Bike stalls, then won't turn over

promac

promac

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After riding for about 30 minutes, I stop at a light and my engine stalls. When I tried to start it again, it would barely turnover, like the battery was done. So I push the bike to a parking area and call my wife to pick me up. After 20 minutes waiting, I try to start the bike again, and it fires right up. What gives?
 
could be a loose terminal or your alternator, but more info is needed. Does it fire up right away or does the turn over seem weak? hows the throttle response before it dies and after it fires, FI or carburated? need some more details about the bike.
 
When you say barely turn over, do you mean the starter was weak in turning it over, or it just sounded like weak ignition?

What kind of bike?
 
bobjohnson said:
When you say barely turn over, do you mean the starter was weak in turning it over, or it just sounded like weak ignition?

Fuel pump and carbs. The bike normally fires right up immediately - no wah, wah, wah at all. The bike just quit at idle - no warning, then I pressed the starter and it went wa-clickityclick-aw, then all it did was click. 20 minutes later, it fired right up like a champ!

What kind of bike?
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KTM 950 Super Enduro R - starter seemed weak in turning over - starter engaged, and turned, but could not get past the compression of the engine. Could the heat have weakened the battery?

It normally fires right up with no weakness at all - just like it did about 20 minutes after it stalled and wouldn't start or turnover. Throttle response was fine before and 20 minutes after it stalled.
 
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promac said:
KTM 950 Super Enduro R - starter seemed weak in turning over - starter engaged, and turned, but could not get past the compression point of the engine. Could the heat have weakened the battery?
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The heat shouldn't have killed the battery. As someone already said, check the connections on the battery and ground connection to the frame.
 
All the battery connections are tight, the battery tender indicates it's charged and the bike has just under 2,000km, first major service done at just over 1,000km - it's barely broken in. Could the heat and pressure temperarily lock the cylinder(s)? Today, it still starts like a champ - instant on, started and stopped it 6 times without a hiccup.
 
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promac said:
All the battery connections are tight, the battery tender indicates it's charged and the bike has just under 2,000km, first major service done at just over 1,000km - it's barely broken in. Could the heat and pressure temperarily lock the cylinder(s)? Today, it still starts like a champ - instant on, started and stopped it 6 times without a hiccup.
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Sounds like a prime candidate for a dealer to investigate under warranty if it's already giving you trouble at that low mileage.
 
beverage said:
Sounds like a prime candidate for a dealer to investigate under warranty if it's already giving you trouble at that low mileage.
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I don't know if it's a problem or not, but so far, it seems to have been an isolated incident. The bike starts and runs flawlessly now. I'll have a mechanic check it out though.

One possibility may be the starter relay.
 
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wont be starter relay. the battery wasnt properly filled and charged at the time of the pdi. have the battery load tested and the charging system checked by a compendent mechanic for warranty
 
I'm just going to check the seating of the fuse in the relay. And yes, you may be right about the battery - it may only be charging to 75% according to a chart I looked at.

One thing I did notice, was that the valves sounded a bit noisier than usual on the way home after I got it started again - I forgot to put my earplugs back in, so I'm sure that explains slot too. I still wonder about the possibility of excessive compression.

I did find on another forum that the r/r's on this particular bike are susceptible to failure from the heat - just above the two header pipes routed through the frame. It recommend relocating to a cooler location.
 
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Possible:

Engine is tightening up due to the heating? Especially if its getting noisy how hot are we talking about?
Starter is too hot and drawing more current than can be provided. Once it cools its ok again?
I am more concerned with the noisy part and the stalling than the starter.
 
kneedragger88 said:
Possible:

Engine is tightening up due to the heating? Especially if its getting noisy how hot are we talking about?
Starter is too hot and drawing more current than can be provided. Once it cools its ok again?
I am more concerned with the noisy part and the stalling than the starter.
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Water temperature seems to be in check. However, these bikes come from the factory running lean. I also took the cats off and replaced with aftermarket silencers and had the bike re-jetted at Parker Bros while in for it's first comprehensive service. If it's still running too lean, that might explain my problem. Next week, it'll be in a shop with a dyno.
 
Check your spark plug connections as well. My bike has done something very similar like that to me recently and when I pressed/wiggled the spark plug caps they were a bit loose.
 
Thanks for your help eveyone - it's much appreciated. It really helped narrow things down. Anyway, it seems the cylinders locked with fuel. Apparently it happens occasionally to the 950 SER. The remedy is to:

a) Push the bike backwards in gear
b) Turn the crankshaft counter-clockwise with a 14mm allen key
c) Wait 30 minutes or so.

Now to figure out how to prevent it from occuring in the first place. Any suggestions?
 
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promac said:
Thanks for your help eveyone - it's much appreciated. It really helped narrow things down. Anyway, it seems the cylinders locked with fuel. Apparently it happens occasionally to the 950 SER. The remedy is to:

a) Push the bike backwards in gear
b) Turn the crankshaft counter-clockwise with a 14mm allen key
c) Wait 30 minutes or so.

Now to figure out how to prevent it from occuring in the first place. Any suggestions?
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Is this bike not still under warranty? It is new, with little miles, why are you not at the dealer for warranty?
 
bear22099 said:
Is this bike not still under warranty? It is new, with little miles, why are you not at the dealer for warranty?
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I don't believe it's a manufacturer defect - just a design flaw. A guy on another forum said it happen to him twice in the last 3 years and to one of his riding buddies once. He speculated that it might be due to the bike not having a fuel return or perhaps the floats being set too high in the carbs. Nonetheless, I'm going to have a performance shop look at it before I take issue to the dealer. Removing the oem cats and smog control crap may not help me when it comes to warranty either. I'll try though.
 
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