2001 suzuki 650 savage won't start. Sat about a month. Has good spark, turns over good but no attempt to fire up. Compression is good. Have any ideas?

SOURCE: Suzuki Savage 650 LS 4 gears found not 5.

Your bike has a fifth gear. The problem is probably a bent shift fork. Broken engagement dogs could be present but I have never seen that happen in anything other than 1st and second gear. This is approximately an $800 to $1000.00 repair. Personally, I really like only having to shift 4 gears. Don't you?

Below is a partial image of your trannie and also a generic image showing how a slider gear moves left and right when pushed by a shift fork. In this example the gear dogs engage into either 1st gear or 2nd gear depending on which way the fork moves the slider gear. If the fork were bent, the slider may go into second gear but not have enough movement to reach first gear. If the gear dogs were broken off then the gear has no way to engage.

I don't get paid for my answers but I do take pride in them, I just try to help where I can. So if you feel it is right, > > A “very helpful” rating for this answer? Thanks!

SOURCE: 1996 Suzuki Savage 650 backfires on cutoff

I had the same prob with my 97, It was not the head gasket but the O-ring on top of the head. Replaced the O-ring and has been running good for a year now with no backfire. Hope this helps.