Starting a motor after 12 years idle

[SmartinMartin]

Just got my hands on a bike I've been chasing for a while. It's been sitting outside for 12 years but is in remarkable condition despite this. Before attempting a start up I'm going to replace the oil and drop a good squirt of WD-40 into each barrel and leave it for a few days. Anything else I should be doing engine-wise?

[490808]

I'd check up the best oil to put in the cylinders. WD40 doesn't sound ideal, it will tend to wash away any decent lubricant away. I'd use any available engine oil.

[SmartinMartin]

Thanks. I'm just worried about starting on dry cylinders. I might drop in a light gear oil instead, and leave it for a week

[Memento Mori]

Hopefully Kadman will chime in!

[CJhaughey]

Get one of those mini cameras and check the state of the bores first by pulling the plugs and looking into them. if there is evidence of water ingress then starting it may not even be possible.
IF they look shiny and non rusty (unlikely on all cylinders) then undo the cover over the crank and turn it over by hand first obviously with some light oil in each cylinder to help with lubrication.
If it turns over and isn't seized then the next port of call is to remove the carbs and perform a thorough cleaning of them, at this point a rebuild is probably more than likely on the cards so budget for that and an ultrasonic cleaning.
Check and clean the tank and fuel system as well, there could be a lot of corrosion in the tank and that will play havoc with the fuel system.
Is it carbed or FI?

[Wibbs]

Old petrol goes rotten quite quickly and turns into a gloopy, even hard varnish throughout your fuel system. This goes quadruple for newer fuels with alcohol as part of the mix. That stuff goes off in a couple of months. First thing I'd do is remove the fuel system and clean it. If it's got a carb then rebuild it. Replace fuel lines and take apart the fuel pump and clean it. Carb cleaner is your friend here. If you just run new petrol through it chances are it'll partially dissolve the old gloop and have that go into the carb. Not good. Change the spark plugs. They'll be toast. If it's water cooled flush the system and add new coolent.

As CJ notes above if you have one of those cameras it's defo worth looking down the bores. Pour in a little engine oil and leave it for a couple of days. WD40 isn't much use. It's a water displacement oil, it's actually a crap lubricant. It can work as a penetrating oil if the rings have gotten stuck to the bores. Diesel into the bores can work as well for that.

So after you've left it sitting with a bit of oil in the bore, try and turn the engine by hand. No fuel, no spark. If it turns freely enough you could be in business after you've cleaned the fuel system, changed the plugs and added new engine oil. Next thing I'd do if it passes the hand turn test, is to crank the engine on the starter with the ignition system disabled until some sort of oil pressure is established. That should reduce the risk of further wear when you finally crank it over to start.

Now I see it's a motorbike so may not have a starter motor, or coolant system, but cleaning the fuel system etc would still be in play.

[kadman]

Of course you have to get it turning first before any attempt at start up. Presumably its not turning at the moment.
And you are correct some mixture will have to be placed in the cylinders, (how many?) in order to free it up,

If its seized at the moment, I would strip it down anyway, even if I got it revolving, and even after starting.
Because if its seized now, even after freeing up, the rings will be seized in the bores and will have to be replaced.

[SmartinMartin]

Thanks all. It's a 99 Kawasaki zx6r, so a fairly robust engine. I'll let you know how I get on.

[Jimmy Bottlehead]

Awesome. Looking forward to hearing how she fares out.