Bike will not start!

Hello friends,

Saturday, I when to get my bike out of storage. It is a 2009 Canadian model of course with 16400 km. It was stored at a dealer, heated and dry storage with battery tender. The bike had an oil change performed before I picked it up. I rode it home and proceed to replace the air filter as well as to install the new to me vStream windshield I purchased from a forum member over the winter. Windshield replace was supper easy and smooth. Air filter replacement was more difficult! The wire harness always seemed to be in the ... but I did get it done. I was about to put the side panel back on when I noticed that a rubber hose from under the gas tank was unplugged. With a pair a needle nose pliers ... and my long skinny fingers, I was able to get it back in place. I did not think I had pulled that out during the air filter replacement ... but I must have. Put everything back together and voted against a ride since I had another activity coming up.

This Monday morning -3 deg C, I wanted to ride the bike to work! Guess what, it will into start! The engine turns over fine! Yes the KILL switch is in the on position! I tried a minute before switching to the car. I must suspect that I unplugged something electrical. I will have a look under the seat and side panel when I get a chance!

But does anyone have suggestion or a clue as too what I might have done wrong?

Thanks! Rheal

My guess, short start syndrome (flooded it). When you start the FJR, if you don't let it run long enough, it's prone to throwing a hissy fit and not starting (Mine's never done this, but it's a superior Gen 1). This usually results in flooding it.

Hold the throttle WFO (wide open) and hit the starter. Do not let it roll back to closed while the engine is turning over. Your trying to clear it out!

Release the throttle after it starts.

The scary possibility is that wiring harness you had to jack around to get to the air cleaner. That big plug under the left side of the seat is the main ECU connector. Make sure that connector's on good, and that you didn't pull any wires out of it. That would take a heck of a pull, but it's not impossible.

Do you get the fuel pump sound when you turn the key on?

I don't think it is flooded, because that is a quirk that usually shows up if you start the engine and shut it right off. The problem isn't isolated to just GenII either. superior or not Steve.

IIRC i disconnected something in the area of the air box to facilitate the filter change. that was what immediately came to mind when reading this thread. I would remove the side cover and check all the connections. If they are all good it wouldn't hurt to try starting WOT.

I am "pretty certain" I heard the fuel pump working when I tune on the ignition. I am used to listening for those things. But ... this is only my "second" engine start of the season. All the gages did their expected Come to Life dance as well!

I don't think it is flooded. When I get back home after work (ans a squash match) I'll give it another try and listen more attentively for the fuel pump.

Rheal

wfooshee said:

The scary possibility is that wiring harness you had to jack around to get to the air cleaner. That big plug under the left side of the seat is the main ECU connector. Make sure that connector's on good, and that you didn't pull any wires out of it. That would take a heck of a pull, but it's not impossible.

Do you get the fuel pump sound when you turn the key on?

Click to expand...

May I ask what the abbreviation IIRC stands for? I agree I need to double check the electrical connections ...

BTW, does anyone have a smooth and easy Air Filter replacement process? There must be a clean and effective technique!

Rheal

Intech said:

I don't think it is flooded, because that is a quirk that usually shows up if you start the engine and shut it right off. The problem isn't isolated to just GenII either. superior or not Steve.

IIRC i disconnected something in the area of the air box to facilitate the filter change. that was what immediately came to mind when reading this thread. I would remove the side cover and check all the connections. If they are all good it wouldn't hurt to try starting WOT.

Click to expand...

IIRC= If I Recall Correctly.

What he said.

IIRC it means If I Remember Correctly :glare:

Rheal said:

May I ask what the abbreviation IIRC stands for?

Click to expand...

IIRC = If I Recall Correctly..As in when my CRS ( Can't Remember Shit ) hasn't flared up. :lol:

SLK50 said:

Rheal said:

May I ask what the abbreviation IIRC stands for?

Click to expand...

IIRC = If I Recall Correctly..As in when my CRS ( Can't Remember Shit ) hasn't flared up. :lol:

Click to expand...

The cure for that is really simple "Milk of Amnesia" - for people who can't remember sh1t

Don

Rheal said:

May I ask what the abbreviation IIRC stands for? I agree I need to double check the electrical connections ...

BTW, does anyone have a smooth and easy Air Filter replacement process? There must be a clean and effective technique!

Rheal

Click to expand...

Well, you got the IIRC thing already, so to answer the second question; NO...There is no easier, cleaner way to change the filter. It is a PITA (Pain In The Ass) pretty much any way you look at it. I didn't pay attention and am assuming you ride an "A", which is good, because the AE guys have it worse. Just be careful when moving all those wires and harnesses around under there and all 'should' be good. Yamaha definately could have made access easier.

PROBLEM SOLVED!

