Quick Help For A Noobie? Engine Startup

[no1GhostFL]

Hey guys! This being my first post, I'd like to say hello and thank you for everyone's input! I've been riding for a day now... literally. Just bought a used 04' FZ6 and it has been running great (as far as I know what running great is) for the last day. Tonight I was backing out of a parking spot with the bike on when the bike fell over on me. I didn't drop it, it was one of those gradual "Oh... oh oh oh OH ****!" type of deals... Got up off it, lifted her up and she wouldn't start anymore. The bike would turn on, but when trying to start the engine, the lights on the reader would just blink simultaneously as I heard a "clicking" sound. Which sounds very familiar to me as a dead battery on a car at start up.

I ran into a homeless man named Cledus and he helped me push start the bike. He told me from his experience it may have been the battery or the sensor on the bike? With it barely running and idling after push starting it, I can see the lights flickering. He told me this was because the bike was now running off of the alternator.

I've had this bike 24 hours and tomorrow I am supposed to be in a different town with my gf for new years. I'm open to all suggestions and input, guys! I KNOW you guys know a hell of a lot more about this than I do!


Thank you so much everyone!

-Brendan

 

[ant_mb]

Welsome to the site.

My guess would be a dead battery. If you were able to bump start it then it obviously will run. Always eliminate the easy things first.

 

[RJ2112]

It's very good odds that the charging system has not been keeping up with the way you have been using the bike to this point.....

The charging system on motorcycles in general are not very effective at idle, and low RPM. If you have spent more of your time at less than 3,000 RPM than you have above that point, odds are good you've taken more out than you have put back in.

20 minutes above 3K would be enough to charge the battery fairly decently......

 

[no1GhostFL]

The guy I bought the bike from has had it in a garage with no use for the last year, so he said that may be contributing to the battery issue. Would it be good to try and get a juicer of some kind before buying a new battery? I was thinking about ordering the CTEK US800 based off of what I've read about it. And it's only 50$ from their site. For now though, I may leave to Walmart and see if they have something that could charge the battery up over night. Could anyone back me up on this plan of action?


edit; And now that I think about what you say, RJ... that could also be a big factor. All day today I've been riding it at around 30-50mph but in the highest gear possible so as to not use much gas and keep my RPM's as low as possible . I didn't know that about bike batteries! Thank you both very much!

 

[RJ2112]

The bike is happiest with (at least) 5K on the tach. That's a bit much on the first day of riding, tho..... 3K is enough to get it charging.

CTek makes a good, 'smart' charger; that's a wise investment, regardless of whether you have any more trouble or not. If you have to get a charger immediately, get one that DOES NOT EXCEED 1 ampere. You can damage the glass mat battery by overcharging it, and that's way too easy to do with a charger that will provide 3 or 6 amps.

 

[no1GhostFL]

5k? Wow. I guess I'm kind of stupid for not assuming this. I've been trying to keep the RPM's low as a car would have at those speeds, and I failed to notice that the guage goes up to 14000 for performance . So I should start keeping it at at least 4k rpms no matter the speed I'm going? I'm heading to walmart right now for a 1amp charger! Standard terminal clamps are what I'm looking for right? Or do they need to be smaller for smaller bike batteries? Thanks a ton guys! You are saving my New Years! :rockon:

 

[Fred]

You want some smaller clamps for the bike battery.

Check the battery connections too. I've seen one case before where dropping the bike loosened the battery terminals enough that the bike wouldn't start anymore.

Fred

 

[no1GhostFL]

Ok, so I took off the seat, unbolted the gas tank (front two bolts) and in order to lift it up, I took off the black trimmings. I see the positive cable, but there is a strange plastic piece on top of where I think the battery is that won't allow me to get to the terminals. Any advice? And most likely I will be needing to charge the bike tomorrow night as well (if I ever get it going) so is there a safe easy way to attatch some terminal leads to near the outside of the tank? Sorry if I'm flooding with stupid questions. I wasn't given a manual for the bike, and it's my first time riding. And as I sold my car to get it, I'm a little F'd in the mean time

Pictures would REALLLLLLLLLY help! I'm working in the dark here, in more ways than one.

 

[deeptekkie]

In addition to agreeing with everything aforementioned, there may one other thing to consider. Somewhere on it this bike has a switch that kills the engine if it is leaned over past a certain degree, (to keep the engine from continuing to run after a spill and fry itself by not receiving lubrication from the oil pick up in the sump). Is it possible that this switch is "stuck" or has not fully returned to "home" position? Just another thought...

 

[no1GhostFL]

That's what I was first told by the homeless guy. That newer sport bikes tend to come with a "safety" shut off that will not allow the bike to start back up until you have it checked out. Sounds like a marketing strategy for the Yamaha dealerships, in my opinion, but I can see how it would be useful on rare occasions. Being able to bump start it should rule that out, no? And I've had the bike sitting in the driveway for the last 2 hours and I tried it again. This time, the yellow battery light was already on before attempting to start the engine. Everything is off the bike now and the battery is almost exposed. There is a strange plastic covering that may have came with the battery that is blocking me from even viewing the terminals. All I can do right now is attempt to charge it with a walmart charger right? I'd like to attach a couple leads if I can for later... I'm off to Walmart to pick up a 1ampre charger. Over night should be efficient enough, no? And if not, I can push start it tomorrow and have it running on the highway at 5-6000rpms for the 40 minute ride and it should have a charge built up?

