AHH!! My trike dosen't like me...

[UncleBubbles]

I swear this trike hates me lol The first was the bearing piling up, then my electric start failing, now I have no spark. I was chugin along in 3rd when she began misfiring and died. Happened in the most inconvenient place too, the dead center of a 4 1/2 foot deep pond. So something shorted out obviously, I checked the coil on another trike, new plug, went through all the connections beside fender on left side, and still no spark. Think it could be the brain box? I checked it over but nothing seemed odd. Sure hope I didn't short out the stator. I do have an almost complete harness from an SX and I believe I have the brain box as well for it. I have the complete 250 engine from the SX to peel parts from. Any suggestions? Kinda need her back in service for the weekend, had a ride planned and I refuse to ride anything that has 4 wheels or says yamaha on it ;) Thanks guys.

Edit: forgot to add, it is a 1985 250es big red

[Dirtcrasher]

If you drove my 25YO + arse in a 4.5' deep pond, I'd die on you too.

Why can't you mud/water lovers buy quads for such abuse? These things aren't exactly dealer shelf items anymore ya know............

[fabiodriven]

The first thing I always check is the brain box. If it's not that, I'd check the canoodler valve.

[three_wheelin45]

If you drove my 25YO + arse in a 4.5' deep pond, I'd die on you too.

Why can't you mud/water lovers buy quads for such abuse? These things aren't exactly dealer shelf items anymore ya know............

What you tryin to say?? tirkes cant compete with quads?? :mad:

[Xpress]

^No, quads are a dime a dozen, so buy one, ride the snot out of it, hydro lock the engine, and call it a day, then repeat the next day. Save the trikes for the not to extreme stuff.

[Dirtcrasher]

^No, quads are a dime a dozen, so buy one, ride the snot out of it, hydro lock the engine, and call it a day, then repeat the next day. Save the trikes for the not to extreme stuff.

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Trikes are not "disposable"!!!!!!!!

Some of you guys need a new forum; "Treat my trike like a red-headed stepchild"............

[three_wheelin45]

4.5ft of water aint deep.... i took my 200x through water that was up to my waste and im 5'10 so thats like 3ft of water and it was only over the header... of course it was floating :lol::lol: just everytime i go through water on mine i change my oil anyways after it gets past the botom of my motor I dont take chances :o...

[hillbilly 200x]

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Trikes are not "disposable"!!!!!!!!

Some of you guys need a new forum; "Treat my trike like a red-headed stepchild"............ That is way to funny DC. I am with you and Xpress . These bikes are 25-30 hell maybe even 50 if you count the 90cc. Dont ride the piss out of them any more. They make trikes with tranning wheeles for that now

[UncleBubbles]

K wow slow down guys, I am not the kind of guy who rides it hard and puts it away wet; I ride it hard but what breaks gets fixed and what fails gets replaced. It gets washed after every ride and the fluids get replaced after something like what I described. This counts as broke, so I am asking more knowledgeable people what to do in this situation. I am not good with wiring, so I went through the basics but asked before diving into the stator or dumping a bunch of money on something that may not solve my problem. So advice would be appreciated, the flaming is not.

[mrmello]

Was the stator cover sealed??

Pull the cover and see if the stator was full of water or not.

[mrmello]

^No, quads are a dime a dozen, so buy one, ride the snot out of it, hydro lock the engine, and call it a day, then repeat the next day. Save the trikes for the not to extreme stuff.


LOL driving in water and mud is extreme??

You guys would chit if you seen what we do with ours around here.

Driving them in water isnt riding the snot out of them.

I would say that jumping them 3 or 4 feet off the ground on a frame that is 30 years old is alot more like driving the snot out of them then driving in some mud or water......

[Xpress]

^No, I ride my toys in the mud/water all the time. Granted it's only about a foot deep at the most, but nowhere near the top of the engine. Always give them a good scrubbing afterwards. And I always look before I leap.

Riding the snot out of a quad... As in, Bending the rear axle twice, breaking the front a-arm, blowing oil seals, leaking coolant, every plastic is broken, frame is bent, swingarm cracked.. All in one day :lol:

[just ben]

let it dry out and it will probably be fine. I would pull the stator cover to see if it was soaked. although the connections look all good to you, all it takes is a small arc to a ground (the frame ) to kill your trike and your day

[hillbilly 200x]

you can try to dry out the cdi box and coil buy baking them. we do it at work all the time. just set you oven to the lowest seting and put them in there for a few min then see if they work. Don't put them in for long 3min tops

[mohadib]

lol, maybe a 185s or a 125. I never understood the fun in trying to ride a trike across a pond anyway. So you can yell back "HEY JEB I TOLD U I COULD DO IT, NOW LETS GO BACK TO THE TRAILOR AND SLAP OUR WOMEN AROUND". BUY A BOAT. But really, even my 2007 250ex doesn't get that treatment. I dont have time to be changing bearing all the time.

[MonkOFox]

So you can yell back "HEY JEB I TOLD U I COULD DO IT, NOW LETS GO BACK TO THE TRAILOR AND SLAP OUR WOMEN AROUND". BUY A BOAT.

