Slight issues. Help please!

[cyclingscott]

Hi,
 
I've been having a few issues with the bike starting recently and was hoping that somebody on here can suggest any possible solutions.
 
Haven't been riding it a lot recently because of the lovely Welsh weather and the salt on the roads and it wouldn't start a couple of weeks ago when I tried it. Put the battery on charge and a couple of days later when I tried it it started straight away with no problems.
 
Went out on it again on Monday and it struggled to start a bit in the morning but wasn't too bad. Left it all sitting outside work for about 4hours and then it really struggled to start again when I came to go home. Also, all the way home it seemed like it wasn't running quite right-almost felt like it was going to stall when I stopped at lights or junctions (this might have seemed worse than normal because I had it in my head that it had only just started).
 
Any suggestions how to sort it out or is this just normal? A colleague with more experience of bikes suggested it might need new plugs and a mechanic at a local dealer agreed that it might. I've just read the thread about the Full Monty kit and it seems like that might solve some of the problems.
 
It's an '02 1000 with 18k on the clock. The last service stamp is from 14k but it had an oil and filter change at 15k.
 
Thanks in advance,
Scott
 
 

[tomlinscote]

Hi,
If the bike is still on the original plugs it maybe due a change, I had a misfire problem on mine at around 20000 miles (2004 model) which a new set of plugs fixed. Do you know if there is something on the bike that could drain the battery ie an alarm etc, mine struggles if left for a while, I suppose I should get a trickle charger, but after a run it works a treat. Also check that the spark plug caps really are nice and tight esp the inner two as even a small gap can let water in and then you will get running/starting probs.
Cheers
P

[sadlonelygit]

sounds knackered to me
i'll give you £500 to take it off your hands.
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or raise the tickover a bit, moist dense welsh winter air not the best for i/c engines.

[cyclingscott]

Thanks for the quick replies.
 
I've only had the bike for 4 or 5 months so I don't know if they are the original plugs. Think I might just change them/get them changed anyway.
 
Thanks for the offer sadlonelygit but I think I'll persevere for a bit ;-)

[sadlonelygit]

have you still got the AIS fitted?
if so, now would be a good time to get rid

[bludclot]

 
sounds to me like there's not enough electricity floating around. a good strong new battery would be my first port of call. it's amazing how many gremlins run away when a decent current is thrown at them.

[cyclingscott]

This may well be a silly question but what's AIS?

I had thought of a new battery but the Optimate says it's in good condition when it runs the test programme. Might still be worth a try though.

[Fazerjon]

sounds knackered to me
i'll give you £500 to take it off your hands.
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.
.
.
.
.
.
.
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or raise the tickover a bit, moist dense welsh winter air not the best for i/c engines.

I'll give you £600 for her!!

[tomlinscote]

AIS is the air injection system, it apparently helps the bike pass emission tests in the nasty places that have them. It is that not pleasant looking nest of pipes that go over the top of the engine and lots of people remove it to make the bike look nicer and get better access to the plugs and top engine ini general, not sure if there's any performance gain - others can tell you more about that.
If you are going to change the plugs I found that the tool supplied with the bike actually works rather well, I had no issues getting all four out and more importantly the new ones in
A really useful site for the FZS 1000 is to be found here...http://www.cartestsoftware.com/fz1 , enjoy your bike, they are great bits of kit.
P

[nickodemon]

Sounds more like a tired battery to me. Good luck!

[ghostbiker]

As said I would make sure the battery is good first. Then just a quick check that the choke is releasing.
New plugs would be on the todo list Long with a service as your unsure of its history.
Make sure to do the exup with the service though :p

[CharlieDee]

sounds knackered to me
i'll give you £500 to take it off your hands.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
or raise the tickover a bit, moist dense welsh winter air not the best for i/c engines.

I'll give you £600 for her!!

I'll raise you and offer £700!! 

[Fazerjon]

sounds knackered to me
i'll give you £500 to take it off your hands.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
or raise the tickover a bit, moist dense welsh winter air not the best for i/c engines.

I'll give you £600 for her!!

I'll raise you and offer £700!! 

£750 Final offer!

[cyclingscott]

Thanks for the help guys. Sounds like I might have to bite the bullet and go for a service and a new battery-might try the new battery first just in case it cures it.
 
One more question: How often does everybody change their oil? Last Oil and Filter change was a year/3000miles ago.
 
FazerJon and CharlieDee; before the bidding war carries on, it's definitely not for sale 
 
 

[fazersharp]

Your problem sounds exactly like mine HERE http://foc-u.co.uk/index.php/topic,1402.0.html that turned out to be the spark plugs although for me I got less of a warning than you are getting.
FZS 600 but all sounds exactly the same - have a look

[tomlinscote]

Personally I change the bike's oil every year which is around 3 to 4 thou miles, it is always clear and not that much darker than the new oil that replaces it. I hope this means the engine is in good nick! ;p
 P

[The Male Whale]

If you are in the South Wales Valleys, we can do you a decent deal on a battery and fit it for you for free as well.

Also do you plugs cheap too.

www.celticmotorcycles.com

Whale

[cyclingscott]

Thanks Whale,

I'll message you now.

[The Male Whale]

Message received and replied to! 

Hope to see you later today!

Whale

PS It's 6:4 on that it's the battery guys......

[Bracechenko]

Get a battery and give it a good long run too to clear out any cobwebs, should sort out the rough running.

Where abouts are you in Wales mate? I'm in Cardiff and always good to know what other Welsh Foccers are around 

[cyclingscott]

Also in Cardiff Bracechenko. We should meet up for a spin when the weather improves?

[cyclingscott]

Went to Celtic motorcycles in Aberdare yesterday and they let me watch and plied me with tea while they took my bike apart, replaced oil, oil filter and plugs and checked the battery and air filter. Really good service from a really nice, helpful bunch of guys-thanks to "The Male Whale" and the other guys.

I haven't tried to start it from cold yet but it ran like a dream on the way home. Highly recommended shop if you live nearby (not bad riding around there either so no hardship to get to).

Scott