[JoRoMaya]

Honda CD200 Roadmaster Rebuild/Restore

Hi All,

My name is Johan and I'm from South Africa. I've been riding motorcycles for almost 5 years now, but was recently intrigued by older motorcycles and the prospect of getting one that needs a little TLC and that I could possibly then restore.

After going through a couple of makes I settled on a Honda CD200 Roadmaster, a model I believe was exclusive to South Africa and Pakistan.

The model I got was, according to the previous owner, the last CD200 sold in SA, a blue 2005 model with 45000km on the clock (6v with CDI ignition).

The bike needed a bit of attention from the start, bot looked good overall.

I struggled to get it started initially. It turned out that the plugs were 'fouled', so I replaced it and it went well. It stood for a day or so and when I wanted to start it again it refused. After checking the plugs I noticed that they were fouled again, but not as much as as the older set. I checked and did a couple of other corrections while I was at it.

I cleaned the carb and changed the petrol filter. Unfortunately none of this made a difference and it would not start. I then removed the air filter and it looked dry. To my surprise I tried to start the bike without the air filter and it did, however it ran with a pop pop and splutter. I also noticed some white smoke coming from the right exhaust (if standing behind the bike).

I'm in the process of cleaning the air filter and putting it back on, but I'm wondering if that would solve the issue, somehow I doubt it.

I'm at a crossroads now of whether I should start thinking of taking it from top to bottom and 'restore' it, thus covering all possible problems.

So depending on what the air filter does and your comments and suggestions I might be posting some progress logs quite soon.

Regards,
Johan

 

[JoRoMaya]

Hi All,

Update: I noticed after trying to start the bike again this morning that the spark plugs were a black wet-ish. I took both the plugs off and after investigation with a flashlight there is definitely oil being pulled into the engine. It must have been a slow problem as it looks quite black and wet inside. Hopefully no major damage has been done.

From what I've read I think it could either valve stem seals or piston rings. Any other areas I need to look at or consider for oil leaking into the engine?

I'll keep you posted.

 

[nasirn]

hi,
i had this same problem with my bike since 6 months before and it right side piston i found was seized means had some black spots on it and gaskets were leak too ,gasket leaks r ring piston one of them is defaulter causing this problem. white smoking is due to burning of engine oil with fuel check engine oil level also and its condition.

 

[JoRoMaya]

Hi nasirn,

I checked my oil levels and it seems high.

I could this possibly have contributed to the oil getting into the cylinders?

 

[nasirn]

may be high level of oil could cast little bit smoke also u will have to notice when engine is cool there will be more smoke coming and when it become warm means after a while after remaining being start there will b less smoke exhausting.secondly when u park ur bike after some drive look at ground beneath engine is there are few drops of oil there fallen from engine.if there is no leakage out side any where.then sure wring r piston had some defect but before u finalize also open the head cover and see the valves they should be dry. is there any leakage in them are not if valves seals r leak then no need to go for ring r pistons just change valve seals..

 

[JoRoMaya]

Hi All, After my initial issues I found the following, The oil was over filled, about 2l as apposed to 1.5l, I suspect this caused oil to be pulled into the cylinders. The tank on closer inspection had a lot of fine rust and sediment inside. I also have some kind of short as my speedo lights would sometimes just turn off (without bike running), and if I turn the handlebars, it will come back on. In the meantime I started on some odd cleaning. Tank and seat has been removed. Slow progress, but a start. I'm still playing with the thought of keeping the original color or changing it to something 'new' albeit not 100% original. Here are some pictures.

Tank and Seat off

Tank will need attention

Filter inside the tank, filled with rust and sediment

Foot-peg pins and washers soaking in vinegar, pleased with the results

Keep you posted.

 

[longdistancerider]

Interesting bike, there's so many variations that Honda made of the various models. Lots of chrome, 6V with CDI, huge fenders are the things that stand out. Plus being a 2005 model that resembles the 60's and 70's model in the US. Way cool. Not going to be much help with specifics on this one since they were a limited distribution and even the major European parts supplier doesn't recognize this model.

 

[JoRoMaya]

Hi All,

I've removed my coil and tested it. I've got the following readings and wanted to know if anyone can advise if these readings are still OK for a 6v coil (similar to the cd200 Benly):

Between the coil wires: 1.9 ohm
Between the spark plug wires: 11650 ohm

From what I've read both readings seem a bit low?

Thanks in advance for the assistance.

 

[Steeve]

Hi Johan. Nice looking bike!
I wonder if your problem could be a leaking carb float valve. If a bike runs. and then you let it sit overnight and it won't start, then you pull the plug and it is wet, check if the plug smells of petrol. If so. the carb may have overfilled and flooded the cylinder. An overfilled crankcase can also be a symptom of this, since the petrol can flow past the rings into the crankcase. When you found the oil level too high did you notice that it was very thin and smelled of petrol? If the leak is small, you can minimize your problems by making sure the fuel petcock is closed when you turn off the bike.
One other thing, according to Wikipedia, the CD series bikes shared the engine and frame with CM series bikes. I have a 1981 CM200t Twinstar and I can see many similarities to your bike. Mine is 12V but earlier Twinstars were 6V. I imagine if you search the forums for these bikes, a lot of the information will be applicable to you.
Regards,
Steeve

 

[JoRoMaya]

Thanks Steeve, Unfortunately I did not smell the old oil for traces of pterol, but I'll defniately keep this in mind when reassembling the build. I've progressed far with the taking appart and hope to post my progress by the end of the week.

