ninjette.org

Go Back   ninjette.org > 2008 - 2012 Ninja 250R > 2008 - 2012 Ninja 250R Tech Talk

Notices

Reply
 
Thread Tools
Old October 14th, 2010, 10:44 AM   #1
zev42
ninjette.org member
 
zev42's Avatar
 
Name: Michelle
Location: Covina, CA
Join Date: Aug 2009

Motorcycle(s): 2008 Ninja 250R

Posts: 89
Bike wont start, please help?

So I left my bike neglected and unattended for a few months (totally didn't plan on this), and when I finally started it, it was dead. I charged the battery, but after about 30 minutes of trying to start the bike, the battery died again and I was told that the battery is dead and done for. So I bought a new battery, but turns out that was only a part of the problem. I added Sea Foam thinking that it might help out, and it did (somewhat), but the bike won't stay on longer than 3-5 seconds.

I got a quote from a local shop (Bert's Mega Mall) and they quoted me $400 to take a look at the bike, however I'm being told that $400 is way too much and Bert's is just insane. Plus that doesn't include the cost of getting the bike towed to their shop.

Is there anything I can do at home before I take it to the shop? Maybe there's something I missed?
zev42 is offline   Reply With Quote




Old October 14th, 2010, 11:05 AM   #2
g21-30
ninjette.org certified postwhore
 
g21-30's Avatar
 
Name: Sam
Location: Northern Virginia
Join Date: Nov 2008

Motorcycle(s): Ninja 250R 2009

Posts: A lot.
Check all the links at the bottom of the page!

Bottom line.....you need to clean your carbs and possibly the tank. Seafoam is good, but you have to know how to use it. Use the $400 to learn how to DIY!
g21-30 is offline   Reply With Quote


Old October 14th, 2010, 11:11 AM   #3
tjkamper
ninjette.org certified postwhore
 
tjkamper's Avatar
 
Name: Travis
Location: Warwick, RI
Join Date: Apr 2009

Motorcycle(s): 2009 Ninja 250R

Posts: A lot.
If the bike ran well before you parked it, then do the obvious things first.

Make sure you are getting fuel. Make sure there are no vacuum leaks. Check every hose and make sure everything is good. Go a head and drain the tank and put in fresh gas. (Put the old in your lawnmower). See if it starts.

If it doesn't, check to see if you are getting spark by pulling out the plugs and grounding them. (Don't zap yourself it hurts... TRUST ME). If you are getting spark and it still doesn't run, I would start by cleaning the carbs. If gas sits in the carbs for a long period of time, it can gunk them up and then it won't run for crap. Clean, and visually sync the carbs. Then install and fire it up.

If that doesn't work then it could get interesting.
__________________________________________________
Addicted to anything that has an engine and rolls.
tjkamper is offline   Reply With Quote


Old October 14th, 2010, 11:35 AM   #4
dubojr1
ninjette.org certified postwhore
 
dubojr1's Avatar
 
Name: Jason
Location: Jacksonville, Florida
Join Date: May 2010

Motorcycle(s): 09 Ninja 250R SE, 07 Honda CRF230F, 06 Honda CRF150F

Posts: A lot.
What ever you do don't pay that shop $400! Also be careful starting on the bike for extended periods. The starter is not made to do all that cranking. Crank a few times and then let the starter cool. No sense in creating more problems right.
__________________________________________________
09 250R SE: Paying it forward one post at a time!

Don't forget to add yourself to our Member Map
dubojr1 is offline   Reply With Quote


Old October 14th, 2010, 01:45 PM   #5
mrlmd
ninjette.org sage
 
mrlmd's Avatar
 
Name: Marc
Location: Crawfordville, Florida
Join Date: Jan 2010

Motorcycle(s): 2005 Suzuki S50, 2006 Kawasaki Ninja EX250F, 1990 Honda PC800, 2000 Yamaha TW200

Posts: 848
You are using the choke appropriately right?

How did they determine your battery was toast? Possibly you didn't charge it long enough to get it up to full charge and you could have charged it up again and retried before you bought a new one. If you are using something like a battery tender with less than a 1 amp charge, that could take 18 hours or more to fully recharge it. A 2 amp charger could take 6-8 hrs. or more to do it. One or two hours on the charger won't bring it up all the way. The only way to tell if it is bad is to have it fully charged, then put it on a load tester. Saying it's bad because you tried to start the bike for 30 min and drained it again is not as good, and they may have just wanted to sell you a new battery. The same thing can happen to the new battery trying to start the bike for 1/2 hr.
Also, just to throw this out, regular gas can sit for a few months and still be OK. It doesn't hurt to replace it with fresh gas though.
And for the engine to fire, you need all three things - gas, spark, and air. So you have to go through all three systems as suggested and see what's amiss. Use the choke with a freshly charged battery, or hook it up with jumper cables to a non-running car, and it should start. Put some Seafoam or Berryman's in the gas and in the carbs directly if you can, to soak overnight, and try it again, before you start removing the carbs to clean them. You could drain the carbs and see what's in there, if there's any gas at all.
Another stupid thing that can happen and prevent the bike from starting is having some critter make a nest and take up residence in your exhaust or air box/cleaner. Take a look in both of those and see if they are clogged.
mrlmd is offline   Reply With Quote


Old October 14th, 2010, 01:57 PM   #6
rockNroll
.
 
