Stuck at the gas station. Dies when giving throttle

[spc2125]

Hello...

So I am running around 215 miles and I know I have to fill up soon so on my way back from work I decide I should stop for gas. Im less than 100 yards from the gas station before my bike gives out. Im at a light and im a sitting duck. I switch it to the reserve tank and start it up. No start. I try again. It starts. But it doesnt last. So i quit playing and rolled it off the side of the rode and walked it to the gas station. I switched it back to the ON position and filled it up to the top. It starts with a few tries. The problem is now that it will idle around 2500-3000rpm... but as soon as I give it throttle, it dies. What gives?

Dirty carbs?


I hitched it back home ( i live up the street) and ill go back in a few hours to try and start it again to see if that does anything. If not ill have to get it towed back to my place and then call the dealer to have them pick it up and fix the problem. Thats my last resort, but is there anything I can try to get it running so I can ride it home?

Thanks!

[lgk]

how is it with the choke?

have you done any work to the bike recently?

[spc2125]

Originally Posted by lgk

how is it with the choke?

have you done any work to the bike recently?

No work donw to the bike... yet.

With choke its just higher rpms but still dies when giving throttle.

A similar situation has happened a couple weeks ago where I started riding and pulled over to help a girl change ger tire, I got back on my bike and it wouldnt start. I left it there for 30 minutes. It started and i let it idle for a bit before i got back on and rode off.

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by spc2125

.........Thats my last resort, but is there anything I can try to get it running so I can ride it home?........

You have water inside the bowls.
It was in the bottom of the gas tank and it flowed down into the bowls when you opened the reserve.

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/How_to_...he_float_bowls

Use a long Allen wrench (2.5 mm I believe) and drain the bowls while the bike is on the central stand.

[spc2125]

Originally Posted by Motofool

You have water inside the bowls.
It was in the bottom of the gas tank and it flowed down into the bowls when you opened the reserve.

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/How_to_...he_float_bowls

Use a long Allen wrench (2.5 mm I believe) and drain the bowls while the bike is on the central stand.

Life saver. Ill have to go down and try that out.

Quick question.

Do i turn the petcock to OFF before I begin this?

[fishdip]

Kick stand down/not all the way up?

[spc2125]

Originally Posted by fishdip

Kick stand down/not all the way up?

Tried both with kickstand down all the way. and then up all the way.

[beren]

Originally Posted by spc2125

Life saver. Ill have to go down and try that out.

Quick question.

Do i turn the petcock to OFF before I begin this?

Your choice. if you do, you will only drain what is in the carbs. If if not, you will also drain all 4 gallons you just put in the tank. Go with whichever suits you better.

Me, I would turn it to off and not have the mess to clean.

[lgk]

try draining your carb bowl as motofool suggests, then add some startron to your tank. it'll help suspend water in the tank, so it wont effect your carbs as much.

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by spc2125

.....Do i turn the petcock to OFF before I begin this?

Yes, this is better done with the petcock off and letting the bowls to get empty.
It is better if you can collect the drained fluid (mix of water and explosive gasoline).

As your petcock is vacuum activated, you will need to have the engine working to drain the tank this way, which is not safe at all.

As your tank is full again, if you use the on position, water will not flow down (it remains at the bottom of the tank).

Later on, you can drain the bottom of the tank (reserve on) by disconnecting the supply hose instead.

I am not sure this is the solution to your problem, but it has happened to me a couple of times before and it is a relatively simple check.
Open the reserve and the engine idles but accept no throttle.
Sometimes the water builds up due to condensation, sometimes due to rain exposure.

[spc2125]

I cant get to the drain plugs because i think the bolts are stripped. I was stranded outside a used tool shop and i had a bucket full of allen wrenches to try and non fit. I tried like ten 3mm allen keys but no luck.

Anyway, i called the dealer and they said they couldnt pick it up today and couldnt solidify an answer to the question of me getting reimbursed to get my bike towed home. Then they also were saying that if the problem was bad gas.... it wouldnt be in the warranty.

Im thinking that because i saw gas coming out the top of the tank even when it was closed... that there is a bad gasket of some kind which allowed the water from the bad days of hard rain we have had.

But they might say that it was bad gas and i would be stuck with the repair bill.

Any ideas what the price to fix this could range from?

P.s. i got one of the allen wrench drain plugs loosened. Going to drain it now. How do i put down the center stand for goodness sake?!?

[spc2125]

nvm i found the wiki

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/I_am_ha...ts_centerstand

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by spc2125

...........How do i put down the center stand for goodness sake?!?

