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Scooter won't start! Need help. . .

Melensdad

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I've got a couple Galaxy 50 scooters with 49cc Yamaha 1 cylinder 4 cycle engines in them. One starts. One does not.

I put a fresh battery in the dead unit. I put fresh premium gas in the dead unit. The spark plug is firing. Last night I narrowed it down to fuel, it appears to have a vaccuum fuel pump. No clue how that works. But it seems like the fuel is not getting to the engine.

And to top it all off, the entire owners manual is in CHINESE.
 

Jim_S

Gone But Not Forgotten
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B_Skurka said:
I've got a couple Galaxy 50 scooters

I knew you had two of everything

:yum: :yum: :yum:

Wish I could help but I slept through the Chinese lessons in school.

Jim
 

TOMLESCOEQUIP

Just Plinkin Away the $$
Did you leave gas in the scooter over the winter without using stabil ? Todays gas costs more than ever, but is the worst s##t for running engines on they've ever come up with. The aeromatics will boil off the fuel, leaving what looks & smells like gas, but won't atomize properly to make a good mixture. I had some fuel in my arctic cat quad turn stale last year from the end of may to the middle of july. We were on vacation & busy with other family stuff & hadn't had time for any 4 wheeler riding & when i did get it out, it would hardly start, & wouldn't run above about 1/3 throttle. I had to pull the carb, clean it out completely, drain the tank, and then it was back to normal. (All this on a NEW quad with less than 100 miles on it !)
 

DaveNay

Klaatu barada nikto
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B_Skurka said:
I've got a couple Galaxy 50 scooters with 49cc Yamaha 1 cylinder 4 cycle engines in them. One starts. One does not.

I put a fresh battery in the dead unit. I put fresh premium gas in the dead unit. The spark plug is firing. Last night I narrowed it down to fuel, it appears to have a vaccuum fuel pump. No clue how that works. But it seems like the fuel is not getting to the engine.

And to top it all off, the entire owners manual is in CHINESE.

Can you get it to run with a QUICK shot of ether? If it will start, then run for a second or two, I would agree that it is a problem with the fuel delivery.
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
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Tom. . . there was some residual fuel in the tank, it was treated with Sta-bil. I'd guess it had less than a 1/4 of a tank leftover. Because it was treated last year I did not empty it. But I did fill it full of premium before I tried to start it. I ONLY use premium in my small engines because it seems to foul considerably less when they sit for periods of time (I am far less picky about the fuel I put in my cars).


DaveNay . . . not sure that I could get a spray can of ether into position without some massive disassembly of plastic body panels that look good but make working on the engine a total PITA.
 

TOMLESCOEQUIP

Just Plinkin Away the $$
Bob.......These small engines use a vacumn operated fuel pump that has a tube coming from the intake manifold or the crankcase that uses the engine pulses to move a diaphram that pumps the fuel. The little pump uses check valves to prevent backflow of the fuel. You might have a little varnish in the valve assy that is causing the pump to stick........therefore the diaphram does nothing as the fuel flow is blocked. The pumps are a simple design, but are quite small & can clog up with just a minute bit of dirt or gum. Follow the lines back from the carb to find the pump assy.
 

TOMLESCOEQUIP

Just Plinkin Away the $$
B_Skurka said:
And then what?
Pull it off & check the lines in & out for fuel. You could just pull the fuel line off the carb & crank it over a time or 2 to see if you're getting fuel TO the carb. If its getting there, then you'll maybe have to pull & clean out the carb. If you aren't getting fuel to the carb. then you have to pull the pump next & dissassemble & clean it. You can get a generic replacement fuel pump at a mower shop for around $15 if the china one can't be repaired. Another trick is to use several psi of compressed air (a blowgun & a rag works for this) to pressurize the fuel tank just a bit(thru the filler cap) to force gas thru the pump to the carb. Do all this testing & cranking outside !!!!!!!
 

bczoom

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TOMLESCOEQUIP said:
Another trick is to use several psi of compressed air (a blowgun & a rag works for this) to pressurize the fuel tank just a bit(thru the filler cap) to force gas thru the pump to the carb. Do all this testing & cranking outside !!!!!!!
That's the approach I was thinking. I would disconnect the fuel line from the carb and do this to see what happens. Once you get fuel to come out, re-attach and try to start it.
 

mtntopper

Back On Track
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Make sure if you have a fuel strainer on the tank or a filter in line that neither is plugged. Check for vacuum line leak and then for fuel pump diaphragm/valve type problems. The diaphragm in the vacuum pump sometimes will gum up and not move to pump fuel. You can always prime through the fuel line between the pump and carb if you can get the line out and above the carb level.

