My bike won't start?

1. Your motorcycle won't start, and you've discharged your battery trying to get it to start. You're going to need a battery charger (1 or 2 amp, 12 V) to charge your battery. Sorry.

2. Since you tried jump-starting it, and it "really wanted to" then your solenoid is good and your starter motor is good.

3. > I even tried...oh damn, what's it called again? the position when it's a mixture of something

That better be the choke! On my motorcycle it's a lever. On my previous motorcycles, it's been a pull-out thingummy.

4. > fuel is on

If your petc-ck has a "prime" position, you might try that instead of "on."

Anyway. Your bike has been sitting a while (storage!) and there's no gasoline running from the tank down to the carbs. Your carbs might even be gummed up. Someone smarter than me is probably going to tell you to clean out the carbs.

Me? If it were my bike, I'd put the fuel petc-ck over to "prime," set the choke to half, hook it up to my car's battery using jumper cables, and let the starter crank a while, hoping it'd pull some gas through. But before you start cranking,

a) Kickstand down!

b) Make sure it's in Neutral gear.

c) Make sure the engine kill switch (might be labeled "run / stop" - it's near where your right hand goes on the handlebars) is in the RUN position.

d) Check to make sure there's gas in the tank -- the level must be high enough so the "on" or "prime" position of the petc-ck can get it, or you're going to have to try the RESERVE position. New gas is better than old, if it's been sitting more than about six weeks.

Edit: I don't know much about bikes either, but I've spent a lot of time waiting for my mom to bring the family station wagon and the jumper cables. LOL.

there are only a few reasons why your bike shouldn't start. Start with the easy ones.

check that you are getting fuel through the carbs into the cylinders, no fuel, no go. Make sure your fuel filter is not clogged or otherwise obstructed. If all looks good there check the fuel pressure to and from the fuel pump (just pull the fuel line off the pump and see what comes out.)

if your fuel delivery system looks good, check for spark. No spark, no go.

you said that you get a clicking when you hit the starter. sounds like you may not be getting enough juice to the starter to turn the engine, check your coil, stater and plugs.

Hope this helps, if not, ask again and I'll see what I can do for you, but at least you have a beginning.

Ojann, can you push-start the bike?

Get a buddy to help you push the bike and begin pushing the bike about as fast as you can walk. Make sure the ignition is on and the kill switch is in the "run" position. Then, as the bike is moving, shift down into first gear.

If that doesn't work, then check if the back tyre just locked up when you put it in gear or whether it actually forced the engine to turn over.

Have you ever had this bike running?

Email me if you want to...the email address is in my profile.

Hi, This could be anything. It is not possible to fix without many answers to many questions. Everything has to be checked methodically. It is then easy to find the area of the fault, and ultimatly the fault itself. The only answer here is take it to a dealer. Ask for a diagnose of the fault with an estimate to repair. Yes, it will cost you, but you will know what the fault is and how much to fix. If you are lucky the fault will be simple and the dealer will fix it and only charge a small fee. If you faff about changing bits you will not cure the fault, and may end up doing damage elsewhere. Go on, bite the bullet and call a dealer. Avoid main agents, go for a well established local repair shop. Hope this helps.

You have a bad battery or a bad primary cable leading to the starter solenoid. You said that someone checked the battery. If they just checked with a volt meter for 12-13 volts, that may not show a set of broken plates that kill the current delivering ability of the battery to crank the motor. If you did have the battery "load tested" and it passed, then the next thing is to suspect the hot wire going from the battery terminal to the starter. It may be corroded or broken inside. Check it. Last, try jump starting the bike. It can jump from a car, as long as the red & black orientation is kept right. Good luck.

RE:

My bike won't start?

My bike hates me. I have a 2004 Suzuki GSF that refuses to start. It tries, then just makes a clicking sound. I took the battery and had it tested and charged...same thing. We even tried to jump it...it wouldn't go, although a few times it sounds like it really really wanted to. Everything...

If your battery is charged and you have enough fuel, maybe the petcock or carb needs to be rebuilt if the bike was sitting for a while(like a month). Do you have a fuel leak. You should check the fuel stuff before going to an elecrtical issure. Is the engine turning over or does it just click(bad starter). By replacing the spark plugs, which might be a temporary fix, it might be like "putting a bandaid over the cancer".

~Shawn

Ducati Mechanic

hello first time im doing this just wanted to hear feed back. I have a 2000 suzuki katana gsx 750 f. when i crank the engine for a lil while it wont start. But when i finish the first crank i get an abrupt pop from the exhaust. Telling me the ignition coils arent responding properly i checked the spark plugs and are good. I also checked the ignitions coils and 2 ohm meters have given me two different readings. I dont know what to do.

Motorcycle Wont Start

The clicking is the solenoid to engage the starter. The solenoid is engaging, but either 1) you don't have enough current to actually TURN the starter, or 2) the starter is bad.