Turning over but not starting

[blackONblack]

Hey all, looking for some help trying to get my bike back up and running. 2008 FZ6, between the poor weather and business travel, I had let the bike sit too long and when I finally tried to take it for a weekend ride a few weeks ago, it would turn over but not run. I basically cranked it until the battery started to drain, and since I didn't want to totally kill the battery I left it until I had more time. So yesterday I decide to hook it up to my car (not running) for a jump so I could crank it longer without draining the battery. Because the jumper cables I had were too big to latch latch on the bike battery terminals, I unhooked the leads and clamped the cables directly onto the leads (not sure if this detail matters but I wanted to include everything just in case). Again, the bike would crank and I was able to try it multiple times, each for much longer than before, but it still wouldn't start up.

I consider myself relatively handy (especially in the "youtube video for every purpose" days), but I live in an urban environment and don't have the space or the freedom to really undertake a bigger fix at home. But before I go and drop the cash on a tow and shop visit, I was hoping the community might have some other quick and simple suggestions for me to try. I know there is a lot of experience out there and this is a fairly common problem so hopefully you all have some thoughts, Thank in advance for your help!

 

[Motogiro]

Are you seeing any error codes on your readout? If the starter is active you should be safe checking the obvious spark and fuel delivery to start with.
How long has the bike been sitting and in what environment? Do you smell raw fuel? Do you hear the pump prime when you first turn the key to on position?

 

[blackONblack]

Are you seeing any error codes on your readout? If the starter is active you should be safe checking the obvious spark and fuel delivery to start with.
How long has the bike been sitting and in what environment? Do you smell raw fuel? Do you hear the pump prime when you first turn the key to on position?

No error codes (though I'll have to double check to make absolute sure), and I don't remember smelling any gas, though I do hear the pump whir for a few seconds when I turn the key.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Plus 1 to confirm the fuel pump is priming...

How old is the fuel?

If the pump is priming, try removing the air filter and spray some starting fluid down the throttle bodies and see if it kicks.. (We're trying to narrow if it's a fuel issue or spark issue).

Probably won't work (but was an issue on the early FJR's when non starting): Hold the throttle wide open when cranking and see what happens..(won't hurt anything). You may luck out and it starts..

Make sure you have plenty of battery as the bike needs power not only for cranking but for other engine components..


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[Motogiro]

Any news?

 

[blackONblack]

Any news?

Thanks to you both for your advice! Much appreciated. Right now I'm in a situation where I only can play around with it on the weekends, I want to make sure I have enough time (well, maybe time and energy... ) to get stuff done without leaving it half taken apart in my garage. The plan is to access the battery again this weekend and give it a jump start again in warmer weather just to see, and if that doesn't work, pull the battery and put it on the tender overnight. Then head to the car parts store for some starting fluid to see if that helps. Should have more to report to you all on Sunday night! Thanks again, you guys rock!

 

[blackONblack]

Okay, update time. Short version: Success! Thank you guys for the help and advice, wouldn't have known what to do without it.

Longer version: I went through the process of getting to the battery and tried giving it a jump again, just in case, but again to no avail. Tried it with the throttle wide open, again no dice. Took off the air filter with it still hooked up to jump. I sprayed some starter fluid in each inlet for the throttle body, and gave it a go. I tried it two or three times, and though it gave a gurgle a couple times, it wouldn't fire up all the way. So I tried the combo, starter fluid plus throttle wide open. It took two or three tries while fiddling with the throttle to keep it alive, but it finally worked! Now came the really tricky part...

The bike was running but still hooked up to my car battery--I had taken the leads off the bike battery again to be able to clamp on my jumper cables. I knew the charge on the bike's battery was really low, nearly dead, so I probably wouldn't be able to start it using that. I let the bike warm up all the way while hooked up to my car battery, and then I basically had to do the old switcheroo (a la raiders of the lost ark). It took a couple tries but I finally got it! I continued to let the bike run while I put everything back together, added air to the tires, and got on my gear for a ride. I took it out for about 35-40 minutes and tried to keep the revs higher than usual to make sure the battery was charging. It was running really smoothly already by the time I actually got on for a ride. Whatever gremlins were in it before seemed to have cleared out.

Maybe I made a tactical error--if it turns out the battery doesn't have enough juice, I'm gonna have to pull it and put it on the charger anyway, which will be a (small) hassle. But I figure with a long idle and a short ride, at least next weekend I'll only be battling the battery issue at worst, not a startup one. What do you guys think?

Also, this seems moot now, but I did pay attention and there were no error codes, and after I cranked the gas (before I tried adding the starter fluid), I did notice gas smell. After all, I suppose it was getting both spark and gas, but I guess I just wanted you guys to know I did my homework as assigned

Thanks again for the help!

 

[trepetti]

Reading through this, I come up with stale fuel. Initial post says you connected to car battery, so you always had sufficient DC to power the efi and the ignition system. The difference this time was the starting fluid. I am guessing that the fuel was not volatile enough for a cold start. Once you got some heat into the motor, the fuel quality was enough to keep it lit.

 

[blackONblack]

Additional update: These bikes are amazing! So, after I got it started last time, I waited ANOTHER 3 weeks before attempting to take it out again. I thought for sure I might have similar trouble getting it going, so I took my tool kit (including my newly purchased bike jumper cables) out, expecting to have to access the battery again. Sure enough, it fired up right on the first try! Incredible. Just took it for a long ride and then cleaned and oiled the chain--long overdue. I love how reliable this bike has been for me, no wonder it's so well loved!

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Oil the clutch cable too, makes a VERY BIG difference in shifting and clutch pull when clean and lubed.. Keep that chain adjusted to spec's too, 2", by the book...

 

[blackONblack]

Oil the clutch cable too, makes a VERY BIG difference in shifting and clutch pull when clean and lubed.. Keep that chain adjusted to spec's too, 2", by the book...

Thanks for the reminder and recommendation! When you say oiling the clutch cable, are you referring to the actual cable itself, or the pivot? In the manual there are instructions for lubing the pivot but not the cable itself. Googling it, I see there are some differing opinions on how/whether to oil the cable, and which lubricant to use. Do you have any recommendations on the lube? I've got WD40 handy and lots of chain wax...the manual recommends a "lithium based soap grease," which I'm having trouble translating into useful English (e.g. are lithium greases the same thing?). Thanks again for all your help, and in advance for any clarification/recommendations you have! This board continues to be an amazing resource because of the expertise you all have!

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Lube both and not with WD40. WD40 is not really a lubricant.

I usually use a syringe with 30wt oil in it and pump it down from the top with the cable un-hooked from the lever.. Doesn't take much and makes a big difference..

IME, pitch that chain wax-useless..




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