Turned bike off while waiting for construction, 5 mins later won't restart

[kchava]

I was coming into work and was stopped along the road by a flagger with a stop sign in his hand due to construction on a road. It was taking a while, so I decided to turn off my engine. About 5 mins later when I was able to move, my bike wouldn't start and eventually I drained the battery and had to get a jump. Has anyone experienced this before or knows why this happened. I was just trying to conserve energy!

2004 Ninja

Krystle

[alex.s]

you probably turned the engine off without turning the key/lights off. lights drained the battery. bike dead.

[kchava]

ur a genius. makes perfect sense, though i didn't realize how quickly it drains. i totally lucked out this time, this experience will probably save me in the future. thanks a lot!

[n4mwd]

I had to go out and play with my Ninja to figure out what you guys were talking about. So it looks like you are saying that you used the KILL switch to stop the engine rather than turning it off at the switch. I checked and the headlight stays on when you do that.

I just learned something new! However, I never use the kill switch myself because I thought it was just for emergencies.

[kchava]

ohh. now i'm doubting what I learned in my MSF course. What does everyone else do?

[CZroe]

Kill switch. To instinctively use it in an emergency, one must program ones self to do so. The manual says to use the key though. I follow MSF instead.

[Alex]

We had a poll going awhile back:

Preferred engine cut-off method?

[n4mwd]

The poll says its neck and neck between the kill switch and the key. Honestly, knowing that it doesn't cut anything else off, and you still have to remove the key, I'm wondering why anyone would use the kill switch on a regular basis.

I would only use it in an emergency such as when the bike gets dropped. The kill switch is usually always in the same place on all bikes. That means that a passerby could always find it should you be incapacitated. That's not true for the key switch which could actually be underneath a bike on its side.

One thing for sure is that when I turn off the bike with the key, my headlights go out and the battery doesn't get drained.

[massacremasses]

MSF I was taught use the kill switch so you can keep both hands on the handle bars until you get off. I use the kill switch now. Then turn the key off.

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by massacremasses

MSF I was taught use the kill switch so you can keep both hands on the handle bars until you get off. I use the kill switch now. Then turn the key off.

I stop with the bike in 1st, feet on the ground, then with the clutch pulled, I use my right hand to turn the key. Then I release the clutch and the bike is locked from rolling off the kickstand. In my garage, I leave it in neutral, but everywhere else, I leave it in first.

[Live2ride]

I unplugged my zx6r's battery the other day to take the tank off, went to start the bike this morning and realized it took a good 2-3 full seconds of rolling over before it fired up; generally it takes less than 1 second. I didn't think it would make that large of an impact from having the battery out of the bike for 1 1/2 days but I guess it's always a possibility.

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by Live2ride

I unplugged my zx6r's battery the other day to take the tank off, went to start the bike this morning and realized it took a good 2-3 full seconds of rolling over before it fired up; generally it takes less than 1 second. I didn't think it would make that large of an impact from having the battery out of the bike for 1 1/2 days but I guess it's always a possibility.

It might have something to do with the reason you took the tank off in the first place. The zx6r is fuel injected so there is a good chance that something needed to be primed. It starts up OK now right?

I just did the valves on mine and now it wont tolerate the choke and only starts without it. Warm or cold.

[greg737]

So it looks like you are saying that you used the KILL switch to stop the engine rather than turning it off at the switch. I checked and the headlight stays on when you do that.

When I was working on my fuel injection conversion (lots of testing and tuning) I often needed to stop the bike's engine without killing electrical power to the fuel control unit which would have caused me to lose data so I was regularly using the bike's Kill Switch to stop it rather than the Key Switch.

To prevent the headlight from quickly draining the battery I installed a new rocker switch (two position: on/off) that independently kills the headlight so I can turn it off while keeping the rest of the bike's electrical system powered up for diagnostic work. Once the headlight is off there's not much draw on the battery.

[kchava]

oh, another question. Does this mean I need a new battery?

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by kchava

oh, another question. Does this mean I need a new battery?

Only if it no longer holds a charge. You should also check to make sure your bike is still charging.

Take the seat off to access the battery. Measure the voltage at the battery terminals with a digital multimeter. The battery should be exactly 12.7 volts. If its less than 12.7, then its not charged. Now start the bike in neutral. Measure again. It should be about 14-15 volts or so while the bike is running. If its still 12.7 volts or less when running, then its not charging any more. If you jumped the bike incorrectly, then it could have blown a fuse or damaged something. Never jump to a running car.

[kchava]

ok results:

Voltage-

while off: 12.8
after started: 14.6
after switched off 13.6

am I good?

[Apocolypze01]

Keyoff. Killswitch for emergencies.

[Apocolypze01]

If it cranks over and starts fine, you dont need a new battery.

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by kchava

ok results:

Voltage-

while off: 12.8
after started: 14.6
after switched off 13.6

am I good?

The voltages look good. You must have had it running shortly before you tested the first time. Hence the 12.8 reading (or else your DVM isn't calibrated correctly). I should have mentioned that the first test should be done at least 2 hours after the last run.

Sometimes when an older battery gets run down, such as by leaving the lights on, it will kick it over the edge so that it wont come back. But your voltages indicate that your battery is good and that its probably still OK.

[kchava]

i tried it again this morning after about 14+ hours. It read 12.693.

But i have to admit, I repeated the same stupid mistake yesterday while waiting for someone. seriously only a few minutes. luckily after waiting about 10 minutes, it started back up again.

maybe i should just get a new battery.

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by kchava

i tried it again this morning after about 14+ hours. It read 12.693.

But i have to admit, I repeated the same stupid mistake yesterday while waiting for someone. seriously only a few minutes. luckily after waiting about 10 minutes, it started back up again.

maybe i should just get a new battery.

Voltage is still good, you need to get a new habit, not a new battery. Stop using the emergency kill switch and you'll be OK.