Very nice lol.

[Dirtcrasher]

LOL driving in water and mud is extreme??

You guys would chit if you seen what we do with ours around here.

Driving them in water isnt riding the snot out of them.

I would say that jumping them 3 or 4 feet off the ground on a frame that is 30 years old is alot more like driving the snot out of them then driving in some mud or water......

Think about it. Many of us tear these things down to the frame and repair every single worn item, as well as gusset the frame and rebuild our suspension. I have never cracked a frame and never blown up a motor and anyone will tell you, I ride them hard. The issue is, just like when you turn around 30yo, things start to loosen up and get sloppy. When you guys go playing in mud and water, all the nooks and crannies that are sloppy allow water inside and it starts to eat at your axles/pivots etc etc. Changing your oil and cleaning your air filter doesn't maintain a trike that old. It has to be completely torn down and regreased every so often or eventually when you try to tear it down we'll see a topics like "My rotor is stuck!!", "my hub is frozen", "my brakes are wearing on one side", "I can't get my swingarm bolt out", "my drum is frozen" and on and on and on...............

Water and mud get in every journal/bearing and eat at them just like being sandblasted. It also takes the protective zinc coating off of everything.

I can't play "trike cop", all I can do is share with you what WILL happen if you keep playing in water and don't tear it down on a regular basis. There your trikes and you can do what you guys want but it slowly ruins any good parts you have.

This is why you don't buy parts from the east coast and all the awesome machines come from out West........

[mrmello]

Think about it. Many of us tear these things down to the frame and repair every single worn item, as well as gusset the frame and rebuild our suspension. I have never cracked a frame and never blown up a motor and anyone will tell you, I ride them hard. The issue is, just like when you turn around 30yo, things start to loosen up and get sloppy. When you guys go playing in mud and water, all the nooks and crannies that are sloppy allow water inside and it starts to eat at your axles/pivots etc etc. Changing your oil and cleaning your air filter doesn't maintain a trike that old. It has to be completely torn down and regreased every so often or eventually when you try to tear it down we'll see a topics like "My rotor is stuck!!", "my hub is frozen", "my brakes are wearing on one side", "I can't get my swingarm bolt out", "my drum is frozen" and on and on and on...............

Water and mud get in every journal/bearing and eat at them just like being sandblasted. It also takes the protective zinc coating off of everything.

I can't play "trike cop", all I can do is share with you what WILL happen if you keep playing in water and don't tear it down on a regular basis. There your trikes and you can do what you guys want but it slowly ruins any good parts you have.

This is why you don't buy parts from the east coast and all the awesome machines come from out West........

The Trikes I buy and ride are not like the ones on here. They have sat out in the conditions for 20 plus years and are sitting there rotting.

My honda has gone through hell and back. However last year I had the rear axle out about 6 times to re pack the wheel bearings and drain the brakes etc. If they are looked after you can ride in water etc.

I have seen many pictures of trikes on here that are not all rebuilt and they are jumping etc. They are far from rebuilt from the frame up. however like you say they are their trikes and will do what they want.

[Xpress]

^Even taking care of something can't prevent it from wear and tear. That's the nature of the beast, nothing lasts forever. Not even the most well maintained and cared for engine can live much longer than 500,000 miles, stuff just wears out from normal use.

[mrmello]

^Even taking care of something can't prevent it from wear and tear. That's the nature of the beast, nothing lasts forever. Not even the most well maintained and cared for engine can live much longer than 500,000 miles, stuff just wears out from normal use.


2 words...... Diesel Engine

[Tuff]

If you drove my 25YO + arse in a 4.5' deep pond, I'd die on you too.

Why can't you mud/water lovers buy quads for such abuse? These things aren't exactly dealer shelf items anymore ya know............LOL! the bold was funny, BUT DUDE! my 200E lives for mud! and OMFG! a QUAD! :barf:

[Tuff]

got news for the guys who say don't ride 'em hard, these Honda ATC's will take a lot more abuse than any modern day pussy quads! ride the hell out of 'em but maintain them.

[Frankencelery]

I can see both sides of this one. DC has a point, they're not making any more of these, and we should try to preserve them. On the other hand, I got into 3-wheelers because I could afford them, not because I had any high-minded ideal about 3 wheels being better than 4. So naturally I couldn't afford to have a "spare quad" around to ride when I have to do a water crossing. The trails we went on weekend before last were mostly flooded, and I was very uneasy riding my '85 250SX through 2-foot deep holes (there couldn't be a worse machine for riding through water), but what can you do? "Sorry, you were right quad-guys, me and my three wheeler can't take it, so we'll be waiting back at the truck." Yeah, right.

But....oops. We hijacked your thread and turned it into a debate about trike abuse. Sorry! Like others have said, I would guess the stator or the CDI box.

[ridered86]

Okay, so basically, we've turned this into another "helmet vs. no helmet" discussion. Why don't we take this to the open forum, and keep this thread about our fellow rider's electrical problem.

