125cc purchased on-line. Advice needed!

juno

Completely crazy question, but have you checked if it has a choke and if so, is it on? Some bikes won't start from cold without it.

Other things to check are if it has petrol and whether you've followed the basic start up procedure - clutch in, side stand fully up, bit of throttle just to get it going.

Gladys_Friday

Just a thought but you'd be able to prove it wasn't ridden for the first 2 weeks by the date the insurance started. If insurance started 17/2 then you have a bit stronger case.

Maybe a service will sort out whatever is wrong with the bike?

Sgt_Pepper_2

Gladys_Friday wrote: »

Just a thought but you'd be able to prove it wasn't ridden for the first 2 weeks by the date the insurance started. If insurance started 17/2 then you have a bit stronger case.

Maybe a service will sort out whatever is wrong with the bike?

Not being insured isn't proof it wasn't ridden.

thenudeone

Check the fuel filler cap. My OH bought a new chinese bike which began to cut out. Turns out there was a small flap of rubber in the filler cap which was preventing air getting to replace the fuel as it was used up. Once that was removed it was fine.

paddedjohn

OP, when your son got the bike did he fit a new piecost onto the mattabooboo?

pogofish

Also check that he has turned the fuel tap on. A simple mistake that often catches folk on their first bike a few times and occasionally older wiser riders who should know better!

Also check the carb float bowl and fuel pipes - You can get debris in new tanks that accumulates and blocks the flow. An inline filter costs a few quid from bike shops and will stop this entirely.

Is is a 2 or 4-stroke machine? If 2-stroke, it may need oil mixed with petrol - either in the tank or via a separate oil tank. Missing this can mean an expensive failure that prob won't be covered by any warranty.

Lastly - I agree with much of the above about Chinese bikes bought online. Many are death traps straight out of the box and should be looked-over by an experienced mechanic who can put right any problems ASAP.

I've no idea how they got round the PDI requirement? I thought that in order to be road legal, all machines sold in the UK had to have one, but I suppose there are loopholes?

andygb

whatever happened to - "Support your local bike shop"?

Honestly, I know that people want to save money, but there are limits.

My first bike was a Honda C90, bought from a friend for £50.

paddedjohn

andygb wrote: »

whatever happened to - "Support your local bike shop"?

Honestly, I know that people want to save money, but there are limits.

My first bike was a Honda C90, bought from a friend for £50.

So how did that support the local bike shop?

Trebor16

andygb wrote: »

whatever happened to - "Support your local bike shop"?

Honestly, I know that people want to save money, but there are limits.

My first bike was a Honda C90, bought from a friend for £50.

Have you looked around to see how many bike shops there are these days?

andygb

paddedjohn wrote: »

So how did that support the local bike shop?

Because I had to take it to them for servicing/MOTs and to buy spare parts, and the bike was originally purchased from a Honda dealer in Kent.