My Uncle won a 1986 Spree in 1986. He drove it home and that was it. Now I have it and don't know how to go about getting it moving. Any advice or links to previous posts?
Thanks,
Zero
1986 Spree with 000007 miles on it
Moderator: Moderator
Look at the technical faqs on how to clean carb near top and how to clean fuel and oil systems at bottom.
I would buy a new airfilter - yours is no longer functional as plastic foam just won't last 20+ years.
I'd dump the oil and gas. On the gas dump some into clear glass to evaluate rust and use flashlight to look in tank for same.
I'd put a line filter on the gas before using to catch rust and you still may need to clean the tank filter. Dump the oil in the oil system and clean that filter. Make sure you get the air out and bleed it so there is oil at the startup - not air.
CHange the oil in the transmission . You might check as I'm not sure a spree even has one.
New oil, new air filter , new gas - kick it over .
Then go look for a battery at Walmart.
Next step -replace tires and tubes. Your rear brake may be stuck - check it.
I would buy a new airfilter - yours is no longer functional as plastic foam just won't last 20+ years.
I'd dump the oil and gas. On the gas dump some into clear glass to evaluate rust and use flashlight to look in tank for same.
I'd put a line filter on the gas before using to catch rust and you still may need to clean the tank filter. Dump the oil in the oil system and clean that filter. Make sure you get the air out and bleed it so there is oil at the startup - not air.
CHange the oil in the transmission . You might check as I'm not sure a spree even has one.
New oil, new air filter , new gas - kick it over .
Then go look for a battery at Walmart.
Next step -replace tires and tubes. Your rear brake may be stuck - check it.
-
Pygmaelion
- Goped
- Posts: 63
- Joined: Sat Dec 31, 2005 7:00 pm
- Location: Poughkeepsie NY
Good call, spreenut.
Just unscrew the spark plug, and put a couple drops of the 2 stroke oil you'll be burning in there.
Put the plug back in (torque wrenches may save your life, 'nuf said), and with the key in the "off" position, and the kill switch off, use the kickstarter to turn it over a few times.
Listen closely for any oddball sounds. If you can catch a loose circlip or foreign particle before you fire it up at a couple thousand rpm, then the piston you save may be your own.
If it's not locked up, definitely do the carb and airfilter checks listed above.
Once through all that, with fresh fuel and lube, try to fire it up.
Key to the on Position
Kill Switch to RUN
grip left brake handle (probably won't start unless you're doing this)
and kick it over until it starts.
If this thing is out of tune, you'll end up running your brand new battery into the ground without it firing up. I'm a big fan of kickstarters, because I never have to hook my leg up to a charger and wait for hours.
If you're stuck at that point... check the following.
1) Compression
With the Kill Switch "OFF", and the spark plug out, put your thumb over the plug hole, and crank that kickstarter by hand. If you're not able to do that, have a friend or useful bystander slowly kick it for you. The pressure generated by the piston moving should be enough to blow your thumb off that hole. If the compression is weak, or you can hear a "Foosh", then air is sneaking out, perhaps past the rings... (If this thing ran, and was parked, so long as nothing foreign got in it, and it didn't "set up", you should be all set.
2) Spark
With the kill switch at "RUN", the key on, and the left brake gripped, place the element end of the plug (the side that you gap, the one that sits inside the cylinder) against the metal fins of the cylinder. Kick over the bike... You should see a teensy little spark jump across the gap. If you see it, you can screw that plug back in. If you don't, try doing it in the shade (not a bright spark). If you still don't, check the gap on the plug. Sometimes too great a gap prevents the spark from jumping. Finally, make sure you've got the right plug. Failing all of that, make sure the kill is on, the key is on, and the brake is gripped.
If it's still no good (no spark), check your wiring harness for shorts of the mouse-chewing variety.
3) Fuel
Is fuel getting to the carb, and if so, is it getting into the engine? Use your nose sparingly to determine if gas has made it to the carb, and after a few kicks with the spark plug out, you can tell if it's in the cylinder as well. I sometimes do bad things, like goosing the intake with a little carb cleaner. The engine will burn it, but it's not good for it as a steady diet. There's no lube in carb cleaner, so it could kill your machine. Furthermore the exhaust from it is nasty, so crack a window,
There you have it. With any luck, this thing will fire up easily for you.
Just unscrew the spark plug, and put a couple drops of the 2 stroke oil you'll be burning in there.
Put the plug back in (torque wrenches may save your life, 'nuf said), and with the key in the "off" position, and the kill switch off, use the kickstarter to turn it over a few times.
Listen closely for any oddball sounds. If you can catch a loose circlip or foreign particle before you fire it up at a couple thousand rpm, then the piston you save may be your own.
If it's not locked up, definitely do the carb and airfilter checks listed above.
Once through all that, with fresh fuel and lube, try to fire it up.
Key to the on Position
Kill Switch to RUN
grip left brake handle (probably won't start unless you're doing this)
and kick it over until it starts.
If this thing is out of tune, you'll end up running your brand new battery into the ground without it firing up. I'm a big fan of kickstarters, because I never have to hook my leg up to a charger and wait for hours.
If you're stuck at that point... check the following.
1) Compression
With the Kill Switch "OFF", and the spark plug out, put your thumb over the plug hole, and crank that kickstarter by hand. If you're not able to do that, have a friend or useful bystander slowly kick it for you. The pressure generated by the piston moving should be enough to blow your thumb off that hole. If the compression is weak, or you can hear a "Foosh", then air is sneaking out, perhaps past the rings... (If this thing ran, and was parked, so long as nothing foreign got in it, and it didn't "set up", you should be all set.
2) Spark
With the kill switch at "RUN", the key on, and the left brake gripped, place the element end of the plug (the side that you gap, the one that sits inside the cylinder) against the metal fins of the cylinder. Kick over the bike... You should see a teensy little spark jump across the gap. If you see it, you can screw that plug back in. If you don't, try doing it in the shade (not a bright spark). If you still don't, check the gap on the plug. Sometimes too great a gap prevents the spark from jumping. Finally, make sure you've got the right plug. Failing all of that, make sure the kill is on, the key is on, and the brake is gripped.
If it's still no good (no spark), check your wiring harness for shorts of the mouse-chewing variety.
3) Fuel
Is fuel getting to the carb, and if so, is it getting into the engine? Use your nose sparingly to determine if gas has made it to the carb, and after a few kicks with the spark plug out, you can tell if it's in the cylinder as well. I sometimes do bad things, like goosing the intake with a little carb cleaner. The engine will burn it, but it's not good for it as a steady diet. There's no lube in carb cleaner, so it could kill your machine. Furthermore the exhaust from it is nasty, so crack a window,
There you have it. With any luck, this thing will fire up easily for you.