Ive been thinking about it all day at work of course. I work pretty carefully ... so I was pretty confident that I had everything in place and had not disconnected anything! And I also know that problems are all too often self inflicted! So recalling behavior, it felt to me that a relay or safety circuit was kicking in:

• It was 3 degree C below freezing ... so perhaps my machine Did Not want me to do anything stupid ... like ride on potentially slippery roads!

So I got home, and went to test again! turned the key on, toggled the Kill switch to ON, OFF then ON again, place the bike in neutral, even put the kick stand in the up position, pulled in the clutch in and pushed the start button! Bike started right up! So I am sure one of the safety circuits was active .... perhaps the KILL switch was not all one way on??? Don't know ... but I am in business again.

BTW, I loved the fun that spun of from the definition for IIRC !

Thanks for the help .. and the fun!

Rheal

HotRodZilla said:

Rheal said:

May I ask what the abbreviation IIRC stands for? I agree I need to double check the electrical connections ...

BTW, does anyone have a smooth and easy Air Filter replacement process? There must be a clean and effective technique!

Rheal

Click to expand...

Well, you got the IIRC thing already, so to answer the second question; NO...There is no easier, cleaner way to change the filter. It is a PITA (Pain In The Ass) pretty much any way you look at it. I didn't pay attention and am assuming you ride an "A", which is good, because the AE guys have it worse. Just be careful when moving all those wires and harnesses around under there and all 'should' be good. Yamaha definately could have made access easier.

Click to expand...

Buzz Killington here, reporting for duty!!!

It wasn't any of the safety circuits, because those will all inhibit the starter motor, and you said it was cranking OK.

Kill switch set: no crank. (Some bikes will crank with the kill switch set; not ours.)

Sidestand down and not in neutral: no crank.

Sidestand up, not in neutral, clutch not pulled in: no crank.

Notice that all of those say no crank, not no start. It was something else. Hopefully it doesn't come up in your face at 2:30AM at some point 145 miles past the Utah/Nevada border.

Rheal said:

PROBLEM SOLVED!

Click to expand...

Glad for you. It's not at all uncommon for the 'no-start' issue to go-away after a break.

It happened to me recently. I had a 'no-start' episode. One of the few in over 300,000 miles of FJR ownership. Unlike the couple other episodes I had, this time it wouldn't start. At all. Even with WOT. Or anything else I tried. I ran the battery down dead trying to start it. I had to be somewhere so put it on the battery tender and left. When I returned 8 hours later it started up immediately as soon as I hit the start button for the first time. Go figure.

Guess what! Bike did not start again this morning. And again it is -2, -3 deg C below zero. So ... I suspect it is temperature related. I also suspect you are right and that it is related to the bike being in storage for 5 months and hasn't had a good shaking out! Hopefully when I get home after work, I can take it out for 30 minutes or so ...

Rheal

SkooterG said:

Rheal said:

PROBLEM SOLVED!

Click to expand...

Glad for you. It's not at all uncommon for the 'no-start' issue to go-away after a break.

It happened to me recently. I had a 'no-start' episode. One of the few in over 300,000 miles of FJR ownership. Unlike the couple other episodes I had, this time it wouldn't start. At all. Even with WOT. Or anything else I tried. I ran the battery down dead trying to start it. I had to be somewhere so put it on the battery tender and left. When I returned 8 hours later it started up immediately as soon as I hit the start button for the first time. Go figure.

Click to expand...

The only way I can see that temperature could have anything to do with it is if there is a loose connection somewhere that is so close to being made up all it takes is a little thermal expansion. If that is the case I would not want to run it much with out finding the problem. Improperly made up connections tend to have higher resistance. Higher resisitance = higher current = heat. You don't want to turn your harness into a heating element. I would suggest checking all the connections when it is cold, so that if it does start after making all the connections up properly you will have a better feeling for having resolved the problem.

I'll chime in here with a SWAG (silly wild ass guess) and suggest the battery. Check the battery connections and make sure both are tight and verify all of the connections near the battery.

My W.A.G is water in the fuel. Maybe even condensation over the long storage period. I bet the temp is dropping and either the ice cube that has formed is blocking fuel delivery, or the ice cube that has formed in inhibiting fuel pump operation. I am basing my W.A.G. on my experiences with old Honda cars. Good luck finding a solution. I have used 90+% rubbing alcohol to remove water from fuel systems. I am pretty sure most of the guys on this site would not recommend doing this.

wmadoty said:

My W.A.G is water in the fuel. Maybe even condensation over the long storage period. I bet the temp is dropping and either the ice cube that has formed is blocking fuel delivery, or the ice cube that has formed in inhibiting fuel pump operation. I am basing my W.A.G. on my experiences with old Honda cars. Good luck finding a solution. I have used 90+% rubbing alcohol to remove water from fuel systems. I am pretty sure most of the guys on this site would not recommend doing this.

Click to expand...

Yeah, but a bottle of Heet in the tank would yield the same result...Right? Probably wouldn't hurt to try.