my bike hates the mornings

**fireball** · 12th November 2007, 12:42

just looking for general advice for my marauder

in the mornings its a total pig to start even with choke on, choke part on what ever way i try it just takes ages to fire up its to the point im worried the battery will go flat before its even started.....
but once it has started and ive let it warm up (the length of time it takes to have a smoke and gear up so 5 or so mins) chuck it in first and off i go so i think but the bike has every intention of going no where
it kind of just loses all power as i clutch out so i have to pull the cluch back and a release it again to get any for of power
not to mention the face of when it is warm its over revving and if its warm it backfires when i flick the kill switch or turn it off..

i dont have any knowledge about this kind of bike i assume its the same as all other bikes and am going to start with new sparkplug..... but hey im female i dont know about things that go vroom vroom putt putt...

any advice?

**hospitalfood** · 12th November 2007, 12:57

sounds like a pain.
plugs is a good start. could be a carb problem or gas flow problem, or fuel/air mix problem.
carbs are not all that hard to take apart and clean which may help. I would also look for leaks everywhere around carbs and air filter etc, air leaks in particular. check all the rubbers between airbox/carbs/engine.
also check that the choke cable seems to be working, not to much slack etc.
if the gas has been sitting for a while top up with fresh gas.

**Daffyd** · 12th November 2007, 13:10

Could be your air filter element needs cleaning.

**fireball** · 12th November 2007, 17:02

cheers guys i will look into those areas

**NighthawkNZ:Me** · 12th November 2007, 17:05

I just hate the mornings... full stop.

**surfer** · 12th November 2007, 17:46

Originally Posted by hospitalfood

sounds like a pain.
plugs is a good start. could be a carb problem or gas flow problem, or fuel/air mix problem.
carbs are not all that hard to take apart and clean which may help. I would also look for leaks everywhere around carbs and air filter etc, air leaks in particular. check all the rubbers between airbox/carbs/engine.
also check that the choke cable seems to be working, not to much slack etc.
if the gas has been sitting for a while top up with fresh gas.

Originally Posted by Daffyd

Could be your air filter element needs cleaning.

Yep, ditto on this dude. Sounds like a fuel mix problem with the carb. You may have an air leak or some crap stuck somewhere in them.

**Sollyboy** · 12th November 2007, 17:47

An easy thing to try is spraying the plug cap lead and coil with crc226. the problem your having could be an earthing problem of the ht electrical system , a cold or damp motor is more prone to it , a plug is definatly a good start

**inlinefour** · 12th November 2007, 18:10

Had an old Honda that was an arse similar to whats described. Turned out that the timing was out and once it was sorted it ran well. However I was a kid back then and knew little about bikes at the time. Pays to look at the obvious things first and if you don't find the cause move on. Although without knowing the history of a vehicle, its hard to diagnose a problem online. Good luck with sorting it out, hope its an easy cheap fix.

**fireball** · 13th November 2007, 14:43

went down to holeshot today (where i bought the bike from) they are going to have a good look over the bike check all the bits that i mentioned....

i must applaud their service they are by far the best bike shop ive been to, good customer service and they treat me like a biker not an air headed woman with out a clue!

just have to deal with my backfiring until the 27th

**Max Preload** · 13th November 2007, 20:04

Is it just the cool mornings, or is it always when it's cold? Is the bike garaged? Electric fuel pump or gravity feed? (Sorry - I know nothing about this model - just trying to narrow the field)

You could have a leaking float valve. Is there a distinct odour of raw fuel when it does finally start? How does it idle cold when on choke - steady or erratic?

It could simply be worn plugs but they're normally bad all the time, starting wise.

**dino3310** · 13th November 2007, 20:17

My DR had the exact same problem,turns out my choke cable was seazed slightly open i got a knew one and problem was solved,different bike but it certianly sounds like an air\fuel mix problem

**fireball** · 14th November 2007, 10:31

Originally Posted by dino3310

My DR had the exact same problem,turns out my choke cable was seazed slightly open i got a knew one and problem was solved,different bike but it certianly sounds like an air\fuel mix problem

yeah the guys said it had just had a new choke cable put in before i bought it guess ill just wait till i get her back and see who was right eh?!

my money is on bad plugs and air leak

**Katman** · 14th November 2007, 10:46

Too many people make the mistake of starting their bike with full choke and leaving it on full choke for 5 minutes while it warms up. Then if they're only going a short distance before turning the engine off the plugs don't have time to get to a temperature where they clean themselves. Each time the bike is started in this manner the plugs get dirtier and dirtier and the problem gets worse and worse. It's a far better practise to start the bike with choke and within 20 seconds or so turn the choke off and warm the bike up at a fast idle either by holding the throttle slightly open or turning the idle screw up slightly.