i picked up an 08 wildfire 250 not sure model number etc got it for 100 bucks hoping to give it to my kids but christmas is coming up and i cant get it to fire so far ive replaced plugs , fuel line , removed carbs cleaned them even though previous owner had just replaced them he also couldn't get her running he said it sat for two years after his son lost interest anyways ive put a can and a half of starter fluid through her with Carb on and off same results it will pop starter fluid back out of carbs if you remove carbs and spray starter fluid into both holes it will only fire on the right side ''if your looking at it from the back'' the left side does nothing oh btw when i say it fires i mean that literally lol but like i said left side seems lifeless when i replaced plugs i checked for spark and both sides seemed to spark ''fine'' not as much spark as i would usually like to see but enough for it to fire in my eyes i pulled valve/ timing cover off the top removed window from side cover couldn't really see any markings on flywheel other than one line when its in my view the line on timing gear is also pointing up as for valve lash i cant find any info on this atv on line as a side note starter seems to be sticking slightly not really sure but when it does pop thru the carb the engine almost dead stops for a second or 2 and the lights dim then the the starter starts spinning it again and when i had side cover off and was spinning flywheel i could swear i was hearing the starter spin like it wasnt going back in any help is appreciated i need to get this sucker running for christmas

 

33 views and nobody has a suggestion okay if nobody knows what's wrong with it can somebody please explain to me top dead center I know where the flywheel is supposed to lineup but when the flywheel is in the spot it supposed to be the Pistons aren't all the way up now the sprocket that the timing chain connect to on the other hand is lined up with a flywheel mark But if you turn the flywheel a half a turn around to where the market pointing down the Pistons are all the way up and the sprocket where the timing chain is connected to the marks are horizontal with the engine

 

Don't get upset with the viewers as we get 100's of questions on these Chinese machines daily and no one knows what to do, that is why we don't buy them...no manuals, no parts, no information, just a guessing game.
As for top dead center....when the piston is on its power stroke )all valves closed) at the very top of the cylinder, in theory when the spark plug is supposed to fire is top dead center. It is not unusual to have the timming marks wrong on these Chinese machines, or something broke and throws the timming way off. Wish I could help you more but no one understands these machines,most of us just consider them disposable unless you enjoy tinkering with them..

 

If an engine has two spark plugs there for having two cylinders and being a four stroke needing to do two rotations for every one rotation of the cam how the hell do I find top dead center that's all I want to know like I said the flywheel does it lineup it's actually the exact opposite at the line on the flywheel is pointing straight down to the ground it's at top dead center on the Piston closest to the flywheel on the left side of the ATV on the right side while it's at top dead center on the left side it's only like halfway down on the right side is not the whole way down or anything like that so should I be taking this flywheel off and spinning it around so that it's in the right location or should I leave it as is and adjust my valves accordingly

 

Looks like the ignition timing is out. One piston should be at TDC when the timing mark on the flywheel says it is. On parallel twins, either the other piston should be at TDC or bottom dead centre. On V twins the other piston will not be tied to that TDC mark, probably a different mark on the flywheel for that one. On older designs there is also an F mark on the flywheel, to show where the spark occurs, this is ALWAYS before TDC but ignition timing is tied to the flywheel anyway because the pip on the flywheel passing the trigger coil controls when it sparks, so many modern engines don't have an F mark.

Now, if the key on the crankshaft shears and the flywheel moves round on the crank, the ignition timing will get out of whack. If you then set valve timing to the flywheel's new position, you have moved that out of time with the piston too. The TDC mark on the flywheel often lines up with a timing hole in the cover rather than straight up, but if you are SURE the TDC mark and piston are out of whack, remove flywheel, the key will be sheared, so get a new one. If this has damaged the crank and/or flywheel, I grind the tapers together with grinding paste (A SLOW JOB), making sure you remove all paste once the tapers are both mat grey all the way round, fit the new key and replace the flywheel. Check the TDC mark is now at piston top dead centre and re-time the valves to suit this.

 

Thank you for your reply here is what I have so far if I visually find tdc on the Piston closest to the flywheel the mark on flywheel is 180 degrees off also cam sprocket marks are running horizontal with engine at 9 and 3 o'clock I haven't adjusted anything yet as I didn't want to mess anything up worse but it appears when I have it at top dead center on compression stroke and the cam is horizontal the valves are all closed like they are supposed to be with just a little wiggle so am I to assume that the cam marks are supposed to be horizontal and the flywheel key sheared as you said and the ignition timing is just messed up? And if and when I put a new flywheel on which Piston should be tdc?? Or should I have been trying to find tdc on furthest away Piston on compression stroke and maybe it would line up??

 

Another case of "strokes" confusing people enough to have strokes... On one cylinder,doesn't matter which one,look at the intake rocker arm(s) ONLY while turning the flywheel slowly in the direction of its normal rotation.. Watch as the intake rocker arm goes down(valve beginning to open) and then starts to come back up(valve beginning to close) look at the flywheel and the tdc mark that comes up is for that cylinder only. Same thing on the other cylinder,just look at the intake rocker arm only to help find tdc. On either cylinder when you're at tdc,you should have slack under both the intake and exhaust rocker arms. That's when you can check/adjust valve clearance. If there isn't slack then either valves are too tight, flywheel key sheared as merryman said throwing timing off or the cam timing may be off if a cam chain is worn out and slipped. To aid in finding tdc you can also use a straw in the plug hole for which cylinder you're checking.Once the intake rocker arm starts to come up,the piston should rise also.

 

Should be the same internally as a Honda CB250. See if you can find a factory shop manual to download which will have details about cam timing etc..

 

Thank you for the replies as I said with the cam sprocket a line horizontally with the engine at 9 and 3 both intake valves have a slight amount of play and both exhaust valves have a slight amount play so I think that they are fine my problem seems to lie with the flywheel not lining up properly I don't know if that means the ignition timing is so far off that it's not going to fire right or what the outer part of the flywheel that the stator rides also seems to what wiggle a little bit but the flywheel itself where the chain from the starter connects doesn't seem to be loose at all I feel like the cam and the valves are all good I feel like the problem must lie somewhere else I'm just not sure where the guy I got it from said it was his son's the sun didn't write it for 3 years and then he couldn't get it started when he went to go trade it in so that's why he sold it they put new carburetors on it and that was about it and furthermore let's say that the key to the flywheel did Shear off let's say it damage the flywheel how do I get a new flywheel if this bike according to the internet never existed also any idea of what the valve lash should be for the two intake in a two exhaust valves since I can't find any information on it but like I said I think the cab and the valves are correct I'm getting it on the compression stroke the Piston closest to the flywheel is on the way at the top the cam is perfectly aligned horizontally with the motor all the valves are in their free position if you will they all have a slight amount of play I will check clear and says when I get home it just seems to be that flywheel does not line up with anything but I've seen things on other forums about Chinese scooters and people didn't even line the flywheel off they just made a new Mark so is that only for if it's a quarter inch off or if its 180 degrees is it definitely mean it's not going to fire thank you guys again for all of your help

 

To be honest it just seems like something weird that it's exactly a hundred and eighty degrees off of where it's supposed to be on the flywheel it's never been taken apart before it all seems to be good the chain doesn't have a lot of slack the tensioner is an out the whole way everything looks excellent I mean it had decent spark I was giving it starter fluid it won't fire in that left cylinder at all but it'll fire in the right cylinder that made no sense to me also they both had good compression and they both have spark I tried swapping the coils with each other to see if the spark moved and it fired in the left side but it didn't so I'm not sure it's driving me nuts if I could afford to just go buy another motor and throw it on there I would vlol