Problems with new bike from Int'l Brokers!!

[Tucker99]

Hi Guys,

Just received my 04 WR450R. Installed the front wheel, handle bars and controls. Fired it up and it seems to be running very lean. The header pipe glows red and the bike overheats in about 5-minutes. Took the carb off and it has a 48 pilot and a 160 main. I adjusted the mixture screw to 1-1/2 - 1-3/4 turns and no difference. In fact I even took the screw out and the bike ran the same way. Can anyone offer any suggestions before I test Int'l Brokers' warranty?

[5spoke]

Go to the wr250f forum and start reading. 'NEW OWNERS please read'. Same stuff applies to the 450. Your bike sounds normal! ?

BTW: The "search" button is also a wonderful thing.

[FTD]

What altitude are you at?

Seem like a normal jetting problem.

Hoss

[PeakRider]

You don't need to idle the bike for 5 min. to warm it up ?. Glowing pipe is normal, check your radiator cap if it's overheating while you riding. If it's overheating while standing still, turn it off sooner.

[mtrablue]

the jetting sounds correct. with the pilot fuel screw out, the bike shouldn't even idle. wr's don't like to sit and idle for a long time. the glowing header pipe is normal, it's titanium and very thin. it sounds like you may have the hot start lever/cable in a bind somehow. when pulled, the cable opens a small passage in the carb that creates a controled lean condition. the manual discribes the correct amount of free play in the lever.

[simon@vic]

Can anyone offer any suggestions before I test Int'l Brokers' warranty?

well, if you call them up they are going to have no idea. they are not a Yami dealer. they just buy up "extra" bikes and re sell them thats it. even if they really wanted to help you i don't know what they could/would do. sounds to me like rider or jetting {hot start} problem. did you get a manual with the bike? might want to start there.

[WR450F_RDR]

sounds as if the idle mixture is lean, mine came the same way from the shop. All other setting sound normal, try just richening your mixture screw by 1/8 to a 1/4 turn, the header will not glow red anymore and you will actually gain some performance. backfiring on decelaration is also a sign of a too lean mixture.

[Rich_in_Orlando]

My suggestion is ride it and don't worry so much. Glowing red header is normal and if you let these bikes sit and idle for 5 minutes they will most likely overheat. Leave the jetting stock and don't mess with it. Search the WR forum for the word "glow" and see what you get.

[OC768]

Granted I have a YZ but in ~page 5 of my manual it says "Do not let your motorcycle warm up for extended periods of time"

5 minutes - is more then extended for that little engine. If it had a fan thats another story but air/water cooling systems are only as efficient as the air pouring over them. ?

[450high]

If you let it idle to long it sure will glow.The first time mine did this i freaked.Now i don't let it idle for too long.Easy fix.

[danwr450slc]

Hey what do you know! My bike did the same thing. Only I noticed after my first ride of about 5 min. had it now for 5 month and no real problem...... the header pipe did turn a blue color though. I just wiss I could get my starter to work. so mabie you could all read my plea for advise. ?

[WR450F_RDR]

I guess if you say something enough times people believe it. Red hot header is not normal, and is easy to fix. You can run the bike that way but it will cause premature wear and failure of your motor. If your header is glowing red hot you are running lean, also a good sign is if your bike backfires on decel (also said to be a cause of Woodruff key failure) just my 2cents, not meant to flame anyone.

[Guest dsornot2ds]

I agree with the above...it seems that all new 4 strokers on the market are jetted way lean (maybe for emissions laws ???). Luckily for everybody involved, we have Thumpertalk to help get the jetting on these bikes just right ?

[Tucker99]

Thanks for the reply. I agree, the header shouldn't glow. What do you suggest? I'm running a 48 pilot. 1-1/2 turns. Not sure what the size of the air jet is though, will check. Did yours ever glow? If so what did you do about it?

Pat

[NOMADAK]

The heading on this post is very misleading and probably should be changed. The problem isn't with the motorcycle brokers, it is with the new owner!

There is a plethora of information on this site about correctly jetting these bikes.

Too bad you chose to blame the sellers and not do your own homework or even read the owner's manual.

[WR450F_RDR]

Yes when mine was new the header glowed red hot on it too, looking at my signiture line you can see what has worked for me. The most simple way to begin is to simply turn your idle mixture screw out by a 1/8 to a 1/4 turn to see the effect if any on the header. If it is not that simple then it is a matter of turning the pilot screw out the same 1/8 to 1/4 turn to start and or setting your clip position richer. Maybe this sounds a little vague but altitude and humidity play roles in your setup and what works for me may not work for you. You will have to make adjustments then test the results.

[Guest dsornot2ds]

This is where I chime in about the dealers...They charge you upwards of $600 to set up a brand new $6000+ bike and they dont jet it properly!! I understand that the Emissions laws etc are causing most of the problems, but then they shouldn't be charging excessive amounts of money for a service that they aren't providing. I cant believe all the BS you have to do just to make your brand spanking new $6000+ bikes to run properly. It's absolutely terrible business practices like this that's causing people to buy from outside brokers, and even switch to European bikes. The Japanese bike dealers oughta wake up!! ?

[WR450F_RDR]

This is where I chime in about the dealers...They charge you upwards of $600 to set up a brand new $6000+ bike and they dont jet it properly!! I understand that the Emissions laws etc are causing most of the problems, but then they shouldn't be charging excessive amounts of money for a service that they aren't providing. I cant believe all the BS you have to do just to make your brand spanking new $6000+ bikes to run properly. It's absolutely terrible business practices like this that's causing people to buy from outside brokers, and even switch to European bikes. The Japanese bike dealers oughta wake up!! ?

I have to agree if you bought a brand new car or truck and it ran the way some bikes do from the dealer what would you do?