[phazer]

ok here is a weird one. i got 240 miles on the new tw200 and i thought it would be ok to open the thing up for the first time. i shifted through all gears kinda being easy but when i got to gear five i went full throtle and held it open till max speed "68 mph" held it for about 3 or 4 seconds and let off to about 55 mph where i held it for about .75 miles. when slowing down i had a few nasty backfires and at about 10-15 mph it just stalled out. i tried to start it and it was turning over but not starting. i let it sit for 20 mins and then it started. riding for about 2.5 miles it chugged like it was running out of gas and wanted to stall again, but i put it in reserv and the chug went away. bike had about a quarter tank of gas. next day i went and filled the tank up and have had no problems yet. does this sound like a normal tw occurance?

 

[demarko69]

the fuel inlet riser on the petcock inside the tank is about a 1/4 of the way up (normal open), so it was running low on fuel and was telling you to put it on reserve and go fill the tank.

 

[lizrdbrth]

First time you've hit reserve?



It can be a bit unnerving at first. Make note of your miles travelled next time it happens. Over time you'll get a mean average number of miles to reserve, and know when not to bypass the gas station.



Think of it as your only fuel gauge.



You were lucky. This usually happens when you're between two tractor trailers, with cars behind you and to both sides, in the dark. uphill, during a record-setting downpour (hail storm, freezing rain, snow, fog, etc. Insert favorite worst case scenario here) on a road with no shoulder.



It's a rule.



Stark terror is an amazing motivator. You get pretty adept at finding the petcock in the nick of time after awhile.

 

[qwerty]

Set your trip meter to 0 when you fill up. Plan on filling up when it gets to about 90.

 

[bbagwell]

The first time I had to switch to the reserve I thought I had plenty of gas. They seem to hit the reserve early, oh well I would rather have plenty of reserve then not enough.

 

[phazer]

first fill up i got 103 miles to a tank full, second fill up i got 101 miles, but when i had the chug/backfire/sputter issue i was only 40 or so miles into a full tank. that should have been enough gas to stay off of reserve. hopefully its only one of those one time things. FINGERS CROSSED!

 

[Greg R]

Issues with reserve

the fuel inlet riser on the petcock inside the tank is about a 1/4 of the way up (normal open), so it was running low on fuel and was telling you to put it on reserve and go fill the tank.

I have a different issue.
I fill the tank and ride. After some 60 +/- miles the bike sputters and I switch to reserve. The bike continues doing this for severa miles. I stopped the bike, found a stick to determine the depth of gas in the tank was about 3.5". I have an extra gas tank that I take with me and filled the tank to the full point, exactly one gallon, out of the 1.7 gallon tank.

I'm looking for suggestions on where to begin. I'm assuming the line is pinched or clogged, but really do not know.

Thanks, in advance.
2001 TW200 - first time rider with such a bike - little or no experience in this area, but willing to learn.

 

[RockyTFS]

....
I'm looking for suggestions on where to begin. I'm assuming the line is pinched or clogged, but really do not know.
.....

To me, this sounds exactly like a clogged petcock filter. I would remove the tank after draining all the gas, remove the petcock and carefully clean both plastic filters, then flush the tank with fresh gas before re-installing the petcock. That way, you can get all the flush gas and all of the possible crap out....turn it on its side to get all the gas into the left side and out the petcock opening. Flush with about 2 cups and do it at least twice into a bucket so you can see any debris. Some fuel contaminants are invisible, so use an old toothbrush to gently clean the filters and blow them with compressed air.

If your line was clogged the bike would not run normally for the first 60 miles.

 

[fishguy]

There are two small screens in the tank that cover the normal gas line to the carb and the reserve line to the carb. The main is high and the reserve is lower. They probably need cleaning. Time to remove that tank and take a look at them.

TWs are different than many motorcycles I was experienced with. On them, the reserve was the other side of the tank. A petcock lead from both sides to a "splitter" valve just before the carb. On the TW, the difference in the height of the inlets is the "reserve". In fact, some riders report that if the TW runs out of "reserve" one can lay the bike on its left side in an attempt to transfer gas trapped in the right side of the tank to the inlets. I have never tried it.

 

[elime]

When you fill it up don't forget to switch it off reserve otherwise the next time you go to switch it on reserve it will already be on reserve and you will end up pushing your TW to the nearest gas station. This almost happened to me. When I filled it up it took over 1.8 gallons -- it wasn't quite empty but real real close.

 

[10697]

Well it's not everyday you see a thread with replies from lzrdbrth and qwerty on the front page...