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SuzukiSavage.com
/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl General Category >> Rubber Side Down! >> Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other things /cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?num=1243861879 Message started by spacepirates on 06/01/09 at 06:11:18 |
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Title: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other things Post by spacepirates on 06/01/09 at 06:11:18 I've had my savage for about two years now, and after I brought it out of storage this spring I've had some trouble with it. The exhaust smells extremely oily, the bike backfires almost every time I roll off the throttle, the bike won't start below 50 degrees, the bike won't start with the choke on, the bike has trouble with any speed above 70mph, and I'm getting less than 35 mpg. I think the problem is the fuel mixture, but to my understanding to change that I'll need to drill out the brass plug for the carb, and that make me rather nervous. the problem here is that my savage is my only means of transportation, and I use it everyday (regardless of weather) to get to and from work. So I can't really screw things up and have it out of commission. any advice? should I just go for it and try to adjust the carbs myself? should I take it to a dealer over a weekend and have them tune it up (it is up for inspection soon...)? Thanks! |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by bill67 on 06/01/09 at 06:15:35 Put some Sea-Foam in your gas It might fix it. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by spacepirates on 06/01/09 at 06:23:00 thanks, i'll have to pick some up when I get it inspected this weekend. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by Charon on 06/01/09 at 06:39:02 The Seafoam is unlikely to help. What will do the job is the fresh gasoline you put in the tank along with it. That fresh gas will flush the carburetor as it runs through. If the bike runs better, you'll give credit to the Seafoam. If not, you'll just think the carburetor was too dirty. Kind of like prayer - if your prayer is answered God gets the credit. If your prayer isn't answered, you take the blame for not believing fervently enough. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by spacepirates on 06/01/09 at 07:44:36 while you may (or may not) have a point about the seafoam, i've had about half a dozen new tanks of gas in my bike with no change. Even tried premium for two of them in a row to see if that would help (it didn't)... I'm thinking tonight i'll take out the spark plug to see if it is fouled up, and if it is clean it, but i don't think a bad spark plug would cause all this. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by bill67 on 06/01/09 at 08:06:08 The Sea Foam is the answer.Works 99.9 percent of the time. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by Charon on 06/01/09 at 08:12:11 You can always try Seafoam, or any of a dozen other miracle additives. It might work, and at least probably will do no harm. I suggest you Google "seafoam msds" and find out what you are actually getting. I point out that, by Federal rule, ALL gasoline is required to have a cleaning agent added to it, to keep carburetors, injectors, and intake valves clean. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by bill67 on 06/01/09 at 08:19:16 Charon when is the last time you used Sea Foam. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by savagedml on 06/01/09 at 08:33:14 Space: If the bike was running fine before storage but not now, sounds like a fuel/firing problem which could be explained by a fouled plug, or a gunked up carb. Unless you did a muffler mod or air intake mod, the idle mix screw would not all of a sudden need to be adjusted. (Although the Savage does come from the factory White-spacer mod ready!). As far as drilling out the brass plug, BELIEVE ME it is a very simple mod, and I heard even a teacher can do it! Try the SeaFoam to get it back to its previous performance level, then jump on that White Spacer mod to make it even better. Changing the spark plug is no biggie either, but if you haven't already you'll want to do the Spark plug door mod as well to make it easier to change. Check the Index of the Tech/Reference section for instructions on how to do these mods. Good Luck, and Go For It!!! :) DML (the above referenced teacher ;) ) |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by Skid Mark on 06/01/09 at 09:22:39 I'd dump the gas for fresh, change the plug and try the seafoam. Most likely gunked up from sitting so long |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by Charon on 06/01/09 at 11:48:52 bill67: As I have said before in other threads, I have never used Seafoam. I have never needed it. I have looked up the ingredients. There in nothing in it that I can see which would make any difference. I don't remember saying it doesn't work, but I have said I don't believe it works. If I wanted to clean a carburetor, or other fuel system, I'd look for a solvent, not an oil. Remember that gasoline is a pretty powerful solvent all by itself, and if it has ethanol in it, ethanol is another pretty powerful solvent. You are going to have a tough time finding solvents more powerful which will not damage the very system you are trying to clean. You are free to believe Seafoam works, and espouse its use. I am equally free to believe differently. