My bike's broken down! Help please.

[eccles291]

Finished work early today... woohoo!! :D Left London at 4:30pm but due to the sodding bike breaking down, I didn't get home til gone 8pm!!! :mad: :mad:

Immediately prior to the breakdown the bike had been running fine. I was sitting at about 80mph in the outside lane of the A1 and suddenly the engine died. It wouldn't fire up again on the button and bump-starting was unsuccesful. Fortunately there was a gap in the traffic and I managed to dive to the inside lane, where I managed to coast to a stop on a slip road. Thank god it was there and was just reachable as there was no hard shoulder. Trundling along those last yards at only a few mph wasn't exactly my idea of fun with lorries bearing down on me at a rate of knots!! :eek:

The first thing I did when I got off the road was check the fuse box but all the fuses seemed to be in perfect order. All the electrics seem fine as the headlight, horn, indicators and idiot lights all work but there's absolutely squat diddly when I hit the starter button. :confused:

When I got the bike, the previous owner said that sometimes the bike is a little problematic in starting and went on to explain that there's some relay or other just under the fuel tank - accessible through the frame on the RHS - which needs a wire wiggling and the bike then starts. :eek: I farted about with this wire for a while at the side of the road but it made absolutely no difference at all. :mad: :mad:

I got the bike home in the back of a van but haven't had time to even look at the bike tonight. Any suggestions as to where to start looking for the cause/problem would be much appreciated though. i.e. - has anyone had this happen to them? BTW - it's a '51 plate 600 Monster with 6000 miles on the clock, if that makes any difference.

Thanks in advance. :)

[cheeky monkey]

check the obvios. has it got petrol. has it got a spark? double check fuses . hope this isnt patronising

[Scotty]

i once had the vaccume tube that opens the fuel tap perish giveing no vaccume and hence no fuel

[eccles291]

check the obvios. has it got petrol. has it got a spark? double check fuses . hope this isnt patronising
It's deffo got petrol as there's at least another 30 miles to go before the reserve light's due on. Also, it didn't cough and splutter like running out of fuel, it just died in an instant - literally like hitting the kill switch (and before you ask, yes I DID check that! ;) :D )

Will check for a spark and re-examine the fuses when I get chance at the w'end.

Don't worry, it's not taken as patronising. I realise there are some people with absolutely no mechanical idea at all but thankfully I do have some experience of spanners, oily finger nails and skinned knuckles! :rolleyes: :o

i once had the vaccume tube that opens the fuel tap perish giveing no vaccume and hence no fuel
Did it do it whilst you were riding and if so did the bike die instantly, like flicking the kill switch?

Anyone have any idea what that 'relay'(?) I referred to under the tank might be? I have my suspicions the problem could possibly be related to that.

[Scotty]

it did die instantly but then 'fixed' its self a couple of times whilst moving
before dieing for good

the 'relay' i assume is for the starter motor so if its turning over then it should be ok i guess

[eccles291]

I assume so too but the bike doesn't turn over. Infact it didn't do a thing when the button was pressed... no humming, rattling, clicking, whirring, graunching, buzzing, ticking... no fukking nowt! :mad: It's almost like the starter button isn't connected, which is exactly what it does when that 'relay'(?) needs it's wire wiggling! :rolleyes:

[dlloyduk]

Not sure on the model but I had similar on a 620 when I first got it,
Checked starter relay and wiring, Sidestand switch, cut out switch and wiring.Mine turned out to be bad joint in a cable/sensor that I assume picks up a signal from the coded key! This was near to the head tube where the wires are moving all the time and can get worn.

[MikeG]

In my experience the bike will continue to run if the relay is duff, however it will not start until that problem is fixed. Simple way to check is to lift the seat and turn the ignition on, you should hear a click from the relay, mine is a yellow box about 1 inch by 1/2 inch. If there is no sound try tapping it with a small blunt instrument which "may" free the relay. They are about a fiver!

Check the sidestand switch, I had one fail. Can be checked by the same method as above only by moving the sidestand up and down, one of the relays should click. It seems unlikely that either of theses problems would cause the bike to stop, but there may be a couple of problems that have occurred at the same time.

Could check the breather pipe, lift petrol cap and make sure the hole with the rubber top on the seat side of the tank is not full of goo. Yes I had that as well - took about an hour by the side of the road to discover all I needed to do was remove the accumulated gunge from the breather.

Possibly a kill switch problem - I seem to recall that some bikes had a kill switch that would die if it was used a few times - hence I never use mine!

Take out and replace the fuses, make sure the fuses are still in one piece and that the contacts are secure and not falling apart - yes, had that as well!

Check the wiring from the loom that goes round and beneath the headlight, mine was damaged and would only start if the handlebars were hard over left! Strip the outer sheath and have a look, this may be something to do with having to "wiggle" the wires. If one has been damaged (to the starter) then the one from the kill switch may be also....

