Smoking KLT

My KLT sits for several days (sometimes weeks) between rides, and always on the center stand. When I start after it sits for 5 days, it smokes for several minutes, even if it was on center stand. Any thoughts?

josborn said:

My KLT sits for several days (sometimes weeks) between rides, and always on the center stand. When I start after it sits for 5 days, it smokes for several minutes, even if it was on center stand. Any thoughts?

Click to expand...

What color smoke is it? Blue, Black , grey

Blue = Oil and for several minutes sounds like some sort of problem brewing.

Black = Rich fuel mixture again sounds like some form of problem brewing.

Grey = Condensation in exhaust which depending on where you live and the conditions your bike is stored in could be a real possibility with no problems to worry about other than are other parts of the bike being affected by the moisture ingression.

Roy

Thoughts are - after you shut the bike off, and before you put it on the centerstand, lean the bike to the right side a bit (while straddling it). This allows any oil in the cylinder bores to dribble back into the crankcase. Even with the pinned rings - the engine will suck in oil past the rings if a cylinder is on the intake stroke just before the valves open up (slight vacuum in the cylinder.)

It only takes about 10 seconds of leaning to avoid the smokey starts. Doing that on my '85 K100RT and '87 K75S reduced smoke incidents, even when parking on the sidestand (which was my usual habit) to almost nil..

Don, U never cease to amaze me. Barry

barryg said:

Don, U never cease to amaze me. Barry

Click to expand...

Barry, wasn't my idea.. Geoff Adams came up with it first.. I loved it 'cause I hated to use the centerstand on my K's (I'm not a lot more enthused with the centerstand on the Hexhead..)

I'm just a big - I suck up stuff and regurgutate it..

I luv simple solutions to complex or aggrevating problems. I had a '74 tranny leaking out the shifter seal, oiling down my boots. No seal or sealent would stop it, asked Clyde Reese long time owner/mechanic of Shelbyville,Tn. BMW a bought a solution. He asked me if the tranny held 800cc of oil to which I replied yes. He said drain and fill with 700cc's, the tran's wouldn't no the difference and the oil level would be below the seal. Worked like a champ and it taught me a valuble lesson about finding simple solutions to problems. Barry

Did you try the patch? Gum works sometimes, but tastes lousy.......

Oh, the motor has oil smoke, I......never mind

I got used to the occasional smoke before I even owned a BMW. Any engine where the cylinder is horzontal will smoke sometimes on startup. BAck when I was a kid in the 60s, the old VW bug and the 3 HP Briggs & Stratton engine on the lawnmower sometimes smoked on startup. More recently, I had a Subaru that did it and John Deere's with Kohler, Onan and Kawasaki engines that all do it. My K100, K75, R80 and R1200 all puffs or puffed smoke sometimes at start-up. None of the vehicles had an oil consumption problem. A few drops of oil makes a lot of smoke.

Ken

be glad BMW didn't use a radial engine in their bikes..............
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsfCTDcavJY&feature=related

35634 said:

be glad BMW didn't use a radial engine in their bikes..............
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsfCTDcavJY&feature=related

Click to expand...

It took an understanding touch to start that engine, and some hard praying!!!!