Motor Problems

[mdh23jr]

i've got an 86 250r, bored to 265, centermount esr pipe, no airbox just the filter so pipe would fit, carbon fiber reeds and stock carb. two days ago i was riding with my friend and we stopped and my coolant resavoir starting bubbling and i noticed my motor was hott as hell. i let it cool down and we rode again and then 30min later it died on me and did the same thing, so i let it cool down, then it wouldn't start, finally did and i took it straight home and noticed almost all my coolant was gone, and i couldn't see it leaking from anywhere i know a lil bit spilled out when it was bubbling, but what the heck is the matter with my fourwheeler.????? pleeze i need help wanting to go to fingerlakes this weekend....

[wilkin250r]

You might be out of luck for this weekend.

The first issue is your coolant. When was the last time you checked it?

No offense, but you don't sound like you're all that mechanically inclined, so I imagine you haven't checked the level in a while. It's entirely possible that it was low to begin with, and this trip it finally got TOO low, and overheated.

The first solution is to refill your coolant, and start your engine. Ride it a little, but take it easy, don't ride too hard. Feel the bike, does it feel normal? Does it have all the power it should? Does it overheat again?

I imagine, if it lost all coolant, then you damaged the engine, probably a seizure. You'll have to replace the piston, and bore the cylinder. If you're afraid to do it yourself, take it to a shop. It will run a few hundred dollars.

[mdh23jr]

no it was completely full when i started riding,i check all the fluids often and i am mechanically inclined, i completely rebuilt it two years ago, but i just dont know what the hell happened with it. could it be that my water pump went out and thats why it overheated. im gonna check later to see if theres antifreeze in the oil...

[TheFontMaster]

I'm not saying that this would be your problem, but it was in my case. The rod berrings in my R went bad a couple weeks ago, and right before they went I was having problems with it overheating. I was told that the rod berrings starting to go was what was causeing the overheating.

Just something to check if you can't fix it. It's been 2 years since it has had a new top end, so you might want to pull off the top end anyway, and see what condition it's in and ether put in new rings, or bore it out a little and get a new piston kit just to fresen it up. Then it would also give you a chance to see if there is any play in the rod berrings.

[wilkin250r]

My apologies. I assumed you were not mechanically inclined because your post was extremely vague, almost as if you had no clue to the inner workings of your motor.

Like Fontmaster said, the overheating could be an indication of some other failure, and your motor is straining too much because of that other failure. But you would probably see a noticable drop in power if that was the case.

As far as "what went wrong", you'll probably have to figure that out yourself. The question was certainly worth asking, because often certain motorcycles have weak spots, and certain failures that occur more than others. If that was the case, we would certainly clue you in on the likely culprit.

Unfortunately, I'm not aware of any likely issues. The 250r engine and cooling system doesn't really have a "weak link" in it. You'll just have to start checking all possibilities. A plugged radiator, bad water seal, bearing failure, seizure, ect ect.

[mdh23jr]

alright thanks, i will figure it out but ya it did have a loss of power like when i revved it up in neutral it was fine but once in gear it would bog down, so i changed the pilot jet and cleaned out the carb but nuttin happened so i dont know...

[novaracr70]

head gasket?

[TheFontMaster]

Originally posted by wilkin250r
Like Fontmaster said, the overheating could be an indication of some other failure, and your motor is straining too much because of that other failure. But you would probably see a noticable drop in power if that was the case.


Actualy when my rod berrings went there was no drop in power at all. It happened suddenly, I was just goin along like normal, then I heard part of the berrings bouncing around the cylinder, then the loss of power.