not sure what to do about my mz

[skorpion-manc]

i currently have an MZ skorpion 660 traveller ona 1998 R plate.
she has always been a little iffy starting, i ran out of fuel on her and when i tried to restart, she kept goinjg for 20 seconds and then dying, so she got low loadered back home. i then broke my arm and had to leave her standing for about 4 months, so now she does not want to start. I am looking at a new bike, but i am unsure of the best place to sell her and whether i should attmpt to get her going first, as most of the garages im looking at to part ex her in look at me like im a lunatic when i say what she is, let alone the fact that it wont start, so what do you reckon is my best course of action guys?

[djsbriscoe]

Hi,
Get her running again and keep her.
Have you charged the battery? Is the fuel pump working OK, or is there a breather pipe blocked somewhere (eg carb or tank)? Have you cleaned the carb?
I can't offer any more suggestions as I've only had my Skorpion traveller (2001) for a couple of months.
I think it's definitely worth keeping as these bikes are very rare and sought after (that's what I tell myself anyway).

David

[Berniecal]

My guess is you have water in the tank, or bad fuel of some kind. The water lurks at the bottom of the tank and only becomes a problem when you go on reserve, when it proceeds to cause total chaos, stalling, difficult starting, uncontrollable cursing, etc.
Drain your carbs (phillips on left, brass hex on right) preferably into a tray where you can see the globs of water and confirm the diagnosis. Run fuel through on reserve until there is no more water, and assuming your battery is good, it will fire right up. You might find that it happens again but at least you will now know what it is. Run on reserve periodically to finally clear the residual water out. In small quantities it will just flow through and not stop you.
Good luck and let us know how you get on. Undoubtedly, the bike is worth more running, than stopped.

[Berniecal]

I'm not sure of your level of experience working with petrol, but of course you need to be in a well-ventilated area, with no naked flames anywhere near you (no pilot lights, smokers, etc). Safety First.

[Old Dog]

Check and charge the battery. Take the tank off, and empty it out. Put in say five litres of new unleaded and refit. Open the petcock and then open the drain screw at the bottom of the carb. No need to screw it right out, just until the fuel starts flowing- probably onto the floor. Count to twenty and then retighten the drain screw. Now full choke, no throttle and give her a short prod of the button, don't just wind her and winds her. Do it in short bursts, I will be surprise if that doesn't start her without any worries.

If that doesn't work I will take her off your hands for fifty quid..

Old Dog

[Anders]

I'm sure you have got the bike started by now but why not try the universal solver of all staring woes, ether...

A can of staring gas (ether aerosol) should be part of any riders arsenal, car owner as well. Not only does it help with starting problems it is also a great way to check if you have any leaks in vacuum hoses, intake manifold etc. and it is also a graet cleaner/degreaser for disk brakes or any other hard surface you need to clean up.

If the bike does not fire up (even ever so briefly) on ether you have no spark or a serious timing problem...

In Australia it is available under the brand name "Start ya bastard"