SuzukiSavage.com - Petcock left on "Prime"

teke316 YaBB Newbies Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 3	Petcock left on "Prime" 05/03/10 at 11:50:44 Help!!!! Just got a 2005 S40. Noticed today that the petcock was left in the "Prime" position overnight. I have basic mechanical skills, enough to know that this is not a good thing. What steps do I need to take to prevent dammage to the engine? I am planning on changing the oil before riding it again. What else should I plan for?
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verslagen1 YaBB Moderator ModSquad Offline Where there's a will, I want to be in it. Posts: 28884 L.A. California Gender:	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #1 - 05/03/10 at 12:00:59 figure out why it overflowed. is the float valve stuck or leaky? check petcock for leaky diaphragm, is there gas in the vac line?
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youzguyz

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Re: Petcock left on "Prime"
Reply #2 - 05/03/10 at 12:08:23

I don't see any mention of teke316 saying there was an overflow.

Leaving it on "Prime" is no worse than leaving a regular petcock in "On". I don't know of ANYBODY who remembers to turn those Off EVERY SINGLE TIME they stop the engine.

Your float valve should prevent any problems. If your float valve failed then you would get gas out the overflow tubes. If you didn't get gas coming out of the overflow tubes, then don't worry about it.
If you did, then checking the oil would be a good idea.

Or am I missing something obvious?

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Most motorcycle problems are caused by the nut between the seat and the handlebars. Make sure yours isn't too tight or too loose.

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Routy Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2280 Winston Oregon Gender:	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #3 - 05/03/10 at 13:04:49 Maybe it was the way he hollered "help!!", one mite think that a catastrophic event had occured
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Rocco Serious Thumper Offline addicted 2 riding TcB Posts: 1049 south florida Gender:	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #4 - 05/03/10 at 13:14:36 lol i leave her in prime more then i care to admit, haven't had a problem yet!
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Oldfeller--FSO Serious Thumper ModSquad Offline Hobby is now "concentrated neuropany" Posts: 12671 Fayetteville, NC Gender:	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #5 - 05/03/10 at 13:16:03 Sniff your oil hole and see if you smell gasoline. You oil level should be up a bit if you had any gas getting into the oil.
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teke316

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Re: Petcock left on "Prime"
Reply #6 - 05/03/10 at 13:23:07

Perhaps I shoud have mentioned, that I noticed the petcock seting after I started the engine and saw smoke that appeared to be coming from the exhaust in three places and only one of which was the tip where the exhaust should be exiting.

This was concerning to me since, the guy I purchased the bike from just had the exhaust gasket replace by a local dealer. I have the reciept.

I was already planning on taking a closer look at the carb becasue of occasional backfiring on throtle release.

After noticing the petcock seting, I was just planning for the worst.

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dasch Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 1137	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #7 - 05/03/10 at 14:18:27 There should be no harm. At all. However, check oil level and sniff oil for gas smell, as others said. If oil level is higher than usual - drain oil and replace with fresh 2 quarts. Mine is in prime for months.
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Charon Serious Thumper Offline Posts: 1811 Harvard, NE Gender:	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #8 - 05/03/10 at 14:32:32 If the float needle valve in the carbureter worked correctly, no damage done. The only really unpleasant side effect if leaving the petcock in PRIme is the lack of a reserve. When it runs out of fuel, you walk.
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teke316 YaBB Newbies Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 3	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #9 - 05/03/10 at 14:34:20 What if there is a smell of gas in the oil? What is the float needle valve did not work properly?
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verslagen1 YaBB Moderator ModSquad Offline Where there's a will, I want to be in it. Posts: 28884 L.A. California Gender:	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #10 - 05/03/10 at 14:36:25 replace, replace.
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Charon

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Re: Petcock left on "Prime"
Reply #11 - 05/03/10 at 14:42:49

The float needle valve is in the carburetor and is supposed to control the flow of fuel into the carburetor, maintaining it at the proper level for operation. When the engine is not running, the float needle valve should completely shut off the flow of fuel. If the needle valve sticks open, for whatever reason, fuel continues to flow. The fuel should simply flow out the overflow vents on the float bowl, but sometimes it flows into the cylinder, then down past the rings and into the crankcase where it mixes with the engine oil. This results in the oil level being high, the oil smelling strongly of gasoline, diluted oil which will not lubricate properly, and a slight risk of fire. If the gasoline has flowed into and diluted the oil, your best bet is to change the oil immediately, before you even try to start the engine. Since the engine was not running, the filter should not be contaminated.

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Routy

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Re: Petcock left on "Prime"
Reply #12 - 05/03/10 at 17:15:51

This is the first motorbike I've had that has the saftey shutoff valve, which I kinda like,...as long as it works right. But every other bike I've had in past years (8) the off/on valve stayed on all the time, and I never had a carb leak.
If I had a float needle valve that was leaking, I wouldn't depend on the saftey shutoff valve anyway, I would fix/replace the float valve.

Believe it or not, the biggest problem w/ float valves leaking, is not cuz their wore out,.....it is because dirt is getting in the valve. Thats why all engines should have an inline fuel filter between the carb and the tank/pump. And hopefully the filter would be of a finer mesh than what the OEM has in the vacuum operated petcock,....just from what I saw.

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Rich
'07 S40 Blvd stocker, except drilled OEM exhaust and white spacer mod...1/2 (.055)

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justin_o_guy2 Serious Thumper Offline What happened? Posts: 55279 East Texas, 1/2 dallas/la.	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #13 - 05/03/10 at 19:39:12 Oldfeller--FSO wrote on 05/03/10 at 13:16:03: Sniff your oil hole and see if you smell G__assoline. You oil level should be up a bit if you had any gas getting into the oil. Uhhhh,,, No,,, Im not smellin my oil hole, okay?
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dasch Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 1137	Re: Petcock left on "Prime" Reply #14 - 05/04/10 at 02:05:22 Hahahaha
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