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Fix or sale for parts?

5K views 35 replies 19 participants last post by  JohnUSA 
#1 ·
I have a 96 1500 Goldwing with just over 65K miles. The miles makes it a nearly new bike for a Goldwing, but the years makes it obsolete. I bought the bike about two years ago when I still had some drivers license issues, but the bike was for sale for $2K. I could not pass it up, so I bought it. I soon found out that no dealership would work on a Goldwing over 10 years old. I found a mechanic that did work from his house to go through the bike and do a full once-over. His shop was the first stop when I purchased the bike, and I started the bike every two or three months and let the temp get to operating temp before shutting it back down. It always fired right up with no issues or strange noises. Over this last winter the clutch slave cylinder busted and leaked the clutch fluid out (I would work all the gears in the transmission while heating the motor up). Three of four months ago, the bike would not start. I have my license issues worked out now, but my bike is out of commission. I got the dealership to agree to look at it, and they said they would go through the fuel system for $2700, but it may go deeper once they get into it. My question is - should I try to get the bike fixed or sell it for parts? I am no bike mechanic, so my DIY skills are limited.
 
#7 ·
Did you check to be sure the kill switch is on? It is the problem with no start more often than you would think.

What is it doing when you try to start it? Is it spinning over good or is it not turning over, does is sputter but not run? What is the battery condition?
 
#8 ·
The kill switch is in the run position, it turns over fine, but doesn't bust off. It didn't even try to hit. The battery and alternator were replaced when I bought the bike. I bought it running, but had them replaced as a precautionary measure. The battery was dying as I was turning it over for a while trying to get it started, and at that time, I thought that I would just have my buddy Steve take a look at it when he was working on the clutch slave cylinder. Then the news that Steve had retired...
 
#9 ·
I don't know much about the 1500, but any engine needs spark fuel and air. Have you checked for spark? How old is the fuel? Fuel is usually the problem that causes an old bike that has been sitting not to start.

If it was mine, I would check the spark and if good, move on to the fuel system. Next would be drain the fuel and clean the carb. I bet that would make it start.
 
#10 ·
Well I would not fix the slave cylinder till I had it running again. If the battery was going flat as you were cranking, CHARGE it up . The 1500 needs a good strong battery . Drain and refill the fuel tank with fresh gas and add a strong dosage of Sea Foam. Once charged turn on key, press start button with enricher (choke) on full. As the engine is turning over let off the start button and it may fire at that point. It's a problem of the ignition not getting full power while cranking. Thats one possibility for you can try with out getting to deep . If that gets it running we can help direct you to repair/replace the slave cylinder.

Another thought.... under the fuel door there is a vacuum operated fuel cutoff valve. You might take the valve out of service and connect the the fuel lines together just to be sure gas gets to the carbs. That is , if the electric fuel pump in the tank is working.
 
#14 ·
What he said. I have two 1500s, a 94 SE and a 96 Aspencade. In each case, if they set more than a week or two, they want to crank and crank but not fire. If I crank it for a minute or two, then walk away for 30 minutes or so, it fires right up when I come back. In each case, rebuilding the vacuum cutoff fixed it. I can now let one set all winter and it will still start in 10 or 15 seconds.
 

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#11 ·
96 is still a good bike. However if you need to pay someone to work on it it will soon lose its value to you. I have a '98 and will do most of the work on it myself.
Plenty of help on this board you just need to ask.
 
#16 ·
I have a 93 Aspencade with 112,000 miles, I have a volt meter so I can monitor the voltage. If for example it shows 11.5 volts the bike will not start, just not enough juice. As some has said, if it starts when you let off the starter button that indicates your battery does not have an adequate charge. I keep mine plugged into a battery tender when not riding. I hard wired the connection from the battery into the right pocket by the armrest. Very easy to open the door and hook it up, no pulling off side covers. Hope you get it going, there are a lot of miles left in that 1500.
 