None of this may be any use but let us all know!
Best of luck :confused:

[Plum]

Anyone have any idea what that 'relay'(?) I referred to under the tank might be? I have my suspicions the problem could possibly be related to that.

The relay is under the seat, and i had problems with mine for a couple of months. However mine didnt die whilst running, it just didnt start. Even though it may look clean between the contacts, you can bet your ass it aint. You need to get the cover off and clean the contacts up with a bit of fine sand paper (like wet and dry 280). After i did mine i never had any further problems with it.

Hope this helps and keeps us posted

L

[mad_turnips]

mine did the same thing i canged the air and fuel filter and it seemed to sort it out although after it cut out i left it for a few mins and it started fine and ran perfectly aslong as i kept under 80

[fluffy]

Watch out for red herrings here...!
If the bike died like it hit a brick wall you can rule out all the fuel related problems.
Similarly a starter relay problem will stop you turning over the engine but won't stop you bump starting it.
Not being blessed with electrical knowledge of Monsters I can't point you in the right direction but a good guess would be the the headstock loom and any connection there to the right-hand bar switch cluster.
Initially I'd turn on ignition, press start switch and then have a good rummage around the headstock wiring to see if any signs of life appear.
Was is pissing down when this happened or were you gifted fine weather yesterday.?

[slob]

It was bucketing down in London yesterday, I'd start with a good squirt of WD40 in and around the kill switch.

[eccles291]

Watch out for red herrings here...!
If the bike died like it hit a brick wall you can rule out all the fuel related problems.
Similarly a starter relay problem will stop you turning over the engine but won't stop you bump starting it.
Not being blessed with electrical knowledge of Monsters I can't point you in the right direction but a good guess would be the the headstock loom and any connection there to the right-hand bar switch cluster.
Initially I'd turn on ignition, press start switch and then have a good rummage around the headstock wiring to see if any signs of life appear.
Was is pissing down when this happened or were you gifted fine weather yesterday.?

Thanks, that's a real help. At the time of the breakdwon the weather wasn't actually too bad. It was raining but only lightly and had only just started. Monday morning, however, was a different story. It was absolutely hissing it down when I went to work and there wasn't a hint of a problem with the bike.

... I'd start with a good squirt of WD40 in and around the kill switch.

I'll try that. :)

[Plum]

Watch out for red herrings here...!
If the bike died like it hit a brick wall you can rule out all the fuel related problems.
Similarly a starter relay problem will stop you turning over the engine but won't stop you bump starting it.


Have to admit fluffy, the relay issue i had wouldnt let me start it on the button or bump start it. On clearing the (invisible) crap on the contacts, the bugger started on the button staright away. So still worthwhile checking.

[fluffy]

Like I said Plum....I'm not specifically blessed with electrical knowledge of Monsters... :)

Though (putting tongue firmly in cheek) your problem was not with the relay but the connections to it.

On a similar note, i'd go easy on the wd40 too. Sparingly is a nice word.

[Perryl]

Is there a side-stand switch on this model? If so that could be another place to check as it does sound electrical related.

Regards

Perry

[Fred]

I had a kink in the fuel pipe and that stopped the engine dead, didn't splutter or cough just stopped. Although if it won't turn over on the button it's got to be electrical.

Fred

[Bunny]

[QUOTE=MikeG]
Check the wiring from the loom that goes round and beneath the headlight, mine was damaged and would only start if the handlebars were hard over left! Strip the outer sheath and have a look, this may be something to do with having to "wiggle" the wires. If one has been damaged (to the starter) then the one from the kill switch may be also....

QUOTE]
and as Fluffy says also:

Check the loom where it goes round the headstock on the right side (you'll have to peel back the covering) Sue's 900 did exactly the same, and there were a couple of broken wires there, it's quite a common thing on 900s evidently, not sure about 600s

[Gadget]

Mine does this every now and then. It did it on Saturday on the trip to Broadstairs on the way back through Herniabay. I can usually get it to start again by kicking the side stand down then back up, full lock on the handlebars left and right turn the ignition on and off. Then she starts.

Though it has been embarrasing when I had no solenoid and was bumping her to start.

I have not been able to pinpoint the exact cause of my cut outs, but all the time she runs I can live with my little routine. Touch wood. :)

[eccles291]

It's been quite a while but it looks like the problem could be sorted. (I've been so busy lately things have been just plain stupid! I've also bought another bike in the meantime so the Monster's been sitting at the back of the garage waiting under it's dust cover to get fixed :rolleyes: ).

Having finally got round to looking at the bike it seems that the wiring loom around the headstock was to blame. A nipped (and subsequently corroded) wire that ran to the Kill switch was the culprit. :mad: Thankfully I've got a mate who's a mechanic who came and helped me sort it out. :)

I just hope this was the cause of the starting problems I had before the breakdown and that it wasn't a 'relay' that needed wiggling at all. :eek:

It looks like the Monster will be up for sale now so if anyone's interested, let me know. :)