Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Okay, so lately my bike has been stalling on me. I have observed that my bike has been stalling once it has gotten nice and warm (or maybe a little too warm? it usually happens after the radiator has turned on) on longer rides (that last around 45 minutes to an hour.) The problem usually occurs when opening the throttle from a dead stop like at a stop sign or traffic signal, although it has gone out on me once while I was cruising at about 50mph. Most times it has happened I have gone somewhere around 30 minutes away, done something for around 20 minutes and then on the ride home, it wwould stall.

I am learning more about engines as I go along, yet still am I noob when it comes to repair and maintanence. I have riddin with the choke on before and the bike lost power real quick and then returned. Is it possible that i "fouled" the spark plugs? and is fouling permanent or only temporarily?

My only leads on the problem is either
1) permanently fouled spark plugs
2) a gummed up carb
3) a problem with the fuel line (maybe the vacum)

My bike is an '05 kawasaki vulcan 800 with 900 miles on it. Any insight or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Man what's with all the problems w/ relatively new bike lately!?

If the bike is under warranty, I'd take it to the dealership and let them sort it out.

If it's not under warranty, start w/ the simple stuff - clean the plugs and check that your gas cap is venting properly. When the bike stalls, see if there is any vacuum when you open the tank (there shouldn't be)

I'm not sure if the bike is under warranty as I never went to kawasaki for the 500 mile service, I did that myself since there was nothing too hard to do. That may have voided it but I think I will try taking it to a dealer soon and see if it's still covered. Also while riding today I experimented by using the "prime" feature on the gas valve before I started the bike and that prevented the bike from stalling so I'm pretty sure now that it is a fuel system problem. Thanks for the help.

If the dealer doesn't take care of it, does anyone have any ideas on what to check? so far i'm thinking the fuel filter and the vacum check TechBMW was talking about. thx.

doing your own maintenance won't void the warranty. Take the bike to the dealer and have them sort out the problem.

I know this topic is old by now. But I did have the dealer take a look at it and it was actually a pinched line in the vent system. The dealer didn't explain too well the problem but it has to do with the california evaporative emissions control system. Just thought i'd let you guys know the problem. If any of you are from california and are having similar problems, this may be the reason. Stupid california.