Problems every winter with bike firing up

Hi fellas,

I'm wanting some advice. Every winter I seem to have problems with my bike starting up on a morning. Last time it was my Bandit, this time my SV.

A couple occasions so far this winter I've had to bump start the bike by rolling it down the street. But this morning it just wouldn't fire up at all, even when attempting to bump start.

I commute on it every day, and also make sure i take it for a spin on Saturdays and Sundays as it doesn't seem to like being stood for longer than a day.

It's kept in a garage. It's not an amazing one though - a crappy old wooden framed thing which is just as cold inside it than outside. I think it's also a bit damp in there which probably affects the bike.

For the last few weeks I've been laying two large blankets over it to try keep it snug through the night. Sometimes use a cheap bike cover too.

Last night it wasn't even that cold, and it was dry here in Leeds. But my bike still failed to fire up this morning. I've just tried it this evening and it actually fired up without much difficulty. I'm thinking maybe the damp that was affecting it this morning had sort of dried out throughout the day.

I'm wondering how to solve this. I don't think the battery is flat. Would changing the spark plugs help? My father was talking about spraying them with wd40 to protect them and keep the damp off. I have no idea if this is a good idea or whether it'd make my bike go kabooooom.

WD40 is an ok thing to try, its a water dispersant after all. Is the engine turning over fine on the button? Or is it like the battery is flat or weak? You could buy an optimate battery tirckle charger to keep the batter in good condition (it is generally good to have one of those chargers anyway, they are a good investment); alternativly, if the battery is very old, it might be a bit goosed now

How long ago were the spark plugs changed? If tis more than 10,000 miles, then change them

Do you have a fuel injected SV or a carb'd one (i.e. is there a choke lever, or no choke lever)?

[fizzwheel]

When you say fails to fire up, what exactly are the symptoms ?

Does the starter turn the engine over for ages and ages but the engine doesnt start

Does the starter motor turn a few times and then gives up, wont turn over anymore / clicks and buzzes

A bit more info on what exactly happens and some more info on your bike would be useful to.

spray wd40 on all electrical connections inc plug leads/caps...and might be worthwhile changing ur plugs, my pointy had the same issue last week...2 new plugs and all fine again, and the old ones were only 7000 miles old, but denso's.....ngk's are far superior

Does the starter turn the engine over for ages and ages but the engine doesnt start - Yeah, that pretty much describes what happens. Although this morning i pressed the starter button quite a lot of times, so it eventually struggled to turn over.

The spark plugs were changed when i bought the bike back in May. I've done roughly 4000 miles since then. I'm not sure how old the battery is.

I'm tempted to buy an optimate battery trickle charger before considering changing the battery. I'm not really convinced its the battery anyway, as last year i was having the same issues with my Bandit, even after buying a new battery.

Well try the trickle charger, but as its turning over healthily we need to look to other area's.

WHat model year SV do you have (that way my other question of is it carb'd or fuel injected will be answered, and we can perhaps further suggest some things)

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by apple tango

i've done roughly 4000 miles since then.

The service interval on the SV is every 3500 miles. So its due a service and an oil change.

Cold weather can finish off a weak battery, the SV does take a fair bit of battery juice to turn over so it could also be that, but from your description it might not be.

With the milleage your bikes done since it last service, I'd suggest getting that done first and then taking it from there...

(fizz, its 4500 miles service interval...but it dosnt kill to get it done early, plugs should go on though for an easy 7000 miles, i change mine less frequently than that and they come out of the bike A-OK!)

Sorry Alpine, i was going to reply to your question in my first reply but forgot. It has a choke.

It's a k1, 2002 model, curvy.

I changed the oil 2 weeks ago. I've never changed the spark plugs myself, but i might give it a go.

Originally Posted by apple tango

Sorry Alpine, i was going to reply to your question in my first reply but forgot. It has a choke.

It's a k1, 2002 model, curvy.

Are you using full choke on a cold start? Also, sometimes cold starting can be made harder when the carbs are out of balance, so maybe you could get that checked