HELP!!

[suzukiwookie]

Ok here goes;

My bike has been smelling like gas. I realize that I've left the gas tank knob ob PRI (prime) instead of ON for quite a while. I guess that gasoline has flowed into parts of the engine.

I've noticed the the oil indicator window shows that the level of oil is high. What does this mean?

Someone on another forum told me NOT TO START MY BIKE cause there is gas in the crank case??

Can someone explain this to me a little better? Does anyone know how to fix this? Or what will happen if I start the bike?

[Anonymous]

1. Turn it off Prime!!! Turn it to 'On' or "Off" depending on what bike you have
2. Change your oil
3. Maybe empty your carb bowls and refill with new fuel

[WildKat]

how long did you ride with it on Prime? How long was it on prime totally..in ur best guess ?

[suzukiwookie]

how long did you ride with it on Prime? How long was it on prime totally..in ur best guess ?

I bought the bike I January and so it's been winterized and not ridden.

I think (I'm 75% sure) I have had it on PRI for two or three weeks. I have DEFINITELY had it on PRI since last friday. I turned it to ON yesterday. It smelled like gas.

I only turned the bike on once for about 5 minutes and rode it up and down the street only once (for about 45 seconds) during that time. This was on Saturday. While riding it, I turned it to ON. But when I stored it I put it on PRI cause I wasn't sure what PRI meant and I thought since it was on PRI before that that was the correct setting for the bike to be on while storing it... stupid me.

(On Saturday) The bike started up and sounded fine. There was white smoke coming out of the pipes (not blue smoke) which I assume is normal. The choke was on and I think that's why there was white smoke. And also cause it was cold, I live in Toronto, Canada.

But the bike does smell a lot like gas and the oil level seems a bit high. So I think since I left it on PRI for so long there definitely must be some gas in the engine somewhere.

I think I should probably change my oil and filter before I turn it on next right? As you can tell this is my first bike and I don't have a manual! lol

[KatDan]

if it ran OK when you had it out i would change the oil and run it again to be sure it's OK. i doubt you did any harm.

[md86]

Yeah , you might've gotten gas in the cranckcase ( if the oil's high , I'd BET on it) , do yourself a favor and change it ! If it were me I'd put a little oil down the cylinders while I was at it , too . But since you already ran it AFTER you set it back to "on" , that might not do much for you anyway . But if the floats are working the way they SHOULD be , that shouldn't have been much of an issue in the first place , IMHO .

[KatanaO215]

and on a somewhat related topic. Dont start your bike in the winter unless you are gonna give it enough time to completely warm up (like 15 minutes) If not you will cause condensation inside the bike, which is not good

[suzukiwookie]

Does anyone know where I can buy motorcycle parts in Toronto, or on the net for cheap.

I need parts to do a tune up on my bike.
-Oil filter
-Oil
-Gas filter
-Air filter
-Spark plugs
-Wires

[Katgirl]

There are a lot of Canadians on here, Woobie and Batgirl maybe a bit more helpful about Toronto, I live in Hamilton and go to Kellys, Sturgis, or Cycle City. The stuff you listed is pretty basic, McBrides is good in TO.

And welcome to KR!!

[Range]

Look at all the helpful information....whoever told you to come to this site is obviously a great person! If you are from Toronto, it must have been Sadrik...he has a bike like yours and would know where to get the stuff you need. Good luck with your bike Cris...have a look around...tons of info on this board!

[Meikol2]

Yeah , you might've gotten gas in the cranckcase ( if the oil's high , I'd BET on it) , do yourself a favor and change it ! If it were me I'd put a little oil down the cylinders while I was at it , too . But since you already ran it AFTER you set it back to "on" , that might not do much for you anyway . But if the floats are working the way they SHOULD be , that shouldn't have been much of an issue in the first place , IMHO .

MD is correct. If your floats are operating properly you would not have any issues at all. Seeing as you did not know what PRI was, i am assuming you don't know much about the fuel delivery system. Please read the sticky thread about "Petcock position". It will help you understand what is supposed to happen. There are alot of us that can help you, but I would suggest you get a service manual if you are going to start doing work yourself. The oil drain plug in particular needs to be set to a specific torque value, or you risk damage.

Welcome to KR.

[The CyberPoet]

The real issue is whether the carbs leak (even a little) liquid fuel into the cylinders when the bike is in PRIME. That fuel sinks to the rings and once there, breaks up & washes away any oil, meaning that the next start-up is basically a metal-on-metal grinding without lubrication. In worst-case situations, you'll end up with enough fuel in the cylinder to keep the engine from being able to compress it during the start procedure, resulting in other damages (such as bent piston rod pins), but this is much more rare.

Correct solution is to check/fix the float bowl settings, dump the oil (including the oil contained in the oil cooler), put a tablespoon or two of oil in each cylinder (plugs out) and rotate the engine by hand a few times to work that oil in (with the plugs still out). Then reinstall the plugs (or new ones if the old ones aren't good), install the new oil and filter, and start her up. Let her run at least 20 minutes at idle (choke off after 30 to 60 seconds -- use the throttle as needed to keep her from stalling after that point); this will let the engine get hot enough to vaporize out any remaining gasoline and draw it back through the airbox via the vent at the top of the valve covers.

Good Luck!
=-= The CyberPoet

[md86]

Correct solution is to check/fix the float bowl settings, dump the oil (including the oil contained in the oil cooler), put a tablespoon or two of oil in each cylinder (plugs out) and rotate the engine by hand a few times to work that oil in (with the plugs still out). Then reinstall the plugs (or new ones if the old ones aren't good), install the new oil and filter, and start her up. Let her run at least 20 minutes at idle (choke off after 30 to 60 seconds -- use the throttle as needed to keep her from stalling after that point); this will let the engine get hot enough to vaporize out any remaining gasoline and draw it back through the airbox via the vent at the top of the valve covers.

Good Luck!
=-= The CyberPoet

Well , since he said that he has since turned it off of prime and ridden the bike a few times , I figured the oil down the cylinders bit might not accomplish much .

[suzukiwookie]

Thanks a lot for all the great suggestions guys!

I hope that the carbs are working properly and there is no gas in the crank shaft. I spoke with the guy who sold me the bike and he told me that he put in a little extra oil to winterize it, so that might by why the oil level is high.

This weekend I'm going to take out a small sample of oil and let my dad take a look at it. He's a mechanic and will be able to tell if there is gas in the oil. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!!

If it comes down to it, I'll change the oil (which has to be done anyways) and pour some oil in each cylinder. The bike has to get a tune up before riding season starts anyways. I'm just glad I found this out before starting it again!!

I'm still very surprised how helpful the motorcycle community is online. I'm happy to be a new addition! Thanks!

[md86]

Well , if there's gas in the oil , you'd probably smell it when you popped open the oil cap . The oil'd look a little watery probably , too .