Trouble Shooting - Bike Click Wont start

[RisingRay]

Hi All,

I'm a new rider, so please bear with me if my questions seems stupid. I got a bike awhile back and didn't ride it over the winter period. Recently, I tried to start it up again. The bike ran perfectly fine prior to the downtime.

Right now, the bike makes a click noise when I press the starter button. Sometimes once, sometimes in a row.

Things I've tried:
Battery - Full charge @ autozone. They told me after charging it output 11.6v. I'm assuming 11.6 is at least enough to start.
Starter Solenoid - I tried the "bypass" where you touch the +/- with a screwdriver and the motor made the cranking noise but it didn't start complete.

The way I understand it is that, since the starter motor CRANKS with the bypass, that means the starter solenoid is GOOD. The issue is somewhere the electricity flow?

Through the bypass method, if the motor cranks but doesn't start there are some other issues going on?

Looking for some advice on next steps and resources to go with it.

Thanks!

[MLR]

11.6 seems low to me, pretty sure a charged battery has over 12

Plus what does the battey read when you try and start it, I would hazard to guess its pretty low, as soon as you try and start it the starter will draw all the volts and a heap of amps, sounds like the battery is kaput.

How is the acid level?

Do you have a multimeter? If not grab one, they are a cheap investment.

Can you slave start it? Just jumper it to a 12v car.

Do you have a battery charger with a battery health function, if so hook it up and see what it says.

For long term storage it's best to disconnect the battery, even better store it somewhere where the cold temp doesn't kill the battery, batteries hate the cold.

Even better, buy a trickle charger.

[Triple Jim]

I would bet the battery is shot.

[DannoXYZ]

Freshly charged battery should be around 13.5v. As test, jump start bike from known good battery. Such as one from car that starts (leave car off when jumping).

Autozone fried your battery by using an auto battery charger. Bike battery charger puts out a lot less amperage.

[maverick9611]

[Nextbesthing]

New battery 100%

[THusker]

A fully charged battery after sitting for a short time will read 12.6 volts. 11.6 is a dead battery. Sometimes a 2-10 amp charge for several hours can bring them back to life. But if it will not hold a charge after that it is time for a new one.

[Nextbesthing]

Originally Posted by THusker

A fully charged battery after sitting for a short time will read 12.6 volts. 11.6 is a dead battery. Sometimes a 2-10 amp charge for several hours can bring them back to life. But if it will not hold a charge after that it is time for a new one.

Yeah de-sulfate those suckas.

How do you guys do it? I blast 10 amps at it with a "dumb" charger at increasing intervals. Moderate success. I want to get my hands on one of those OptiMate chargers. I have been told those are the best.

[DannoXYZ]

There are smart chargers that have de-sulfation cycles where it tickles high-voltage +30v sine/square-wave pulses at high-frequency 1-20khz with low amperage through. Need to get over the minimum activation energy to dissolve the lead sulfate crystals back into solution.

http://www.superstreetonline.com/how...-fact-fiction/
https://www.impactbattery.com/blog/2...racle-charger/

[VaFish]

Originally Posted by DannoXYZ

Freshly charged battery should be around 13.5v. As test, jump start bike from known good battery. Such as one from car that starts (leave car off when jumping).

Autozone fried your battery by using an auto battery charger. Bike battery charger puts out a lot less amperage.

Right off the charger they will show around 13.5 but after they have rested a few hours should be 12.5-12.9 volts.

11.6 is low, probably a bad cell in the battery.

The click is the starter solenoid, but the failure to crank is either a bad starter or a dead battery. Really need to know what the voltage drops to when the starter button is pushed. But I'm surprised it cranked when you bypassed the solenoid.

[jkv45]

Originally Posted by RisingRay

Hi All,

Battery - Full charge @ autozone. They told me after charging it output 11.6v. I'm assuming 11.6 is at least enough to start.

Ya - those AutoZone guys are pretty sharp - not!

11.6V equals about a 20% charge on a 12 volt battery - so if it's been on a charger - it's junk.

You should get 12.7V minimum from a fully charged battery, and no less than 10V during cranking (load).

Time to buy a battery, maybe from some place other than AutoZone. When you get it, don't assume it's fully charged. Most likely it's not. That's why you need an inexpensive multimeter and a small (2A max) charger of your own - so you know what's going on.

[DannoXYZ]

I keep my battery topped up with one of these smart charger/tenders so battery doesn’t die when bike’s not ridden regularly. Light turns red when charging, turns green when charges and on float mode.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/282798052091

also connect one of these desulfators. They really work!!!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/263726823101