VFR 400 not starting

[rpg]

hi all, my VFr wont start and im sure its me doing something wrong since i am used to old bikes and not newer ones!

First question-on the honda fuel tap do you turn the tap until the writing is facing upwards ie. on at the top?

Could a faulty leaking fuel cap cause a lack of vacuum therefore fuel wont go thru ? (stolen and recovered bike and they tried to force the cap)

Do you pull the choke lever towards you to activate the choke?

So far i have checked:

the engine kill switch is on "run"
ignition switch was pulled so i connected up the 2 red wires to get the lights on the dash to come on.
battery charged

I do get the noise of the starter spinning, and sometimes the engine kind of catches and wants to start but not often.

Any ideas please?

[Stiffler]

The choke is on when pulled towards you. The fuel is on with the tap turned frully in either direction (with ON at the top the fuel is running off the main tank, Res at the top off the resivour - to turn the fuel off you leave it half turned)

If the bike has been stood for a while it may be a pain to start. You will notice the VFR has a hose that comes out of the top of the fuel tank. This is the breather pipe to prevent vacuums so the damaged cap shouldn't be an issue... Woth checking the breather pipe is clear though.

If it's flooded the suggested method is to turn the fuel tap to off and hold the throttle fully open and turn the engine over. Don't over do this though as you may burn the starter out.

Worth checking you have a spark on all 4 plugs and that fuel is actually coming out of the tank (remove the fuel line from the fuel tap when the bike is off... There should be some fuel in the pipe). There are two tubes that attach to the tank the smaller vacuum pipe to the fuel tank tap activates the tap when the engine is running, if this is detatched you will have a problem.

Other things to consider:
Battery fully charged
Clean the carbs
Replace the fuel in tank
Air filter
Bump start?


Tim
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Current Bikes - Kawasaki ZX-6R (636) | BMW G650GS

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

Try and bump it. Seems to work on some bikes if they've been sat for a while.

Check the big 3 as well.

Got Fuel?
Got Spark?
Got compression? Don't check for compression until you've ruled out the other 2.
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[rpg]

Thanks both of you

Whats the best method to bump start? which gear?
thanks

[Stiffler]

2nd gear is best.

Same as any bike apart from that, run along holding the clutch in, jump on the bike as you release the clutch to stop the back wheel slipping....

ps: Testing compression on the VFR is a bit of a pain as it's uses none standard size sparks.
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Current Bikes - Kawasaki ZX-6R (636) | BMW G650GS

[rpg]

Thanks very much