There's my $0.02.

On the other side, I would definitely say water got somewhere it shouldn't. Just let it dry out and give it another try. I'd take it down to the stator and lay all the electrical in front of a heater to dry. Face the heater towards the trike, and leave it for a while. It should help!

Hope it works for ya!

[UncleBubbles]

It's alright, I don't mind a good debate every now and then. I haven't had much time to look at it yet other than than right after it happened, I should be able to fool around with it tonight. Luckily I have spares of both stators and cdi boxes.

[hillbilly 200x]

try baking the cdi and coil in the stove. Set your stove for the lossest seting and put them in for a few min no more then 3min. It should evaporating the moisture out of them. It may work but it may not work all the time. just my .02

[UncleBubbles]

I lied, I don't have a spare stator. Started working on the BR today, though I'd try the stator first, so I got the cover off my big red and pulled the stator out, I can't see any burnt or disconnected wires anywhere. It was not swimming in water either. Since I have never been in the stator of the Honda 250 engine, was it supposed to be swimming in oil? Anyways I figured I'd switch it with the stator out of the sx engine, cover and all. Got the cover off the sx engine and found out why they scraped the trike in the first place - stator is toasted. Some little tiny bits of steel got in there and wreaked havoc. Strange thing is the stators are not the same, the sx one has more little coils than the BR, and they are covered in thick white rubber-y plastic, the BR's are not. Did Honda do a mid production change? I baked the coil and both CDI boxes, so now I'm going to put it all back together and see if I get lucky. Thanks for the tips guys.

[Modding_out]

Well, I am not a honda expert nor do i actually own a honda, but from what I've read on here the stator should definitely not be swimming in oil, and your crank seal is a likely culprit, and is a cheap/easy to replace part

[Xpress]

^Some of the newer Hondas have wet stators that are soaked in oil, but I don't think trikes ever had wet stators.


2 words...... Diesel Engine

Still wears out. Seen plenty of worn and tired diesels.

[mrmello]

Yup the stator should not be swimming in oil for sure!!

Not sure why it decided to die on you in the water, could just be a coincidence.


Xpress - A N14 Cummins, or a C15 Cat or a 60 Series detroit with 500,000 miles isnt anywhere near worn out. For example A good diesel engine, well maintained doesnt need anything until 1 Million miles. Even then a simple bearing roll will freshen it right up. Most truckers will do a bearing roll at a million for just simple maintenance. I have seen about 50 or more bearing rolls done when there is nothing wrong with it. I have also seen a C15 Cat with 2.5 million miles on it and only thing done to the internals of the engine were the bearing roll and injectors. I know this because I worked in the shop that did all the work to it.

[UncleBubbles]

So it isn't supposed to be swimming in oil? Cause it is, and it RUNS!!! I didn't think much of it because the sx stator was bathing in oil too. On that cover for the engine there are clearly passages where oil is supposed to flow through from the shifter mechanisms to the stator housing, so... I'm not in any position to call you guys all wrong, but that is what it appears to be. I still have the cover of the sx engine, I can take pictures if needed.

My input on the high miles engines: we have a kenworth with an all mechanical L10 cummins, currently at 1.5 million.

[3WheelinMan]

Pretty sure there is oil drainage ports in that housing like you say... Yamaha 200 & 225's are similar too. If you tip the trike or motor on it's left side, the oil will almost all drain out into your stator housing! What their reasoning is behind this I don't really know but that's what they did...
Tractor motors are meant to last a long time with proper maintenance, but about 25 years ago my dad had an '84 diesel powered Oldsmobile Delta 88 that would need a new motor every year or 15-30k miles and after the third one was installed, he sold it... good riddance! I recall telling him to put a 307 or 350 in it and change it over gasoline!

[mrmello]

Apparently I am wrong about the oil lol.

I have a torn down 225 dx engine in the back room and just went and looked and see the passages you were talking about.

Glad to see that you have gotten it back up and running!!!!

[250rRoostmaster]

The first thing I always check is the brain box. If it's not that, I'd check the canoodler valve.
I agree with fabio, probably a bad canoodler valve. By the way love the "Lets start a thread on oil" quote!!

[UncleBubbles]

Pretty sure there is oil drainage ports in that housing like you say... Yamaha 200 & 225's are similar too. If you tip the trike or motor on it's left side, the oil will almost all drain out into your stator housing! What their reasoning is behind this I don't really know but that's what they did...
Tractor motors are meant to last a long time with proper maintenance, but about 25 years ago my dad had an '84 diesel powered Oldsmobile Delta 88 that would need a new motor every year or 15-30k miles and after the third one was installed, he sold it... good riddance! I recall telling him to put a 307 or 350 in it and change it over gasoline!

Ah yes, the gasser that gm converted to a diesel. They were notoriously horrible engines. The block was originally built for gas engine commpression (160 psi) and when they converted it to diesel (600+ psi) the block just couldn't handle that, so it flexs. That causes the heads to warp, ect. Thank god they did away with that "diesel".