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/I_am_ha...ts_centerstand

Use the 2.5 mm Allen wrench, no other.

[spc2125]

Bike is drained. Def water in what was drained... pics coming soon.

Obviously just keep trying to start it. Do i put the choke on or just press start every couple seconds?

[KawiKid860]

Huh, my bike died one time going to school for no apparent reason, just seemed like it ran out of gas even though I was nowhere near my tank being empty. Accidentally left it on reserve from my last tank so I'm wondering if this is what happened.

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by spc2125

Bike is drained. Def water in what was drained... pics coming soon.

Obviously just keep trying to start it. Do i put the choke on or just press start every couple seconds?

It takes some cranking for the bowls to be re-filled.

After that, choke as normal.

[spc2125]

Originally Posted by Motofool

It takes some cranking for the bowls to be re-filled.

After that, choke as normal.

cranked it for a while. To the point where my bike would just make a buzzing noise and wouldnt crank. NOW what do I do?!

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by spc2125

........NOW what do I do?!

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/How_to_...ike_from_a_car

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/My_batt...art_my_bike%3F

[spc2125]

Originally Posted by Motofool

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/How_to_...ike_from_a_car

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/My_batt...art_my_bike%3F

I wouldnt need to jumpstart my bike if the lights on the dash still light up and everything, correct?

Because that is the case.

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by spc2125

I wouldnt need to jumpstart my bike if the lights on the dash still light up and everything, correct?

Because that is the case.

You can have those lights with a discharged battery.
Insisting on using your battery will produce a deep discharge that could damage it.
Remember to stop the engine of the car.

"Here are the classic symptoms of battery failure:

-Gauges on (neutral, oil and temp) but the starter won't catch
-Tach starts bouncing, and then the engine starts to act like it's out of gas.
-Engine keeps coughing, but tach is much higher than it should be, or it is bouncing wildly from low to high.
-Engine surges with turn signal on.
-When trying to start, you hear a click and all the lights go dead.
-You try to start and you hear clickclickclickclickclick - The clicks can come so fast they sound like a robot cat purring."

[lgk]

I was going to suggest push starting it, but the voltage is probably too low for the cdi...

You better off getting a jump.

[spc2125]

Here i am cranking away after connecting it to an external source of power when it hits me....

I forgot to turn to fuel switch back to ON !

[spc2125]

I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to this thread and also to the wiki's.

Great call on the diagnosis on the original and then second problem with the battery Motofool. Without you I would have had a very bad end of the day

Again, thanks for everyones help!

I have now successfully fixed my first problem with my bike!

I secretly liked it because it helped me learn more how to do things with my bike... as well as learn more about how bikes work in general!

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by spc2125

...........
Again, thanks for everyones help!

I have now successfully fixed my first problem with my bike!

I secretly liked it because it helped me learn more how to do things with my bike... as well as learn more about how bikes work in general!

That is one of the purposes of this forum: turn newbies into self-sufficient motorcyclists.

You are welcome, Steven

[az3200]

This is off topic, but since you're talking about batteries now..
Doesn't the stator charge the battery? If your battery is dead, how come you can't bump start it and carry on as normal? For example when a car battery is dead it can be jumped and the car will run fine.From what I understand this is not true for a motorcycle?

Glad you got your bike working again. I bet that's a relief and even better you did it yourself! I too couldn't figure out for the life of me how to work the center stand when I first got mine haha

[agentbad]

Yes you can bump start a motocycle just like you would a manual car/truck.

[az3200]

Originally Posted by agentbad

Yes you can bump start a motocycle just like you would a manual car/truck.

I realize that...but if you take a bike with a completely dead battery, bump it to start, wont the stator recharge the battery? Even if you have a dead battery and get it bump started... why do the needles jump around etc while the bike is running if the stator is recharging it while you ride?

[beren]

Originally Posted by az3200

I realize that...but if you take a bike with a completely dead battery, bump it to start, wont the stator recharge the battery? Even if you have a dead battery and get it bump started... why do the needles jump around etc while the bike is running if the stator is recharging it while you ride?

I think this will answer that. http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Why_you...eeds_a_battery

[PEN25]

it is recommended to slip to reserve while riding and fresh fuel to remove the water from the bottom as it will not damage the engine with the little amount in the bottom. I always like to switch to reserve every couple rides to purge the water the will collect down there.

[Ghostt]

@maurice1991 you might have better luck starting your own thread, before making multiple post, cut & paste style.

SIDENOTE: also a more current tread than one that's a few years old, I'm just saying.....