Its time to find a solution..............maybe.

So i put my xj away for the winter kinda early this year do to an interesting problem, and i would like to pick everyones brain to figure this one out.

I am from michigan so it starts to get cold kinda early here. About a month ago when the night time temps. started dropping below the 50's or around there, teh next day my bike would not start. It would turn over quite vigorously actually and i new it was getting fuel because i checked teh plugs and they were wet. One of the times it happened to me was when i was at my gf's and i had to wake up early to go to class. The bike wouldnt start and i noticed how cold it was so i decided to hold my gf's blow dryer on the engine block for a good 20 minutes. Then it started right up.

Unfortunately, i am not very mechanically inclined but i have an uncle who is a tractor mechanic and has owned a bike for most of his life to help me do the work. Does anyone have any ideas as to what my problem could be? Maybe the coils? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Could be condensation forming on the coils and shorting them out. These coils have a reputation for being pretty sensitive to moisture (problems running in the rain and such). If you were warming up the top of the engine with the blow dryer, the heat would have risen and had a warming and drying effect on the coils as well.

 

A COLD XJ Block and Head resist firing COLD.

I know my bike is NOT going to start unless the Battery is tended.
I know below 45-Degrees F. the Bike would like NOT to start.

Here's my recommendation.
Get a PLug-in Line Connection from RadioShack
Run the Line to the Battery and Secure the Plug-in to the Battery.
Splice the other end to a Battery Charger or Tender.
Keep the Battery up.

Run a section of Windshield Washer Hose into the Airbox Inlet.
Secure it.
Bring the opposite end out above the Side Case.

Cold Starting:
Undo Battery
Choke
Spray Starter Fluid into Airbox through Hose.
Fire that mother up.
Let it warm-up as you ease-off the Choke until it Idles OK and warms-up.

 

I agree with SQL. Sounds like the coils. If it does it again, confirm there is or is not any spark. If not, try heating the coils directly and see what happens.

 

Thanx for the quick response time guys. I talked to a buddy tonight who has a tester that we can hook up to the coils to see if they are supplying the right amount of power.

I also ordered a battery tender from a local cycle shop so that my battery would stay nice and juiced over the winter, so i will look into wiring it in so that i dont have to take the bike apart every time i want to hook it up. Never would have thought to splice the wires to use it when the bike is cold.

I will try the coils out tomorrow or tuesday. My mechanic said the tender would be in sometime this week so i will get those parts together and keep you all updated.

Thanx again guys.

 

Checked the spark on all of my plugs today, and it is more than sufficient. So what now? I will most definately rig up what rick described, but is there something that i can do to improve my bikes ability to start now? Is it a possibility that i may need to get my carbs retuned because i changed the air filter from an old warn out junker to a new oil type? Talked with my dad some about it and he said it could be that the air to fuel mixture is off enough so that it wont fire cold. Is that a possibility? Also, keep in mind that im not quite as savy as most of this sites members, but im more than willing to learn.

Any help would be appreciated greatly.

 

Nope.
You know what to do.

The only that you need now, ... is Easter!

Dead cold Bikes only start with some persuasion.
Even if its right on the money tuned-up nice.
That chill is hard to defeat.

 

Darn. Well thanx a bunch to those who posted. Especially Rick for the idea with the tender. The only reason i keep coming back here is because the amazing amount of xj knowledge. keep it up.

 

Try starting ity with a car battery. Also make sure the choke cable is actually opening the choke at the carbs (if you see what I mean)

 

For the record, there is no choke. The cable operates ENRICHING plungers that add extra fuel. "CHOKE" is just the name on the lever.