Bike Suddenly Died

So I'm cruising down the motorway last night on my way home and I chopped it down to 4th to overtake a car, gave it a fist full of throttle, bike started picking up then out of the blue it dies.

It was almost like turning off the ignition switch.

So I pulled it to the side of the road, get off, remove helmet, turn the key off and back on, hit the start button and it jumps back in to life but doesn't feel or sound the same. It's miss firing a little more, and sounds a little noisier than it did but gets me home in one piece.

Any ideas as to what might cause that?

 

I had that problem with my 900 ...

The Tach got erratic
She started missing
Then, she quit and wouldn't go.

After an afternoon of Troubleshooting ...
It was the Ignition Switch.

Which means a couple of hours of work on 900.
I got so frustrated with trying to align Fairing Bushings and Rubber Parts ... I glued them on the Faring with Rubber Cement.

 

Thanks Rick... I'll look there first.

I am also suspicious of the coils because I don't know these coils, but I know the set still on the wreck and might give them a swap and see if that helps too.

 

Use the Key.
Turn the Ign On and Off and listen for the Relay.

If you hear the Relay ther Switch is OK
No hear Relay.

Pull Headlight.
Separate the Ign. Sw. Pigtail at the Connector.

+12V Red Wire (Hot)
Yes. OK
No. Open circuit to Switch.

Yes. Jumper Red Wire to other two.
Try to Start.

 

Diagnose glass fuses.
Believe it or not (not Ripley’s) the glass fuses on these bikes will fail intermittently.

‘It was almost like turning off the ignition switch.’

That’s what it feels like. The main fuse opens briefly and everything shuts off. Then it closes itself (really happens) and all runs ok, leaving you with a nervous what the ? feeling.

Vibrations opens and closes the corroded fuse internals.

 

Funny story.
I’m speeding along the highway at night. I’m passing an 18 wheeler. The driver sticks his arm out the window as if to slow me down, which I do thinking he is alerting me to a speed trap. I fall back behind the nice fellow …… and ….. nothing.
I go again to pass and again he sticks out his arm flagging me. I again fall back ….. nothing. I decide I’ve had enough of his game and pass him, then click the high beam because I’m in front. The bike shuts down – and now I’m I front of a crazed 18 wheeler driver. S**t. I pull over – like I have a choice. I think .. what happened.
Guess
I clicked the kill switch by accident thinking it was the high beam switch.
Good laugh…. Now I have to again pass the crazed 18 wheeler driver.

 

Hahahahha nice one Mdee... Yes new fuse box is next on my list.

I pulled the ignition and replaced the wires... Wasn't overly happy with them anyway... Not the problem.

When I swapped engines a couple of weeks back I also swapped switch blocks and the RH switchblock wiring off the wreck had some damaged wires... Kill switch wires

Problem solved by swapping wires.

Thanks

 

Rick, WTF, I thought we weren't supposed to tell people how to hot wire an XJ.

 

I'm having the same problem, more often than not withing the first 5 minutes of riding... cruising along and then silence and my weight on the handlebars from the deceleration. Sprayed the ignition and kill switches with contact cleaner but no difference.

Going to start wiggling some wires, then look at a TCI refresh, should be lots of guys who solder around these parts...