DRZ will not idle after storage

[Jared]

I finally pulled the DRZ out of storage today, where it has been sitting for two and a half years. Prior to putting it in storage, I drained all of the fuel from the tank and the carburetor. After pouring in some fresh fuel and giving it a quick pull start, it ran great but will not idle. It will idle high with the choke on, but with no choke and letting off the throttle it immediately dies. When you crack the throttle, it hesitates a little like it's running lean. So, I naturally assumed it had a plugged pilot jet, and proceeded to pull the bottom of the carb off. After pulling the carb off, I found that the pilot was completely clean and clear. I sprayed a little carburetor cleaner around the carb parts, made sure the main jet was clear, and put it all back together. It still runs the same. Any ideas?

 

[Jared]

I should add, it's the kick start model with the better Keihin carb.

 

[Greg]

If it were me, I'd pull the carb, take the bowl off and leave all gaskets in place then soak it in a 50/50 mix of Pine Sol and Water. Let it sit for 3 days, occasionally tossing the contents around to help the mixture get into all the cracks. I've used this on a few carbs and it's AMAZING, doesn't harm rubber or dry it out and cleans the carb like new. After 3 days, blow it out with compressed air, spray it down with carb cleaner, etc... then re-install!

I'd also drop a fresh plug and clean air & fuel filters. That should do it.

 

[Jared]

I had not heard of using Pine-Sol before. I'm currently suiting up for a ride with it running as-is, to hopefully slosh some fuel around and see if it miraculously clears up. If not I'll check the float height and try your soak method.

Should be fun trail riding it with no idle. Well, it should be FAST anyway. Hope my riding skills aren't too rusty!

Thanks

 

[Greg]

Toss some Marvel Mystery Oil or Sea Foam in the gas tank before you ride! I've done that too and cleared out a problematic carb. Have fun!

 

[Gravy]

Pull the carb and clean it.

 

[Vonski]

If it were me, I'd pull the carb, take the bowl off and leave all gaskets in place then soak it in a 50/50 mix of Pine Sol and Water. Let it sit for 3 days, occasionally tossing the contents around to help the mixture get into all the cracks. I've used this on a few carbs and it's AMAZING, doesn't harm rubber or dry it out and cleans the carb like new. After 3 days, blow it out with compressed air, spray it down with carb cleaner, etc... then re-install!

Greg, I've never had a dirtbike carb in need of the 'ol Pinesol treatment. However, I've got an old quadrajet that's alomost ready to set down on a new V8. I'm thinking about trying it out, what do ya think?

 

[Gravy]

Do it. I've had great success with the pine sol.

Jared, I'm preeeeety sure you've either got a clogged idle jet or the idle circuit is clogged somewhere.

 

[Greg]

Greg, I've never had a dirtbike carb in need of the 'ol Pinesol treatment. However, I've got an old quadrajet that's alomost ready to set down on a new V8. I'm thinking about trying it out, what do ya think?

Yeah, it'll work great! Pull the bowls off so the solvent can get everywhere and make sure it's submerged, run some kind of brush in & around to will help break up the crud if it's bad. I cleaned a used Holley 4 bbl with PineSol and the difference it made was amazing!

I keep a 5 gallon bucket around with PineSol and water around, Pine Sol is environmentally friendly, so dumping it down the drain won't be an issue. And the smell keeps the mice away, so I hear.

 

[Vonski]

Will do, thanks!

 

[Greg]

Will do, thanks!

Return & Report please!

 

[Jared]

Do it. I've had great success with the pine sol.

Jared, I'm preeeeety sure you've either got a clogged idle jet or the idle circuit is clogged somewhere.

I'm old school two-stroke as far as carburetor knowledge. Is there more to the "idle circuit" than the pilot jet and air screw?

 

[Gravy]

The "idle circuit" composes all the passageways from the pilot jet throughout the carb; including airscrew passageways and choke passageways.

In other words: if it runs ok, but won't idle the main jet (or passages connecting to the main jet circuit) probably aren't plugged; something else is. Clean the whole carb.

 

[Jared]

I may have found the problem today. I finally got time to pull the carb off and take a closer look. All 5 jets (first time I've messed with an FCR!) were perfectly clean. Everything looked perfect inside and I could easily blow air through any appropriate passages.

So I got to looking at adjustments, and my idle adjustment was backed completely out... like almost threaded out so far it would fall out. I know I tried to adjust the idle up when I couldn't get it to idle, but I'd probably have to have given it 10 full turns before the adjuster bolt even started moving the slide.

My best guess is that somewhere along the line during storage some kids were messing with the bike (stored in my basement) and backed the idle adjuster all the way out. Gotta love my kids!

I still need to toss the fuel tank back on and fire it up, but hopefully this resolved it. I've got at Trail Tech X2 light installed and sorted out all the wiring. If they don't hassle me about my non-DOT knobbies the safety inspection should be a breeze.

If anybody can recommend an inspector near Ogden, shoot me a PM.

Thanks

 

[Jared]

So, FYI. Adjusting the idle didn't fix it at all. Afterwards, I dunked the carb in 50% PineSol, with the carb about 2/3 disassembled for 3 days. I then cleaned it with water and a scrub brush, then blew it out with air thoroughly, then sprayed it out thoroughly with carb cleaner. Hopefully, that fixes the idle issue.

However, while installing the new Trail Tech X2 and cleaning up some wiring, I apparently got something crossed up (I had a small 12V charger hooked up so I could test stuff as I went along) and fried what I think is the stator. The diodes all check out in the regulator/rectifier. Unplugging the regulator/rectifier, I'm only getting about 2.5V from the stator at any RPM. I was about to order up one from Ricky Stator, and upgrade to the 140W output the electric start bikes have. But, I found I can get Chinese knock-offs for a whopping $28 on eBay. I'm a bit skeptical, but it's less than 1/6 the price so I'm going to give it a shot.

Could low voltage coming from the stator have caused my idle issues? It seemed to run like a champ once the throttle was opened at all.

Jared

 

[Gravy]

Are you sure you're reading your voltages right?
I've only had stators work or not work.

I'd pull the stator cover and visually check for melted windings or epoxy on the windings then check resistance.
on the stator itself.

Also check that your fuel screw is set right. (It's the one that you adjust on the bottom of the carb (with the fuel bowl on) start with 2.5 out (from bottomed).

 

[Jared]

Fuel screw has been checked. This is the Keihin FCR carb, fyi.

I'm pretty new to diagnosing stators. But I do need to do a good visual inspection still. Would I be checking resistance through the coils of wire on each of the poles?

 

[Gravy]

What jets do you have in the carb?

Also look for cuts or breaks in the hose that goes to the coast enricher.