Total Motorcycle Community Forums

I decided I would ride onto Volk Field AFB and practice some of the BRC skills since almost nobody would be at work today. Everything went great with hard breaking and swerving. Was riding around a little before heading home when I saw one of the security guys that I have talked bikes with. I was turning around to catch-up with him and took the turn a bit wide and ended up in some very soft sand along the side of the road and went down quick. Amazing how a street bike goes nowhere but down in sand. Luckily I was only going about 5mph so no damage to me. I got the bike up and back on the road and other than some sand on the bike it looked fine until I tried to start it. It would not turn over and he thought it could be flooded from being on its side. We push started it and everything looked good, but on the way home the turn signals, indicator lights and tach stopped working. Surprising how just deciding to turn around made a great day turn into a not-so-great day.

Glad you're okay... the electrical stuff not working could be the result of something getting disconnected in the drop. Check for loos wires.

P

Actually if you had to push start it, it might mean the battery is disconnected?

I checked the fuses and the one for the turn signals was really loose. It doesn't look broken but I can't get it to tighten up much. I messed with it and everything lit back up and the tach worked so that solved the cause of that problem. Now I just need to find a way to keep the fuse tight in the holder. Someone told me these bikes do tend to flood if they are layed down so hopefully that was my starting problem. I tried it a little while after I got home and it was still reluctant to start but it finally did.

I have an 82 xj550 and it never wants to start after I drop it, but is fine after it sits a while. Also the wires under the seat like to come loose easily if tugged on, so if your turn signals got jerked or whatever they might have been pulled a part.

Just realized I brought this back from the dead... sorry mods :/

I think the not starting part, after a bike falls over is normal. I had the same problem when I hit some gravel doing a quick stop in the rain!!!!

It's amazing how quickly the vertical can become horizontal.

The manual for my bike says in the event of a tip-over a safety device kicks in and shuts off the fuel flow. This has to be reset of you ever want the bike to start afterward. I'm sure your troubles were carb-related, though.

My old bike has a PRI position on the petcock for refilling the float bowls after a long idle period or a tip over. Empty float bowls will definitely make for hard starting.

I can't find anything to say I have a tip over safety valve on my Buell, and I don't have a Carb. Being female (probably get in trouble for saying that my daughter does all her work on her own car) I just assumed the gas ended up in the wrong place due to the un-natural position of the bike. and then when you put the bike up right is finds it's way back to where it's supposed to be. and eventually starts again.

Most new bikes have a fuel shut-off switch that triggers when a set lean angle is reached. Carbed or injected. It 'should' reset when you right the bike, but it is possible for them to stick in the shut-off position. But then you have to take the switch apart and unstick it, it doesn't 'fix' itself.

Most likely, if it's carbed, when you tip it over, the floats ain't floatin' no more. If the needle valve is open, the carb will flood. Righting the bike should close the needle valve again, but the bike is still flooded. Time ussually solves this, or you can try holding the throttle wide open as you try starting it.