New member, serious problem. (BR 150)

[Arbiter]

Hello everyone,

My name is Collin and I have a problem.

I guess a little background info is in order for a first post though...anyway, I'm 18, I'll be a private pilot ASEL in less than two weeks, and I have a Baja reaction 150.

If you want to talk aviation, please feel free to PM me, but now's about the buggy.

Bought an '07 Reaction 150 as-is off a buddy for 100 bucks...I know, you're thinking "you get what you pay for" but I just got a new job, had some money to through around, and said why not. It was definitely a fixer-upper, but I was okay with that for 100 bucks. Battery was dead when I went to look at it, but surprisingly started right up off a jump with a little starter fluid. That was about the only thing that went well...brought it home, got a jump, and sped off to the trails with my buddy in his kart for a few hours...engine put out a fair amount of blue smoke, but we thought it was just excess oil burnoff...you can already see where this was going. Engine would slowly lose power until I had the pedal to the floor and a barely idling engine, then shutoff...replaced rings/piston, cylinder was fine. Got the engine back in the cart, no power...wiring harness is messed up, I don't know. Ordered a new one of those, didn't get it put on yet, but jumped directly to the starter so I could put around for a little bit, and that worked. Thing sticks in drive/neutral now because previous owner slammed it in reverse while it was moving...So obviously a transmission rebuild would be required...not looking forward to that.

TL;DR version:

[*]I have a Baja Reaction 150 I bought for $100 bucks, already put an additional $100 into it, and that's not nearly everything.

[*]I've had nothing but problems with the GY6 platform

[*]I want something more reliable.

My question to you is this:

Keep pouring money into the GY6? (NOTE: The Kart itself is just great, I love the frame. VERY sturdy.)

OR

Buy a new engine?

I REALLY want to buy a new engine, namely this one, the 110cc (Semi) Automatic Engine with Upper Starter 152FMH. (http://www.chinese-parts-canada.com/new_motors.html)

I can't seem to find specs anywhere for that engine, but having some gears to work with would be just awesome in the Reaction.

PLEASE, any info is welcome. I am very new to this hobby and I would love to learn anything about it I can.

Thanks so much

EDIT: Very open to other recommendations, fire away.

[pghruby]

The Reaction transmission is known to not stay in forward due to weak return spring. See if adding an additional spring helps your problem.

[Arbiter]

Thanks for the reply...do you mean adding a spring to the internals of the transmission, or just to keep the tension up?

[pghruby]

Look at the picture I posted. Add that additional spring to the outside of the transmission so the linkage does not pull out of forward.

[Arbiter]

Sorry, I was on my phone earlier..for some reason the picture didn't load.

Anyway, I'll give that a shot, probably tomorrow and let you know what's what.

Thanks again.

Also, I forgot to mention in my first post that the lobe on my cam was rubbing something the wrong way, because it's a little worn down...I'll see if I can take a high-res picture tomorrow, any ideas what might be causing this?

[pghruby]

If the lobe is worn, you will have to replace the cam. If it is scared you may be able to polish it up with high-numbered grit paper.

It was either caused by a misadjusted valve or lack of oil.

[Arbiter]

Okay, the engine runs now, and the transmission seems to be okay...now the problem is the cylinder head spacer. One of the bolts holding the valve head on won't go in because one of the two holes in the spacer is stripped. Every where I go on the internet, I see a different style valve cover, with the bolts on the side. On mine, they're right on top in each corner, and because of this I can't find a spacer. What are my options here?


Thanks again

[pghruby]

Does your valve cover attach with only two bolts instead of four? That is a less popular version of the the engine that uses different exhaust, head, cylinder and cases than the more common 150's. The SUNL 150B engine is also used on some Lifan quads.

[Arbiter]

Yes, the valve cover attaches using only two bolts, in opposite corners. This is a GY6 engine, but like you said, I guess there is a second revision? Is there any way possible to get the head spacer for this version anymore, or am I just S.O.L.?

[pghruby]

The parts are harder to source, but I will see if I can find someone that sells them...

You could purchase a heli-coil to repair the threads - They should be available from hardware or automotive stores.

[Arbiter]

Okay, will do. We'll go to the local hardware store and see if they can help us out with the heli-coil. I'll post back with my results. Thank you so much for your time.

[Arbiter]

Still trying to secure a heli-coil set, but in the meantime, what kind of engines would you recommend to replace the GY6 with? Really trying to get off as cheap as possible on the new engine, but I don't want something that's going to crap out and die. Let's set a price limit of $400, is there really anything out there?

Also, a manual or semi-auto transmission wouldn't be a terrible thing either.

[Arbiter]

Ended up just using longer 6mm bolts with a combination of rubber and metal washers at the top, worked great for a few days. Rode it kind of hard last night, and I lost compression and the engine shut off. A pretty decent amount of oil leaked out. Went to take the valve cover off today, and didn't even have to break the bolts loose. The threads that were at the bottom are now in pretty bad shape, and a guy that with a 7mm tap won't be in until Wednesday.

So my question is this: Does the new style GY6 valve cover bolt into the cylinder? (through the outer four holes in the spacer)

Thanks

[pghruby]

The 4-bolt heads are different and do not use that spacer. I never had a 2-bolt engine sitting around to see what other parts fit. The stud spacing is even different on the 2-bolt which requires its own special cam and gaskets. I will see if I can look for that spacer again...