Hi, I live in the UK, and have had some starting problems on my AN400Y. It has been 'sluggish' at times to turn over, and so I bought a new battery. Although this helpped a little, it was still 'sluggish' from time to time. As my journey to work is quite short, I also bought an optimate to help keep the charge up during the week. This week however she would not start, just turned over very slowly, however come the evening (temprature below zero) and a jump from a car she caught and fired first time. Somebody over here mentioned the automatic de-compressor, have any of you guy/gals any thoughts on the matter, before I get stung by the service agent. 8)
De-compressor
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Jimmy,
Welcome to BurgmanUSA. Singles and even twins have rather large pistons for their engine size. I've had a couple of Japanese twin cylinder motorcycles that simply would not turn over fast enough or long enough to start when the temperatures got below 30° F. There was nothing wrong with them other than design. The starter motors just weren't strong enough to move those big pistons when it got that cold. Remember that your oil thickens considerably at those temperatures. And if your battery is struggling to turn the engine, the strength of the spark from the spark plugs is probably not the best either.
If you are hovering near 0° C temperatures, that could be the issue. Jumping to your car would provide more current and more oomph than your scooter battery can.
My 650 will start when it is 20° F outside. But the individual pistons are smaller than the 400 single piston, and the starter motor may be stronger. I don't know how much below that temperature it will start. And I'll probably never find out - too cold for me to want to ride.
Welcome to BurgmanUSA. Singles and even twins have rather large pistons for their engine size. I've had a couple of Japanese twin cylinder motorcycles that simply would not turn over fast enough or long enough to start when the temperatures got below 30° F. There was nothing wrong with them other than design. The starter motors just weren't strong enough to move those big pistons when it got that cold. Remember that your oil thickens considerably at those temperatures. And if your battery is struggling to turn the engine, the strength of the spark from the spark plugs is probably not the best either.
If you are hovering near 0° C temperatures, that could be the issue. Jumping to your car would provide more current and more oomph than your scooter battery can.
My 650 will start when it is 20° F outside. But the individual pistons are smaller than the 400 single piston, and the starter motor may be stronger. I don't know how much below that temperature it will start. And I'll probably never find out - too cold for me to want to ride.
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2,003 Posts
Jimmy, make sure the hot wire on the batt terminal is clean and tight, and the other end on the starter is the same. Same for the ground wire. A poor ground or contact of wires can cause what seems like a very weak battery...engine will barely turn over a time or two very slowly and then nothing more. Put a jumper on...with much higher voltage and it kicks over. Terminals may look ok, but take them off and scrape with knife, sandpaper, or somesuch. Same with ends of the wires. Remove the ground/black wire first and leave it off while cleaning so as not to cause any "shorting" if you accidently touch the red wire to metal somewhere.
You might want to try some 5-40W oil.
You might want to try some 5-40W oil.
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10,292 Posts
Hi JimmyB
Welcome to the forum :hello2:
I would follow Teds suggestion, although I do not reckon the temps are low enough here to warrant a lower viscosity oil (I am assuming because you optimate - that the bike is in the garage).
I do not recall the 'de-compressor' being mentioned in the Service Manual - but I will have another look - but not tonight. :wink:
Whereabouts in UK are you?
NormanB
Welcome to the forum :hello2:
I would follow Teds suggestion, although I do not reckon the temps are low enough here to warrant a lower viscosity oil (I am assuming because you optimate - that the bike is in the garage).
I do not recall the 'de-compressor' being mentioned in the Service Manual - but I will have another look - but not tonight. :wink:
Whereabouts in UK are you?
NormanB
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604 Posts
There is a decompression mechanism on the camshaft....very neat setup from what I could tell. It leaves the valves slightly open, therefore less compression, at very low rpms when the motor is being cranked over. Once the engine starts then the decompression device is deactivated by centrifugal force. Normal valve timing is then enabled. If you are having a sluggish start in cold weather and if you need to jump start it every time then it could very well point to the condition of your battery. Not enough cranking power (14 amp.hr minimum needed for a good cranking). The problem with these automatics is you can't very well push start them. Also it could point to a faulty charging system as well and maybe your battery is not getting enough charging when its running. You can measure this very easily with a multimeter. Hope this helps.
Thanks for all ideas people, I have done the battery and leads bit, and I am sure the problem is not there. Changing the oil IS a good idea, but as our cold weather is short lived, I feel it may be over kill. And for those that wish to know, I live in Cambridgeshire.
Thanks again
Thanks again
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10,292 Posts
It could of course be the starter motor one of the forum members had a starter motor oil seal fail (on a 650) sadly it was a case of a new starter motor.
PS: Sorry wrong forum and wrong scoot - it was a TMAX that had this problem!
However, and as way of an apology, this link may have some utility for you:
Lazy Lardy Starter
PS: Sorry wrong forum and wrong scoot - it was a TMAX that had this problem!
However, and as way of an apology, this link may have some utility for you:
Lazy Lardy Starter
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