Bike has sat for 3 months - Drain Fuel? Clean carby?

6782 Views 10 Replies 8 Participants Last post by sir.b, Jun 1, 2010

alex92

Discussion Starter · May 31, 2010

Hey guys. Four questions:

1) The bike I just bought has sat for 3 months. Every 2-3 weeks it was started (or so the seller told me) but they only rode it like 100m and then put it away so didn't get much of a run. I charged the battery today and it started after a couple tries. I'm guessing it just needs a good run to clean the pipes and get the battery back into good condition..
I was told to just fill the tank up with petrol and then take it for a good ride.. but should I drain the fuel first? Does petrol do anything funny after a few months?

2) Where is the reserve tank located? Is it just a seperate compartment at the bottom of the tank? How do you tell when you're running low on petrol if there's no gauge? Looking into the tank isn't really that much help.. Also, you don't have to fill the reserve tank up, right? It gets filled up when you refuel normally?..

3) How many L/100KM does your MC22 do?

4) Is it hard to clean the carby? Is it hard to access, and how do you clean it? I'm guessing this could do with a clean. The oil, oil filter, air filter, pads, rear tyre and plugs are all new so that's all good.
EDIT: If the process of cleaning the carby is similar to a CBR600 , I don't think I'm up to that quite yet..

Cheers

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The Dwarf

· #2 · May 31, 2010

Just get a full tank of petrol and go for at least an hour and a half run on various roads and speeds.
If she started and is idling well then leave them until it is due service.
If there is no service history do a full service!
Oil, oil filter, airfilter, clean carbs, brake fluid, check coolant level, check brake pads, inspect, replace tyres and spark plugs.

The reserve on the tank is just a lower intake in the tank.
Say the "on" pipe is 5inches hight, and the petrol level goes below that you switch to reserve which is flush with the botom of the tank letting you use the las few litre of fuel.
Hope I explained that right.

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alex92

Discussion Starter · #3 · May 31, 2010

The Dwarf said:
Just get a full tank of petrol and go for at least an hour and a half run on various roads and speeds.
If she started and is idling well then leave them until it is due service.
If there is no service history do a full service!
Oil, oil filter, airfilter, clean carbs, brake fluid, check coolant level, check brake pads, inspect, replace tyres and spark plugs.

The reserve on the tank is just a lower intake in the tank.
Say the "on" pipe is 5inches hight, and the petrol level goes below that you switch to reserve which is flush with the botom of the tank letting you use the las few litre of fuel.
Hope I explained that right.

Yep, cheers mate. All that was done, except I'm not sure about cleaning the carbs. Will ask the bike's mechanic next week.

Just read a bit and after a bit of research I guess 3 months isn't that old for petrol. If it had been sitting for 6-9 months or more, I would definitely drain the fuel. Although if someone thinks it would be a good idea, then I'll do it. It will teach be a bit more about my bike, and if anything it will be better for the bike.

How do you tell how much petrol it has in it? Just by how many km's you've done on your current tank? And how many KMs do you guys get from a tank usually?..

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ajpennypacker

· #4 · May 31, 2010

How do you tell how much petrol it has in it? Just by how many km's you've done on your current tank? And how many KMs do you guys get from a tank usually?..

With my old 250 I'd just go by the K's I've done. Once it dies and I'd hit reserve I'd head to the nearest servo. But just keep an eye on your K's if your planning a long trip with few servo's.
Cant remember how many K's I'd get from a tank, but I was riding for fun, not for economy. I'm sure there will be a rough guideline posted soon.

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banana.logic

· #5 · May 31, 2010

Probably you will be getting about 250 - 300 K's per tank depending on riding style and environment. and yeah it's pretty obvious when you run out of fuel, so just look for the signs (lack of power when you open the throttle and surging power delivery are some indicators), then switch to reserve and head to the servo next chance you get.

Probably worth replacing the fuel too, just for peace of mind as such.

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Hirsty

· #6 · May 31, 2010

most of your questions have been answered but with how far you'll get out of a tank i usually only got 180-190km out of a tank before hitting reserve. (but all of my riding involved some twistys)

i dont know what the 250rr's can get on a highway but in the twistys my m8 gets worse economy than me on my thou.
he had 7.6L/100km i only had 7.5..

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Tromac

· #7 · May 31, 2010

alex92 said:
Yep, cheers mate. All that was done, except I'm not sure about cleaning the carbs. Will ask the bike's mechanic next week.

Hi mate. There's a good thread on cleaning the carbs in the old forum archives, here. Read through the whole thread to get the tips from everyone, and there are some pics later on.

I've been meaning to do mine, just haven't quite got around to it yet.

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alex92

Discussion Starter · #8 · May 31, 2010

last question for this thread - Where do I put the waste petrol??...

Will it kill my grass and any animals that may eat that grass, if I dump it in a back paddock?

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naughtylion

· #9 · Jun 1, 2010

alex92 said:
last question for this thread - Where do I put the waste petrol??...

Will it kill my grass and any animals that may eat that grass, if I dump it in a back paddock?

Keep it for the next time you have a bonfire, bbq or dead body disposal.

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· #10 · Jun 1, 2010

alex92 said:
last question for this thread - Where do I put the waste petrol??...

Will it kill my grass and any animals that may eat that grass, if I dump it in a back paddock?

I use it for cleaning the outside of carbs/engine parts

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sir.b

· #11 · Jun 1, 2010

Keep it for the lawnmower.

Justin.

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