[gashousegorilla]

Add roll-over sensor to that list?

   Yup.... perhaps. If he tipped the bike or there is a problem with the connection.  That would kill the pump through the ECU, but allow the starter to spin I believe.

[High On Octane]

    Because even if there was water and Jamesons in the tank, the pump would still come on.   It may ride down the street sideways now, but the pump would come on.  ;D

How did you know my favorite drink?!   

Have you run the bike out of gas at any time?  Sometimes when you run an electric fuel pump out of fuel it will cause the pump to fail.

Scottie

[Arizoni]

When I'm starting my G5, as soon as I turn the ignition key to on, the little red engine light comes on and at the same time the fuel pump starts making a whurrring sound.  As the fuel pressure comes up, this whurring sound stops and the little red engine light goes off.  The bikes computer has checked everything out and the light going off indicates all is OK with the various sensors.
After doing this, hitting the starter button starts the engine in just a few cranks.

If the fuel pump is not whurring the problem is either with the pump (unlikely), the fuel pump relay (also unlikely) or the fuse (very likely).

Check all of the fuses.  There should be at least 3 of them.  If no volt/ohm (multimeter) is available probably the easiest way to check them is to just replace them with the spare fuses that should be in the fuse holders (on a G5) or somewhere handy.

It's also worth checking the fuel pump wiring to make sure it is fully plugged into the bikes wiring harness.

Don't bother to crank the engine until you can get the fuel pump to pump up after the key is turned on.  It will just wear out the battery.

As was mentioned, the roll over switch will prevent the fuel pump from activating if the bike has fallen down.  Even if it hasn't, at least one member found that the bolt that held  his switch in place had become loose and allowed the switch to rotate.
This switch is under the seat .
The roll over switch is located under the

If 

[linearB]

I replaced the fuse for which I had a spare; I can pick up replacements for the other two in the next day or two, but they look fine.

When the fuel pump should be clicking on, I hear two solenoid clicks from lower down the chassis, when the red engine light flashes on and off. So there is no whirr, just a light click, click.

The fuel pump plug is indeed plugged in correctly and completely.

The roll over switch is still bolted in the correct place under the seat; is there a way to reset it in case it's gone off?

[singhg5]

Thank you for the detailed description. Unfortunately, that's connected, so it's got to be something else. I have a low quality video here of what happens when I try to start it -- at the beginning, I have the stand down and then put it up, which is why the engine light flashes:
http://videobam.com/yHwOy

For what it's worth, the new spark plug is firing (and a clamp would have been a good way to find that out without shocking myself!) . I didn't bother putting the old one in to see if it also was, but I imagine it was because the behavior is the same.

In the video, the engine is cranking way too slow to start which is a sign of weak battery.

What is the battery voltage before cranking AND during cranking ? You will need a digital multi meter to test it.

Take out the spark plug and look/touch to see if it is wet with gas and has strong smell of gas to confirm that fuel is reaching the spark plug.

Turn On/Off a few times the red 'kill' switch on the right handlebar and then crank the engine.

[JVS]

Hmm, something to do with the fuel pump as it is not working like it is supposed to. As GHG mentioned, the EFI ground wire might appear to be okay, but re-check it again by removing the electrical tapes etc. Sometimes the connections are broken within those tapes.

If all else is fine, you're left with the relay and the pump itself. I would be surprised if it is the pump..but let us not go there yet.

[gashousegorilla]

I replaced the fuse for which I had a spare; I can pick up replacements for the other two in the next day or two, but they look fine.

When the fuel pump should be clicking on, I hear two solenoid clicks from lower down the chassis, when the red engine light flashes on and off. So there is no whirr, just a light click, click.

The fuel pump plug is indeed plugged in correctly and completely.

The roll over switch is still bolted in the correct place under the seat; is there a way to reset it in case it's gone off?

   From what you are describing now... because I did not see that mil light come on when the kill switch was turned on, or when it failed to start in your Vid. I only saw it when you operated the kickstand. And If you have spark, and IF the mil light comes on with kill switch on and the power and pump relays click and pull in.  You have a problem with the fuel pump/ injector circuit.

 You SHOULD do all your tests with a fully charged battery.... Although in the Vid, you had enough juice to turn over the starter, so you should have had enough to spin up the pump, before hitting the start button.

  With a test light or multimeter. Check for power at the pump plug. When you turn the kill switch on, you should briefly get power... as the relay clicks in..... then you should see the power drop off. Then again you should see power as you hit the start button. If you don't see power in either case ? You likely have a bad ground, or a bad hot wire..... also could be the relay. Even though it clicks....it may not be making contact inside.

   I wouldn't be concerned with the roll over.... although it's possible....  unless you obviously tipped the bike, or the rollover was dislodged.  And if it's good, the rollover is self resetting.

