pjmac5
Well-Known Member
I recently bought a 2003 VMAX and I got a great deal. The previous owner started changing the carb tuning and I think he just never got her running right again. I buy her cheap and figure Plan A will be to take her to the Yamaha Dealer and have them fix it correctly.
Well the Yamaha Dealer didn't want to touch it. Laws have changed in California and the only way they will work on the bike is if they take her completely back to OEM (Exhaust, Carbs, Everything). No problem, I move to Plan B. Find a mom and pop mechanic that will do the work. Well after speaking to several mechanic, I realize that most have no experience working on a VMAX and they couldn't agree on what needed to be done.
Problem: I got a great looking VMAX that runs like sh!t. IN STEPS VMAX FORUM. I consider myself to be a pretty good DIY mechanic but VMAX is intimidating to ride and intimidating to work on. Through all the many posts, I was able to identify what I should do 1st and how to do the work.
I ended up performing a Shotgun on the carbs and pulled the fuel needles. I moved the clip from 2nd to 3rd groove. I changed the fuel filter and installed four new plugs. Finally, I added a disc to the supertrapp (now at 7). End result is this bike runs 1000% better. Still not perfect. I have the fuel/air 3.5 out. I think the fuel/air needs tweaking and the carbs need a sync but at this point, she is running very good.
I saved a fortune, learned a lot about the VMAX and conquered my carburetor phobia.:clapping:
Well the Yamaha Dealer didn't want to touch it. Laws have changed in California and the only way they will work on the bike is if they take her completely back to OEM (Exhaust, Carbs, Everything). No problem, I move to Plan B. Find a mom and pop mechanic that will do the work. Well after speaking to several mechanic, I realize that most have no experience working on a VMAX and they couldn't agree on what needed to be done.
Problem: I got a great looking VMAX that runs like sh!t. IN STEPS VMAX FORUM. I consider myself to be a pretty good DIY mechanic but VMAX is intimidating to ride and intimidating to work on. Through all the many posts, I was able to identify what I should do 1st and how to do the work.
I ended up performing a Shotgun on the carbs and pulled the fuel needles. I moved the clip from 2nd to 3rd groove. I changed the fuel filter and installed four new plugs. Finally, I added a disc to the supertrapp (now at 7). End result is this bike runs 1000% better. Still not perfect. I have the fuel/air 3.5 out. I think the fuel/air needs tweaking and the carbs need a sync but at this point, she is running very good.
I saved a fortune, learned a lot about the VMAX and conquered my carburetor phobia.:clapping: