I hope someone here knows about his stuff.
I just bought a 1998 Yamaha timberwolf 250 2wd. I brought it home last night and rode it around a little. Then this morning it was 38 degrees and I wanted to see how it did after sitting all night in cool weather. I had left it in neutral the night before. I turned the key on and the neutral light wouldn't come on and needless to say the electric start wouldn't work. I pulled the starter cord and with one little pull it started right up. Then after 2-3 seconds of running the neutral light came on. I drove around a little then switched it off then on again and the neutral light and electric starter worked fine.
Could this be a battery issue? The battery looks pretty old.