   And again, I would do these tests with the side stand switch disconnected.....

 

[Ducati Scotty]

You can disconnect the side stand switch at the connector a few inches up from the sidestand.  That removes that from the equation.

The rollover switch should be checked.  I think there's one instance here where the mounting bolt cam loose and let it hang, causing it to trip.  On the C5 it's under the seat, I think on the left.  Probably somewhere close on the other bikes.  Just make sure it's mounted as it should be.

Scott

[linearB]

Thanks for all the help so far! I really appreciate the lengthy replies.

I'm going to get a multimeter tonight and start testing the voltages. If nothing else this is giving me a chance to start getting tools which I've known I'd need anyway. It's sort of amazing that I've managed to drive a 1993 car for the past 5 years without a multimeter.

Pessimistically, I added motorcycle coverage to my AAA in case I can't figure this out (and for general peace of mind), but it will take 7 days for that to take effect, so I've got a week to poke at things myself. I hope I can get this figured out on my own; the weather is very nice right now and it's not going to last much longer.

[ROVERMAN]

I did my first oil change over the weekend, no big deal until i went to start. Crank,crank, no fire, huh? Of course this is in front of my neighbour! Very humbling to say the least, no MIL, no pump. Had this seasoned mechanic thought to fold up the kickstand maybe i wouldn't have looked so dumb. . Never stop learning!
Robert & the GREen B.

[Ducati Scotty]

In your defense, most sidestand switches don't cut the ignition in neutral

[ROVERMAN]

Also in my defense this is the first bike i have owned that is nanny-fied! .
 Thanks for not teasing me.

[Arizoni]

The sidestand switch on my G5 didn't care if the bike was in neutral  or not.
If the sidestand was down it shut off all of the engine electrical power.

Reading my Owners manual about the rollover sensor it says that if it is activated it will shut off both the fuel supply (fuel pump) and the ignition.

Sense the bike has spark during cranking we can eliminate that from the list of possible problems.

For the people who do a search and read this, the manual says the following about resetting the switch:

"To reset the Roll over sensor in the event the motorcycle falls over.  Please put the motorcycle in its centre stand, switch off both the ignition switch and the stop switch on the handle bar RH control, wait for a few seconds and switch ON the ignition switch and the stop switch again.  This will help to RESET the "Roll over Sensor" and the engine can be started.

Getting back to the electrical power issue, I have had one of the tubular glass type fuses blow for no apparent reason.  It was replaced by a quality fuse rated at the same amperage and after two years it is still going strong.
I mention this because these fuses can look fine but if the little wire inside is not making connection with the metal end caps, whatever it was powering will be deader than a door nail.

Being the technical type it pains me to suggest this but the good old fashioned "Whacking Fix" could be tried.

As all true mechanics know, this envolves getting some moderately stout object (like a mallet or a 10 inch adjustable wrench) and giving the object in question (in this case the fuel pump) a few robust taps and then trying to get it to work again.
If this is tried, under no circumstance should the plastic outlet on the bottom of the fuel pump be hit for if it is it will break for sure.
Probably better to disconnect the electrical supply and test the contacts to see if any of them have electrical power before resorting to the official Whacking Fix.

[gashousegorilla]

    Nothing wrong with a good swift kick or wrap every now and then.... Hell, ya might find that loose connection !  But for the pump, to rule it out, I would simply apply 12v across it first . If it spins..... it ain't the pump.

   Piecing this together from what linearB describes, and going through the Schematic....... It can't be a fuse, unless its an intermittent problem with one. OR there is a short, and the circuit is getting back fed.

   He is getting the the relays to pull in and spark........ That eliminates the Ignition/EFI fuse.


   If his headlight... tail light.... mil light and etc work....... It ain't the charging and load circuit.


   And it's obviously not the main fuse. Unless the G-5 has more then 3 active fuses.... I know two are spares in the C-5.

 

[linearB]

All the fuses read zero resistance. One was a little iffy, so I replaced it with a new one, which did not help.

I disconnected the pump plug, and read the connection with a multimeter while I turned off the kill switch and hit the ignition. When the kill switch is turned off (with the ignition on), the voltage goes up to a little over 12v for a few seconds and then back to zero. When I hit the ignition switch, the voltage reads a little under 12v as long as the switch is depressed.

This makes me think that the next step is to take the pump off so that I can
a) get a reading from the pump circuit on the pump side, and
b) connect the pump to 12v DC and see if it spins

Does that sound right? I don't see a cutoff on the fuel line in to the pump, is there a way to disconnect it without spilling gas all over myself? I've been working off a PDF of the manual from the RE website up until now, is there a recommended resource for text or video guides to replacing the fuel pump if it comes down to that?

Thanks again.