree weather and my harley is up in ky now can't ride.will start on fluid but i am scared to use it .pulled the tank and took apart the petcock.the diaphram is a little wrinkled but no obstructions.tok a turkey baster and put two baby food jars,small ones,full of gas into the fuel line and it still won't even hit.put in new plugs and i am getting spark through all the wires,maybe not 100% but spark none the less.won't start.was running fine last fall when it was put in the garage so??????also found two unconnected wires under the tank,a green one and a orange/green tracer wire,anyone care to share??knoxville tn.yeah we're number one this week.

[chiphead]

Need more cowbell.
What kind of bike?
When was the last time it ran?
Pulling this one right out of my a$$ I'd say your carbs are not getting fuel to the motor. Need to clean the carbs? Not pulling fuel because the intake orings are leaking and your sucking air? I don't know.
Need more cowbell.

[SPARKSS]

won't start.70 degree weather and my harley is up in ky now can't ride.will start on fluid but i am scared to use it .pulled the tank and took apart the petcock.the diaphram is a little wrinkled but no obstructions.tok a turkey baster and put two baby food jars,small ones,full of gas into the fuel line and it still won't even hit.put in new plugs and i am getting spark through all the wires,maybe not 100% but spark none the less.won't start.was running fine last fall when it was put in the garage so??????also found two unconnected wires under the tank,a green one and a orange/green tracer wire,anyone care to share??knoxville tn.yeah we're number one this week.

First and foremost, what's the year, make and model of bike you're asking about?

I think I understand basically what you're describing and based on the fact that you say it "will start on fluid" then that rules out ignition problems. Before I'd ever take apart the petcock, I'd merely take the line off and see whether fuel will flow out of it (at least in the PRI or prime position......you can test in this position but shouldn't use it for normal running). What were you using for "fluid"? Once it has been started like this ("on fluid") will it stay running? Will it idle once started like this? If so there is probably nothing more than a start enrichment problem. Based on your answers to these questions I'll try to advise you further.

[Redman]

What model? What year? Depending what model/year, I possibly could send you an electrical schematic.

Green with an Org/grn in the same connector could possily be for the horns, but I dont think those run under the tank. Loose wirres probably not related to why not run now when it did before.

Good that you are cautious with the starting fluid. You used it enough to find out it does start on the fluid, so you can think the ignition is okay, and look at fuel related things.

Tell us what model, and what type of petcock. Petcock have Pri-On-Res positions?

[bonanzadave]

Wire could be the fuel gauge.

I would dump all that old gas and get some fresh fuel and a 1/4 can of sea foam.

[BassCliff]

Howdy again!

From another thread:

i am sorry but i also have a 1980 gs1000e that refuses to start if let sitting.if it was a valve adjustment problem it should have cleared up after the adjustment and though carb rebuild done by a professional shouldn't it?if i start it every day or two it starts right up.let it sit for a week and it will not!it is low milage 16000 miles and runs great after startup.i have thought that the fuel valve has been the problem all along.

Mr. hardwareman,

You've come to the right place. The good folks here will help you get your bike running like it should.

Did the "professional" really do a good job with the valve adjustments and carb cleanup/rebuild? How is your charging system? Have you read the Stator Papers? I know I've given you the standard mega-welcome greeting in another thread, but if you'd like to read it again you can find it here along with a lot of other handy information on my little BikeCliff website. Do you have a manual? You might start by checking all the basics; compression, fuel, spark. "Compression" troubles can be anything from tight valves to bad rings. "Fuel" troubles could be anything from leaky air intake to gummed up, mis-configured carburetors to a bad petcock. "Spark" troubles could be anything from the stator or regulator/rectifier to the coils to the plugs. There may not be a "quick fix". Your bike will run much better and be more reliable if all of these systems are checked out and put back in optimal condition. Listen to the good folks here and they will lead you down the path of GS enlightenment. :-D

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[hardwareman]

won't start

bike is low milage ,16000 mile,1980 gs1000e.was cleaned about three years ago and stage three jet kits were installed.I really do not ride the bike much,mostly vintage runs with a group here in knoxville tn.Time Warp vintage motorcycle club.fuel will not come out of the tank with the lines removed .I pulled the tank yesterday and took apart the petcock and see nothing wrong.the vent tube going into the tank is clear.i can blow air through tje one going into the number two carb.i put ful via the syringe in the fuel line and it does pass through the filter.i have clear fuel line on it and have placed 6-8 oz of fuel into the bike.still will not hit.bike has always been difficult to start after sitting for a week or two and it has not been ridden since last sept.will run on starting fluid but as stated ,i really do not wish to keep spraying it to keep it running.fuel will not leave the tank on any setting.straight up or sideways.diaphram does look wrinkled but moves manually in the slot and does not appear to be sticking.i can suck on the fuel side but not on what i believe to be the vacuum side.

[SPARKSS]

Sounds to me like you have more than 1 problem. First, don't run the engine on ether.....very hard on 'em. If you want to run a spark ignition engine a little while troubleshooting fuel delivery, I'd recommend feeding the carbs (air box setup works best) with an open propane torch (unlit of course). This makes no mess and doesn't hurt the engine......great way to find inlet leaks (once again no mess, nor damage).

The carbs should fuel the engine with a gravity fed fuel supply.......either rig up a seperate tank or.......FIRST......clean and/or rebuild that petcock assembly which is not working. If it's an original design setup with 3 positions.....PRI, ON and RES then it ought to flow fuel freely in the PRI (prime) position but requires slight vacuum applied to the back of the diaphragm to open a fuel passage in either of the ON or RES (reserve) positions. At any rate you'll have to sort out this problem at some point. For all 4 carbs to not fuel the engine even a bit (poor running) would require that all 4 are badly plugged......OR your fuel filter is plugged (you said it isn't) OR that you have a major problem with probably 2 or more intake connections (are the carbs falling off of the engine?) OR.....if using an airbox/OEM type filter that IT is plugged solid somehow (critter nest maybe?).

If the engine will start and run when fed with continuous propane (like I said this works best with an airbox setup), then you might try feeding the engine some clean new fuel with a 500ml bottle of fuel injection cleaner added OR perhaps some SEA-FOAM which (if no other problems exist) may start to bring it back.

Is there any doubt as to whether the engine is being fueled? Do you have any wet spark plugs? (if so - change 'em......they're probably fuel fouled and won't ignite under compression)..

After this.......without knowing any other history of the engine, I'd be pulling back to basics......compression, good spark on ALL 4 PLUGS AVAILABLE, mechanical timing, mechanical integrity......intake integrity.....carb cleaning.........

Not sure what you folks have for fuel there......maybe it's ethanol or other blends.....some of that has been reported to gum up worse than conventional fuel but this is something I haven't experienced - so just throwing that out there. Warm climates aggravate fuel gumming up a lot.....so with long term unuse you ought to be adding some Stabil or similar product (once everything is running right again).