Non Starter
 

2002 faired, 15000 miles.
Yet again this morning the bike wouldn't start.


I put a new battery in 6 weeks ago after a wiring fault then a week ago when it got cold it wouldn't start in the morning, so I charged it then it worked for a day or so then wouldn't start. I've now found out it wasn't the right battery (not strong enough, was 8A should've been 10A).


So I bought a far better motobat battery upgraded from the standard with 190 CCA rather than the standard 160CCA. It worked for a couple of days and this morning won't start. The bike is kept in my large shed on a carpeted floor and covered with 5 blankets. Its cold but it should still be fine. I've also got a ZX6r kept in the same shed. I hadn't ridden that for 5 days but that started fine.


Do you think there's a fault somewhere in the bike like the starter motor as this shouldn't be happening? I know there's issues with these bikes like crap regulators as I've already replaced it earlier this year, but I'm so ****ed off with this now, I'm close to binning the bike. Any advice appreciated.

Re: Non Starter
 

Either the battery isn't charging or there is a drain whilst the ignition is off.

To test for current drain you'll need a multimeter with a current setting.
Disconnect the battery +ve and stick the meter to complete the circuit between the battery and the bike terminal. This should read a few mA, may not be zero but should be pretty low.
If it isn't, start pulling fuses till the current drops. That will be the circuit causing the problem. From there its wiring diagram time. There will be something in that circuit shorting.

If it's not charging then follow the "charging circuit flowchart" on this site.


Obviously you'll need a charged battery for testing & the bike will need to be running to test the charging circuit.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

Re: Non Starter
 

Thanks Grant66.


Sorry I'm not sure what you mean with completing the circuit with the meter. Would I connect one meter lead to the positive battery terminal and the lead other to the part that attaches to the battery terminal?


When you say about a drain, I've fitted different LED indicators on the front with a connector to rectify the flashing rate so it does flash at the correct rate. Could this be affecting the battery?

Re: Non Starter
 

When you say it won't start, does the starter motor spin the engine but it doesn't fire? Or does the starter motor grind really slowly, too slow to start the bike?

Also, do the drain test by disconnecting the negative (black) lead from the battery, then touching/clipping one probe to the battery terminal and the other probe to the end of the negative (black) lead. You can blow the fuse in the meter if you do it with the battery positive lead. You should get a reading of almost zero, any more than 0.1amps is a problem.

Charge the battery before doing the test, though.

Re: Non Starter
 

When I press the starter the first time or two it tries for a second to start then nothing, then clicks/crackles.
Thanks, will do. Think I'm gonna go back to the stock indicators as it all seemed to start after I put them on.

Re: Non Starter
 

There will be no more current flowing whether you put the ammeter in the pos or neg lead you are still completing the circuit and any current from or to the battery will still flow through the meter because the battery is the only source of power when engine is stopped. You are right though that the problem when using positive terminal is that if you touch the other meter probe to earth you get a short circuit which will pop the fuse.

If the battery keeps going flat sounds like alternator or R/R - measure the voltage across the battery about an hour after a run and it should be around 12.6 volts, if the engine is running above about 2000rpm then volatge across battery should be around 14 volts. If battery voltage drops appreciably when standing definitely a parasitic load sucking power.

As you say if this all started when LED indicators were fitted then start by taking them off.

Re: Non Starter
 

Yes, you're completing the circuit through the meter. Make sure it's on the current setting before connecting.

Connect the meter lead to the bike wiring first, it'll minimise the chance that you'll short the battery to ground through the meter (or use the -ve as had been suggested to remove the risk)

Don't switch the ignition on when doing this test, some meters don't react well to high current.

Don't change anything till you've proved that current drain is in the indicator circuit is the problem.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

Re: Non Starter
 

Start by pulling the circuit fuse to see if it changes the drain (assuming that there is one, there may not be then you'll need to look at the charging circuit again), then investigate further.


Charging circuit flow chart, if you need it.

https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?url...2&share_type=t

Re: Non Starter
 

I've never been very confident with electrics, so I fear the big red cable and try to avoid it ;)

Re: Non Starter
 

Does sound like Reg/Rec