My new scoot died the other night. :-(

Dracolibris · Post by **Dracolibris** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 4:05 am

Last Friday we rode our scooters downtown (Denver) and hung out for a while there. On our way home, my scooter gave two short "soft popping" sounds and then lost power. I pulled over to the side of the road, and it died. I had a bit of trouble starting it back up again, but I did eventually, and proceeded on our way. On the rest of the ride home, it died on me approx. five more times, whether I was at full throttle or not, but I didn't hear that popping noise again. I would just be riding along and it would power down, kind of gradually in a choking, hiccuping sort of way, so it wasn't as if I had hit the kill switch it it switched off immediately. I found that if I hit the power switch without gas, it would try to start and once I heard it "catch" and gave it some gas right then, it would start up. BUT, if I gave it gas and hit the starter switch at the same time, it seemed to struggle and wouldn't catch.

I have a 2009 Buddy Blackjack, that I bought two months ago with 200 miles on it. I took it in right on the dot for my 500 mile check up, and now it has 700 miles on it. It has been a dream ride ever since I bought it, but this definitely worries me a lot. I also realized that night on the side of the road how inexperienced I am at scooter problems. I have had my Vino since 2004 and (knock on wood) it never once broke down on me. So I am kind of freaking out as a Buddy newbie. Any ideas?

spr0k3t · Post by **spr0k3t** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 4:18 am

First thought would be to check your filter. See if there's any major buildup from running WOT. If nothing there, you should check the plug to see if the color is good (look for carmel to chocolate brown... too dark/black you are running rich). You are obviously getting a spark, so we know the ignition is working correctly.

Outside of that, it could just be a small tweak on the carb. One thing I like to do is count the number of full turns (360 degree turns) on the air/fuel mix after a solid tune. That way if I ever need to, I can check the a/f mix on the side of the road in the middle of the dark.

viney266 · Post by **viney266** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 4:36 am

Sounds like a fuel issue at a guess. I would replace the sparkplug and see what it looks like, and next make sure you are getting fuel in the carb. Could be water in the fuel, or a fuel line issue.

illnoise · Post by **illnoise** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 4:38 am

Yeah, blackjacks don't have EFI, right? So I'd bet on sediment in the gas (or residue from evaporated gas) blocking a passage or jet in the carburetor, especially if it seems like it always dies in a specific place in the rev range.

Dracolibris · Post by **Dracolibris** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 6:24 am

Another friend has suggested vapor lock. That sounds similar to what I went through, except it was 1am when we were riding home, and therefore pretty cool. However, I did fill up the tank and ride only ten miles before stopping and leaving it sitting in this heat wave Denver has been having.

http://www.sportiquescooters.com/index. ... id=89%3Ait

easy · Post by **easy** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 10:32 am

make sure you have a vented gas cap and when fuelling up dont go above the inside ring

PeteH · Post by **PeteH** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 1:04 pm

Amen to that. Some 2009s came with vented caps, and some did not. Mine did not.

Evidence is only anecdotal, but over the past couple years here on MB, people who've had vaccuum stalling problems never report them again after switching to a vented cap and minimizing their overfilling by stopping at the inner ring.

skully93 · Post by **skully93** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 2:15 pm

Kriska,

Yoda did the same thing to me a couple times after I filled it up to the max, then rode it WOT for even a few minutes. I would pull over, open the gas, and then it would start right up...for about a mile...rinse, repeat.

The other thing I noticed was that I needed a new air filter, even though I just got one, due to riding to Boulder in the smoke last week. Since I had just done 2500 mile service, they gave me a new one at no charge.

Keep us posted!

Also, are you guys doing the Iron Butt this year?

pdxrita · Post by **pdxrita** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 3:03 pm

Yup, vapor lock. Chalk up one more vote. The last time you filled it, did you overfill a bit? If you did, then some gas got down into the vapor tube, which winds up choking the engine. It's a really scary thing when it happens, but it's a minor issue. Get a vented cap, or drill yours, and you'll probably never have that happen again.

Pictures of drilled cap:
topic15318.html

Post by **ericalm** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 3:17 pm

You can ride it without the gas cap on if it vapor locks and you're having trouble clearing the system. Just watch out for bumps.

RoadRambler · Post by **RoadRambler** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 3:33 pm

Yet another vote for vapor lock. Get the vented gas cap.

My 125 did it twice before I got a vented cap, but once I did I never had the prob again. It's weird and scary to be giving it throttle but have it slowly power down anyway!

If it happens again before you get a vented cap or drill yours, like the others have said, just open your gas cap for a few minutes and either leave it (like Eric said, and watching for bumps while you ride carefully home) or give it several minutes to ventilate before capping the tank again and trying to start it.

Although the conventional wisdom is that vapor lock will be more likely after overfilling and/or on a really hot day, I have always been really vigilant about not overfilling/filling past the inner ring and it was hot but not really, really hot both times when it happened to me.

Let us know what you find out.

Stormswift · Post by **Stormswift** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 3:52 pm

I would use Seafoam. Just in case you got some bad gasoline. When my Dobby had indijestion (aka lost power) I also thought vaporous lock so I started running the engine before the ride then stopping it and removing the cap to vent. My mechanic suggested Seafoaming the gas and riding carefully around keeping close to home. I Seafoamed and pretty much rode everywhere. About 4 days into it the bike made 2 rude noises and lost power as usual. I vented the gas. Re-started and immedeately noticed a change in performance: my 150cc was back. When the problem first started I could not even take it up to 35 mph without loosing power. I started seafoaming gasoline every sprig until summer to make sure stations converted to summer gas.Since I have not had repetition of this problem and never drilled my gas cap I am pretty sure vaporous lock was not it.