Purchased in May of 2004 - ridden about three times by young rider, no excessive throttle use (new rider). Cranked and warmed up app. every two weeks. Still on first tank of fuel @ 40:1 mix. ( Inside storage..)

Nice weather forecast - so I decided to change oil and fuel for practice the following day.
Went to the dealer and purchased mix & oil, and serviced the bike..
Decided to go with 40:1 mix again with a 9 spark plug, dealer recomended.

Crank and everything`s normal, sounds chirpy and crisp.. About 10 or 15 minutes into his little practice session engine dies, OK - I figured fowled plug from riding at low RPM`S. Would`nt crank - so I pushed it off myself and it started running at about half throttle.. No idle No power...

Carried the bike to the dealer - he inspected and found the problem to be no compression... Upon teardown he found the following - scored cylinder, piston, and bad rings.. Well he said something towards maybe a Suzuki goodwill of some sort on parts but could`nt be sure of that.. My problem is I cant afford to build a bike after each tank of fuel or is there something wrong with the machine.... Any reply`s appreciated, or can be E:mailed @ - painter154@yahoo.com

Thanks Roy Smith

 

Dear Roy,
I feel your pain on this one. I had similar problems out of my RM125. I put a fresh plug in the bike, cleaned the air filter, and did a complete service on the bike. I also pre-mixed my fuel 40:1. After doing so, I took the bike to the local track, made 2 laps, and locked the motor up. I pulled the top end down and found the same problems you found, and one of my crank bearings had seperated. I feel mine was caused by running a too lean mixture, and yours may be the same. You could try running a 36:1 mixture, but this would also make the bike a little harder to tune. You also should try running a 93 octane fuel. That should help with pre-ignition, and it should keep it from pinging as bad. You could also try running one heating range colder plug. I hope this helps you out. Best of luck!

Stephen Tracey