Have just come back from a 60 mile ride on my Mastiff with a few stops along the way. Started and stopped no problem. About a mile from home engine started making a nasty rasping sound so bad that my wife came out from the house to check what was up. I put it in neutral and turned the key to turn off the engine but it kept going. Stuck it into first and couldn't stall it. Kill switch didn't work. Turned off the fuel and waited until the engine died. Tried starting it again but nothing apart from a click from the starter relay when the starter button is pressed. Neutral light and electrics all working. The starter relay was very, very hot and some of the plastic shroud had melted. Obviously, I will try another starter relay.
I just wanted to check whether something might have caused the starter relay to fail like this or might it simply be knackered given it's 21 years old (9,000 miles on the bike)? Any idea whether a failed starter relay would make the engine continue to run with the key removed from the ignition and the kill switch on?