Spree says 1/4 tank but doesnt want to start

[Vintagegirl85]

So I have just gotten my spree back up and running. The problem that first started my whole chain of events has returned.... Well it isnt all bad as it helped me figure out I had the cracked carb. Anyway when my tank registers 1/4 on the gauge it just doesnt want to start. I have to go fill it up. Last night i took a long ride and i was watching the needle. I think i was giving bad karma cuz i was worried if it would keep going once it got down to 1/4 and sure enough next stop light it dies and didnt want to start. Thankfully a gas station was across the street. Is there a problem with the fuel register or something? Thanks guys.

[ped]

Hi the most common problem I see is the little filter tube inside the gas tank needs to be clean. Simply remove the fuel pump , remove the fuel filter, spray some carb clean on filter. make sure is clean before you replace. Hope this helps

[paulpauly7]

could also be a faulty guage or sender .If it isnt the filter as ped said then top up the tank befor you hit 1/4.

[patthesoundguy]

Hi the most common problem I see is the little filter tube inside the gas tank needs to be clean. Simply remove the fuel pump , remove the fuel filter, spray some carb clean on filter. make sure is clean before you replace. Hope this helps

A little compressed air will help if you blast from the inside of the screen and Pauly makes a very good point about a possible fuel level sending unit issue. Have a good look with a flash light at the screen in the tank when its rrefusing to start at the 1\4 tank. If there is no fuel above the base of the screen in the tank and its empty the sender is off. If there is lots of fuel in the tank the screen is just clogged. It's a good idea to clean the sscreen no matter what its fairly simple.

[Vintagegirl85]

The inside of the tank looks really clean when I shine a flashlight to have a look. I can see the filter in there. appears clean. Im going to empty the tank tonight and clean petcock and filter. So is there anything else I should do while its all apart? and once I reassemble do I need to do anything particular or just gas it up and try to start it? im thinking I should check the oil. how can I be sure its getting in to mix right?

[ped]

hi vintage girl. if the filter is clean, your fuel sender may be bad.
your sender can be adjusted by bending the wire.
this can be tricky and take a while if your marking fuel and its empty bend the fuel sender float wire down. Adjust in 1/8 increments. give that a try if it doesn't work you're going to have to get a new fuel sender. good luck

[patthesoundguy]

The screen can still be clogged even if it looks clean from above. Once its clean don't fill the tank right away. Turn the key on and check the status if the fuel gauge with no fuel in the the tank. That will tell you if the sender in off real fast. As for the oil pump it can be a little hard to see if its working because it pumps such a small amount of oil. If you were to pull the line from the intake tube the come the pump, you may only see a drip every so often. I'd just keep an eye on the oil tank level. If you need to put oil in every so often the pump works. You would know pretty quick if the pump failed it would seize. Spree oil pumps don't normally stop pumping oil when the fail they tend to leak more oil when they die.

[Vintagegirl85]

Thanks guys. Off to buy new hoses for fuel and vac lines. Meanwhile heres a photo of the top part of my petcock. Does it look ok? Lol i couldnt find any pic refrences. Anyhow i let it soak in gas. Comes out clean. I will update later

[patthesoundguy]

When you buy fuel lines don't buy the cheap plastic clear line from the hardware store. It won't hold up to fuel more than a day or two with going hard as a rock. If you want clear lines go to your local small engine shop with the old lines and buy the matching sizes in the yellow tygon line. See though line is handy. If you can't get the yellow line go to Napa or an automotive supply. And get the good rubber fuel line. Napa has all of the different size lines by the foot. There should be a white plastic screen from the tank as well as that petcock. That is the most important part to clean as it keeps the e junk out of the petcock and Lines.

[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

How do you keep your hands so dang clean?! Must be a girl thing...

[Vintagegirl85]

Im so frustrated over this thing....I emptied the gas and the oil. complete flush. cleaned both filters. New gas, new oil. I ended up using the old lines. they wern't bad just thought new ones couldn't hurt but my parts store didn't have anything that size. Yea orielly's sucks. anyhow, all that trouble. bike starts first time. yea! then runs for two min or so and dies. BOOOO Only thing I havnt checked is my spark plug or compression. I'd have to take it in for that and I'm a lil on the broke side right now. I am pulling my hair out over what it could be. Thoughts???

Adding that the bike was running perfect (or i so thought) after i put the new carb on it. and I did turn the key with the tank empty as suggested and it registered on E in the red so im guessing the fuel sender is ok?

[Vintagegirl85]

Ok im back. Took spark plug out and engine cover off. Oil everywhere including the plug hole. Does tgis look normal? I think not.

[patthesoundguy]

You can do it. We will help you I wouldn't worry too much just yet. Sounds like a fuel issue. W
Like the carb runs out of fuel and isn't getting more fast enough. Or its soft seizing ( hope that's not the case) heres how I look at it. If it ran pretty good before the carb change and nothing else was touched chances are that's where the issue is. You can do the loan a tool at the auto parts store to use a compression tester. That's a god place to start.