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Inconsistent Engine Cut Outs; Advice Appreciated
Hello Everybody,
I am new to this forum! Yay me!
....and I'm having issues with my Katana, unfortunately. This is probably going to be a long post so bear with me, I will make everything that I've done/adjusted/cleaned obvious so that we can collectively rule out what could or couldn't be happening here.
Let's begin.
Problem: Every once in a while, my bike starves itself of fuel. I feel it in the throttle that something seems less punchy, then a few moments later... I am on the side of the road and the engine has shut off. It behaves like it simply has ran out of gas... but it isn't.
I can ride for hours on the highway, backstreets, anything... and it won't happen. Then all of a sudden... the engine says "nope" and dies. AND, after it happens once, it likes to continue to happen every few miles. So it dies, I restart, ride again for a bit, dies again... etc
Most of the time, I feel it start to bog down... then try to give it gas, and it doesn't want to go forward. If I pull in the clutch to coast at this time, it will just RPM down and down until it stalls. If I continue without pulling the clutch, it will just run slower and slower until it dies.
This *normally* happens when...
1) The tank is only half full or less. I've never had this occur on a full tank, but that doesn't mean it can't I suppose, see #2
2) The bike has been riding for a while (so my tank is no longer full).. I've never had this happen when I just start it up and get going.
3) I'm taking it easy. When I'm out pushing the limits a bit and getting heavy on the throttle often.. I've never had this happen. It seems to occur when I'm riding casually at normal RPM range (4-6k, no higher). This of course may just be coincidence.
Notes about my bike:
2000 Suzuki Katana 750cc version. Had it since March, have put many thousands of miles on it. It sat for a long time before I bought it, so I put a lot of work into it as expected to get it running well. This starvation issue has only started happening within the last few weeks.
Things that seem to not help or hurt the problem:
1) The type of gas 87/93 doesn't matter (just figured I'd throw that out here)
2) Petcock setting - even in prime/res, still will happen.
3) Idle adjustment - even if I adjust it high/low... doesn't matter
4) Switching petcock during riding. If I feel it start to bog, I'm quick enough to switch to prime to let some fuel flow... still won't help, dies
Things I've done in the past few months
1) Carbs cleaned. Fully. And sychronized, A/F adjusted.. etc... With the help of a very experienced mechanic. But of course, I'm not ruling them out.
2) Oil of course changed multiple times as well as filter.
3) Brand spankin' new spark plugs in there.
4) Lubed throttle cables.
5) Drained tank and cleaned petcock.
(Probably) unrelated stuff: new battery, brake pads, tires, chain... ran some seafoam through the tank a few times just to make sure carbs stayed shiny and happy.
Things I've done attempting to solve this problem:
1) Took a look at the throttle cables and readjusted the idle.
2) Drained the tank, ripped the petcock apart and cleaned.
3) Rebuilt the engine cut off switch - I figured if that thing was glitchy, it could cause something like this. Didn't help.
4) Swapped the battery just to make sure electrics were all good.
5) Cleaned tank vents/rebuilt tank cap, replaced ALL vent lines
6) Replaced ALL tubes. Vacuum lines, as well as the gas line.
7) Replaced fuel filter.
At first I assumed that this problem was electrical - so I checked the kickstand diode system as well as the engine cutoff switch as I mentioned above. Even changed the battery out and checked most connections... everything seems locked in and electrically sound.
Then I figured it was the carbs.. but.. like I mentioned, I can ride all day and the thing performs very well. Super smooth, throttle is responsive, carbs seem to be doing their job on point. Some days the problem will not happen at all. I was out riding for most of the afternoon the other day and... not a thing went wrong.
A couple of questions I have:
1) The engine oil pressure light always comes on when I shut off the bike using the cut off. It is also always on before I start the bike. Is this normal? I assume it is like a car dash where the lights just come on for all the warnings before you start it. I ask the question because when the bike stalls/starves like I've described, the engine light also comes on. This is why I originally looked into the cutoff switch. But if the cutoff switch doesn't actually make that light go on... then I suppose that may be my problem. Just making sure.
2) Could a head gasket leak cause this? Mine has been pooping out grease very slowly for the past months (I put in synthetic oil so I assume that is the main factor), but it has not made much of a mark yet for me to rip it apart and reseal the gasket.
3) Can somebody quickly explain to me how the clutch cable can effect the starting of a bike? I searched around before posting and found this guy who mentioned:
How can I check for this? My clutch sometimes feels like the tension is different / more fluid than the last ride. It is an oil filled clutch so I assume that this has to do with the temperature of the fluid... but maybe I am wrong. Or, when I get off of the highway, the clutch feels a lot better. I assumed this was because of the RPMs I was just riding at got the oil moving and nice and viscous. If my understanding is wrong here just correct me.
Alright. And the final section of this book I've written here,
Where am I at now and what are my personal thoughts about this???
1) I'm convinced it is not the petcock or tank. All the lines are new so there's no way anything is stuck in fuel line or something. And something like that would cause more frequent problems.
2) I honestly don't think it is something electrical. All the lights and such stay on when it starves out.
The bike has always had a little trouble starting, even in the hot weather of Florida down here. I choke it (more like half-choke) every morning to get it going. After it warms up for honestly only about a minute, idles perfect. The bike also tends to smell a bit like gas, but nothing major.
