Hey guys, I bought a 2010 Megelli 250R LC early last year and it's been riding well. However, I'm having problems cold starting the bike... and I don't necessarily mean cold days, but when the engine has been cold for > 8 hours (e.g. next morning after riding). Originally I thought the problem was the battery running down after days of not riding but it's still an issue after fitting a trickle charger. I've read over the internet that most Megelli owners seem to have this trouble but I'm wondering if anyone knows how to fix/improve the problem? Essentially, this is what happens every morning or whenever I decide to ride the bike for the first time that day: 1. go outside, disconnect trickle charger from bike 2. push choke to closed (full position) 3. try to start bike for 5 seconds, engine cranks but doesn't fire 4. turn ignition off for ~1 minute to let the battery/starter recover 5. repeat steps 3-4 at least five times 6. starter motor weakens pathetically and can barely turn, so let the bike rest for ~5 minutes, almost giving up 7. come back and try again, bike ALMOST fires/starts but dies because battery runs down, while electronic display and starter cut out and reset 8. let it rest 1 minute, then try to start again, finally starts (full choke) 9. gradually decrease choke as it warms up but as it reaches half choke, engine almost starts to stall 10. only way to keep bike running it to SUDDENLY close choke (not gradually decreasing), and then it (usually steadily) idles at ~1600 rpm ... ... 11. ride to wherever I need to go (usually ~30 minute trip), generally maintaining rpm in 4000-8000 range during acceleration 12. do what I need to do, come back after 4-6 hours, battery dead (not enough power to crank engine, electronic display just cuts out and resets) 13. need to push start to get the bike running with full choke, let it warm up, ride home to connect to charger 14. repeat This is with only disconnecting the charger just before wanting to start the bike. Before I fitted the charger, I had to push start it almost every day ever since a month after purchasing the bike. Any ideas/suggestions? Thanks in advance! SamFisher47
wow that sounds like quite the problem you have there. You could start by getting a new battery as it shouldnt be going dead in 4-6 hours.
Hey Sam Welcome to the fourm, Im sorry to hear of your problems, while I dont have a Megeli, I agree there are reports all over the internet about this happening to other Megelli owners. For me, I'd have to seriously have a look at the battery and also charging system, ie stator or voltage regulator. I'd want to put a multimeter on the battery terminals without it running, a fully charged battery should read about 12.4 volts, then with the bike started and idling it should be about 13 volts, increase the revs to 5000 RPM and you should see it climb a bit more ( a shade over 14v). If this isnt the case then I'd say the charging system is at fault and could be either the battery, voltage regulator or the stator. A decent bike mechanic \ auto electrician would be the best place to start to determine where the fault lies. As for starting your bike, Im a tad perplexed, the general rule of thumb is to open the choke to 1/2 to 3/4 then hit the starter button, there should be no need to touch the throttle and she should fire. Carby issues such as worn jets or poor air fuel mixture can make some bikes harder to start as well as a fouled plug, but as your bike starts after you perform your routine then I'm a tad stumped. But in saying that if there is an underlying electrical problem, then this could contribute to your woes. Another possible cause is poor earthing, there hsould be an earth strap going to your engine \ frame, would be worth checking its tight and note making a poor connection. Im sorry I cant be of any more help, please keep us in the loop as to how you fare. thanks Chris
SamFisher47, If u take it back to your local dealer they can fit up a new fuel tap. What happens is as u leave the motorcycle sitting fuel is actually seaping out of the vacuum fuel tap. So when u go to hit the starter the next morning there is no fuel in the tap until the vaccum fills it back up. Also they can double check your starter motor and starter clutch as well from your post as precaution. They did that to mine. Hope that helps! With the new fuel tap I dont have that cold start problem anymore.
