So before I put my bike into storage I wanted to start her up one last time before the cold winter ahead. Engine cranked but wouldnt turn over. It was only about 2 weeks since the last time I started it so I figured the battery might need a bit of juice. I connected the jumper cables to my car (while off) and allowed to charge for a couple minutes and tried to start again - still nothing. Bike would crank but never turn over. I know the gas was in there for a couple weeks but what gives?

Can anyone help?

 

this sounds completely ridiculous, but make sure your headlight assembly is all plugged in. a friend of mine tried to start my bike while we were working on it with the headlight out, and it just cranked, and we convinced him he broke it. there are some ignition wires in there =) also, can you hear the fuel pump when you flip the switch??

 

Wow that does sound like a strange thing to check but I will.

The fuel pump does come on and prime when I have the ignition toggle on.

 

i know, it's weird. but it worked. maybe you're having some spark plug problems??

 

try some starting fluid. That will tell you if you have a spark problem or a gas problem without going through the hassle of taking your plugs out. If it sputters with starting fluid its a gas issue. If it does the same old thing its a spark problem

 

The headlight wiring harness thing isn't really weird. The bike won't start if the bank angle sensor isn't connected. It's the thing that kills your motor if the bike falls over.

 

Sounds like the spark plugs. Worst case scenario, possibly no compression? Did you hear a loud pop when you first tried to start it and it failed? I recently did a valve check with my friend and he reinstalled the cct too loose. He wasn't use to a manual cct. When I tried to start it, the chain skipped a few sprockets(loud pop) and I had to completely reset my timing. Had the same symptoms you had.

 

good lookin out Aken! we can always count on you for good info =) and Red, good call on the starting fluid, i say give that a shot.