I have a suspicious feeling it has to do with the clutch, because that is really the only thing I have not looked at.
But open to advice of course. I'm sure somebody can piece together all these factors, but I am so far at a loss due to the problem's inconsistent nature.
Thanks.
..
I am new to this forum! Yay me!
....and I'm having issues with my Katana, unfortunately. This is probably going to be a long post so bear with me, I will make everything that I've done/adjusted/cleaned obvious so that we can collectively rule out what could or couldn't be happening here.
Let's begin.
Problem: Every once in a while, my bike starves itself of fuel. I feel it in the throttle that something seems less punchy, then a few moments later... I am on the side of the road and the engine has shut off. It behaves like it simply has ran out of gas... but it isn't.
I can ride for hours on the highway, backstreets, anything... and it won't happen. Then all of a sudden... the engine says "nope" and dies. AND, after it happens once, it likes to continue to happen every few miles. So it dies, I restart, ride again for a bit, dies again... etc
Most of the time, I feel it start to bog down... then try to give it gas, and it doesn't want to go forward. If I pull in the clutch to coast at this time, it will just RPM down and down until it stalls. If I continue without pulling the clutch, it will just run slower and slower until it dies.
This *normally* happens when...
1) The tank is only half full or less. I've never had this occur on a full tank, but that doesn't mean it can't I suppose, see #2
2) The bike has been riding for a while (so my tank is no longer full).. I've never had this happen when I just start it up and get going.
3) I'm taking it easy. When I'm out pushing the limits a bit and getting heavy on the throttle often.. I've never had this happen. It seems to occur when I'm riding casually at normal RPM range (4-6k, no higher). This of course may just be coincidence.
Notes about my bike:
2000 Suzuki Katana 750cc version. Had it since March, have put many thousands of miles on it. It sat for a long time before I bought it, so I put a lot of work into it as expected to get it running well. This starvation issue has only started happening within the last few weeks.
Things that seem to not help or hurt the problem:
1) The type of gas 87/93 doesn't matter (just figured I'd throw that out here)
2) Petcock setting - even in prime/res, still will happen.
3) Idle adjustment - even if I adjust it high/low... doesn't matter
4) Switching petcock during riding. If I feel it start to bog, I'm quick enough to switch to prime to let some fuel flow... still won't help, dies
Things I've done in the past few months
1) Carbs cleaned. Fully. And sychronized, A/F adjusted.. etc... With the help of a very experienced mechanic. But of course, I'm not ruling them out.
2) Oil of course changed multiple times as well as filter.
3) Brand spankin' new spark plugs in there.
4) Lubed throttle cables.
5) Drained tank and cleaned petcock.
(Probably) unrelated stuff: new battery, brake pads, tires, chain... ran some seafoam through the tank a few times just to make sure carbs stayed shiny and happy.
Things I've done attempting to solve this problem:
1) Took a look at the throttle cables and readjusted the idle.
2) Drained the tank, ripped the petcock apart and cleaned.
3) Rebuilt the engine cut off switch - I figured if that thing was glitchy, it could cause something like this. Didn't help.
4) Swapped the battery just to make sure electrics were all good.
5) Cleaned tank vents/rebuilt tank cap, replaced ALL vent lines
6) Replaced ALL tubes. Vacuum lines, as well as the gas line.
7) Replaced fuel filter.
At first I assumed that this problem was electrical - so I checked the kickstand diode system as well as the engine cutoff switch as I mentioned above. Even changed the battery out and checked most connections... everything seems locked in and electrically sound.
Then I figured it was the carbs.. but.. like I mentioned, I can ride all day and the thing performs very well. Super smooth, throttle is responsive, carbs seem to be doing their job on point. Some days the problem will not happen at all. I was out riding for most of the afternoon the other day and... not a thing went wrong.
A couple of questions I have:
1) The engine oil pressure light always comes on when I shut off the bike using the cut off. It is also always on before I start the bike. Is this normal? I assume it is like a car dash where the lights just come on for all the warnings before you start it. I ask the question because when the bike stalls/starves like I've described, the engine light also comes on. This is why I originally looked into the cutoff switch. But if the cutoff switch doesn't actually make that light go on... then I suppose that may be my problem. Just making sure.
2) Could a head gasket leak cause this? Mine has been pooping out grease very slowly for the past months (I put in synthetic oil so I assume that is the main factor), but it has not made much of a mark yet for me to rip it apart and reseal the gasket.
3) Can somebody quickly explain to me how the clutch cable can effect the starting of a bike? I searched around before posting and found this guy who mentioned:
Originally posted by war113
View Post
Alright. And the final section of this book I've written here,
Where am I at now and what are my personal thoughts about this???
1) I'm convinced it is not the petcock or tank. All the lines are new so there's no way anything is stuck in fuel line or something. And something like that would cause more frequent problems.
2) I honestly don't think it is something electrical. All the lights and such stay on when it starves out.
The bike has always had a little trouble starting, even in the hot weather of Florida down here. I choke it (more like half-choke) every morning to get it going. After it warms up for honestly only about a minute, idles perfect. The bike also tends to smell a bit like gas, but nothing major.
I have a suspicious feeling it has to do with the clutch, because that is really the only thing I have not looked at.
But open to advice of course. I'm sure somebody can piece together all these factors, but I am so far at a loss due to the problem's inconsistent nature.
Thanks.
..
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