 

[Red Wazp]

If the battey is old or has been sitting too long a 40 minute ride won't help much. Replace the battery so you know it is good, if you haven't bought it yet, try to get a charger for motorcycle batteries that will also be a trickle charger for when you are not riding.
On another note do not "lug" your motor. Those tiny pistons are happier 5k on up and you milage won't change that much .I 'm packing a few pounds and ride mine 7k to redline all the time and get 43mpg.
Good luck

 

[RJ2112]

That's what I was first told by the homeless guy. That newer sport bikes tend to come with a "safety" shut off that will not allow the bike to start back up until you have it checked out. Sounds like a marketing strategy for the Yamaha dealerships, in my opinion, but I can see how it would be useful on rare occasions. Being able to bump start it should rule that out, no? And I've had the bike sitting in the driveway for the last 2 hours and I tried it again. This time, the yellow battery light was already on before attempting to start the engine. Everything is off the bike now and the battery is almost exposed. There is a strange plastic covering that may have came with the battery that is blocking me from even viewing the terminals. All I can do right now is attempt to charge it with a walmart charger right? I'd like to attach a couple leads if I can for later... I'm off to Walmart to pick up a 1ampre charger. Over night should be efficient enough, no? And if not, I can push start it tomorrow and have it running on the highway at 5-6000rpms for the 40 minute ride and it should have a charge built up?

As you already know how to bump start a bike, you'll learn pretty quickly, how long it takes to charge the bike back up....... Been there, done that. It only takes about 20 minutes of leaving the headlights on with the motor off to drain it, too.

<sorry, the 48 year old has to speak now....>

New Year's Eve? On a motorcycle? that you have only been riding 2 DAYS?!?!?!?!? :spank:

AND you want to take a passenger?!?!?!?

 

[wrightme43]

Welcome man, sounds like you could use a battery. The switch is under the side pods under the seat. Its fine or it wouldnt of push started.

It would be wise to take a skip on a new years ride with a passenger since your still learning and its amature drunk driving night. The skills needed are just not wired in yet, most highly experinced riders take a skip on riding around when the drunks are out. Hope you dont take offense. It would be a good night to take the car, and then build up skills, then take your lady out riding on a warm day with sticky tires and warm roads.

Bummer on the drop man, I never dropped my first bike, but within a few days of getting my new fz she had a scar on the fairing edge too. LOL. Its just a part of it. Like one guy said " there is just something wrong with a machine that will do 150mph but fall down if you stop.

 

[no1GhostFL]

NOOOOO NO NO NO NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

I planned on leaving for Orlando in mid afternoon to beat any drunks. And just by myself, to get to where my girlfriend is. From her house, the bike will be parked all night until tomorrow morning :thumbup:


So I got back from walmart with a charger I picked up for 50$. It looks like it's pretty nice. But now my issue is simple and horrifically stupid. I'm trying to get to the battery but there is a plastic guard in the way as seen in the picture. The two bolts holding it down are rusted/stuck pretty good and not even my power drill or hand tool will get them off. 7/16" is the right size, but both tools just circulate around the bolt. Talk about frustration....

I don't even know what I should do at this point. I'm no bike mechanic to say the very least, and I feel pretty useless to fix my problem. Definitely not a good night...

I think all I can do for now, is return the charger, get my money back (money is very tight for me right now) and just bump-start when I leave to Orlando. I will just keep my RPMs as high as possible for the first 10 minutes and then settle it down to 6 or 7k when I'm on the highway. And it's about an hour on the highway, so hopefully that will leave a little charge in it over night so I don't need a push start in the morning. If not, push start again it is. Then in the next couple days, I will be ordering a new battery online (if any of you have an awesome referral for a great fz6 battery, that would be greatly appreciated) and the CTEK charger that I will start "battery tending" the bike with every night.

I think I will take it somewhere to have them install the battery. I simply don't want to **** anything up this fresh into my riding experience. Especially with at-home maintenance


Can I get some input on this new course of action?

 

[Fred]

If you're not confident about doing the job yourself, then you should absolutely take it to a mechanic.

Cheers,
Frederic

 

[RJ2112]

Good to hear the bike will be parked during the witching hours, and I apologize if I sounded harsh. It really is the other drivers I would be the most concerned about....

The terminals for the battery are on the face towards the front of the bike. Side post terminals, with soft plastic covers over the positive and negative terminals. You'll be albe to tell them apart. I haven't looked at my battery in a few months, so I have trouble remembering which side is positive and which is negative. Your photo makes me think the posive is on the left, at the front top edge of the battery where the red cable leads off to, and the negative terminal is missing it's cover.

 

[DaveOTZ]

Bro...
First off.... please chill... Breathe... The quickest way to blow your bike is to blow your top...
The battery cover should not be that difficult to remove... the bolts don't look rusty... if they are carefully get some WD40 in there and let it sit... If the socket doesn't just try another... disconnect the harness and take out the screws the battery should look very familiar. Plug in the battery tender and let it charge, it is probably out of juice from sitting for a year... My rule of thumb is any used automobile, unless they replaced before selling I will change the battery and oil when I get it to be sure...

If you can comfortably bump start your bike you should feel comfortable charging your battery...

Worst case scenario just bump start... Also, about keeping your RPMs up somebody could give you a definite, but Ive heard that above 3K will charge but it tops out at 5k so while 7-14k is a ton of fun it wont charge any more than 5.

 

[no1GhostFL]

I appreciate the help a lot guys, and it's ok, I would be harsh if I read it the way you did too. I know it's the other drivers, which is why I was hoping to leave town by noon. Last night after more fiddling with it, I decided to not f*ck anything up and just take it in to get looked at. Being as how I am not confident in my ability to diagnose the problem, let alone solve it, I'd rather not try and risk further complications. I'm heading out right now to go get a new battery installed. It's going to cost me about 111$ for the battery and service, and the battery is about 90$ so that's not too bad. Now I will be ordering the CTEK battery tender in the next week for use every other night.

Thanks for all the help! I'll post again in a few hours to sum everything up from the bike shop. Thanks FZ6F! :cheer: :rockon: