Video of my bike not starting

[jimster]

Hi all,

So I have a sound but well-loved Yamaha Diversion XJ900 from 1997. It started last year (for a few minutes) but hasn't been on the road for about 2 years.

I am trying to get it up and running again this week. When I jumped the bike with my car battery (as the bike battery is unfortunately dead) it turned over but no dice with the engine starting.

I have previously repaired the starter motor (by cleaning the brushes) so I don't think that's the problem. My best guess is the fuel has become varnish and will require a bit of cleaning. The fuel tap is open, the electric cut out switch is not on and the bike's in neutral so hopefully I'm not missing something very simple.

I've recorded the sound it makes - could someone who knows more about these things have a listen and tell me if I'm barking up the wrong tree?

Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bbi0EwA8VIU

Thanks!!!!
____________________
Current: Yamaha Diversion XJ900
Previous: Yamaha Diversion 600cc, Piaggio Zip 50cc, Honda CG125-W, Siamoto Caddy 50cc moped

[Nobby the Bastard]

Your starter is fine. The problem is probably 2 year old fuel.

But, start with basics. Do you have a spark? does the spark plug smell of fuel/is wet after you've tried to start it?
____________________
trevor saxe-coburg-gotha:"Remember this simple rule - scooters are for men who like to feel the breeze on their huge, flapping cunt lips."
Sprint ST 1050

[Tdibs]

Yes absolutely drain the fuel from the tank, open the carb drain screws and drain (if anything comes out ). Then try with some fresh, most likely will need cleaning out if it has been 2 years, but worth a go with fresh. You can hear the fuel pump is working too.
____________________
Previous : 09 Vanvan 125| 02' Sv650s || Current: 1999 Xj600n | 1992 DR650 RSE | 2005 Fazer 1000

[doggone]

If fuel is getting through it ought to be at least attempting to fire after that relatively short layup period, I'd suspect electrics I.e. No spark or fuel pump not actually pumping at all, by all means change fuel but it would be surprising if that's alone resolved it.

[jimster]

Thanks all for the feedback. I just tested the ignition by unplugging each lead, and plugging it into a new sparkplug and grounding it on the engine, then turning the engine over with the starter motor. I repeated this for each sparkplug, and I saw sparks. They were possibly a bit faint (but the engine case is a bit oily so perhaps this was just because of poor contact).

Is it safe to take out the actual sparkplugs one-by-one and turn the engine over with that sparkplug grounded to the engine casing? The Haynes book says not to do this in case it damages the ingnition coil, so probably not, I guess?

I'll check whether the plugs are wet & smell of fuel shortly.

I'll also next try to drain the carbs and see if anything comes out. I don't have a fuel jerry can annoyingly so not sure how to get new fuel into it (short of popping it on a trailer and driving it to the garage, which would be a considerable faff!)

I did shine a torch into the petrol tank (gingerly in case it exploded..) and I can see the tank is still about 1/3rd full and the petrol smells petrol-y although also possibly of varnish. I did also see a dead fly at the bottom of the tank!
____________________
Current: Yamaha Diversion XJ900
Previous: Yamaha Diversion 600cc, Piaggio Zip 50cc, Honda CG125-W, Siamoto Caddy 50cc moped

[jimster]

So, I made a bit of a silly mistake - the fuel tap markings had become dirty, so what looked like "on" was in fact "off"....whoops!

Anyway, I turned the fuel tap back to on and tried again to start the engine. The engine still spins without starting so I gave it a little choke and some throttle...and....I smelt fuel. Strongly. So I stopped and noticed a bit of a puddle on the floor underneath the engine.

I didn't fancy causing a fire so have stopped for tonight to let it evaporate (the bike is outside so should be fine by tomorrow) and have put the fuel tap back to "off".

I guess the unused fuel while the engine is spinning has to go SOMEWHERE but I assume it's more likely there is a fuel leak somewhere - probably at the fuel tap or between that and the engine? Will investigate tomorrow....with caution!!
____________________
Current: Yamaha Diversion XJ900
Previous: Yamaha Diversion 600cc, Piaggio Zip 50cc, Honda CG125-W, Siamoto Caddy 50cc moped

[jimster]

So - the engine is running again, if roughly! Wahey. I replaced the spark plugs, made sure the fuel tap was unjammed, and opened the starter motor up again to make sure it was running freely.

The bike now starts with choke out most of the way and a lot of throttle, and it'll keep running with no throttle and 50% choke. Perhaps I didn't let it run for long enough to warm up, but when I closed the choke, it died instantly.

I still think the carbs need rebalancing or perhaps a full clean, and the valves need rechecking, and a clean tank of fuel and perhaps it'll be running smoothly again!

I still need to fix the calipers (they are jamming on the front brake), repair the leaky exhaust and fix the leaky fork seal and glue the handlebar grips back on (they are currently both loose) and probably some other things and then ... it'll be good for the MOT....possibly!!
____________________
Current: Yamaha Diversion XJ900
Previous: Yamaha Diversion 600cc, Piaggio Zip 50cc, Honda CG125-W, Siamoto Caddy 50cc moped