If all else fails shoot some WD40 into the spark plug opening and see if it will run as a fuel primer. WD40 works like ether but is maybe safer and easier on the motor. Good luck.
 

Melensdad

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Hey guys thanks for the help. I may not know what I am doing, but I now have some direction and hopefully can figure out how to do it. The engine seems pretty simple, the hardest part may be taking off all the decorative plastic cowling and body panels so I can get to the parts.


BTW, Tom I'm glad you told me to do this outside, I was planning on using the lovely Mrs_B's new sofa as a lift so I didn't have to lay on the ground! :whistle:
 

TOMLESCOEQUIP

Just Plinkin Away the $$
B_Skurka said:
BTW, Tom I'm glad you told me to do this outside, I was planning on using the lovely Mrs_B's new sofa as a lift so I didn't have to lay on the ground! :whistle:
Good thinking !!!!! A guy can't be TOO comfortable if He's got a big job to do, Bob !!!!
 

bczoom

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B_Skurka said:
BTW, Tom I'm glad you told me to do this outside, I was planning on using the lovely Mrs_B's new sofa as a lift so I didn't have to lay on the ground! :whistle:
I just take the cushions. Much lighter than the whole thing. You can also slide them under the truck/tractor for more comfort. :thumb:
 

TOMLESCOEQUIP

Just Plinkin Away the $$
bczoom said:
I just take the cushions. Much lighter than the whole thing. You can also slide them under the truck/tractor for more comfort. :thumb:
Just don't forget to turn them over before putting them back on the couch !
 

Melensdad

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TOMLESCOEQUIP said:
Just don't forget to turn them over before putting them back on the couch !


Heck if you would have told me that last fall we wouldn't have a NEW couch this spring :pat:
 

Melensdad

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The scooter now works!

There was an obstruction in the vacuum pump AND, the pump was apparently installed improperly to begin with. The obstruction caused the current problem, but as I have 2 indentical scooters, this one was always harder to start and always ran worse than the other one. It appears that the pump was installed about 30-degrees off of vertical, there was a small detent where the pump lines up to, it was not installed lined up to that detent but was twisted off line. It now runs great!

Thanks for your help.

And yes, I did put the couch cushions back . . . dirty side down.
 

Jim_S

Gone But Not Forgotten
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B_Skurka said:
The scooter now works!

There was an obstruction in the vacuum pump AND, the pump was apparently installed improperly to begin with. The obstruction caused the current problem, but as I have 2 indentical scooters, this one was always harder to start and always ran worse than the other one. It appears that the pump was installed about 30-degrees off of vertical, there was a small detent where the pump lines up to, it was not installed lined up to that detent but was twisted off line. It now runs great!

Thanks for your help.

And yes, I did put the couch cushions back . . . dirty side down.

That's great. It's usually something fairly simple, just the time it takes to find it. :a1:

Jim
 

Melensdad

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jim slagle said:
It's usually something fairly simple, just the time it takes to find it
Well I am a small engine idiot. I do not like working on them and don't have a clue what to do with them when I have to work on them. I am capable of tracing back wires and hoses, and considering that is about all there is on this little 1 cylinder unit, I think I got lucky.

However, it has confirmed my belief that Chinese made goods are inferior products. The engine on this unit is a Yamaha "licensed" engine that is a copy of a Yamaha. In fact the whole scooter is a Chinese copy of a Yamaha scooter. But I've seen the genuine Yamaha, and I've obviously seen the intimate parts of mine. There is a GOOD REASON why the Japanese made Yamaha costs more than the Chinese Galaxy. . . everything, and I mean every part, on the Japanese Yamaha is of higher quality, has greater detail, and of higher build standard than the Chinese copy . . . eventhough the Chinese copy is a 'licensed' product, it is still far lower in quality.
 

