Why won't my motorcycle start in colder weather?

I have a 97 yzf600r that has trouble starting up when ever the weather is cool (less than 60 degrees). I took it to the shop and they said it was a loose battery connection. Howeve, the bike still has trouble starting when the weathe is cool. Does anyone know why this happens?

Store your bike indoors. Get a storage unit, throw some trash out of the garage, get some space from a friend, call your dealer and ask if they rent storage space. Do what you can to prevent the weather from affecting your bike. No windows in the storage space either, unless your actually do want the ultra-violet light to fade your paint. No moisture, unless you really want to find out what that will do to your chrome and motor.


No sheets or tarps. They hold moisture, breed mildew, so it鈥檚 smart to get a specially designed cover that allows good breathing. You don鈥檛 want a tarp because it prevents air from getting in and out of the bike area; any trapped moisture will condense on the bike.


Wax your bike. Nope, not to prepare it so it looks great when you pull it out again in the spring. It is a good barrier against weathering. Spray any other metal surfaces that you don鈥檛 wax with some WD40. If it鈥檚 shiny, it will help it stay shiny and prevent rusting.


Pull the battery out. Store it in your house or average temperature garage or closet. Battery drain, just from sitting, can hurt the electrolyte level in the cells. Distilled water should be added when necessary, and plugging it into a charger every two weeks will help maintain a healthy battery for when summer returns. Often people will find their battery will need to be replaced after winter storage unless proper precautions are taken.


Change the oil. It鈥檚 not too complicated. Old, used oil is less likely to start in colder weather and isn鈥檛 healthy for a cold engine even if you do get it started. Same reasons why it鈥檚 important to change your oil, but much worse on your motor in the cold weather.


Put fresh fuel in it. But with the temperature changes, you need to leave a small amount of room in the tank for the fuel to expand into when the temperature rises again. Make sure you shut off the fuel and drain the carburetors and the fuel lines. Winterizing fuel additives help the gasoline from going stale. Most gas stations/companies have light additives in the gas, and this can condense and thicken over the winter which will gum up and basically damage your system the next time you start your motor.


Tires need proper inflation. When the cold temps鈥?hit your tires, the air condenses and the tires will appear deflated. If left for too long, the rubber can be damaged from the awkward position. Not to mention cold weather in general isn鈥檛 great for tire rubber and it can crack when it freezes. Put some wood boards under the tires to prevent the cold (frozen) cement floor from also contributing.


Preparing your exhaust and other chrome parts for winter: pretty crucial. Get some really light weight oil, like WD40, in the muffler ends and any possible drain holes. Put a few plastic bags, balled up into the exhaust ends. This will prevent moisture from entering. Finally, use some plastic bags to cover the exhaust and other crucial chrome parts. It keeps moisture off, and will slow/prevent rusting. If you look at my Hond VTX Wallpaper, you can see my Honda VTX 1300 has lots of surface area鈥檚 which could receive lots of damage with out proper preparation.

Before you take it out again, double check all the fluids, check the battery, and just everything common sense tells you might not be in great condition after not being used for 4 or 5 months. Ride safe.

Adjust the valves.
If you can't remember when the last time they were adjusted, then it's time to do it now.
It's over 10 years old.
Leaking valves will give starting problems.
Tight valves are caused from the valve face pounding into the valve seat - waring down the metal unevenly producing leaks.
Loose valves are caused by carbon build up between the valve face and valve seat - the carbon will not build up evenly, producing gaps and creating leaks.
Changing the spark plugs will help a little.

condensation and cold make the gasoline harder to burn. Get on the bike ,,,try to start it,,then stop and wait a minute,, then start it again. Most likely it will start .
That guy who wrote the bible for you is nuts.

bikes just dont like the cold i have had all makes, many models, and its all the same. just keep your battery charged and choke it

I have a 1992 r6 and just went through the same thing .I replaced mybattery an solved the problem.

sounds like a choke problem..

Do you mean it sounds like the battery is dead or it turns over but just doesn't want to start?

get a fuel injected bike...

problem solved