Hello All,
Myself and my mechanic mate are pulling our hair out over this current problem - the left hand side spark plug seems to get flooded and won't spark. There is also a very strong smell of petrol from the exhaust fumes, I assume because it is unburnt fuel.
Problem first occurred last Wednesday night when leaving work. Engine was running fine as I lef the car park but a few minutes later, whilst pulling away from some traffic lights it felt as though the bike was running out of fuel (which it wasn't). Had to nurse the bike home on one cylinder. On my way to my mate's place yesterday, the second cylinder would kick in at around 5k rpm and would run normally.
We have checked the following so far:
- ignition coils - fine and giving a good spark;
- plug gap - fine
- float level/fuel height - fine;
- carb rubbers - no apparent splits;
- inlet manifold rubbers - no leaks and screws tightening properly;
- carbs have been blown through at least three times - as far as we can see everything is clear;
- floats and float needles swapped between carbs - still same problem on LHS only.
The only thing we can now think to check are the valve clearances (last done approx. 15,000 miles ago) but I'd appreciate any steers you guys can give in case we're not seeing anything obvious.
Thanks,