Bandit 600N Cutting out when weather is cold

[GaryMc]

Right. Here we go.

My wife rides the above every day. It's a 98 and has been a great bike for the last 8 months until last week. First frost we had and she takes it out to go to work and get's about 1/2 a mile from home when it loses power and cuts out. Won't start for a while then when it will start it will do the same again. I have cleaned all the fuel lines and emptied the tank of any crap and this seemed to do the trick until today. Same thing again????? The bike is warmed up when this happens so not sure where to go with this next?

All suggestions welcome ;)

Cheers

PB

[alanTDM]

You will prob find its Carb icing ,quite a few bikes do it usually happens after a few miles,my yammy thundercat 600 use to do it a lot.open the throttle and nowt happens then it splutters as if running on 2 cylinders.
Try a can of fuel additive think its about £3.50 cant remember the name but you will get some from eg George Whites,think Silkolene make one.
Im sure someone will be post later with the correct name for what you want

[GaryMc]

That sounds about right. When it happened tonight I was behind her in the car and the bike sounded fine but next thing it's gone? I'll head up to GW's tomorrow and see what they have.

Cheers [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

[finbar]

My Srad did this really badly,love carbs but don't miss this about them.

Your have 2 options

1)FST additive / Yamaha do a version too / loads of other makes

2) Iso-propanol Used to be sold in hardware stores as 'rubbing alcohol' (used in aviation as an anti-icing additive in planes) way cheaper than FST. Can get it from lab suppliers direct. Seem to remember for 2 litres it was £12(delivered to your door) and needed 200cc per tank.

[igbell]

Def sounds like Carb Icing, had the same thing when I was looking at buying a VFR800 with carbs, and this put me off until I then found out what it was.

[FJ_Biker]

I get carb icing on the Bandit 600 (a 98 model as well) so just do not ride the bike in temperatures under 3 degrees. Good luck with finding a fix

[GaryMc]

According to a message I found on another forum the bike should be fitted with carb heaters as standard from 98 onwards??? There are some wires coming from the bottom of the carbs but not sure if thats it. If it is the connection on No 3 carn has snapped.

Time to consult the trused Haynes manual.

At any rate the bike will not start now so I think there is another issue somewhere????

>:(

[alanTDM]

My Thundercat had carb heaters on it but they were connected from the radiator and that didnt make any difference.
Yours might be the same.

FJ is the choke on a Bandit manual or automatic?
just wondering if the wire is for the auto choke, so a broken wire makes choke stay on for that carb,so when cold engine it runs ok till the bike warms up then splutters/cuts out because choke isnt working auto on that carb
.Just a thought! :)

[FJ_Biker]

Hello paleblue I have removed the carb heaters and they work fine. This is a known fault on the 600’s. Other people I know with this model of bandit get the same problems. I guess a bandit forum maybe the best place for help. I wish you luck on getting your bike started soon and finding an answer to the carb icing.

Hello Alan hope you are keeping well, it’s a manual choke and functioning fine.

[finbar]

Your Bandit will run fine with the additives I mentioned.

The Bandit has 4 carb heaters that screw into the bottom of the carbs, they help but don't cure the problem. They are mini heaters (like glowplugs but way cooler running) run on electric unlike the heaters fitter to Thundercats and some Kawasakis which use coolant from the engine.

Finbar [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

[Jon_W]

Could be carb icing or could be a dodgy fuel tap.

[Blackandchrome]

Just a thought!
Maybe Carb Icing is a red herring.
Could the fuel filler cap vent have a blockage?
Maybe see what happens if you just release the cap.
Look for the simple causes first?
Good Luck and hope it is resolved soon. :-/

[Bikermouse]

My CBR400 did the exact same thing, a treatment of Silkolene FST did the trick and I continue to use it every few tanks when the temps start dipping just to keep him happy. If only all the other problems were as easily rectified... :P

kj

[Cemorah]

Does sond like carb icing usually more prevalent on wet days but as it now refuses to start I agree with tractor driver make sure fuel is getting to carbs:
Have you checked the operation of the vaccum fuel tap?
is there fuel in the carbs?
is there a hole in the vacuum pipe?
is it securely fitted over both ends?

If you need help on this give me a call on 07795 266230 I live in Cricklade.

[GaryMc]

Bike started yesterday and ran fine for 5 minutes but again got 1/2 a mile from home with me on it this time and died. Got it started again on the choke and limped home.

Thanks for the offer Cemorah. I'll give you a shout when my limited knowledge has been exhausted :D

[Mark_Able]

Our GS500's suffer carb icing. The morning start-up routine is:-

1. Start bike on choke, but try to adjust the choke down far enough to keep the motor running, but keep the revs down.
2. Run for about 10 minutes, then switch off.
3. Leave for about another 10 minutes.
4. Start without choke. It should rev and run freely.

