the ignition fires when you turn it on its the way it works Ive had the gasses in the muffler explode when i turn it on. one thing i would refrain from doing is killing the ignition with the switch and use the throttle to kill it. when i use the switch the motor keeps spinning a little and gasses accumulate in the exhaust and the resulting explossion when i turn the switch back on has caused me to have troubles with my heart rate.