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Bike won't start
Written by mlipmd on 4/1/2012 at 06:36 pm

I did crank it for a while thinking just that but I could never get it started,
even with the fresh battery. My thoughts for the past few days was that no fuel
was getting up there after going though all the electrical stuff, spark, safety
switches, etc. I eventually determined the fuel pump was not operating - not
vibrating, not pumping, no noise, no nothing, even when hooked up directly to
another 12v battery.
I tested the relay, shorted it out (bypassed it) like in the manual and nothing
happened with the pump. I removed the pump and there is a black plastic cap on
one end that comes off after removing one screw, so I just had to look inside
there. There is a set of contact points and a small spring mechanism, just like
ignition points, and they were kind of black and ugly looking, so I cleaned off
both contact areas and made them shiny with some mild sandpaper rubbed between
them, hooked it up to the 12v again, and now it works, works great, pumps gas as
long as there's current flow. So, I reinstalled it, hooked everything up again,
and cranked it enough to allow the gas to get pumped back up into the line to
the carbs, (that does takes a while) and it started up and RUNS GREAT.
I found out a few things taking my bike apart - there's no problem with the
petcock because the PO did the brass Tee mod, and there is a Mitsubishi
triangular logo on the black plastic cap on the fuel pump. I don't know if this
is OEM but it looks the same as the pics in the service manual. Maybe one
supplier makes all of these and puts different logos on them for whoever they
sell them to.
Anyway, thanks all for your input, if anyone else has a problem where their fuel
pump craps out, take it apart as you may be able to fix it. This is probably one
of those things supporting using your bike on a regular basis instead of letting
it sit for an extended period - what in the medical profession we call "atrophy
of disuse". Possibly the low voltage from the initial bad battery caused the
points in the fuel pump to stick together instead of sparking in between - who
knows?
Again, thanks for everyone's help.

--- In ipcrc@yahoogroups.com, "Alfred W" <alfred.wams@...> wrote:
>
> He Marc,
> Since there has been no change made whatever, except the battery being empty,
I suggest you conciser and perform the twenty seconds starting procedure. I had
the same thing when my battery had been completely empty. I have been thinking -
reading about it - that this was a safety feature from the starter relay on the
bike but since there was no further information on that subject I feel more that
it is the fuel-line being completely empty. The running bike asks fuel when the
pump has stopped due to not having had enough electricity. This is all just
guessing for me but have had the same problems. Not cranking for 20 seconds will
not allow to start the bike when it was tipped over or had been run/started
in-vain with almost no electricity.
>
> I wonder if there is any knowledge on the subject from the group and have you
been cranking it for this incredibly long span of time? Alfred
>