People 50 - Carb Reassembly Screwup?

[marbles]

Hi everyone - new to the forum and to scooter maintenance! I was given a People 50 last fall and have been riding it for about a year (in Michigan, so took a couple months off in the winter). I was recently having trouble bogging down on uphill climbs - to the point where even after cresting the hill I still had no power. These seemed to happen every day on the ride home from work on hills. After lots of searching and browsing old forum threads, I decided to disassemble and clean the carb. Upon reassembly, I can't get the scooter to start!

When pressing the electric start, if I twist the throttle I don't get any response or revving at all like I would normally expect. I'm wondering if I simply reassembled something wrong or if my disassembly/reassembly caused some other problem.

One thing I did notice that I couldn't figure out - when reassembling the throttle valve (section 11-5 http://scootermasters.com/manuals/kymco%20People%2050-complete.pdf) I am instructed to line up a groove with the throttle adjustment screw. Both sides of the throttle valve have a groove - one short one and then on the opposite side there is a groove that runs the entire length of the valve "sleeve" bit. Which side am I supposed to align with the throttle screw? Would this cause the throttle to not respond when trying to start?

Thank you for any and all advice!

[eamartin]

If you look at the shorter groove you should notice a taper or bevel down in the groove.  This groove is pointed toward the idle adjustment screw.   

[Mr. Paul]

Have any of the vacuum lines come loose?

[marbles]

If you look at the shorter groove you should notice a taper or bevel down in the groove.  This groove is pointed toward the idle adjustment screw.

Thanks! I did get this lined up and the valve fully seated. It started up after that!

Any tips on adjusting the air screw and throttle screw without a tachometer?

[eamartin]

I usually fire up the scooter and let it warm up until the choke is not needed (or the enricher closes).  With scooter idling I turn the air screw 1/4 turn at a time listening for the idle to speed up (if it slows down I turn the screw the other direction until it speeds up).  When it speeds up I slow it down with the idle screw.  I keep doing this until I cannot speed it up any more with the air screw.  At that point I usually back off on the air screw about 1/4 turn and I'm finished.  It's all by ear for me.  It could be running a little lean with this method and hopefully someone will chime in with a better process if I'm missing something.

[marbles]

I found it pretty difficult to do the idle and air/fuel adjustment screws by ear, but I think I got it pretty close to where it ought to be. The People felt way better out on flat road, from stops, etc. However, I tried it up a fairly steep hill today and the loss of power was worse than ever before. I had to turn off on a side road and when I rolled to the stop the bike stalled.

Any other suggestions as to what might cause this or what I should look at? Seems likely to be a fuel flow problem based on what I have read, but I'm not sure what to check.

[eamartin]

Assume for the moment that the carb has been thoroughly cleaned (body passages are open and you can see daylight through the jets).  We then need to look elsewhere for the loss of power on hills.  How many miles on the bike, does it have properly serviced air filter, does it have a fresh spark plug and what is the compression? 

[marbles]

Thanks for your responses, eamartin! Appreciate it.

Only about 3k miles on the bike. Just replaced the air filter. It is an cone-type "performance" air filter, not the stock air cleaning apparatus. Also just replaced the spark plug while working on the carb last weekend. Not sure how to check compression. I've also seen "clogged fuel filter" as a common cause in the troubleshooting sections in the manual I linked above. Tomorrow I'm going to take out the fuel screen/filter that is included in the petcock assembly. There is no in-line fuel filter, though I have read that can be used either in addition to or in place of the cylindrical fuel filter in the petcock assembly. Thoughts?

[eamartin]

! I was given a People 50 last fall and have been riding it for about a year (in Michigan, so took a couple months off in the winter). I was recently having trouble bogging down on uphill climbs - to the point where even after cresting the hill I still had no power. These seemed to happen every day on the ride home from work on hills.

1-had you done ANYTHING to the bike just prior to first experiencing this "bogging"?
2-did this happen suddenly one day or gradually over time?
3-at what point did you install the "performance" air filter?

[marbles]

Hey eamartin. Sorry for the delay. I had not done anything to the bike prior to the issue starting, and it definitely seemed like it was a gradual problem that got worse over time. The air filter was installed when the People was given to me. It is one like this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00UCZDRSA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have not been able to find a new fuel filter for the petcock assembly; checked two local shops and neither of them could give me a matching part. Both places suggested that I just take out that filter and put an in-line filter into the fuel line.

[eamartin]

It was running fine when you got it with the aftermarket air filter.  Have you looked at the condition/color of the spark plug after it's been run down the road?  I still think compression should be checked with a proper compression tool to make sure it's acceptable.   

[marbles]

I put in a new spark plug in the process of trying to fix things as well. I will get a compression tool to check things out. Today I did put in a new in-line fuel filter and that didn't seem to help things, so I'm on to more troubleshooting.

I see that poor performance on grade can be due to the drive system as well (slipping belt, worn rollers). How would I be able to tell whether it is something like that or the fuel system things I've been working on?

[eamartin]

I put in a new spark plug in the process of trying to fix things as well.

I wasn't so much wondering about the firing ability of the spark plug as I was wondering what color it was (tan, black, etc).  Color can offer a clue as to how the motor is running (correct, rich, lean?).  I cannot offer help on diagnosing the drive system.   

[spddm0n]

I'm having similar issues.  I've just acquired a People 50 (in a box of parts), and in find it bogs down badly, especially on hills.  It gets worse as I get closer to full throttle.  It looks like the little device/valve that contains the fuel filter also acts as a fuel "cut-off" valve of somekind (Kymco calls it a "FUEL AUTO COCK ASSY".  As I approach full throttle, there is no vacuum in the line and fuel shuts down.  ??  Not sure what is happening here.  I've begun trying to "de-restrict" the scooter to get some additional power, but it seems to be another wild goose chase.

I did modify the drive boss in the CVT to allow it to reach higher speeds, but that hasn't helped the power issue. 

I'm curious to see what you learn.