Modern Vespa

Has anyone ever figured out the solution to the problem that some of have with the bendix sticking in cool weather? (LX150)
Is there some kind of lubricant on the shaft that thickens? If so, could it be cleaned off and replaced with something thinner or left dry?
Now that the mornings have been under 70 deg. F mine has been at it again.
I didn't have any problems all summer. Now I'm having to hit the starter button a couple or a few times before the bendix will engage.
And, please don't say, "low battery." Mine did it all last winter, even using my Battery Tender every night.
I know we had this discussion last fall and was wondering if anyone came up with a real solution.

Thanks

Not 100% sure how the Bendix works on these.

If it's the solenoid type Bendix, the spring could just be to weak and the colder it gets the weaker it get.

If it is the type that gets pushed out by the start motor as it starts to spin it could be lack of or to thick a lube, but could be weak spring too.

Can the front of the starter be pulled off easily?

Wayne B

WD40 - use it to blast all the belt dust of it . then dry with a paper towel and replace + little bit of grease on bearing in side case

Not yet.

I've been pondering this one, too. Mine behaves reasonably well if I ride every day (always engages on the first or second push of the starter button in warm weather, maybe the second or third in cold weather). I too keep my bike on the battery tender most of the time and have a six-month-old YTX12bs battery, so that isn't the problem for me either. It's not a real problem... just a minor annoyance.

These Bendix (or pinion) gears are the type that relies on inertia for engagement -- not a solenoid -- so they require low internal friction in the mechanism and quick acceleration on the part of the starter motor. The shop manual says NOT to lubricate the gear mechanism (presumably fearing excess lubricant will get onto the belt).

Later this fall I'm going to be pulling out my engine to install a 190cc kit, and I'll probably take advantage of that to take my starter motor apart to make sure the internal connections, commutator, and brushes are OK. Less-than-optimal starter motor performance may play a role in the gear not engaging reliably. I may also experiment with using a tiny amount of a high-tech dry lube I have on the gear shaft as well.

We need to come up with a proper name for this, so we can track it. Maybe something like 'Lazy Bendix Syndrome' or LBS. It still happens to my LX - so far I have only come to the conclusion that it is not related to the battery. So far my LX has never failed to start (eventually) - I would be interested in hearing from anyone who has actually had a complete failure or where the problem has degraded to the point where it has become a serious inconvenience, that might make me take a more serious look at the problem.

I noticed my wife's GT 200 doing this occasionally too. don't know what's causing the issue. i do know we have replaced a few ay the shop under warranty because of this.

I had a total failure, for about a week it occasionally took a couple attempts to get it going. Then one day at work it just 'upped and died". It wouldn't engage for anything. 'had to have it towed and the bendix replaced.