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by Duane on 06/01/09 at 12:00:47 Maybe we need to all write in E-prime on this forum now. ;D |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by bill67 on 06/01/09 at 12:06:41 Don't use Clark gas in your S40 its bad for it,How do I know I don't I never tried it. ;D |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by spacepirates on 06/01/09 at 12:34:04 Well, like i said, I've had about 6 fresh/new tanks of gas in the bike, two of which were premium grade. as for the seafoam, i'm finding about 60% of people love it and think it works miracles and the rest think it is bogus. however, at a couple bucks a bottle, and no consequences of trying it, I think that will be my first move before I try and pull apart my carb and muck around inside it. Up here in the 'Burgh, we don't have Clark gas stations, so no worries about that. I typically use Shell or Sunoco when I can (but i'm not looking for wars here about what gas is better than what) but I'll use whatever if I'm in a pinch (in the middle of no where and been on the reserve for a dozen miles or so...). |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by BurnPgh on 06/01/09 at 13:28:39 whur y'at? Split a 6 pack of pabst pounders with me and i'll clean the carb myself. Unless it super super bad I'll have it out cleaned and reinstalled in little more than an hour. Im practically pro at it now after rejetting. I live in Penn Hills. Ineclipse lives in Polish Hill. Once his collar bone heals up we can all ride together. Also...check your airbox and make sure nothing crawled in and nested in there while you had it in storage. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by diamond jim on 06/01/09 at 13:33:09 Pirate, assuming you've checked the basics like airbox for varmint, carb vent hose, etc,, get these items: 1. a good sized syringe- you don't need the needle 2. can of seafoam 3. a small cup or tubing for draining carb bowl 4. some rags 5. phillips screwdriver 6. fresh tank of gas And do this: 1. make sure your petcock is set to on or reserve. 2. put your small cup and rags underneath the carb/hose on-under the carb drain. 3. use the screwdriver to open the carb drain; when empty, tighten the screw back. 4. fill the syringe full of seafoam. 5. pull the fuel hose from the petcock (not the carb side). 6. squirt seafoam into the hose to fill up the carb bowl. Repeat with syringe until full. 7. Reconnect fuel hose. 8. Start the bike and let it idle for one minute. 9. Go for a 5 minute ride. 10. If the bike is not running better after the 5 minute ride, repeat the process again. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by bill67 on 06/01/09 at 14:00:08 Easy way to get Sea Foam in fuel bowl is to take off fuel bowl and put the Sea Foam in fuel bowl then put the fuel bowl back on. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by verslagen1 on 06/01/09 at 14:01:24 Wally world has a big syringe for mixing 2 stroke oil and the such. Check the RV dept. Just pump it in thru the drain and a little thru the inlet. And someone (guess who) said leave the seafoam in overnight. And And someone/else said the bike doesn't run well on seafoam. So dump the carb in the morning and pour it into the tank to mix in with the gas. Set on prime to fill up the carb and start. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by spacepirates on 06/01/09 at 14:07:46 BurnPgh: I live in Aspinwall, not two hundred yards from the north side of the Highland Park Bridge, but I work in Monroevill/Penn Hills at Vocollect right off Rodi Rd. If half a six of pabst is all it takes, and you don't me riding to your place (or you to mine, though I don't have a garage) we've got us a deal. Diamond Jim: Airbox has a nice new (under 1K miles) K&N filter I cleaned right before I started riding this spring. I'm assuming the whole syringe/fuel hose procedure is just to get a concentrated (or pure) solution of seafoam in the carb, which can be done. All: I'm going out and about to round up supplies for this endeavor (kinda new to the whole DIY mechanic stuff...) and hopefully try the easier stuff tonight and the harder stuff this weekend, as again, I can't afford to have a non-running