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StealthDingo

Need a mechanic shop for Kawasaki

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Good Morning SDAR folks!

I am in need of an honest and reliable mechanic for my bike. I was riding home a couple nights ago and it just bogged out and died on me. Fired it up, rode a few more blocks, and same deal. It just kept bogging and dying. It is electric start only so after a couple attempts I had to bump start it. I am new to riding so I lack the knowledge, tools, and space to diagnose and fix the problem. I left it over night and trucked it home the next day. After charging the battery I tried to fire it up and it just makes 1 "click" noise. Doesnt even try to start. Anyone know a good honest moto shop to take it to, preferably close to OB area? It is a 2010 klx250s with a 331 kit, bill blue carb, pipe...etc.

 

Any advice on a good shop is greatly appreciated!

 

Thanks, 

Dingo

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Don't know about close to OB. I here Skeeters in La Mesa is good and affordable. 

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Yup dean and his dad at skeeters are good honest guys 

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+2 on Skeeters. Good folks to be sure.

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I have used OB Motorcycles for some basic service stuff in the past and tire changes. I didn't experience any upselling or BS, so that could be an option for you.  I am not sure of their Kawi expertise.

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I have heard bad things from friends about OB Moto so i am hesitant to take it there. If she goes to the shop it will be Skeeters. Thanks for the advice.

 I have been picking the bike apart and testing things out. Im thinking it might be the starter relay but havent replaced it yet. I know all fuses are good, full tank of clean gas, changed oil and filter, checked all electrical connections and it seems fine. Turn the key on and the dash lights up, blinkers, horn, lights all work but it just wont start. I can hear a "click" that sounds like its coming from the starter relay and I can physically feel the "click" if my hand is on the relay when I hit the starter button. I dont know if that means its a bad starter relay or the relay is working but a short in the wiring to ignition? Electrical is not my strong suit what so ever. I just dont want to throw unnecessary parts at it and see if one sticks. Bike is currently in eleventeen pieces so I havent tried to bump start yet. 

Any thoughts?

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KLR have a problem with wire rub and shorting out, check to see if any of the wires are worn. Keep it simple, check the easy stuff first before you take it to a mechanic, how old is your battery? If battery is older than 2 years that is a possibility.

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First off it sounds like your battery is dead.

 

While your battery is charging, check your fuses. 

 

Once you get it started use a multimeter to check the DC voltage to the battery.

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9 hours ago, PastaPilot said:

First off it sounds like your battery is dead.

 

While your battery is charging, check your fuses. 

 

Once you get it started use a multimeter to check the DC voltage to the battery.

Battery is charged, has been on tender for days. All fuses good, none blew out. She doesn't even try to start. One quick "click" noise is all I get. If the battery runs low.... it will make fast repetitive click noises as I hold the start button down. I am not sure how old the battery is since I purchased the bike used about 3 months ago.

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1 first put bike in nutral and turn on key green nutral light will come on.

 

2 put the solinoid in your hand then place a screwdriver between the two nuts on top of the solinoid .

 

12 v spark will happen but wont get you.

that will telll you if you have a bad battery or starter .re check(tighten ) the batterry coonection .

if your horn is real loud like normal good chance batt is ok.

visual inspection of the battery should be ... not swollen ,no wetness on top , clean looking . if its not  a sealed battery then junk the old battery and replace with new sealed 3 yr type.

 

 

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10 minutes ago, 350thumper said:

1 first put bike in nutral and turn on key green nutral light will come on.

 

2 put the solinoid in your hand then place a screwdriver between the two nuts on top of the solinoid .

 

12 v spark will happen but wont get you.

that will telll you if you have a bad battery or starter .re check(tighten ) the batterry coonection .

if your horn is real loud like normal good chance batt is ok.

visual inspection of the battery should be ... not swollen ,no wetness on top , clean looking . if its not  a sealed battery then junk the old battery and replace with new sealed 3 yr type.

 

 

Last night I unhooked battery and let it sit for about 15 min unhooked. Visual inspection was fine, no moisture on outside.Nice and clean. No corrosion. Leads look good. Tender leads look good. Hooked everything back up and all lights work as bright as they should be. Horn is as loud as normal. I did not try the screwdriver trick ( didnt know about that). I will try that when I get home. See picture below.... place a screwdriver between these two screws yes? Need to hit start button or just have the key in "on" position and bike in neutral?

 

Since I have her apart I am going to replace small maintenance items. Already did oil and filter. Whats better Air Filter... Uni or No-Toil? Any recommendations for a good spark plug?

