cold engine - hard start and wandering idle

Nothing at all at 19 degrees f.

At 19 it'll turn over a couple of times and stop. That is all it'll do. I had the 1 year old battery tested it's fine. Am I unrealistic trying to start the bike at the this temperature? At around 30 its seems fine.
 
I was under the impression that after sitting still for a while, if you turn the key on once and hear the fuel pump prime then turn if off and turn it on again and that primes it again. This insures that the old gal gets enough gas to start.
Dave
 
Jump start it like a car or use a 50amp start charger. If she cranks fine that way, its probably the battery. These things are difficult to start in the deep cold without an Odyssey PC625 battery and the Odyssey Optimizer charger. Especially if they sit for a week or more.
 
I started mine for the first time in a month the other day. It was about 25 degrees F outside and it took three rounds of cranking. I keep the battery on a batter tender all of the time.
 
Started mine last week after about 3 weeks of setting in the garage. It acted like the battery was low and it took a couple of tries to get it to kick over. I let it run for about 15 min's at about 2k rpm to help put some juice back in the battery. I have started it a couple of times since and now before I crank it I crack the throttle just a touch to open the injectors and let just a touch of fuel into the cylinders and it bust right off. I know they tell you that you dont need to give it any fuel on these FI bikes, but it seems to work for mine.
Also, maybe you guys can tell me, but I understand that on a motorcycle, that it doesn't charge the battery at an idle. That is the reason I brought the rpms up to 2k and let it run there for the 15 min's. It seemed to do the trick. Fires right up now.

Big T
 
I've been consistently riding my R3T in 15 to 20 f temps. I'm running a stock battery with a Battery Tender Jr. The only day it didn't start, I had left my heated seat on all day! :)
 
I've gone back in the ratnet forums and have read reference to the 12 minute tune a number of times, and I noticed it came up in this thread.
would someone explain that process to me?
 
I've gone back in the ratnet forums and have read reference to the 12 minute tune a number of times, and I noticed it came up in this thread.
would someone explain that process to me?
The way it was explained to me was to allow the bike to idle until the fan comes on and then for another 12 minutes. It is supposed to allow the computer to read all the sensors on the bike and make adjustments to its program. GM cars had something similar back in the 80's, if you took out the battery the car wouldn't idle afterwards. You had to let it run with your foot on the gas until the cooling fan cycled for it to relearn how to idle.
Newer cars have something along those lines with the OBDII system, self checks and ****. Like if you ever have been sitting at a stop light and your car idles like **** for a few seconds out of the blue ... thats the computer opening recirc valves to check for leaks in the fuel system. Same principal.
 
Back
Top