A friend has a 2002 Sportster that he is planning on selling to me for a very good price. The problem is that it has been sitting in his garage for about 5 years completely undriven.

1) First of all is there anything I should know in particular about the 2002 Sportster model that would make me want to stay away.

2) What kind of problems will I encounter with a bike that has been sitting for 5 years? Obviously a new battery will be needed, and probably new tires, but am I going to have major issues with the fuel system? Will the fuel have turned to goop already? Will it basically just need an oil change and a carb cleaning or will it need a full engine overhaul?

Thanks in advance.

 

All fuel will have to be removed and then tank has to be flushed,hopefully no rust, then the lines need to be changed probably(I would)Carb needs to be taken apart and cleaned thoroughly i.e jets taken out and cleaned and inspected( for varnish in the little holes) I would change the plugs and change the oil twice once before startup and again after it gets good and hot to flush out the stuff that came loose after being ran for a bit. And like you said battery ,tires ,maybe grips. Sounds like a fun weekend project!

 

I don't have a sportster so forgive my ignorance, but if there are any other lubes - gearbox? primary? - they should be replaced too. Same with fork oil - not of same urgency, but sooner the better. And above all, BRAKE FLUIDS - complete flush and fill. Not only for safety, but because the old stuff has probably soaked up a lot of water and is slowly corroding parts - if it hasn't already, it may soon corrode pistons enough to cost you a complete rebuild.

Personally, I'd put on new throttle and clutch cables and save the take-offs for spares (they might get you home some day on which you'd otherwise have walked).

Advice above is good on tank and carb cleaning. If you don't tackle that right away (you're probably anxious to start and run a bit - I would be!) you should at least put in completely fresh gas (drain the rest and mow your lawn with it) and run a few tanks of fresh gas through there with an oz./gallon of SeaFoam (my favorite), Techron, or the like added. I'd also put a bit of Marvel Mystery Oil in that first load of new oil (use inexpensive but not "cheap" dino oil and get it out of there within a couple hundred miles -filter too). At some point you should pull and completely drain/clean the tank and petcock, and your carbs may well need at least a cleaning and possibly a rebuild. Lots of good information and tutorials out there on these subjects.

Change or clean the air filter. New fuel lines are a real good idea, no matter how good the old ones look (makes me think of the Cramps: "Don't eat stuff off the sidewalk...no matter how good it looks....")

Is there a fuel filter on your bike? I'd change or clean that too.

Any other seals/gaskets you can think of MAY need changing in short order. If they're not leaking at present, I'd wait a bit, change to synthetic, see if they do then. If not, you may be good....or it may take a bit longer for them to show their true colors. Be watchful.

Bringing 'em back is fun! Yes, a bit of maintenance, but well worth it. Good luck!

 

Here is a link to a 2005 Sportster service manual on .pdf it should stiil be there. The manual will be somewhat different for an 02 but close. http://www.sendspace.com/file/h952ae

Get a new battery, pull maxi fuse and install it. Siphon all old gas out and put in 1 gallon of new gas. Check oil to make sure some is in the tank. It should be between the 2 marks on the dipstick. If not it may have leaked down into the engine but top it off (20w50) because you are going to drain it anyway.
Remove spark plug wires and rotate the engine a few times with the starter in short bursts. Put wires back on and fire up the engine...do not goose the throttle until it has run for 3-4 minutes at least. If it won't start remove air cleaner and shoot some light shots of starting fluid in. Once you get it to run...follow BRIANK's advice above.

 

put a battery charger on it, charge for awhile and start it up. if it doesn't start with a charge, get a new battery and start it. i wouldn't tear anything apart unless you need to. if needs anything to make it safe for the road then fix that. i would put new gas in the tank too. check the oil level. change it after you get it started. this isn't rocket science.

 

+1, speaking from experience on definately draining old fuel and completely flushing and cleaning out the fuel tank, change fuel lines, and take apart the carb and give it a good cleaning . . . assuming old fuel has sat in the bike for five years. Highly suggest obtaining a service manual and performing a full service of all fluids as they will surely be pretty gunked up.

I had a small bit of old fuel sitting in my little buell blast for about a year while it sat and I did NOT clean it out. After the year of sitting I just filled up the tank with new gas after cleaning the carb and have paid the price since. Every one hundred miles the carb completely gunks up again causing total fuel starvation until I deal with the gunk leftover in the fuel tank.

 

So other than siphoning out the old gas and putting new gas in it....what is the best way to clean out the gas tank of a bike? You obviously can't flush it out with water or anything.

Will some seafoam in with the gas for the first few tanks do the trick?

 

Thanks for the file. That will come in handy since I have never worked on a VTwin before.

 

used this on mine and will swear by it. take the tank off and remove the petcock(screen inside will need to be cleaned) plug the hole and put some bb's and a cup of diesel in the tank. shake it up alot, flush it all out. should knock all the loose rust out. don't use kreme to seal the tank. read in other forums that it will flake and fall apart in the tank after a few years.

 

Yep, seafoam or techron are good. Just don't overdose it. I would siphon the old gas out then fill with new & techron for the first 5 tankfuls. Depending on what kind of garbage siphons out and if the bike will start woud determine if I disassemble it.