Sorry for the lack of updates about the cold start problems guys. The main reason is because the problem seems to have resolved with the better weather (Melbourne) we've been having lately: the bike starts within one or two attempts, and because I leave it connected to the trickle charger while starting in the morning, the battery doesn't get run down either. On the occasional rainy/cold day we've had, it did struggle to start as usual but started after 5 attempts. Again, because I've started leaving the charger connected while starting and while I leave it to warm up once it's started, the battery hasn't run down when I attempt to start it for the return trip. So pretty much, I'm going to enjoy this summer and make the most of it, and hopefully I'll figure this problem out BEFORE next winter
Hey Sam Afraid I missed welcoming you to the forum, so welcome on board. Have spent some time reading your extensive list of problems with your Megelli, mind you many more have experienced similar issues. What amazes me is that you have to have a trickle charge on so as to not use up to much of the power of your battery. This is a new or near new machine and you simply should not be experiencing these problems, PERIOD. My take is this. Return the bike to place of purchase and get this issue sorted, no iff'ss or but's. I have 30 year old Jap bikes that start first time , every time. We are in the 21st century and Megelli have to get these issues sorted. Phil
Hi there, I agree with Phil. We are in the 21st century and yet Megelli is still using carburator instead fuel injection system. Anyway, even though we are not supposed to have so much of a trouble to get the engine start first time. My struggle of cold-start has started just after my first servicing of 1500 km at the dealer. They've renewed the engine oil, replaced the spark plug and changed the setting of the carburator. I do not understand why do we need to replace spark plug of a 4 stroke engine only at 1500 km run and why have they adjusted the carburator???!!! They have not replace the spark plug with a genuine one because both specs and the length of the igniting pin of the spark plug were different. After the first servicing, there has been considerable drop in power, starts misfires when cold in the morning. The choke does no longer maintain an accelaration when cold. The accelaration of the choke and the throttle turned out to be very slugish! I was extremely disappointed when I noticed that the local dealer has no idea of how a four stroke combustion engine works and are very poor in mechanic!!! Vibration of the mirrors or the front (Plastic) body just started after the first servicing and it is indeed very anoying! Now even cold or hot, the engine starts now and then! I think the starter is already or will be dead soon. The battery does not look like worn out or dead though. Oil leakage was from the time i bought the bike and it was me who had to tell the dealer what was teh real problem. (the sump drain bolt was defective). MEGELLI NEEDS TO RESOLVE THEIR PROBLEMS. WE, CLIENT OR END USER, DO NOT DESERVE SUCH CHEAP PERFORMANCE OR ENGINEERING IN 2012!!! By the way, when purchasing the bike I haven't got a user manual for the Koso Tachometer! This is also very weird! How do we set the time and other parameters if we go wrong my mistake! These problems associated with a brand new bike renders us frustrated!
Sorry, I forgot to add... spark plugs have been changed thrice since reported with 3 different chinese fake ones (Denso, Champion, Qidian) to no satisfactory result! My bike has run only 2200 km and is only 4 months old! Anybody knows the genuine specs of the spark plug? I feel it was an NGK. I was stupid enough to trust these people for not jotting down the specs while they removed it for the first time.
Hi guys. You may have worked it out by now but Starter Clutch is the problem. Look through the glass on the right hand side where you check the engine oil level, press the electric start and watch if the main clutch is turning continuously. If you see it pausing (on and off) while you hold the start button then your starter clutch is worn out. It has a design problem. Well, what can you expect. You know where your bike comes from. I have just drained oil from Megelli 250 R SE with 4700km on the clock and the oil looks bad. I guess the the oil change was neglected and debris from the engine worn out the starter clutch. I could see lots of debris on the bottom of the oil pan when I drained the oil. Have you drained your carburettor lately? Water condensation in your fuel tank as well as in carburettor causes rust in tank, loss of power, misfiring or cutting out completely. Drain your fuel chamber of the carburetor often especially in winter when temperatures vary a lot during day and night. For more tips and videos see my website: www.FreedomOn2Wheels.com Stay safe and upright Starter clutch is the largest one on the right hand side of the main clutch opening. You need to remove the clutch to get to it. See below:
