bike died, and now won't start

[davidgz]

07 Ninja 250 3900 miles.

1) Other day was riding home from work, and it started acting like it was running out of gas, and died. (It has plenty of fuel in it.) I was able to start it several times with full choke but it would only go to about 1000 RPM, and die when I turned off the choke or tried to give it some throttle.

2) That night I came to the forum here, and read about trying it with the gas tank open. It ran great that night, and I let it run for several minutes with no problem.

3) Next morning after I let it run for several minutes while preparing to leave, and seemed to be fine. Then it died and started the same thing where it would barely run at 1000 rpm with full choke.

4) Over the last few days I added 2 ozs of "Seafoam" to the approx 2 gallons of gas in the tank, and it has deteriorated to where it won't start at all.

5) I have run the battery down too low to try again. I ordered a "Battery Tender Junior" at the advice of this forum.

6) Will someone one PLEASE tell me after charging the battery what my next step should be to get it running? It had been running perfectly for the month or so since I bought it until this problem. Thank you for any, and all suggested actions.

[kkim]

are you mechanically inclined?

[davidgz]

I would say on a scale of 1-10, I am about a 5 as far as mechanical things go. I changed my Ninja's oil successfully 2 weeks ago. I successfully took apart, and reassembled/repaired the carb on my scooter a few months ago........command me oh great and wise Ninja master, and I shall endeavor to comply.

Originally Posted by kkim

are you mechanically inclined?

[kkim]

I'll try...

when the bike does run, does it run great or so-so?

how long have you had the bike? mileage?

off the top of my head, it sounds like a fuel delivery problem.

[davidgz]

I feel that it ran great. Started fast, idled smooth, accelerated very well.

Had it a little over a month (rode it almost every day). it has almost 4000 miles on it.

On the left side it has what looks like some kind of fuel valve. Has a line from tank, one to carbs, and another I am not sure where it goes. Looks like it had some kind of strap to hold it in place that is missing. Think it was there until recently. Maybe the weight of the assembly is crimping the fuel passage at the bottom? Kind of looks like it may be. Guess I'll start there after the battery is charged. That sound right?

Originally Posted by kkim

I'll try...

when the bike does run, does it run great or so-so?

how long have you had the bike? mileage?

off the top of my head, it sounds like a fuel delivery problem.

[kkim]

the fuel valve (petcock) has 2 hoses running to it. one is a fuel line that the gas runs from the tank to the carbs and the other is a vacuum hose that the petcock uses as an off/on device. when the engine is on, vacuum in that hose will allow gas to flow through the petcock.

check the smaller (vacuum) hose. It should run from the back of the petcock to the top of the carb somewhere. check that it's on firmly and that it's not cracked or frayed and is not pinched off anywhere.

[davidgz]

Tried to fix my bike today. Got a few problems: First, what I think is the fuel valve (petcock) has 4 hoses coming out (not 2). one marked tank, one marked carb, one goes into a box right in front of it which I think may be called the airbox? The fourth line goes up in the same direction as the one marked carb. Any guess where that one goes? The other carb maybe?

Second problem: I need to take the plastics off to see better, and gain access to where the hoses go, and can't get the allen wrench bolt out that holds the mirror on. Can you tell me what size bit I need to take it off? I will buy one for my cordless drill, and see if I can get it off that way unless you have a better idea. Thanks so much.

Originally Posted by kkim

the fuel valve (petcock) has 2 hoses running to it. one is a fuel line that the gas runs from the tank to the carbs and the other is a vacuum hose that the petcock uses as an off/on device. when the engine is on, vacuum in that hose will allow gas to flow through the petcock.

check the smaller (vacuum) hose. It should run from the back of the petcock to the top of the carb somewhere. check that it's on firmly and that it's not cracked or frayed and is not pinched off anywhere.

[kkim]

do these help?

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Hose_ro...ine_fuel_tanks

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Bodywork_%26_Frame

[davidgz]

Oh dear. The first one definitely helped in a scary way. Had no clue I had a bike with California specs. Kind of makes sense. The guy I bought it from here in North Carolina was in the military, and bought it in Arizona. Not sure if this is going to be a problem or not after I get it running again. Any thoughts?

Second link is helpful, and I will keep, and study it. However, I don't see what size bit I need to buy to remove the bolt that holds the mirror on. It is really really tight, and I don't want to use the wrong head, and strip it. I assume it is a metric size. Guess I'll have to buy a whole set to figure out what size it is if you don't know.

You are being very helpful. I really miss riding my bike. I wish I could have gotten it apart today

Originally Posted by kkim

do these help?

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Hose_ro...ine_fuel_tanks

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Bodywork_%26_Frame

[kkim]

the first link I sent you was for general info on hose routing... I have no idea if your bike is a cali speced bike. Is it? if so, there should some labeling somewhere that reflects it as such. if it is, I'm always amazed where these bikes show up.


yes... almost all hardware on the bike is metric. buy a good set of tools if you plan to work on the bike much. They will pay for themselves in the long run.

[davidgz]

After studying the pictures, I have no doubt that it is indeed a California bike. What I was originally describing as some type of fuel valve is pictured, and described as part of the Ca. emissions system. And, when I removed the seat it did have 3 lines coming out of the tank that are concealed by the seat when in place.

There appears to be enough info in the link for me to take a stab at disabling the California system (after I get the bike running again.) Do you think I should leave it on, or remove it?

Will try to get the tools I need tomorrow after work. Will get back here with an update/further questions in a day or two. Thanks again for all your help.

Originally Posted by kkim

the first link I sent you was for general info on hose routing... I have no idea if your bike is a cali speced bike. Is it? if so, there should some labeling somewhere that reflects it as such. if it is, I'm always amazed where these bikes show up.


yes... almost all hardware on the bike is metric. buy a good set of tools if you plan to work on the bike much. They will pay for themselves in the long run.

[kkim]

I would leave the cali emissions stuff in place for now and concentrate on getting the bike up and running properly. If at a later date you want to remove it, go ahead, but I wouldn't do anything to introduce more possible problems than you have now.

My main purpose of linking that picture was for the hose routing. as you can see, the fuel petcock has 2 hoses running to it. one for the fuel and the other for the vacuum. like I said in my original suggestion, check the vacuum hose to see that's in good shape first and then we can proceed from there.

some other possibilities that you can mull over as we work to fix your bike... any sound plausible?

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Troubleshooting

[davidgz]

Success! I am happy! Got to buy a few more goodies at Harbor Freight tools, that work great. And more important: my Ninja, and I will be riding to work together tomorrow morning.

Learned A LOT from this experience. Thanks again Kelly
After messing with taking off plastics, and tracing fuel, and vacuum lines, adding more fuel (in case I had bad gas): the bike fired up, and seems to be back to normal. In the end I think problem was the fuel petcock switch. I feel rather foolish but I think one of the guys who ride the big bikes at work may have turned it enough to cause the problem I had. I turned it a few times to make sure it moved, and just don't remember if it was in the full on position before I moved it. I only know after I turned it to on, and cranked it a few times it started, and ran fine.

[kkim]

cool

have fun on the bike... ride safe.