rockNroll's Avatar
 
Name: rock
Location: greenville, south carolina
Join Date: Jun 2009

Motorcycle(s): black

Posts: A lot.
Remove your air filter. Choke open (not applied). Hold throttle wide open. Give a quick shot of starting fluid into the hole where the air filter was. Try to start the engine. If the engine tries to start, let the throttle close. Do this a few times until it seems that the bike wants to stay running longer. I'm telling you to do this because we wanna keep things simple at first and I think your carbs are just empty and and need to fill with fuel. After the engine has hit and run on the starting fluid a few times, then pull your choke closed and try to start it on the tank fuel.
__________________________________________________
Always get a second opinion because most of these people are makin' this stuff up
rockNroll is offline   Reply With Quote


Old October 14th, 2010, 02:02 PM   #7
mrlmd
ninjette.org sage
 
mrlmd's Avatar
 
Name: Marc
Location: Crawfordville, Florida
Join Date: Jan 2010

Motorcycle(s): 2005 Suzuki S50, 2006 Kawasaki Ninja EX250F, 1990 Honda PC800, 2000 Yamaha TW200

Posts: 848
Too bad these bikes don't have a prime function on the petcock, that would at least make sure that gas gets into the carbs. His carbs could be empty.
mrlmd is offline   Reply With Quote


Old October 14th, 2010, 03:52 PM   #8
plutonium
ninjette.org newbie
 
Name: Plutonium
Location: Seattle
Join Date: Sep 2010

Motorcycle(s): 2009 Ninja 250

Posts: 7
I let my bike sit in the garage for 9 months last year without winterizing it (really dumb on my part). I know I had to get the fuel drained, carbs cleaned, but I really didn't have the space, tools and courage to do it by myself. I called up my local dealer and they hauled the bike in. They charged around $270 for towing bike for 10 miles, 2.5 hours of labor, cleaned carbs, drained gas, a few other safety checks and test ride. Is $270 pricey? Yes but I see it as a lesson learned. Is it worth the peace of mind? Yes. Will I let it sit through all winter without any Stabil again? Absolutely no.

I think you can try charging the battery overnight like mrlmd suggested. If the bike is relatively new, I doubt you need a brand new battery.

Good luck!
plutonium is offline   Reply With Quote


Old October 14th, 2010, 05:43 PM   #9
Havok
Internet Slut
 
Havok's Avatar
 
Name: Jeff
Location: L.A.
Join Date: Sep 2010

Motorcycle(s): 04 FZ1, 07 FZ6

Posts: A lot.
The 250's are not that heavy, a make shift ramp, pickup truck and some straps should save you the towing cost.
Havok is offline   Reply With Quote


Old October 14th, 2010, 07:27 PM   #10
MikeCG23
Ride this!
 
MikeCG23's Avatar
 
Name: Mike
Location: Salt Lake City, UT
Join Date: Aug 2010

Motorcycle(s): 2009 Kawasaki Ninja 250R

Posts: 78
Quote:
Originally Posted by havok View Post
the 250's are not that heavy, a make shift ramp, pickup truck and some straps should save you the towing cost.
+ 1000
MikeCG23 is offline   Reply With Quote


Old November 9th, 2010, 12:37 PM   #11
kn250
ninjette.org member
 
Name: pao_thao
Location: Owasso , Oklahoma
Join Date: Aug 2010

Motorcycle(s): 2009 kawasaki ninja 250r

Posts: 13
check your spark plug

check your spark plug if look it don't hurt to get new spark plug... my 250 did that too i can't figure out what wrong with my bike till i change the spark plug i never thought it would be it but it is thought so check your spark plug it my have over flow
kn250 is offline   Reply With Quote


Old November 9th, 2010, 01:02 PM   #12
mrlmd
ninjette.org sage
 
mrlmd's Avatar
 
Name: Marc
Location: Crawfordville, Florida
Join Date: Jan 2010

Motorcycle(s): 2005 Suzuki S50, 2006 Kawasaki Ninja EX250F, 1990 Honda PC800, 2000 Yamaha TW200

Posts: 848
So this thread is over 3 weeks old. What happened? I assume somehow you or the dealer got it running again.
mrlmd is offline   Reply With Quote


Reply




Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
- - -Bike Wont Start - - - Triple R 2008 - 2012 Ninja 250R Tech Talk 1 July 31st, 2014 06:54 AM
Tank under pressure and bike wont start Shawn250 2008 - 2012 Ninja 250R Tech Talk 4 May 13th, 2012 01:42 PM
Friend's bike wont start... ideas? setasai General Motorcycling Discussion 7 August 3rd, 2011 07:41 PM
bike wont start after new flasher relay onizthegnome 2008 - 2012 Ninja 250R Tech Talk 7 December 12th, 2010 12:32 PM
uhh, bike wont start. ajaygraci 2008 - 2012 Ninja 250R Tech Talk 37 June 24th, 2009 06:39 PM


Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


Motorcycle Safety Foundation

All times are GMT -7. The time now is 08:41 AM.


Website uptime monitoring Host-tracker.com
Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
User Alert System provided by Advanced User Tagging (Lite) - vBulletin Mods & Addons Copyright © 2024 DragonByte Technologies Ltd.
Except where otherwise noted, all site contents are © Copyright 2022 ninjette.org, All rights reserved.