 

[JoRoMaya]

Hi Steeve, I has some time today to revisit the old oil which I have kept. There is a definite petrol smell to it. I'm draining the new oil I put in recently as I'm planning to take the engine off today. I'll see if the new oil also has the petrol smell which would be a good indication of what you described above.

 

[JoRoMaya]

Hi All,

Work has been busy the last few weeks and I've not had time to update my progress yet. The bike is completely disassembled now. I'm giving it a break working on the bike itself, but in the meantime I'm part hunting. Just got my new cam chain for R150, equivalent to about $10 / 7 pounds. Also got my Haynes manual on CD. I've got the following heading my way, carb, petcock, mirrors, grips, headlight shell and headlight brackets. I'll keep you posted with pictures and progress.

 

[Hazman]

Hello JoRoMaya, I hope you might be able to help me out a little bit with my restore project.
Please check inbox.

 

[JoRoMaya]

Hi All,

I'm in the process of starting the putting back together of my Honda CD200 project.

I have a quick question regarding the rear torque arm. In my Haynes manual I have two conflicting pictures of the order of the rubber washer.

Could anyone tell me which is the correct order (I forgot to take a pic of it before I took it off ) Thanks!!!

 

[HondaCB200Lady]

Haynes are renowned for getting things wrong. Looking at the microfiches for the earlier CD200 it looks like the bolt comes through the brake plate, then the rubber washer, then the torque arm, washer, nut and finally split pin.

Honda Cd200ta parts list partsmanual partsfiche

Honda Cd200ta F-10 Rear Brake Panel - schematic partsfiche

Good luck with your bike.

Irene

 

[ancientdad]

Hi All,

My name is Johan and I'm from South Africa. I've been riding motorcycles for almost 5 years now, but was recently intrigued by older motorcycles and the prospect of getting one that needs a little TLC and that I could possibly then restore.

After going through a couple of makes I settled on a Honda CD200 Roadmaster, a model I believe was exclusive to South Africa and Pakistan.

The model I got was, according to the previous owner, the last CD200 sold in SA, a blue 2005 model with 45000km on the clock (6v with CDI ignition).


The bike needed a bit of attention from the start, bot looked good overall.

I struggled to get it started initially. It turned out that the plugs were 'fouled', so I replaced it and it went well. It stood for a day or so and when I wanted to start it again it refused. After checking the plugs I noticed that they were fouled again, but not as much as as the older set. I checked and did a couple of other corrections while I was at it.

I cleaned the carb and changed the petrol filter. Unfortunately none of this made a difference and it would not start. I then removed the air filter and it looked dry. To my surprise I tried to start the bike without the air filter and it did, however it ran with a pop pop and splutter. I also noticed some white smoke coming from the right exhaust (if standing behind the bike).

I'm in the process of cleaning the air filter and putting it back on, but I'm wondering if that would solve the issue, somehow I doubt it.

I'm at a crossroads now of whether I should start thinking of taking it from top to bottom and 'restore' it, thus covering all possible problems.

So depending on what the air filter does and your comments and suggestions I might be posting some progress logs quite soon.

Regards,
Johan

Johan - what a cool looking bike. Nice find, and it's always interesting to see what the manufacturers offer to other countries and continents that isn't available in your area. Also, I like the results you got from the vinegar-soak for the hardware. Definitely going to try that on mine, I have a bunch of dirty nuts and bolts. Thanks!

 

[HondaCB200Lady]

If you use vinegar for cleaning rust off make sure you clean off the vinegar and coat with WD40, oil or similar to stop flash rust. I left some nuts and bolts soaking and forgot about them and where they were out of the vinegar the rust was twice as bad as when I put them in. :roll:

Irene

 

[JoRoMaya]

Thanks Irene,

I'll definitely do it in the order you've mentioned.

@Tom: Yes, the apple cider vinegar worked great, but be sure, as Irene mentioned, to wash the vinegar off and then coat with an oil, else it will flash rust like crazy. It happened to the small washers, but luckily I could easily replace those.

 

[JoRoMaya]

While sitting and waiting for me to give it some attention the bike seems to have taken on a new form...

 

[JoRoMaya]

Hi All,

Update: My project has 'changed' from a complete original restore to a custom re-build. It had partly been brought on by budget and time constraints.

I had therefore decided to sell some of the original parts for funding the project further. I intend to keep a lot of the original look and feel of the CD200, with some new stuff added here and there.

My first replacement was the stock shocks. This weekend I had some time to install the new ones onto the bike and I'm pleased with the results.