2006 KXL250 with 6,000 miles. I've noticed this ringing or jingling sound coming from somewhere under the fuel tank that happens upon acceleration. I've been reading about the cam chain tensioner, but I'm not sure that is the noise I'm experiencing. The noise I hear sounds similar to a ring coming from an old phone or very similar to a washer that is banging around because a bolt backed off allowing it to make a jingling noise. I cannot hear the sound if I am cruising along at a constant speed, but the noise becomes apparent as soon as I start increasing the throttle. If this noise was constant I would swear it was a loose washer or chain noise, but the fact it starts upon acceleration has me confused. I can do minor things on a bike like take wheels off, change oil, etc, but I've never opened one up enough to look at cams or valves so my knowledge is limited. I also drive an old Jeep with a straight six so I am accustomed to engine noises as long as it's not something that is causing major damage. Thanks for the help, and any advice is appreciated.

 

It sounds like you may be describing the cam chain noise that has afflicted so many of us. For me, it was intermittent but became more constant at somewhere around 5,000 rpm+. You may be able to diagnose better with a mechanic's stethoscope, or maybe some others have recommendations. I highly recommend Krieger's manual tension adjuster. The price is right and I believe this is the correct way to solve the problem.

 

You say you only hear it on acceleration...double or triple check that it not actually RPM related.

It might sound crazy, but I had a very similar sound issue with my bike. I eventually found that it was the clutch lever rattling at around 8000RPM. Initially I only noticed it on acceleration - because that's typically the only time the engine was turning that fast. Under normal cruising, the engine turns much lower RPM. Here's a link: https://www.kawasakiforums.com/forum...-rattle-36230/

FWIW, I also had the cam chain issue which was a distinctively different sound.

 

I get the noise as I'm accelerating from a stop so I don't think it's RPM related. Should I attempt to adjust the stock tensioner first? I read the directions on the Krieger manual cam tensioner and I don't know if I'm up for attempting that by myself.

 

The Krieger tensioner is really pretty easy to install. We're here to help if you need it, and Krieger does a good job answering questions.

I wouldn't force an adjustment of the stock "automatic" tensioner. That can put too much pressure on the cam chain which is a bad thing.

If it's not RPM related, it's probably not the cam chain. That noise usually occurs around the same rpm range consistently.

Do you get the noise when revving up in neutral, bike stopped?

Do you have a skid plate? They are known to rattle occasionally. There may be a rock in there.

Does it happen only when accelerating from a stop, first gear only?

 

If you can manually adjust the self-adjusting stock tensioner, you can install the Krieger manual tensioner....

 

+1 to the last two posts. The Kreiger tensioner is fairly easy, and a good fix...but it's no use if the cam chain is not the source of the sound. From your descriptions so far, I doubt that it is.

 

I took it out for another ride, and it happens in all gears, and I think the sound is present (very faint) even when cruising. The sound can be heard briefly when the throttle is increased while stopped both in neutral and clutched in gear. Overall the sound is at its loudest while accelerating. I'm beginning to think more and more that there is something loose and it rattles when the vibrations increase. I found one of the shrouds was a little loose, but I didn't get to ride it after fixing it. I'll crawl under it tomorrow and see if anything stands out. Thanks for the suggestions and help!

 

I don't think my cam chain noise was as loud when decelerating. More so under power. Keep riding and it will probably get worse (mine did), or the auto adjuster will click a notch and it will get quiet (didn't wait that long, or the auto adjuster had failed).

 

Check your PM