Basically what happens is, the initial start up causes the carbs to start to ice. By switching off and leaving for 10 minutes allows the carbs to defrost. Starting up again, they normally run ok. We have found that sometimes they still won't run cleanly, but after a short ride and another switch off, it sorts it out. We haven't resorted to FST yet, but do know it works. [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

[quimby]

Had the same problem with my old 98 Bandit 600n, every time it got cold but as soon as I put some fuel additive into the tank it seemed 2 cure the problem [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

[jonnydangerous]

sounds to me like the carbs are icing....there are small air corrector jets and very small passages that ice over, the depression caused in the carb makes the already cold air even colder which alows ice to form.
the choke circuit is larger in size and will not ice the passages....
there is a way round this with larger air corrector jets, and ive heard that Dynojet kits sometimes cure carb icing (not by being clever, just by being different sizes) which may be worth investigating.
my RD250lc actually ices the carbs sooooo bad that all the circuits freeze except the main fuel metering circuit, and ice forms on the outside of the carb, and the bike runs till the ice collects in the float bowl, filling it with water!!!....

IPA (Iso Propanol Alcahol) can be bought from RS components....
the part number is RS 567-890 and is advertised as a circuit board cleaner......500mm cans :-)

[GaryMc]

After finding that there were 2 faults on the Bike we have it up and running again. The ignition switch had worn to the point of not letting the starter turn over so a new one is required but can get it to work at the moment but the original fault was the fuel tap. If you run the bike with the tap in the normal "fuel" position it will only run for around 10 minutes but if you leave it on "prime" it runs fine :o

Heading up to GW's and Artdeans to get quotes on the ignition switch and get the tap replaced this week. ;)

Thanks for all your help guys and gals [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

PB

[Robf]

good to know that the problems almost sorted

[Mark_Able]

After finding that there were 2 faults on the Bike we have it up and running again. The ignition switch had worn to the point of not letting the starter turn over so a new one is required but can get it to work at the moment but the original fault was the fuel tap. If you run the bike with the tap in the normal "fuel" position it will only run for around 10 minutes but if you leave it on "prime" it runs fine :o

Heading up to GW's and Artdeans to get quotes on the ignition switch and get the tap replaced this week. ;)

Thanks for all your help guys and gals [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

PB

Be sure it's the fuel tap mate. Again, our GS500's would restart on 'prime' basically cos loads of fuel is going in, and by the time we'd switched over to 'prime' the carbs had defrosted.

We actually had a breakdown the other day on the A4 Batheaston bypass. Heading towards Bristol last thursday, got to the bottom of the long hill out of Bath, and it was raining. As we climbed the hill, rain started to turn to sleet and one of the GS's started to misfire. By the time we got to the top of the hill it was snowing heavily, at which point the GS conked out. Phone call to Phoenix to come and recover. Test cancelled. Pick bike up from Phoenix with Pro FST in the tank, not had a problem since. Carb icing again. ::)

[Jon_W]

Am going to have a look at making a set of engine covers on mine... see if I can force the carb to pull air from the engine... the cold weather running is a pain.

[Mark_Able]

Pro FST mate... [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

[Maverick]

Sounds electrical to me? ::)

[Jon_W]

After finding that there were 2 faults on the Bike we have it up and running again. The ignition switch had worn to the point of not letting the starter turn over so a new one is required but can get it to work at the moment but the original fault was the fuel tap. If you run the bike with the tap in the normal "fuel" position it will only run for around 10 minutes but if you leave it on "prime" it runs fine :o



Sounds like either a diaphram fault or a hole in the vac hose. I'd get a new vac hose as well. And check the carbs, 10 mins seems a long time for running on whats in the fuel line.

[GaryMc]

Quick update on this one. Got the bike all sorted and running like a dream only for some little scrote to steal it on Tuesday morning >:(

We found it later that morning (no thanks to Wiltshires finest) but they have tried to hotwire it and basically ripped everything they could out of the loom, lights and ignition without success so the bike is a write off :'(

The wife has decided not to claim on the insurance as if she does it will double her premium for next year and as she has just purchased a speed triple she would be looking at £700 a year so it's not worth claiming for a bike she'd be lucky to get £700 for.

All I can say is if you live in the West Swindon area watch your bike closely as this was chained to my bike with the steering lock on under our bedroom window and they still managed to get away without anyone seeing or hearing anything!!!!!

PB

[Scotty]

F*ckers >:(
Stoning would be too good for bike thieves, anyone care to differ?

[FJ_Biker]

Bl00dy low life scumbags

If you find out who they are I am sure we can organise a ride out.

[slowr1der]

Sorry to hear that mate