#18 ·
I hate to be a party pooper, but I say get the bike running and rideable and get rid of it. I respect the fact that you wanna ride and not work on the bike, but lets be honest, a 1996 bike is going to require a lot more tlc than a brand new bike.
Not to be harsh, but speaking as a mechanic myself, if its not in your comfort zone, don’t do it. Buy a new, or a lot newer, bike and enjoy it. It’s one thing to have an older, or classic, bike that you have the ability and time to tinker with, but if you don’t, it can just make life miserable and take all the fun out of owning a bike altogether.
 
#21 ·
Everything said above is good information. I have a 93 SE that has had a couple of issues over the years just like what you describe. Probably the biggest issue though has been the alcohol that gets put in the gasoline now days. Being in the northwest, the bike sits for most of the winter and the gas in the carburetor bowls gradually evaporates and leaves what look like crystals in the jets. One spring the bike would not run so I figured I'd pull the carbs and give them a once over and reinstall with a detailed adjustment. I had to use welding torch tip cleaners to get the hardened crap out of the jets. Now I drain the bowls when the bike is going to sit for a month or more and put SeaFoam in the tank.

My last thought is that old motorcycles will always need some kind of maintenance and repair no matter what brand. It is not realistic to believe that all you will ever have to do is turn the key on and ride away into the sunset without having to twist a wrench on something at sometime. If you want to work on it yourself just about anything about a wing can be found here.
 
#22 ·
Update: I picked the bike up from Bayou Honda, stopped by the gas station and gassed it up on the trailer. It took about 4 gal to fill, so I had gas. When I gassed up the bike, I noticed that someone had taken the gas cap off - it was jus sitting there loose under the compartment door. When I got home, I charged the battery and the bike started fine. Will the gas cap off cause the bike not to start?
My next step is to order the slave cylinder for the clutch, and change it out.

I can't say enough about Bayou Honda though. Charged me $50 to put an estimate together that covered replacing anything that could possibly be related to a bike not starting without even trying to start the bike themselves. Nice troubleshooting technique. I call that the shotgun approach. Nice people to shoot the bull with, but I won't recommend them to anyone for repair troubleshooting.
 
#23 ·
I ordered a clutch master cylinder and slave cylinder rebuild kit from amazon, and a shop manual pdf from emanual online. I will get the bike going and move on from there. I still don't understand why Honda shops refuse to take in Goldwings over 10 years old. If they last forever as most testify to, why can they only be serviced professionally for 10 years.
 
#27 ·
I ordered a clutch master cylinder and slave cylinder rebuild kit from amazon, and a shop manual pdf from emanual online. I will get the bike going and move on from there. I still don't understand why Honda shops refuse to take in Goldwings over 10 years old. If they last forever as most testify to, why can they only be serviced professionally for 10 years.

One reason is because some owners have added so many extras (electrical and mechanical) and many times not done in the best fashion. It can be difficult (time consuming) to figure out what has been done in many cases. So it takes more time, costs more money and owners don't like the bill.

Just my thoughts but I have seen quite a few GL1500's with "wiring and mechanical nightmares" from less than good work by owners and others.

I can somewhat understand why dealerships don't like working on old bikes.

Lasting forever is not the issue, its the electrical and mechanical screw ups folks make along the way that causes many issues for mechanics and technicians when diagnosing and repairing problems..

Not a problem for me, I do most of my own work.....!

BTW.....It will start with the gas cap OFF.....!!
 
#25 ·
Yet we are able to keep our over 20 year old bikes on the road.

There is a guy local to me (Arizona) that outfitted a large trailer as a shop and goes around the country (USA) servicing 1500 Valkyries. He makes such a good living that he just bought an almost new 1 ton Diesel Pick Up Truck.

Prior to that he serviced bikes out of his Garage.
 
#26 ·
We are, but it is when we need the unusal part it becomes a problem, in the case i mentioned the owner wanted to use only new parts to fix his transmission, personally i would have fitted a salvage engine complete but the customer is king as they say and mostly it is US fixing OUR bikes and not paying dealers time
 
#28 ·
I always figured the main reason dealers put a time limit for repairs was part availability.

Suppose you have a bike in the shop and you find out a part you need is no longer available. Now the bike sits in a corner waiting to find a NOS part, taking up space and all the while, the customer gets more angry.

Dealerships can't warranty used, or aftermarket, parts. What if they can't find a NOS part anywhere?
 
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