Freezing Carbies??

Duane · Post by **Duane** » Tue May 23, 2006 8:40 am

Anyone had this happen? what does it feel/sound like?

This morning coming down the freeway, about halfway to work (25km into my 50km trip) my bike started playing up, sounded like it was running off one cylinder when you kept the throttle steddy, when you started reving it, it'd fire up and then kick straight back into being a inline four and power off (often causing a little wheel spin).

Once i stopped in traffic closer to work, and my bike heated up a bit more, it started sounding/feeling normal again.

Is this a typical case of the carbies freezing, or does it sound worse?

Note* it was 4 degree's this morning

Strika · Post by **Strika** » Tue May 23, 2006 8:56 am

ZX7's were extremely prone to this. Kawasaki denied the problem existed at the time. It is carb icing caused from cold damp air and speed combined. There is a heater kit that the UK/Canadian market used to solve the problem, and i think from memory when the customer made enough noise here in Oz, Kawasaki would import and supply one. But that's when they were new. Now feck knows if they would even be able to get one??? It runs warm air or water, (can't remember which) around the carbs to stop them getting too cold.

Alternatives- Tape half your radiator, or leave it in 2nd for the whole trip so it doesn't get cold enough to ice.

Duane · Post by **Duane** » Tue May 23, 2006 8:58 am

hehe, I usually aint that far away from second, usually, second to third, back to second etc, but however, it was bloody cold this morning..

Does what happened to me sound like iced carbies???

MickLC · Post by **MickLC** » Tue May 23, 2006 9:04 am

Yeah sounds like your carbs icing up. The old 9 used to do it all the time when it got around zero degrees, or on a long run in the cold with only part throttle.

Buy a 10 mate, they don't do it

Duane · Post by **Duane** » Tue May 23, 2006 9:05 am

Mick C wrote:Yeah sounds like your carbs icing up. The old 9 used to do it all the time when it got around zero degrees, or on a long run in the cold with only part throttle.

Buy a 10 mate, they don't do it

JESSSSSSSSSSSS!!!
Lars told me to buy a ten because my nipples keep freezing up

MickLC · Post by **MickLC** » Tue May 23, 2006 9:06 am

Duane wrote:
Mick C wrote:Yeah sounds like your carbs icing up. The old 9 used to do it all the time when it got around zero degrees, or on a long run in the cold with only part throttle.

Buy a 10 mate, they don't do it
JESSSSSSSSSSSS!!!
Lars told me to buy a ten because my nipples keep freezing up

Smitty · Post by **Smitty** » Tue May 23, 2006 9:28 am

Strika wrote:ZX7's were extremely prone to this. Kawasaki denied the problem existed at the time. It is carb icing caused from cold damp air and speed combined. There is a heater kit that the UK/Canadian market used to solve the problem, and i think from memory when the customer made enough noise here in Oz, Kawasaki would import and supply one. But that's when they were new. Now feck knows if they would even be able to get one??? It runs warm air or water, (can't remember which) around the carbs to stop them getting too cold.

Alternatives- Tape half your radiator, or leave it in 2nd for the whole trip so it doesn't get cold enough to ice.

yep
as Strika sez....
it was (still is) a big problem in the States and Europe
with these bikes with carbs (7s especially)

the solution?
maybe tape the rad (but what happens on the trip home? when its warmer) or somehow stop the cold air getting into the airbox
(and feeding the carbs)
maybe a call to a dealer for their suggestions?

cheers

Duane · Post by **Duane** » Tue May 23, 2006 9:34 am

there must be a better way captain!!!

i dunno, I'm going to ride every weekday this winter, so Maybe I'll just get used to hearing it sound like a bloody dirtbike

FrogZ · Post by **FrogZ** » Tue May 23, 2006 10:02 am

Yep my 7 did it on the Putty on one of the few times I have been on it and then my ex's 6 did it coming through Corws Nest.
The only way the poms found was the heating hoses that (I thought) came off the cooling system ?
It is the intakes that do it (DOH) so theoretically warm air going in from another spot would do it, maybe a big feed of beans when you know it will be cold next morning

chameleon · Post by **chameleon** » Tue May 23, 2006 10:55 am

Duane wrote:there must be a better way captain!!!

Interesting??? On my 11 I discovered that a piece of plastic was missing from between the top of the radiator and the top of the rocker cover. It's a sort of cowl, whose purpose it seems is to mate with the rubber mat over the rocker cover and prevent the hot air from the radiator and headers from passing over the top of the engine. Now I've been riding the bike this way for months and when it was summer it pissed me off a bit because a stream of hot air would pour back over the top of the engine and out the little rear side vents onto my legs. As an observation I noted that it would also be streaming under the airbox and down across the carbs Now having read your problem I personally would be looking at pulling this cowling, "if you have a similar arrangement" and seeing if that made a difference.

I still have the rubber mat that lies across the rocker cover but it curls down at the front and allows the air to skim over it.

Just a mad idea, give it the attention it warrants

Stace · Post by **Stace** » Tue May 23, 2006 11:01 am

It's the carbs icing up dude. We had some techs from Japan meet us in Ballarat in about 1998-99 from memory. They ended up supplying the water jacketed carbs at no cost. Apparently it's only been a major problem in Ballarat and Canberra (Go figure).

mike-s · Post by **mike-s** » Tue May 23, 2006 12:09 pm

Here's a low tech solution i might consider using if my gpx starts showing similar behaviour patterns. I'm not sure how it will wash with down draught carbies if obscene quantities of 100mph tape aren't used, but should help a bit with sidedraughts like mine.

Use cardboard or something else similar, and cut it to shape to fit in behind the engine and around the outer two carbies right up to the airbox (and in front of if your using downdraught's), if done right it might stop the flow of cold air coming in from the sides and compounding the issue with the already cold air going through the venturi's.

Feel free to pick holes in my idea, but at the worst if it doesn't work, you've wasted a bit of tape & plastic/cardboard.

Duane · Post by **Duane** » Tue May 23, 2006 12:13 pm

Good Idea Mike - I wont pick holes in it

Does anyone have a contact email for kawasaki australia to have a chat about it ?

chameleon · Post by **chameleon** » Tue May 23, 2006 3:06 pm

I'll pick one small hole in it, might not be an issue... But cardboard would be very susceptible to getting wet and falling apart, even during a simple bike wash. plastics would be ok, kept away from any hot bits.

mike-s · Post by **mike-s** » Tue May 23, 2006 3:37 pm

thats why i was thinking plastic/cardboard, whatever materials you can get your mits on that will work really

or if your really keen, cut & mould cardboard to suit and then use an antisticking agent on one side up and then put fibreglass on there and make a durable part to fit in there permenantly in winter.