Noob Q - shutting down the engine

[BeachComber]

In the MSF course, we were taught "thumb, key, valve" to shut down the engine. That is, thumb the kill switch, turn off the ignition and then turn off the fuel valve. It works, but is it really necessary to perform this entire ritual each time you shut down? Just curious, and obviously new

[IcyHound]

My other half always turns off his fule valve on his Ninja 500. I never turned mine off. Nether of us has had problems.

I tend to do kickstand, kill switch, take the key out.

Lots of people don't use the kill switch.

[storysunfolding]

The reason it's taught as thumb key valve is as follows

Thumb first- it builds muscle memory. There are times when you want to shut off the engine NOW. The key will do that but requires you move you hand further. On some bikes with the key hanging down by the forks this can be even harder.

Key- This needs to happen eventually but with the engine cutoff switch toggled first you are again building muscle memory.

Valve- A very good idea to turn off. If you get some gunk in your carbs or the float height is set wrong then the gas will flow into the carbs, into your piston and seep down into your crank case which will dilute your oil and overfill the bike. This can even happen with vaccum actuated petcocks if the petcock fails, so why not build a good habit?

Of course if you lack a valve, it's only a two step process.

[lunchmeat]

When I shut my bike down, I usually hit the kill switch. My motorcycle owner's manual states that you should use the ignition to turn the bike off except in emergency situations, due to electrical connections or something, but I doubt it's an issue if I'm going to kill the ignition directly afterward. I'm sure there's a reason for Kawasaki to write that, but it's probably minor.

I turn the fuel pump to off all the time, unless I'm only going to be off the bike for a short period of time, like if I've got to step up to an ATM or something. I see it as theft deterrent in a sense - I park my bike in first, lock the handlebars, put the fuel pump to off, and engage the kill switch. That way, only someone who really knows about bike theft can steal or move my bike, if they so desire. I'm sure it will prevent some random person trying to mess with my bike.

If you use the fuel pump, don't forget to turn it on when you ride - I did this once and nearly freaked when my bike died at a stoplight. I was EXTREMELY lucky that this happened when it did, not when I was riding at speed. Always do your FINE-C.

[jonnythan]

I was EXTREMELY lucky that this happened when it did, not when I was riding at speed. Always do your FINE-C.

It's not that big a deal running out of gas at speed. You just coast to a stop. You get some nice sputtering just before, too, which serves as a good warning to pull the clutch and stop to check it out.

[Sev]

I:
1) find neutral
2) put down the kickstand
3) turn off the key, pull it out
4) walk away

[lunchmeat]

I was EXTREMELY lucky that this happened when it did, not when I was riding at speed. Always do your FINE-C.

It's not that big a deal running out of gas at speed. You just coast to a stop. You get some nice sputtering just before, too, which serves as a good warning to pull the clutch and stop to check it out.

I had a major problem with this - I wanted to reach down and flip the lever, but the engine braking under lack of fuel threatened to make me lose control. As such, it was basically impossible for me to reach it without killing myself. The time I forgot to turn on the fuel, I simply came to a stop where it promptly died - but the time I ran out of gas on the road and had to put it on reserve, man, that was an adventure.

Sev, you park your bike in neutral? I always make a point to park my bike in first...

[jonnythan]

I was EXTREMELY lucky that this happened when it did, not when I was riding at speed. Always do your FINE-C.

It's not that big a deal running out of gas at speed. You just coast to a stop. You get some nice sputtering just before, too, which serves as a good warning to pull the clutch and stop to check it out.

I had a major problem with this - I wanted to reach down and flip the lever, but the engine braking under lack of fuel threatened to make me lose control. As such, it was basically impossible for me to reach it without killing myself.

Why didn't you just pull in the clutch and come to a stop on the side of the road..?

I park mine in 1st as well.

[Tower18CHI]

I park mine in Neutral due to me parking directly against an object in front of me, and my bike jumps when cold starting in 1st. Besides which, I have carbs and carb-mounted choke, so I like to have my hands free to modulate and not worry about shifting.

[pigsbladder]

I do it exactly as the MSF taught me. The more I touch the bike the better... *ahem*