Durwood RIP

Gone But Not Forgotten
B_Skurka said:
However, it has confirmed my belief that Chinese made goods are inferior products. The engine on this unit is a Yamaha "licensed" engine that is a copy of a Yamaha. In fact the whole scooter is a Chinese copy of a Yamaha scooter. But I've seen the genuine Yamaha, and I've obviously seen the intimate parts of mine. There is a GOOD REASON why the Japanese made Yamaha costs more than the Chinese Galaxy. . . everything, and I mean every part, on the Japanese Yamaha is of higher quality, has greater detail, and of higher build standard than the Chinese copy . . . eventhough the Chinese copy is a 'licensed' product, it is still far lower in quality.

I've come to the same conclusion about those chinese yamaha clones Bob. They clone the Honda engines too. Where did you get these at? I know i've seen them on e bay but do the yamaha dealers sell these clones too?

Thanks,
Dur
 

Melensdad

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I imported them with the help of a dealer who was bringing in a container load, he just added my scooters to his order as a favor. I saved a boatload of money, the total cost of the two Chinese scooters was less than the price of 1 of the genuine Yamaha scooters.

I will probably be buying another scooter this year or next year. I don't know what brand it will be, but I will very likely buy a named brand unit rather than going the ultra low priced direct import route again.


EDIT: Below is a picture of the Yamaha scooter. My scooters are the Chinese copies of this. From a distance of 25' they look the same (except the Yamaha brand is all 2 tone paint, and the Chinese are single color) The list price on the Yamaha is about $1900. I paid about $850 each for my Galaxy 50 units 2 years ago. For the next one, I may buy the real Yamaha.
 

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Durwood RIP

Gone But Not Forgotten
Thanks Bob, i had thought about selling a few of these a while back myself. A lot of the chinese companies now have warehouses here where you can get them cheap without importing them yourself. That is what e bayers who sell them do...they sell you the bike and then have it shipped from the warehouse. The problem now is they have flooded the market with these things. Not just scooters but chinese mini bikes, go karts, etc...I drive a truck and most trucks stops were selling them. The farm stores are selling them, auto part stores are selling them too. But i too have come to the conclusion they are MUCH inferior then the name brands. There were some mini bikes outside the local TSC i looked at the other day and the "chrome" headlights were already rusting out...and these were new.

Dur
 
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TOMLESCOEQUIP

Just Plinkin Away the $$
I bought my kids a couple knock-off toys last year. I got my son a 110cc dirt bike (honda clone) & my daughter a 110cc quad (honda engined clone) of the yamaha raptor quad. The fit & finish wasn't up to the jap quality, but both run well & will serve the purpose till they out grow them. I have a few $$ less than $1500 in the pair, delivered to my door. The yamaha version of the quad was $2699 when we looked at them at the local dealer before I bought the china ones. You're right tho.......you BETTER own a wrench set if you get the knock-offs !! There is a GREAT place in Illinois that actually has a parts & service dept. They shipped & I got the atv's before they e-mailed the tracking #'s !! Super customer service & great prices. Needless to say I was impressed. ATV Link
 

Melensdad

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TOMLESCOEQUIP said:
you BETTER own a wrench set if you get the knock-offs !!
Tom that is the real rub with these things. I own a wrench, but am much more comforable working on an antique engine or a diesel tractor than these little mini toy things. I obviously don't have a real clue about small engine repair and so if you are only modestly handy, then it can be worth it to bypass the knock off products in favor of the real brand name stuff with dealers who can fix things and supply parts.

Obviously there are folks on the Forums who are far more adept at fixing small gas engines than I am. I consider myself lucky that the problem was simple AND that you guys pretty much figured it out for me.


  • Edit: I think that my experiences with these scooters, while not horrible, is not great, and that may be partly why I have become a tractor "snob" favoring established brands with strong dealers. I guess I'm a scooter "snob" too.
 

TOMLESCOEQUIP

Just Plinkin Away the $$
B_Skurka said:
Obviously there are folks on the Forums who are far more adept at fixing small gas engines than I am. I consider myself lucky that the problem was simple AND that you guys pretty much figured it out for me.
Isn't the sharing of info among friends thru the net great ? Sure glad Gore took the initative to invent it ! Glad you have it going. Most of the minor issues I've had with mine were directly related to the lack of quality control inspections we've come to expect with the higher priced "name" brands.
 
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