1987 Honda 250sx - Died While Riding

[boutselis]

I was out riding and it quit on me. I was going sslow when it happened with low rpms. engine feels like it has the same compression.

I ahev not checked anything yet

what would be the first few things to check on in order of likely hood

[oxidized_black]

i would check if you are getting gas and spark, then check electrical connections ...

[boutselis]

I checked to see if it was sparking. it did but it seemed weak. but my starter does not work well. I usually kick start it. I could not get any spark kick starting.

but it did show a spark with the weak starter. Not as bright as my chain saw though.

is this one of those things where the ignition system is either working or it isnt or could it be working in a weak way

[oxidized_black]

i think it will work in a weak way ... i would check regulator,

but i think stator might be toast, or just the pick up coil ...

[boutselis]

i think it will work in a weak way ... i would check regulator,

but i think stator might be toast, or just the pick up coil ...

The plug is black and pretty sooty looking.

could that be enough to cause a weak spark?

[oxidized_black]

if it was black, it didnt burn or too rich. so yes makes sense being weak ...

[boutselis]

if it was black, it didnt burn or too rich. so yes makes sense being weak ...

then I guess its kind of a chicken egg thing I have to figure out. did the plug get sooty because of a rich mixture and then it fouled

or was the spark weak so the fuel didnt burn so the plug turned black

[oxidized_black]

does your neutral light come on ok ... was just thinking of other possibilities with the spark ...

[boutselis]

does your neutral light come on ok ... was just thinking of other possibilities with the spark ...

the neutral light is always on. I didnt worry about it because it wasnt an issue until maybe now.

I am looking into wether the battery is completely dead or not. I know on my mowers, if the battery doesnt charge or it goes bad the mower will stall out. even if you jump it and the battery doesnt have enough of a charge they will stall.

wasnt sure if this atc could be similar.

[oxidized_black]

my buddys big red had a bad battery but would kick start and run fine. thinking you could do a test on the stator and pick up coil, but not sure how easy it is with the cdi ...

i would pull all the connections and clean and grease them ... could be that simple too ...

Edited February 22, 2014 by oxidized_black

[boutselis]

I charged a better battery. on the plus side I found out my starter isnt bad. Even though the old batter would get the head light to work it didnt produce enough amps to turn over the starter.

on the negative side , I have gone from weak spark to no spark.

so now I am going to test components and clean contacts

[boutselis]

I have noticed something odd. I tried turning over the motor with an auxiliary batter by connecting the positive to the starter and the neg to a spot on the motor with the use of short jumper cables and I could not get the starter to turn.

when I hooked up the same battery to the old battery terminals on the atc then the starter would turn that way.

shouldnt the starter spin a good battery is hooked up directly to it with the engine cooling fin as a ground?

this may tell me I am not grounding the spark plug properly when checking to coil