ATM50 Starting problems

[rlshepard]

Howdy Dawgs,

Let me start off by saying TaoTao did it right! Last summer (~August) I dropped off an ATM50A1 to my son at MU MIZ! :cheers:, My son is no mechanic, I've brow beat him into changing the oil twice. No I did do a full PDI before delivering it.

Today I went to see him, he has 2971KM on the machine, he has beat the heck out of it. Today I adjusted the valve clearance and replaced some vacuum lines. That scooter is a TANK!

Some things I noted that I'm not experienced with:

The starter is not engaging all of the time, I can hear it spinning like a champ, let of the starter button, push it again and it starts up. Would that be the starter clutch?

Kick Starter is not working at all. are there any ususal suspects when it comes to these guys? During the winter he was using it quite a bit because the battery kept dying in the cold. I didn't get time to rip open the CVT case, maybe next week...

Thoughts?

[bull]

Both are simple maintenance items usually.

Drop by your local auto parts store and get a can of "Deep Creep" penetrant.

Remove the CVT cover, place a thick shop cloth over the belt, just below the starter bendix. Manually rotate the bendix to an engaged position and spray a small amount of Deep Creep into the bendix one way clutch mechanism. Allow the bendix to return to normal position, and cycle it out a few more times by hand-- but NO more penetrant. Allow any excess to drip off into the shop cloth.

Invert the CVT cover. Spray the kickstart mechanism and bushings with Deep Creep and cycle it a few times by hand. When everything is working smoothly, turn the CVT cover over and allow any excess to drain off.

Remove the shop cloth. Then re-install the CVT cover.

NOTE: If you used too much penetrant, you may need to wipe up before re-installing the CVT cover.

[rlshepard]

Thanks a bunch! sounds simple! we'll give it a shot!