Generally after about a week of sitting idle, especially in cold damp conditions, bikes will be hard to start. There can be several reasons for this such as:
- A cold battery cannot produce a high enough charge.
- The oil is thick and causing drag on the starting system.
- The gas is cold and less likely to evaporate and hence ‘burn’.
- Water in the fuel due to bad petrol or condensation.
In general, these bikes run on a very lean mix of petrol and therefore can be difficult to start when they have one or more of the issues listed above. Simply because the bike is hard to start does not mean that there is a problem with it other than those above.
So whatever the cause, what do you do if your bike is a pig to start after a long break?
My mechanic suggests after trying to start the bike with the electronic start button, without choke and failing you should:
- Get the bike on the centre stand. It is much more stable this way.
- Kick start the bike around ten times, without the ignition on.
- Pull out the choke lever. This is the small level under the left hand grip.
- Kick start the bike, with the choke lever out. Do not touch the accelerator.
- Keep kick starting the bike.
- After the bike has started you should take it for a spin, a couple of kilometers in order to get the bike warm and the battery fully charged. If you cannot do this you should at least let the bike sit with the engine running at idle for some time. Ten minutes perhaps.
The bike should start. However, you may find yourself having to kick start the bike a lot of times. I mean a lot. You will get hot and tired as it can be really difficult to start a cold, wet bike.
If you have had trouble getting the bike started I would recommend that you pop in to our mechanic (His name is Phong and he is based at 119b Pho Hue near the junction with Hoa Ma st and Tue Tinh st). He can check the oil, spark plug, battery, and carburetor ad hopefully make sure you have fewer problems, if any, the next time you need to start the bike.
You may consider:
- Keeping the bike indoors if it is warmer in your house than outside
- Keeping the petrol tank filled to minimize condensation
You will get to ‘know’ your bike and what works best for her. If you find it really impossible to start the bike we can send our guy out to help you but of course we have to fit it into his schedule so this may not be an immediate solution.
Drive safely,
RentABike
