Here's one for anyone who might be able to solve this problem. I've been having for about 4 months now. When ever I've parked my bike for a while and went to start it it felt as though there wasn't enough power in the battery to turn the bike over and the starter contactor (Not the relay under the seat but the large contacts in the starter) would chatter and sometimes the the starter would engage and yet it didn't seem to have enough power to turn the engine over.

I bought a new battery and new cables but it hasn't solved the problem. Now it seems to be getting worse. When I shut the bike down for a few moments and try to restart the starter engages and hesitates while it tries to turn the engine over. Some times the contactor chatters and then it suddenly starts to turn the engine over and the bike finally starts. The charging system seems to be working all right because the headlight burns bright and all the turn signals and other lights are working all right. The headlight goes dime as the starter is labouring to get the engine to start turning over so I know that the starter is drawing plenty of juice.

Any ideas. I went for a ride in the cold last night and had experienced the problem starting it at home and then later on when I was on my way back home. I crossed the border last night and went to Buffalo, Ny. On my way home it was raining. When I got to the border to pay my toll to cross the bridge I shut the bike off hot and it hesitated restarting. It did it again on the Canadian side after clearing customs. The headlight burned brite all the way home.

Any Ideas?

1. Double check all connections to the battery (not loose or covered in grease)

2. Double check all block connectors to/from ignition switch

3. Put test meter on to check Alternator health.

4. Double check battery has the right acid content (if wet filled) and is fully charged

5. Remove starter motor and clean (depending on mileage)

I know all this seems common sense but sometimes it's the simple things that catch us out.

You can get a great charging/battery tester at Advance for about 10 bucks...

Best 10 bucks I ever spent....

use your kicker and you woun't hear any starter noise :angry


sounds to me like your battery is a bit weak

G'day

2 things

Starter clutch and starter contacts..........repair/replace both

Okay thanks! I replaced the battery about a month ago with the cables but I am going to check these as it is possible that could have got a bad battery or a connection could have come loose. Stevo I was thinking about taking the starter apart to check these thanks for confirming this. I wonder can the armature bind in these starters if a bearing is just starting to go or will the bearing be noticably worn befire binding occurs? I want to check these as well. For now I'm just going to take the end off the starter and get the battery checked.

Thanks guys I'll let you know. possibly today or sometime this weekend. Right now I have to clean the bike because it is really dirty from the ride home in the rain last night.
It is still raining today so that might not be possible. I don't like working on a dirty bike.

The headlight, and all other lights, being on bright is not an indication that the battery has enough juice to run the starter.

Yup you are right IronMick! I used that as an indicator because on a car it can indicate a low battery or bad charging system.

I think I found the problem. I put the old battery back in the bike and it jumped to life like it was brand new. When I replaced the battery 1 month ago I noticed that I had a frayed end on the positive lead and so I went and changed both battery cables as well as the battery. It looks like I got a bad battery sold to me and the positive lead was my problem all along. Now the bad battery is acting up I'm getting the same hard starting symptoms that I originally had. It was too late to take the new battery back so I put it in the bike along with the new leads. If I had just bought new leads I probably wouldn't have had to buy a new battery but i did it all in reverse and bought the battery first figuring it was the problem and found the bad lead when swapping it out. With the new leads and my old battery the bike is running and starting as it is supposed too.

Now if I can only find the receipt for the new battery I'll take it back and at least get them to give me a new one. I won't get it charged and that way I can keep it unitl I really need a new batttery.

Thanks guys for the help.

Hey...don't be starting trouble.

;)

I won't......:confused: I think.....:o

Hey...don't be starting trouble.

;)


thats funny :smoke wish I thought of it :frownthre

Well it has been a few days now and the bike has sat in the shed with the old battery hooked up. The temps last night went down just below freezing and right now it is about 34 degree F. ( 1 C ). IT has been pretty cool all weekend with the temps around the freezing mark. I went in to start the bike and it fired up right away without hesitation. This confirms that it was the new battery I installed that was the problem.


Thanks for all the suggestions. I appreciate the effort that most of you put forward here to help others. We all may not always be right but this forum has definetely got good spirit!

And a great sense of humour I might add.