I'm in Chile and my Ten won't start. It fires up but then immediately cuts out. I've changed the spark plug, but no different. Any ideas? Thanks.

My gut instinct tells me it might be fuel, or fuel/air?

Check the simple stuff first: Is the petrol good? Is the fuel pump priming as normal when the ignition is switched on or does it sound weak or laboured? Is the intake/air filter blocked? Is the exhaust blocked or partially blocked?

Has the injector wiring rubbed through on the right hand frame rail frame? It may be shorting out, but only when the engine fires up and the vibrations cause the contact to earth?

I once has a very similar problem and it turned out I�d left a rag under the seat which had got sucked into the DNA filter (no snorkel)!

I�m assuming you checked you�ve got a spark? I guess you must have otherwise it wouldn�t start at all.

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I crossed from Bolivia to Chile a couple of days ago and filled up in a Chilean petrol station with 95 octane; the best fuel it's had in weeks. Everything else you mention seems ok; I even put in a new air filter.

Clutching at straws here, but could it be a dodgy fast idle/cold start mechanism? Might be making it run over rich which means it would start but then proceed to choke itself? Or not giving a sufficiently high enough idle?

Have you tried starting it with a handful of throttle?

I know you said the last tank was the "best fuel it's had", but despite it being 95RON of a reputable brand, it still could be full of sh1t!

My first port of call would still be to ditch what's in the tank and try some fresh stuff.

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Thanks Pleaides. Not the idle, even with a lot of throttle, it just dies. I rode about 65 miles on the current petrol with no issues, and the bike started fine the next day (although though I only rode it a few hundred metres); but today it just dies. It was a very bad (corrugations and sand) road from Bolivia to Chile. Maybe something has vibrated loose? Maybe the coil?

Could be, but if it were the coil (or anything ignition related) you'd expect it not to start at all.

Just a thought, but 65 miles is enough to for dirt to cumulatively collect on the gauze filter attached to the fuel pump. Also, as you bumping around on the corrugations, most of any dirt in the fuel would have been jiggled about and kept in suspension. Then when it rested over night, everything settled to the bottom (where the pump sucks from) and then as soon as the motor was started the dirt quickly got sucked onto the gauze and blocked it. Leave the bike for a while and some of the dirt will fall off the gauze only to be sucked back onto it next time you start it (or even just when the fuel pump primes), hence the dying soon after starting.

I may be barking up the wrong tree completely, but it's worth a thought...

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I think I've solved it. The sidestand switch is malfunctioning. With the sidestand down, the bike won't start, even in neutral with the clutch pulled in. Sidestand up and the bike starts normally (although the idle is a little high). I presume it's OK to ride like this?

That's a little odd, because if the stand is up and it runs, and down and it won't, then the side stand switch is working properly? For it not to start in neutral with the sidestand down the fault must be with the neutral switch as the primary condition/parameter for inhibiting starting whilst on the stand is whether or not it is in gear, which is determined by the neutral switch. In other words, the sidestand switch only comes into play if the bike is in gear. Is the neutral light behaving normally?

On a fully functioning system the clutch lever plays no part in inhibiting starting on the side stand - it simply won't do it if the bike is in gear (neutral switch closed and light illuminated.) The clutch switch only plays a part in starting in gear (sidestand up) - it won't start unless the clutch is pulled.

Either way, you can ride the bike like it is, just beware that if the sidestand switch is at fault and you ride over a bumpy ground it may cause the engine to get out. You can bypass the switch by splicing the two wires together if it becomes a problem.

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Now you mention it; the neutral light has been erratic for a while. I've just ridden 200 miles with no issues. I can live with it as it is. Bike runs great otherwise.

That'll be what it is then, an erratic neutral light switch, not the side stand switch. With the side stand up the a faulty neutral light is out of the equation.

I guess your original problem was that the vibrations of the engine when it started caused the switch to open, maybe just for a millisecond, the bike thought it was in gear and cut the engine because it was on the side stand. If on your travels the neutral light eventually fails completely, then all that will happen is you'll be able to start the bike in gear without the clutch in (assuming the stand is up) with the stand down of course it won't start at all.

Good luck with the rest of your trip.

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