thanks up front for the help.

put a new windshield on my 07 S40 and was taking a test spin to see if it was ok.  had read on a post that if you ran a couple of miles on the reserve tank and switched back to main tank it helped keep everything clean if you ever needed the reserve.

when i switched to the "reserve", like an idiot i switched the lever to "prime". about 1/2 mile after that the sputtering and loading up started, i switched it back to main but she went dead. could not get it started again. thankfully it was mostly downhill back to the house. after an hour or so i went back out and finally got it cranked, but it took a while and it ran a little rough.

just went out this morning, cranked, let idle for 30 minutes, rolled the throttle a few times and she seems fine, but i sure don't like the thoughts of being stranded again.

in your opinion, was it just flooded and took a while to clean out? the bike only has 1700 miles.  had a 1000 when i bought it a month ago, and it has ran great every time out, but i have ridden it a lot as it is now my commuter.

any insight or help is appreciated. sorry if this question seems ridiculous.

Scott

Trying to get your sequence of events right:
Petcock: ON - drawing gas from further up the tank
Switched to PRIME: now drawing gas from bottom of tank.  
Sputter sputter .. croak
Switched back to ON: no start
waited a while.  got it started but running rough (didn't say how long you let it run)
Next day.  Runs OK.

When you went to PRIME, you were pulling from the bottom of the tank.
If the screen is clogged on the petcock down there, it would sputter and die after draining the bowl (about 1/2 mile)
Flipping it back to ON.  Bowl is still empty, it will take some cranking to get gas in it again.  Maybe you didn't let it run long enough to get enough gas in the bowl.
Next day.  Normal start sequence and it is OK.  You have gas in the bowl from yesterday to start with.
Possible conclusion.  Petcock has a gummy/clogged screen towards the bottom or the passages for Prime are a bit clogged.
Pull the petcock, clean it up.  Carb Cleaner should work.   Shoot carb cleaner into the gas outlet with the valve in all 3 positions.
I don't think Carb Cleaner will hurt anything in there.

Youzguyz is correct that a clogged petcock screen (the prime/reserve one at the bottom of the tank) will cause the problem you describe.  Your bike is still fairly new and I wouldn't think your tank is rusty, but it still could be gummed up somehow. Blasting out the petcock is good advice.  If you don't want to get into all that just yet, disconnect the gas line from the petcock, get a small jar under it and turn it to prime.  Gas should flow freely.

If you want to check the whole petcock/vacuum system, look in the tech section for Serowbot's comprehensive test.

The spark plug on an '07 (like the petcock) should still be serviceable.  If it's fouled, that's a secondary problem.

thanks again to both of you.

the ride was more of a jog, made it about 300 yards till it started the same thing. clogged carb or screen is my guess.

in my mind, the fact that it had 1000 miles on it in 5 yrs, and i have put 700 miles on it in basically 30 days, it's possible there were some things knocked loose or moved to create the problem.

i will try the methods you guys have suggested.  if not, i have a wrench buddy that is really good that is going to help me put on FC's ( i bought from Routy, they look great) next week anyway.

you guys are a lot of help. thanks for info.

safe ridin

Scott

So.. just run it on Prime if it will run that way.

Test your petcock:
http://suzukisavage.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?num=1251932429/1

If you do run on Prime until you resolve the issue, remember that you do NOT HAVE RESERVE!!

Ohhh boy now I am confused    First turning it to prime killed it, then turning to prime got it going again. Petcock war in 3..2..1..

Ok. If it runs on prime but NOT on reserve (and does so consistently) then the screen is clear, but something is up with the vacuum plunger/auto petcock mechanism. I would not expect that to happen on a 2007 bike, but I suppose the plunger could be sticking since your bike has not seen regular use.  Also check the vacuum line to be sure it isn't cracked anywhere.

Hate to mention the 'R' word just yet, and I don't mean Reserve. Let's see where this goes..

Boule'tard.

i so appreciate you and Sero and Verslagen helping me with this.

here is where i am.  after your description of reserve and prime (very helpful) i did test to see if the gas flowed freely on prime. (it does, 4 ounces in a few seconds).

last night i turned the petcock to prime. pulled the choke out to the first notch, fired it, and though it struggled, it did fire and ran, although roughly. i then turned the petcock to "run" and it shortly died.

in my mind, that tells me junk in the petcock blocking the line.....agree? either that or there is pinhole or crack in a vacuum line and therefore it doesn't have the suction to draw the fuel from the petcock while on run......am i getting there?  

after work today i am taking it off and doing the cleaning you folks have suggested.  i am also going to empty out the bowl of the carb just in case. is there anything special about the clean out screw that i should be aware of? (other than don't lose it)

sorry for the elementary questions, maybe the answers can help some other newbs with more pride than myself. i love riding again, and really want to understand this bike going forward. at this point in life i am more intrigued by trying to solve the puzzle than frustrated.  you guys are helping a lot with that.

and by "R" word i hope you don't mean it rhymes with "sings".  :'(

safe ridin.

scott

 
verslagen1 wrote on 05/11/12 at 15:46:48:



Yes, word of wisdom, words you can take to the bank -- crap does collect all around a vac petcock. Crap crawls into it and takes full possession of it, just like sweet little Linda Blair in the Exorcist.  

Crap crawls up into the vac line and makes a nest, causing little tiny cracks in the rubber -- the tiniest invisible crack will cause the suction to drop to zero and the vacsucker simply stops working.

Crap crawls into the diaphragm, causing it to stiffen up (lose function).  Eventually it cracks and leaks gasoline down the vac line into your carb and from there down the cylinder wall into the oil sump.

I think at last count there were 4 distinct failure modes to a vac petcock (or five if you counted putting the various hoses in the wrong place).

Your odds of having repeated vac petcock problems hits 100% over time unless you subscribe to a rigorous schedule of hose replacement, etc.

Well now, unless you like getting stalled in traffic repeatedly over the years there is really only two paths to take.  

1)  Become a vac petcock diagnostic expert and repeatedly replace all sorts of little rubbery bits and pieces ahead of time ....

..... repeatedly, mind you .....

                                       OR


2)  Yank the stock vac sucker off of there and replace it with a Raptor petcock.


Required reading for understanding where you are with the choices you have to eventually make.

Read up, then ask the rest of your questions.



Test your Petcock,.. don't just turn it to Prime..


We just know you will have lots & lots of them questions.    And if you want to get a leg up on the petcock war that just started (with you as the primary example under question)  read up on the subjects here.


Petcock Issues (poll and summary)