2003 Ninja Dies when put in gear

[RichmondKawi]

Hey all,

Recently I was out for a ride when all of a sudden my bikes throttle stopped responded and i slowly but surely stalled out on the side of the road. I suspected it was a compression issue because my carbs were visibly falling out of the airbox boots. I got rid of the airbox all together hoping to solve this problem by putting in a KN pod filter, everything went together smoothe no gaps anywhere. The bike idles ok but after a while itll stall out even with the choke about halfway on. It dies almost immediately when put into gear as well. I've done my research I know this is a very common problem but I've dug through hundreds of forum posts and gotten pretty much no where. I atleast know its not a faulty kickstand switch. Any help with this would be much appreciated.

For reference my bike has newly cleaned carbs, stock jetting, KN single pod filter, and a muzzy exhaust.

[Ghostt]

Have you checked the fuel cut off valve to make sure it's working properly?

[jkv45]

Run it until it stalls while idling, then open the floatbowl drains to see if gas comes out. If the fuel level is correct, gas will run out for about 10 seconds. You can also use a clear piece of hose on the drain, looped upward, to see the actual level of fuel in the floatbowl when you open the drain.

Could be a blockage in the petcock/pick-up/fuel filter. Is the tank clean? Does it do the same on Reserve? Have you checked the inline filter at the carb inlet? Do you have an additional inline filter on it?

Will it run without choke? Did you clean the Pilot Jets and idle mixture passages? What are the idle mixture screws set to? Did you bench-sync the carbs when they were off?

Lots of possibilities...

[Ghostt]

[RichmondKawi]

Thanks guys I'll check for the fuel level and the whole petcock/fuel line system for blockages but I don't think that's the issue. I started it up today after making sure the compression was good and after it died I took off the fuel line and gas was dripping out so I assumed it's at least flowing into the carb. I didn't sync the carbs yet I don't think they're out of sync. I did a chem soak on all the jets and sprayed out all the holes and ports in the carb when I cleaned it 3 weeks ago.

[taz]

The float could be stuck just enough to not let a sufficient amount of fuel to run for vary long. So just because there is fuel coming out of the hose does not mean the carbs are good.

[RichmondKawi]

Yeah your right I'm gonna check out the float. They seemed fine when I checked them last but something could have gotten stuck in there

[Motofool]

When doing as advised above, collect the fuel flowing out and check if water is at the bottom of the recipient.
If so, you may have more water inside the tank and it should be drained up.

Check this old thread:
https://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=137770

[RichmondKawi]

Thanks everyone. Once i get some time on my hands ill dive into everythng and see what works. Hopefully the answer is here somewhere I cannot WAIT to get back on the road

EDIT: I just read that forum thread you posted and my bike was out in the rain for a little bit with the carbs openings exposed. I think theres definitely water in there.

[Motofool]

Welcome, Matthew !!!

[RichmondKawi]

I had a second on my hands before work so I pulled the carbs and drained them, it seemed like it was just gas in there. However it did feel like the float bowls weren't completely full it took like 3 seconds to drain them out, granted I had leaked a fair amount out the top getting them onto the bench.

[RichmondKawi]

Okay so I'm currently taking apart the carbs and checking hoses and such and I decided to check the flow in the carbs by just pouring some gas through the main fuel line. I had 2 cups set up under each carb and the right carb dropped out a LOT more gas then the left carb. They were upright just like on the bike but I'm sure that's not normal. Could this be my problem?

[Ghostt]

Did you replace the float needle valves? Did you set the float height?

Did you replace other parts? O-rings? Etc.......

Carburetors assembled properly?

Gotta make sure the basics are covered, otherwise any diagnostics is pointless.

[RichmondKawi]

Only thing I've done is raise the float needle slightly. I did however find a blockage the fuel filter in the fuel line was all bent up I think it was affecting how much gas got into the carb.

[Ghostt]

Be sure the float height is set to proper height, if they're off, it will effect the performance.

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by RichmondKawi

....... I had 2 cups set up under each carb and the right carb dropped out a LOT more gas then the left carb. They were upright just like on the bike but I'm sure that's not normal. Could this be my problem?

Please, follow the links:
https://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=227561

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/How_do_...n_the_carbs%3F

It is normal:
If the floats cannot push the needle valves up (the bowls are removed), more fuel will drain from the left carburetor just because it is closer to the supply hose.

When that valve closes after the correct level is reached, the fuel fills up the bowl of the right carburetor (up to the proper level).

Now, if the valves are harden or dirty and/or the floats are adjusted too high, the fuel will overflow that bowl.

[RichmondKawi]

Sooo I was draining my gas tank to check for water and heard what sounded like sand in my tank. Found a LOT of paint and rust flakes in the drained gas...I'm guessing those chips had made there way into various places and clogged things up causing my original problem. I guess I'll order a new tank Idk if mine can be saved....

[Ghostt]

It can be saved, find a local radiator shop, most can clean and coat the inside of tanks.

[jkv45]

Originally Posted by RichmondKawi

Sooo I was draining my gas tank to check for water and heard what sounded like sand in my tank. Found a LOT of paint and rust flakes in the drained gas...I'm guessing those chips had made there way into various places and clogged things up causing my original problem. I guess I'll order a new tank Idk if mine can be saved....

That will do it.

I would give cleaning and sealing a try first, plus finding your correct tank in good shape is going to be tough. Our Ninja Beater's tank was pretty bad inside, and with some chemical cleaning, nuts and bolts, and sealing with Red Kote tank liner, it has been fine.

The key is getting all the rust out, and the metal clean and dry before coating.

[RichmondKawi]

Thanks for the help everyone I did end up fixing it it runs great now. I got my tank coated and after filling it up with gas I was able to get into first without it dying.

[taz]

HAVE SOME GOOD TIMES AND STAY SAFE OUT THERE.

[JohnnyBravo]

Well done!!!