 

Thanks guys!

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ya those two metal tabs leading to the actuator (solinoid). run your screwdriver between those . no need to hit the button.

what im concerned about is the bikes ability to maintain the charge .

im out in the field today with a service truck text me on my cell if you  get baffled maybe i will pop by.

but not till i get done lowering a cbr over in clairmont and fixing their  sticky brake .

 

 

 

 

 

 

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22 minutes ago, 350thumper said:

ya those two metal tabs leading to the actuator (solinoid). run your screwdriver between those . no need to hit the button.

what im concerned about is the bikes ability to maintain the charge .

im out in the field today with a service truck text me on my cell if you  get baffled maybe i will pop by.

but not till i get done lowering a cbr over in clairmont and fixing their  sticky brake .

 

 

 

 

 

 

I will try that when I get home form work. I am taking off for the weekend on a surf trip but Im gonna PM you. Maybe you and your skills can meet me sometime next week when it works for you. 

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Close to OB?....Alex and Mike at Kon Tiki Motorcycles in PB...old school, honest guys.

 

Also, National City Motorcycle...owners Rob and Mike are great guys.

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those other shops do great work also .

and what pasta pilot said sounds right on the money.

youll get it figured out with all the gear heads on here.

i just happened to be at the beach that day with the testers.

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On 6/3/2016 at 8:54 AM, 350thumper said:

ya those two metal tabs leading to the actuator (solinoid). run your screwdriver between those . no need to hit the button.

what im concerned about is the bikes ability to maintain the charge .

im out in the field today with a service truck text me on my cell if you  get baffled maybe i will pop by.

but not till i get done lowering a cbr over in clairmont and fixing their  sticky brake .

 

 

 

 

 

 

I crossed two screw drivers to connect each screw on the starter relay with the key on. Got Sparks and the click but the bike didn't start. To me it seems like battery is fine , could it be the starter?

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Can you bump start it now?

 

could be stator or regulator/rectifier too.

 

I still think the battery might need replacing. See if you can find another bike with a new battery to test it. The battery may take a charge but not hold enough power to start the bike.   If it's a 6 year old battery it may be time to replace it.

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Haven't tried to bump start it yet because the seat, plastic, and guards are all off of it right now. The battery seems fine but I do not know how old it is since I bought the bike used. Maybe I will just buy a new battery cuz it cant hurt. Since I got sparks when I bypassed the starter relay, does anyone know if that means the relay is bad? The battery is bad? Stator is bad? 

I am horrible at troubleshooting electrical issues

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If you got sparks from bypassing the start relay but the bike didn't start, I would suspect the battery is bad first....and then after eliminating that possibility I'd start troubleshooting the starter, etc.  You don't have jumper cables?

 

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The fact that the battery was acting up before you got home , points back to the battery (or charging sys).

 

 

 

 

 

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UPDATE: Last night I replaced battery with a brand new one. Still no start. Same click noise coming from the starter relay area. All fuses good, battery good, full tank of gas, fresh oil and oil filter, fresh air filter, all wire connections are tight. I pulled out the spark plug and it was a little dirty so I sprayed some starter fluid on it and wiped it down. Seemed to be in good shape but NO SPARK! Swapped it out with an old matching one that my neighbor had pulled from his KTM a while back and that one gave no spark either. I know its a long shot that they both randomly went bad but I am going to replace it tonight with a freshie and see if I get spark. 

What would cause no spark and no starting given all the things I have checked? Bad starter maybe? The fact that there is no spark is concerning to me

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how are you checking spark? i dont remember the klx 250 having a kickstarter in 2010. 

8db6d35fa5.jpg

i checked, this guy doesnt have one either 

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Find a hill and try bump starting. If your bike won't turn over with button you can't check spark unless like thumper said has a kicker. If bikes starts up being bumped then you know if has to be starter or electrical going to starter

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1 hour ago, 350thumper said:

how are you checking spark? i dont remember the klx 250 having a kickstarter in 2010. 

8db6d35fa5.jpg

i checked, this guy doesnt have one either 

Correct - No kickstarter.

Correct - He doesnt have one and Im pretty sure he doesnt need one with that rear rack attachment! haha

 

Removed plug, put spark plug wire on it, key "on", hit starter button. No spark with my plug so I swapped with an old one neighbor had in the garage. Same plug just older. Did the same process and no spark with that either. Just ordered 2 CR8EIX NGK plugs for replacement

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