Reluctant starting

My K3 has had a hard life. It's currently on 20k miles but regularly serviced etc. The last 2 months it has been a little reluctant to start when cold. It used to fire in less than a second but now it tries to,sounds like it's fired on one cylinder, and then takes nearly another second to actually start. I have just this week done an oil,filter and plugs change but it seems to be the same.Any ideas? It's not a major problem as it always starts it's just a little reluctant and I would like to sort it out in case it does become a problem.

sounds obvious, but have you tried playing about with the amount of choke you give it?
Mine works better when I open the (or should that be close??) the choke all the way, then back it off a couple of mm.

[Sid Squid]

Now we are in to the damper weather, my SV1000 definately turns over maybe a moment longer before firing, (perhaps half a second, rather than press: it's running), I don't think there's anything amiss though, now that we have such strict emission controls, I suspect that it's just that the injection system is set comparatively weak, meaning the starting isn't quite as instantaneous as in warmer, drier weather.

However if your bike is turning over more than, say, 2~3 seconds, I'd certainly look at the ignition again.

Originally Posted by chutz

My K3 has had a hard life. It's currently on 20k miles but regularly serviced etc. The last 2 months it has been a little reluctant to start when cold.

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Does the temperature gauge work ok? It may sound like an odd question but the Engine Coolant Temperature sensor supplies data both for the gauge display and for the ECM, enriching the fuel/air mixture when the engine is cold, in the same way as a choke. I had trouble with mine recently, both poor starting and the temp gauge reading high (showing 60 or 70 degrees C when the engine was cold, 110 when hot). It was replaced under warranty. If you have the same problem and if yours is a K3 it should still be covered?

Originally Posted by Nekkid

sounds obvious, but have you tried playing about with the amount of choke you give it?

K3 SVs are fuel-injected, dude

Originally Posted by Ken McCulloch

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Does the temperature gauge work ok? It may sound like an odd question but the Engine Coolant Temperature sensor supplies data both for the gauge display and for the ECM, enriching the fuel/air mixture when the engine is cold, in the same way as a choke. I had trouble with mine recently, both poor starting and the temp gauge reading high (showing 60 or 70 degrees C when the engine was cold, 110 when hot). It was replaced under warranty. If you have the same problem and if yours is a K3 it should still be covered?

good point dude but been there already. My temp sensor failed 6 months ago and so when I started the bike it read as 120 degrees and therefore the fast idle thingy didn't work.I got it fixed under warranty.
I am not unduly worried by the latest reluctance to start but would like to understand why it is so please keep all idea coming, no matter how silly they may seem to you.

In my experiance,
cold weather and bike batterys dont mix,
It always made mine turn over ever so slightly slower when it was cold therefore taking longer to start,
so, possibly try an omtimate or simmillar as its cheaper than replacing the battery!
Or tuck it up next to a rad at night!! lol

my 2p
Alex

At the new house that I will be moving into at the weekend I will no longer have problems of cold starting. There are patio doors leading straight into the living room, and with a wooden floor, no worries about getting the carpets dirty.






Mrs Ape didn't seem to think this was such a good idea

[embee]

Originally Posted by Ken McCulloch

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Does the temperature gauge work ok? It may sound like an odd question but the Engine Coolant Temperature sensor supplies data both for the gauge display and for the ECM, enriching the fuel/air mixture when the engine is cold, in the same way as a choke......

I haven't had any direct experience of a FI (i.e K3 on) SV, but it's a pretty basic un-sophisticated bit of kit, comparable to car type systems of, say, 10-15yrs ago.

I'd guess Ken has a very good point about the ECT sensor, either the sensor itself or electrical connections/earthing of it. This is fundamental in getting cold fuelling correct.
The other thing is definitely battery condition. A lot of older car systems were very sensitive due to a not very clever voltage correction function in the ECU (injector on-time needs to be altered to compensate for low volts during and just after cranking). I've known several older FI cars which had typically after-start stalling problems that were solved by fitting a new battery (even though it seemed OK).

Lastly the volatility of fuel changes around this time of year, going to a "winter" spec. If you're getting fuel from an outlet which still has summer type fuel it won't help with cold starting. Try some from a main-stream major petrol retailer with a big turnover.

Thanks for the suggestions dudes. I always use a major fuel supplier, the battery seems fine and my shortest run is usually 30 miles so I hope it's not that. I am flummoxed now.