bike even for a day. I'm going to hit up some auto-places close by to see if i can get a can of Seafoam, anyone know any chains that have a good chance of carrying it? The shop I trust with my bike is almost an hour ride one way.... |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by verslagen1 on 06/01/09 at 14:26:05 wally world and autozone |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by Charon on 06/01/09 at 15:07:58 Interesting coincidence that you started having problems right about the same time you cleaned that K&N air filter. I wonder what would happen if you were to remove the filter and try a short ride. Poor mileage and refusal to run with the choke pulled sounds like the thing might be rich - just what might happen if there were some sort of problem with the air filter. And unlike what would happen if the carburetor were clogged, unless the float got damaged and is causing the fuel level to be high. If you still have your stock air filter you could try putting it back in to see what happens. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by spacepirates on 06/01/09 at 16:16:37 Just picked up some seafoam at Advance autoparts (closest auto parts store to where I live) for a staggering $9 a bottle. little more expensive than the $4 I was expecting. I don't have my stock filter anymore, but I took out my K&N and took it around the block a few times. The backfiring was almost all gone, still there though. Strange because I got my K&N middle of last season, and didn't have this problem till now. When I cleaned it I used the cleaner and oil the manual said I should and followed the directions to a T, so I'm not sure what went wrong. I guess I'll clean the filter again and see what happens. As for the seafoam, I'll add about half a bottle next time I fill up and see if that helps much, but it seems pretty sure that the air filter is a big part of the problem here. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by bill67 on 06/01/09 at 17:22:39 Put some Sea Foam before you fill up it will be a stronger mix And you only need a couple oz.s |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by verslagen1 on 06/01/09 at 17:30:34 You got to let the k&n juice dry completely. You probably gummed up the slide. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by BurnPgh on 06/01/09 at 22:07:07 grab a can of carb cleaner next time you're out. And Pm me your address. I work until saturday but if you're free saturday I'll drop by. Maybe Luke (Ineclipse) will come aswell to drink and BS. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by Stimpy on 06/02/09 at 15:18:12 I BELIEVE your SPARKPLUG got "mineralized" (deposits) during winter storage; all your problems could be all as simple as a $2 new spark plug fix. ...Fresh gas & a carb-cleaning can't hurt. Good luck! LOOK HERE ;) http://www.aa1car.com/library/reading_spark_plugs.jpg http://dirtbike.off-road.com/dirtbike/data/articlestandard/dirtbike/232006/332655/4.jpg |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by ineclipse on 06/03/09 at 14:14:08 We best git our'sels some perogies if we gunna be wrencin' n'at! I would love to but I'm leaving tomorrow. Coming back next week, though. Hope to catch up with yinz feller yinzers after da god lovin' pen-gins win dat dare stanley cup! But seriously, love to help out if I ever can. Do you have a stock exhaust? My backfiring issues were all do to exhaust leaks. That could be a lot of little things, or one or two big ones. BurnPGH will certainly help you out though, I think hes a great bet for anyone in need. Good luck. -Luke. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by Charon on 06/04/09 at 05:47:54 Did the air filter turn out to be the problem? Did the Seafoam help? Don't leave us in suspense. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by spacepirates on 06/04/09 at 06:10:01 I added the seafoam Tuesday evening, but yesterday (wednesday) was raining so I wasn't able to tell if the seafoam helped all that much. I haven't cleaned the filter yet, I'm going to take some time with it and clean it properly this weekend. However, when I took it out, the bike did start up and run much cleaner, so I'm hoping with a freshly cleaned filter it will have the same effect. Hopefully by saturday evening I'll be able to tell you all is well with my engine. Thanks to everyone for the help, it is really appreciated as I have little to no clue what I'm doing, and it is nice to know that savage/s40 riders take care of their own. |
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Title: Re: Backfiring, poor gas mileage, slew of other th Post by Digger on 07/02/09 at 19:12:55 6F6C7D7F796C756E7D68796F1C0 wrote:
Space, If nothing else has helped you yet, you may want to check to petcock for proper operation. IHTH! |
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