Hi all,
Discovered this forum as a result of trying to figure out what is wrong with my bike.
Hope this thread is allowed and thanks for any tips in advance!
Last Friday I was riding at night with a couple guys I had just met on a road parallel to a highway. Unbeknownst to me, they were painting the center yellow line. I was approaching part of the road that curved to the left and briefly touched the wet paint. Started to self correct and then leaned into the curve a bit and went down and slide into some grass about 5-7 meters/15-23 feet from where I started to fall.
Luckily one of the guys I had just met was able to grab his truck and help me get my bike home.
Bruised up elbow and shin and a little road rash on my stomach but otherwise I'm fine.
Enough back story however!
The clutch lever was pushed down a bit and the seat locking mechanism is broken, as well as a few other scratches and such.
I can turn the bikes electronics on, no problem and can also cycle through the gears last I checked. However, when I press the engine start nothing happens. No clicks or any other sounds.
Any ideas about what I can check with rudimentary knowledge to see what's wrong with my bike?
Thanks a ton!
Ride safe :)
Glad to hear you are ok'ish after the slide.
On the left side of the GS there are two starter system cutout switches: at the clutch lever and at the sidestand.
You said the clutch lever was pushed down a bit so I'd start by checking that cutout switch.
Hope that helps.
Hi Moe,
Thanks for the idea. Looked a bit more carefully and it turns out the left handle bar is bent - don't know how I didn't notice that before.
As far as I can tell the clutch switch is okay.
Also, now that I'm off work and looking at my bike again, it can shift between 1st, neutral and 2nd gear and that's it.
Might end up taking it to a shop after all this weekend if I can't figure it out. Will update if I do.
Thanks again!
Ride safe :)
Seems simple but I'll ask anyway... is the killswitch on?
Glad you are OK and it wasn't worse :cheers:
Hi Wolf,
It's worth checking, but unfortunately it's not the killswitch.
Thanks! Me too - if only I could figure out what's wrong with it! 🧐 :hithead:
Ride safe! :)
a very quick test to rule out the clutch switch. diconnect the clutch switch and shove a 10-20a atc fuse between the connections.
Mike
Even quicker test - just short the lever switch!
It's incredibly easy to destroy the switch by being less than mega vigilant when reassembling it - ask me how I know!
(fortunately a new one only costs about five quid max)
I thought by now we had all just permanently shorted that switch since it breaks when you remove it.
Well everyone,
I ended up getting it back yesterday (they kept it longer to fix a leak in one of the front shocks and it was delayed due to parts shipping).
They said all they did was charge the battery and it was good to go. I'm sure it must've been a killswitch of some kind as well as I charged it and tested it before they worked on it.
Whatever it was, it's running again so now I just have to fix up some of the cosmetic damage and it's good to go.
Thanks for all the advice and tips!
Ride safe :)