Post by xzahn on May 26, 2020 19:18:47 GMT -6
Hi folks,
New rider and new to the forum. Two weeks ago I bought Kawasaki EN450 1989.
Long story short, I had a few issues with it already but nothing serious so far. Last week it had some issues starting when warm but with some adjustments of the A/F screw and choke, now it starts up right away cold and warm.
However, it keeps idling poor and I have to keep the choke 1/3 of the way on constantly. Otherwise, it runs jerky and stalls. And I'm rarely able to get it just right (around 1300 RPM from the manual) - it would either idle below 1000 RPM and stall or at 2000 RPM. Few days ago, it idled at around 1400 RPM so I left it like that (choke 1/3 on) and did about 40km around the city with no issues. After the adjustment of the A/F screw something else appeared though - when I rev the bike and completely release the throttle, sometimes it would take a second or so for the RPM to drop. It's does not always do that though and the throttle wire looks fine. The left carb started leaking fuel as well.
Because of that, I took it to a shop (one of biggest in the city) for an inspection. The mechanic told me the bike runs great overall but I would need to get a carb rebuild kit for the leak, the poor idling issues and the throttle thing. His theory was (and I'm translating from my native language to English so it might be incorrect) that the needle is worn out so it's not closing completely which floods the left carb with fuel.
At the shop we also replaced the spark plugs (DR8ES). The right one was good, the left one blacked up. After we replaced them, the left exhaust started popping and not running smoothly so the mechanic revved the heck out of it (which broke my heart) and for a few seconds blue smoke appeared from the left exhaust, then it smoked white for a while but it eventually went away. The next day, it ran great. Yesterday (it was colder), when I started it up the left exhaust had some white smoke and popped for a minute or so until it cleared both sound and smoke. After a short ride, it started popping again, it idled poor and there was a bit white smoke, barely noticeable from the exhaust. And I also noticed more smoke (blueish) coming from collector, where it attaches to the engine. I also think it did not have much power - I only had it for two weeks but I feel it should be quicker from 0 - 50km/h at least.
I wonder whether all of this is connected to the carb or something more serious. I afraid to ride it now but I want to take it to another shop for a second opinion as the first one did not instill much confidence. Do you think that carb kit would help and could I buy it and replace it myself? I had a scooter for a few months and did all the maintenance myself, took apart and cleaned it's carb. I believe it shouldn't be too difficult considering I have the manual as well.
I might be able to get a video tomorrow If that would help.
Any advice is appreciated,
Thanks!
New rider and new to the forum. Two weeks ago I bought Kawasaki EN450 1989.
Long story short, I had a few issues with it already but nothing serious so far. Last week it had some issues starting when warm but with some adjustments of the A/F screw and choke, now it starts up right away cold and warm.
However, it keeps idling poor and I have to keep the choke 1/3 of the way on constantly. Otherwise, it runs jerky and stalls. And I'm rarely able to get it just right (around 1300 RPM from the manual) - it would either idle below 1000 RPM and stall or at 2000 RPM. Few days ago, it idled at around 1400 RPM so I left it like that (choke 1/3 on) and did about 40km around the city with no issues. After the adjustment of the A/F screw something else appeared though - when I rev the bike and completely release the throttle, sometimes it would take a second or so for the RPM to drop. It's does not always do that though and the throttle wire looks fine. The left carb started leaking fuel as well.
Because of that, I took it to a shop (one of biggest in the city) for an inspection. The mechanic told me the bike runs great overall but I would need to get a carb rebuild kit for the leak, the poor idling issues and the throttle thing. His theory was (and I'm translating from my native language to English so it might be incorrect) that the needle is worn out so it's not closing completely which floods the left carb with fuel.
At the shop we also replaced the spark plugs (DR8ES). The right one was good, the left one blacked up. After we replaced them, the left exhaust started popping and not running smoothly so the mechanic revved the heck out of it (which broke my heart) and for a few seconds blue smoke appeared from the left exhaust, then it smoked white for a while but it eventually went away. The next day, it ran great. Yesterday (it was colder), when I started it up the left exhaust had some white smoke and popped for a minute or so until it cleared both sound and smoke. After a short ride, it started popping again, it idled poor and there was a bit white smoke, barely noticeable from the exhaust. And I also noticed more smoke (blueish) coming from collector, where it attaches to the engine. I also think it did not have much power - I only had it for two weeks but I feel it should be quicker from 0 - 50km/h at least.
I wonder whether all of this is connected to the carb or something more serious. I afraid to ride it now but I want to take it to another shop for a second opinion as the first one did not instill much confidence. Do you think that carb kit would help and could I buy it and replace it myself? I had a scooter for a few months and did all the maintenance myself, took apart and cleaned it's carb. I believe it shouldn't be too difficult considering I have the manual as well.
I might be able to get a video tomorrow If that would help.
Any advice is appreciated,
Thanks!
