Megablade Engine tuning

[Renmure]

My megablade is running a bit roughly and I am guessing that the engine needs some sort of tuning /carb balance.

Is this the sort of thing that a bike garage would be best suited to undertake? Is it a pretty straight forward thing to have done?  

Jim

[higgsti]

have you checked plugs gaps and ht leads fit .mine started running rough and turned out to be faulty plug cap(hesitating under full throttle).try these first then yes m/bike mechanic.im not mechanically minded but it give great satisfaction to sort it yourself

[higgsti]

if you describe in more detail ie;- when its running rough (idle mid or full throttle) ill have a look in my haynes manual

[Renmure]

have you checked plugs gaps and ht leads fit .mine started running rough and turned out to be faulty plug cap(hesitating under full throttle).try these first then yes m/bike mechanic.im not mechanically minded but it give great satisfaction to sort it yourself

Cheers.

I am not mechanically minded either but suppose I should really get a grip and have a go at some of these 'techy' things myself so.. I shall look at the leads and plugs and things first and see what happens.

It seems to 'splutter' a bit about 8k rpm under acceleration and seems .... 'farty' (hope that word is ok, it certainly describes the noise).  I hadnt really driven the car much recently but on reflection it probably has been a progressive thing over the last 100 - 150 miles. It also seems slightly more 'out of tune' when idleing on start-up than it did previously.

[higgsti]

same simptoms as mine ill look if theres out else in manual tomorrow.the blade engine is so easy to service

[stubbow]

Jim

Has the car been parked up for a while? if so it could be the carbs need a clean. Any fuel left in the carbs when you park up evaporates leaving a gooey deposit that can block the jets, use a good quality carb cleaner and it should be fine.After this happened to me a couple of times when storing my blade (motorbike) i started running the carbs dry when parking it up by turning off the fuel supply and running the engine until it stopped. I have now fitted a fuel tap to my megablade so i can do the same. Then again higgsti could be correct as i had the same problem with some ht leads i made up.

Danny

[Renmure]

Jim

Has the car been parked up for a while?

Danny

Thanks for that. Yes, the car hasnt really been used for the last 3 months or so. I am going to check (err.. probably read that as 'I am going to wiggle, wipe and replace) the leads and plugs as suggested.

Dumb question number 2 I guess but..  Cleaning the carbs with carb cleaner? Is that a thing I can get at Halfords and be fairly idiot proof to do? I will also get a Haynes Manual whilst I am there  

As I say, simple stuf to some folk but its my 1st time looking under the bonnet with any intent to do something other than check fluids so be gentle

[higgsti]

i run injector cleaner through mine as suggested by a motorcycle owner who has 14 bikes ranging from ajs ,norton to a hyabusa and he uses it in them all and these range from carbs to injection.just put it in the petrol tank every 5to 10  fill ups  approx you can get this from halfords .stp /redex i have used.are you using a sausage filter or airbox .if sausage filter my backplate wasnt sealing properly on the rubber seals this also adds to the problem:0

[stubbow]

You can buy a spray carb cleaner at halfords just follow the destructions on the can, running injection cleaner in the fuel is ok but dosent help when the car is stored for a long period. i would recomend fitting a fuel tap( got mine from demon tweeks) just fit it between your fuel pressure regulator and the carb inlet.clicky I used the one on the left of picture.

Danny

[BuGsBuNnY]

Could you not switch the pump off and run the engine until all the fuel left is gone?

[stubbow]

Yep that would work but i haven't got a switch for my pump(it comes on with ignition switch) so i went for the easy option took all of 2 minutes to fit tap To be honest a switch for the pump would probably be a better idea as it could be used in an emergency to cut the fuel where as the tap is under the bonnet. Oh well another job to do!

Danny

[BuGsBuNnY]

Fuel cutoff is a must! My old old car kept running, while on its roof and that wouldnt be a nice prospect had a fire occured...

[Renmure]

Further to the above...

I have cleaned the carbs with the stuff from Halfords and checked the HT leads.  

One thing I did notice was that where the leads go into the engine and down to the spark plugs, there is a rubber 'button' type thing which 'pops' onto the top of the spark plug hole and seals the hole when the lead is in place. (anyone follow that?).  One of the leads doesnt have this cover thing. (looks like it has broken off at some time).

So.. next dumb question probably but... is it something I need to replace and if so, where from? Is it a Westfield bit or a Honda bit or .. ??

thanks in advance

Jim

[BuGsBuNnY]

If you are talking about the spark plug plastic cap, its there to prevent moisture from getting anywhere near the sparkplug. It could affect the running of the car but would do it uniformly across the rev range I would think. Dont know much about honda coilpacks but if its the original one used then most likely a Honda part. If its relocated somewhere else then you may need some custom ones made to keep it tidy.

[higgsti]

its a honda part and isnt necessary one of mine has been replaced over 18 months because of above symptoms without further probs.the suppresion cap alone is £30  ish from memory(plug cap with button).understand what your saying about carb cleaner but using the injector cleaner stops the crap building up in the first place .winterising the carbs(running dry)but you moving the problem back up the line and to the tank unless your drainig the whole thing down unleaded petrol has a sell by date were ever it is:0