engine should stall if air box intake is covered right?

Hey guys,

Silly question I know, but an engine should stall once the airbox opening is covered, correct? The Seca is away for the season, but I'm thinking I might have a hidden air leak somewhere in the intake route somewhere. An old quad would just sputter and die while covering up the air intake, which caused me to ask this... Not sure if there would be a gasket somewhere on the airbox lid or... that might be causing it, will check in the springtime...

 

XJ air boxes and fittings are not water tight like a ATV intake, so it probably won't stall the engine if you block it off. There are too many joints that will leak air it will most likely keep running. If you open the throttle if will stall out.

 

My Seca stalls if I block the air intake under the seat.

 

It depends on how well the top of the box seals when you tighten the screws. Mine has a slight bend, so it's not airtight. Everything else between the airbox and head should be leak free though.

 

not saying it won't but 30+ year old plastic and rubber parts have a tendancy to shrink and thus you have air leaks. At idle that lets enough air to keep it running. Almost every old bike I have worked on is like that. Its almost unavoidable.

 

In which case he'd also have a noticeable lean condition (backfiring, hanging idle, etc...), unless it was just the airbox boots that were leaky.

 

I'm not disagreeing however there is a considerable difference between the amount of intake air at the duct and any air leaks. Just saying.

Gary H.