Hello,
I have an 88 Kawasaki Bayou 185 that starts up after a couple of pulls on the pull start with starter fluid and idles, but when you push on the throttle it revs a little and if you hold the trottle it doesn't rev high. If you put it into gear and push the throttle it rides really slow and some times the rpm will go up and down. Would a bad battery cause this problem? It ran but rough when I bought it. The person I bought it from said he had the cam chain changed and rebuild the carburetor. The old plug was wrong and covered with black sut so I changed it to the correct plug and the air filter was a home made one so I bought a new one.

Please help.
Thanks

 

Black is a sure sign of being rich,since it idles ok I'd check the main jet for any blockage as well as the slide diaphram under the top cover on the top of the carburetor,it could be as simple as water in the fuel,weak coil,{timing off a tooth or two},float setting ect. I'd recommend getting a service manual off Eb*y,it will come in really handy troubleshooting my guess would be timing,valve lash or the carburetor