Bike Dumping Gas, trouble running.

[Anonymous]

Hello i have a 1980 GS1100ex that was guzzling a lot of gas and running a little funny so i took for a Valve adjustment and tune-up (oil change, carbuerator synchronization, new airfilter) not too long ago. When i picked up the bike it seems to have been running worse than from when i picked it up. The mechanic assured me everything was done to specs, and he also told me that they only thing thet did to the carbeurators was synchronizing them. Additionally he said my number 4 carb looked like it was leaking gas which could have been attributed to a broken float. After the tune up i was using even more gas (i got about 100 miles to a tank).

anyway two weeks after maintenance, i go to open the choke and start up my bike, the engine turns a few times and then it does a hard stop with a "clank" i can hear somewhere in the engine. Immidietly gas starts hitting the ground. i check around the bike and see that there is some fluid on the carb (probably gas).

any time i pressed the starter after that the engine would not turn at all , so i put the bike in gear rolled it forward, left it in gear put in the clutch with the choke closed and tried to start it. The engine would now turn, but i had to give it gas and hold it for a while to get it to start running it on its own.

Im taking it back into the shop, and i want to know whats wrong with the bike ahead of time if i need to pursue asking them to correct something they may have done wrong, or so i dont end up fixing things that dont need to be fixed.

[nabrams]

Orthok,

Here's some text from some other posts I've responded to:

Maybe this is obvious to you, but are you sure your floats are floating. They may have leaks. Take them off and shake them around near your ear. If you hear liquid sloshing around in there then you've definitley got a bad float. Leaking floats are quite common of these old bikes. This would explain the overflow of gas out the the overflow tube. I had the same problem.

Also, make sure no gas got into the crankcase (open the oil filler and check its smell, level and viscosity).

Till about three years ago, I would take my bikes to mechanics. I've had so many bad experiences that I decided to invest the time to learn about carbs, electrics, air flow/filtering, etc. I'm much, much better off now.

Typical (not all) mechanics:
If your job is not big money for them, they won't get it done in less than a month and they'll do just enough to get it running somewhat decently. They won't take the time to check all the little details out.
For example: they won't replace that 50 cent o-ring that's OK now but is likely to go bad in the near future. They have a vested interest in that kind of behavior - They hope that o-ring WILL go bad in a year so that you'll have to come back to them.
In some cases they'll do a sloppy job on something simple that you could have done yourself (like majorly overfilling the oil so that you've got to drain and re-do it yourself anyway).
In other cases they're just plain careless and hope you won't notice the damage they've done (like stripping threads in a bolt hole and then relying on the other three bolts to hold that cover on). If you confront them on it, they say "Oh, you really don't need that anyway!!! I gave you a great rate on the labor so don't complain about this small thing!!! This job took 6 hours longer than it was supposed to and I ony charged you 2 hours overtime!!!". And so on.
Take the time to learn the carb. You'll probably need to revisit it again in the future anyway. Do you want to have to take it to the mechanic every time?

[Anonymous]

Is it possible that you have separate problems: gas overflowing and whatever made the "clank" in the engine? They really aren't that closely connected. If you were seriously overflowing you might get gas in the cylinders, but I don't see why that should "clank" unless it broke something (in which case it's lucky you weren't at speed).

I'd say to make sure your floats are doing their job. Maybe take all the carbs off, feed them gas, and watch them. You might also pull the spark plugs, then with the bike ignition off, turn it over once or twice by having a friend push it (put it in 3rd gear or so). Listen to the engine. That might tell you if the "clang" was something bad in the drive train. No promises, but it's a shot.

Michael

[daveo]

That's bad, sounds like the engine hydro-locked, probably from gas filling up a cylinder, you've most likely got several problems, the petcocks' leaking, as are at least one of the float valves, the needle valve itself could be leaky or as mentioned previously, a saturated or leaky float will hold it open, but gas shouldn't pass the petcock, when not running, regardless

[earlfor]

You have a couple problems.

1. Your fuel petcock is faulty. Either have it rebuilt or replace it.
2. You carb float needles are leaking. At best, you need to replace the float needles and/or set the float heights to specs. Since the bike runs badly anyway, I would probably buy the rebuild kits for the carbs AND set the float heights. (Also check the floats to be sure there is no gas inside them and they actually do float)
3. The clanking you hear and the engine refusing to turn over is hydrolock.
There is so much gas in your crankcase that it is overfilled with the oil and gas and the engine is locking up because of this. I would not run the engine or even try to start it again before replacing the petcock, rebuilding the carbs, and changing the oil and filter. If you are really lucky, you havent bent any internal engine parts yet. If you continue to run it like this...you WILL!


4. Find a mechanic that isnt a total idiot!! There is no excuse for a professional mechanic to miss any of these problems.

Earl

[Anonymous]

carb info

thanks for the info please add more if you think of anything else

concerning the carbs: i asked my local shop if they could order me floats. when they called suzuki to order em they said it was discontinued. Does anyone know where i can get them?

[earlfor]

Re: carb info

The first thing to do is check to see if you really need new floats.
Remove the floats from the float bowls and hold them submerged in a small can of gas. If you see air bubbles coming to the surface, then the float is leaking and isnt any good. Rotate the float while holding it submerged. If no bubbles, then you dont need floats.
I am sure with the number of GS'ers in these forums, we can come up with a couple of floats if need be. :-) Order new "O" rings from Robert Barr. they are not expensive. Some people have had good luck with petcock rebuild kits, but I am not one of them. I would buy a complete new petcock. Even if your carbs can seep a little gas, it will not cause a hydrolock problem if the petcock shuts off fuel like it is supposed to.

Earl

thanks for the info please add more if you think of anything else

concerning the carbs: i asked my local shop if they could order me floats. when they called suzuki to order em they said it was discontinued. Does anyone know where i can get them?

[Anonymous]

Robert Barr

is Robert Barr a buisiness or a person and how can i get a hold of them?

[earlfor]

Re: Robert Barr

You can email him at
Robert.Barr@worldnet.att.net
I believe the ""O" ring "kits" he sells are $12 (if I remember correctly) and enough to do all four carbs.

Earl

is Robert Barr a buisiness or a person and how can i get a hold of them?