Strange idle, now will not start

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PottsVision
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Joined: Thu Jul 30, 2020 12:50 pm
Location: Asheville

Strange idle, now will not start

Post by PottsVision »

Hello! Been lurking here learning... been very much enjoying my new to me/under 2k miles 2014 Buddy 50, but the other day I cranked it up and it had a very high idle: almost to the point of engaging forward motion - after revving it a bit, it idled extremely low and died out. Started right up.

It had been a similar situation for a few days, I had taken to keeping it revved a bit at stoplights if it did not automatically idle high (I found no clear pattern)... it would sometimes idle, but sometimes even coasting to a stop with no throttle applied it would die out. I could feel/hear it struggling and sometimes rev it up to get it going again, but sometimes even though it was still "running" and I revved it - it did not keep the engine running.

Today I had trouble restarting it after it died out at idle - most recently I had to kick start it to get it going.

Now, I pulled into my driveway and it died out... I checked around to the limited capacity I can - and found the oil was overfilled/spilling. I siphoned some out... put everything back together... and started it up.

It started right up (new battery) and idled for a few seconds... I didn't rev it up, and it died. I tried to restart, cranks very strong but no luck. Kickstart, no luck...

Unsure what the issue may be - I inspected the throttle cable at the handlebars and it seems to move freely... aside from over filling the oil reserve I'm not sure of any issues...

Intuitively I am thinking it may be flooding the carb - and now after trying to start it over and over it is even more flooded... but this does not explain the strange idling problem - of which I had thought it was something to do with the cable/connection of cable... I'll be studying the issue tonight and look to tackle it again tomorrow - any help would be much appreciated.

In a way I'm looking forward to digging in there and figuring it out! I wanted to do some work on the scooter, but I'd have rather it been on my terms... ah well, as it must be!
PottsVision
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Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Jul 30, 2020 12:50 pm
Location: Asheville

Post by PottsVision »

In troubleshooting thus far I have deduced that it is a fuel delivery problem - the engine will start and run for a few seconds after a hit of starter fluid.

I got a universal type fuel filter replacement from Advance... and upon swapping it in I noticed no fuel was flowing through it...

Will be troubleshooting from here, any advice would be welcome!
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DeeDee
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Post by DeeDee »

Completely bypass the tank and petcock to see if it rules out your problem. Hook up a temporary fuel source to the carb, and see if it runs better. You need to remove the vacuum line at the petcock and block it.
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PottsVision
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Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Jul 30, 2020 12:50 pm
Location: Asheville

Post by PottsVision »

Pulled this from a post on here that turned out to be unrelated, but held the solution http://www.modernbuddy.com/forum/topic26268.html : "Lastly, there is a vacuum controlled fuel shut off valve.....I believe this is at the fuel tank.....you will see the fuel line and a small diameter vacuum line attached and the vacuum line goes down to the intake manifold or carburetor.
First, make certain the vacuum line is not cracked at either connection end and not kinked or smashed under a bracket or any other part.
This line must be cleanly routed with no vacuum leakage or it will not open the fuel valve fully, also making the engine perform as you have described."

That line was CUT and a section was missing... how/why - who knows... but that is why no fuel was flowing. How I made it downtown/home I have no idea, the symptoms of this problem started before I set off and I doubt this happened on the road... presumably ran off fumes/whatever was in the carb.

I replaced that section of line and it runs great... while I was in there I adjusted the idle/cleaned up, then ran over to get some ethanol free gas. Very noticeable difference with the ethanol free gas - much smoother uphill (I live in the Appalachians, very very hilly)... lots more work to do to get it faster uphill, thats another topic I suppose... lighter roller weights are high on that list.

Was a fun project, feels much more like "my" scooter now - although I've already added headlights (bike headlights on rear view bars) and took off the hook in the "center console" to replace with a strap to hold a bluetooth speaker there (works very well!)... after actually getting into the mechanicals I want to dive in even deeper! :D
PottsVision
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Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Jul 30, 2020 12:50 pm
Location: Asheville

Post by PottsVision »

DeeDee wrote:Completely bypass the tank and petcock to see if it rules out your problem. Hook up a temporary fuel source to the carb, and see if it runs better. You need to remove the vacuum line at the petcock and block it.
Thx for the reply - that would have worked... fortunately the problem was much more obvious (see above post) :D
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