Suzuki LS650

Hi All,

Can't start my LS650 (2000). New battery, turns over, just won't start. Put
it away last year, emptied the tank. Fill tank this morning with new gas.

Any suggestions?

 

Got a fuel tap with a "Prime" (P, Pr or Pri) position ? If so, turn
it to that position.
If that is not the case or you already knew about that, read
the other suggestions that are sure to come. And describe
fault better, does it sputter and die, is there no ignition at all,
does it turn over at normal speed, does the exhaust smell of
petrol ....................

 

Did you drain the float bowls before you stored the bike, or did you
intentionally run the engine out of gas to use up all the fuel in the
float bowls?

Even if you didn't do that in order to avoid having the gasoline
evaporate and the heavier fractions turning into gum and varnish,
evaporation will do that for you...

The gas will evaporate and plug up the idle jets and the bike will be
hard as hell to start the first time after a period of storage...

The first thing to do is turn the petcock to the PRI position. That's
"prime". It allows fuel to go straight to the float bowls without
cranking the engine over with the starter. Your bike has an automatic
petcock that only opens when there's enough vacuum to pull on the
little diaphragm that opens a spring-loaded valve in the back of the
petcock, admitting gasoline to the petcock selector valve...

Another trick is to find the idle speed knob and turn it all the way
counterclockwise so the throttle butterfly isn't open at all...

When you push the starter button, don't turn the throttle handle at
all. The engine needs all the vacuum it can get to suck gasoline
through the tiny idle ports and jets and through the starting
enrichener circuit...

Your Suzuki doesn't have a choke plate like the carburetor in a car.

Instead, it has a starting enrichener valve that you open by moving a
little lever or pulling a knob on the side of the carb...

This opens a little valve in the side of the carb and air is sucked
through that hole instead of past the throttle butterfly. Opening the
throttle butterfly valve by twisting the throttle grip just reduces the
vacuum that the starting enrichener and the idle mixture circuit need
in order to start the engine...

If putting the petcock in prime, turning the idle knob all the way
counterclockwise, and trying to start the engine without turning the
throttle doesn't get the engine started, another thing to try is to
remove the rubber boot connecting the carburetor to the air box and
putting your hand over the carburetor air inlet while you push the
starter button. This will suck fuel up out of the float bowls and might
make the fuel air mixture rich enough to start the engine...

Or, it might flood the engine. If it does that, you'll smell a lot of
gasoline and you'll need to let the engine sit for about 15 minutes to
half an hour for all the excess gas to evaporate before trying to start
the engine with just the choke and no throttle at all...

If the engine *still* refuses to start, maybe your spark plug has gone
bad. That seems to happen mysteriously, something inside the spark plug
seems to short out and the plug loses all its voltage instead of firing
a spark to light the mixture in the cylinder...

 

1. Flip the engine kill switch to RUN. 8^)
DAHIKIJKOK?
2. Switch to prime
3. check that the bike is in neutral and the kick
stand down.