Long story short - 2001 LT80k, I bought for grandson, test ride was good, got it home took the grandson for a 20 minutes ride and parked it. Change out green plastic. (The guy I bought it from threw in yellow plastics and grandson wanted yellow on) ATV hasn't started since. Nope, I did not put the green back on to see if it perferred the green
I have done quite a bit of troubleshooting but still no go go. I'd appreciate all your expertise in resolving this mystery and I will post more info about what I have found and done.

thanks for reading,
nowhereman

 

A bit more info to go on...
The battery is good, has new 32:1 fuel (injector not in use), good blue spark, new spark plug, carb cleaned out, petcock cleaned, vacuum and fuel line cleaned, not sure of compression, but it seems to have strong compression (no gauge to test with). Cranks good, still not firing up. Tried using carb cleaner to get it to fire, nothing. Spark plug does get wet.
Is there some sort of safety switch that does not allow starting if body is off? I sure couldn't find one. Digital VOM shows there is no short to ground. Maybe a loose/floating ground somewhere???? The rear brake lever safety switch works fine, no cranking when disengaged, cranks fine when engaged. This LT80 is electric start only, no pull cord.

advice is greatly needed and appreciated,
Nowhereman

 

If you have spark, there is no wire/switch problem.
It has to be fuel whether it's flooding (try a full throttle to start) or not getting in (place 2 fingers in front of carb to hand choke).

 

Hi LT80, thx for jumping in.
I tried full throttle a few times, no change, I tries the palm and the fingers over carb, no change.

I think you're correct about fuel...

It just might be too much fuel? Plug stays wet, may be too wet to fire? It sat in garage while I was camping the last few days and when I came home there was a pool of fuel on floor, carb over flowed, the case I'm sure will have fuel in it as well. But shouldn't the needle valve and float shut off fuel flow? I pulled line off petcock (lever "on" which = off when not running I believe) and added fuel to tank, fuel dribbled out continuously (bad petcock?). With plug wet, carb wet, and petcock dripping, the fuel over supply may be the whole issue??? Taking petcock off today to check level and vacuum diaphram .Will also remove carb again for another review.



thx,
Nowhereman

 

Read up about petcock problems and the fix(s).
One word:::::ethanol..
After you empty the cases of fuel, you will need to apply full throttle till it gets enough fuel out and air in. Once it starts, don't let off till it revs up and cleans out.

 

Thx LT80,
I'll search up read up on petcock problems. Probably put a in-line on/off and plug the vacuum port on carb, is this ok to do or does this card require the vacuum for something other then sucking open the petcock diaphram? What about ethanol???

thank your sir,
Nowhereman

 

For your reading pleasures - A few iffy things I found while giving everything another once over...When opening the petcock diaphram I noticed a white plastic disc with perimeter holes and a center hole, under this disc looked like black rubbery slim looking stuff plugging half this disc. With a small hook bent in a paper clip I was able to pop this disc out and this slim was also plugging part of the vacuum passage. Something melted down, this may be due the one word "ethanol" that LT80 mentioned. This is now cleaned out. I removed the clip (not screws) holding the on/pri/res lever into the petcock body and removed the white plastic cam and seen this weird looking flat brass spring type piece under the cam that was obviously bent out of shape. Looks like this spring is rotated by the cam when lever is turned to direct flow? Needle nose pliers removed the brass spring and I was able to flatten it back and get it back into the grooves in the petcock in a way that looked good to me ; ) Could not find anything on the www about this piece, LT80 or anyone have a clue on this brass spring thingy???? I also removed the reed cage while having the carb off and found a piece of rubber stuck between the reeds keeping them separated and no o-ring between the insulator and cylinder, just black silicone, which is probably where the obstruction between the reeds came from. Not sure if these add to my starting problem,but they sure don't help. One of LT80s post recommends a in-line on/off, so on my way to get one. Sorry this is dragging on, just trying to cover all bases....

btw - petcock still drips continuously

nowhereman

 

"Probably put a in-line on/off and plug the vacuum port on carb, is this ok"
Yes, that's exactly what to do.
You can get a banshee/blaster petcock but I still run the on/off valve.

 

With all the pre-rigged repairs now fixed I was able to get the atv running, but it spit fuel out the pipe for a few minutes until it died out from drowning in fuel. I did buy a in-line shut off ($3.99), placed near the carb as LT80 suggested. I also noticed a drain plug on the exhaust pipe near the very end and removed this plug, fuel poured out, I lifted the front end and more fuel came out. Once dried out I hit the button and it roared to life .
Took a spin and parked it, turned off the new shut off (left the oem petcock on), and let it run til it died. Came back 30 minutes later and it fired right up and run GREAT
Thanks LT80!!! Any other tips, tricks, advice please send them my way.

cheers,
Nowhereman

 

I've enjoyed reading the knowledge and experience this forum offers!!! Look forward being a member.


cheers,
nowhereman