Hey guys!

I'm having issues with my 2007 Low Rider.

Here's what's going on :

A couple months ago, around October, I stopped at a gaz station and when I wanted to leave, the bike wouldn't turn on. The guy of the station brought a battery booster, it immediately started and I was good. I got home and plugged it to my tender but I thought it was weird ... I was using the bike everyday, there was no reason for the battery to die... it's not like I had left it weeks / months in the garage.. but I thought maybe the battery was old and it was time to change it. After that day, it turned on normally again.

2 months later, December, it's getting freaking cold in here. I don't ride as much so I keep the bike in my garage plugged to my battery charger/tender (Ctek). On a nice sunny day, I decide to take it for a ride, but it doesn't start, even though it had been plugged for days/weeks ! I try to turn it on but it does that "tak-tak-tak-tak" sound. I recorded it here : https://youtu.be/YOCqmX_TmkQ (for some reason, if you click on the link, it doesn't work. You have to copy / paste it)

I start the "recond" mode on the Ctek and leave it for a couple days. When I check it again, it's all good. It starts, and it's great.

A couple days later, dead again, even though it remained plugged the whole time. Well, not literally dead because my Volt-meter reads 14.5V, so it should be good, but it doesn't start. The tak-tak sound again.

I tried to jump it with a car battery but that didn't work either. It sounded like the engine wanted to start but didn't have enough strength. I also tried removing my battery and linking the car battery directly to the Negative and Positive cables of my bike, still not turning over. Here's how it sounded : https://youtu.be/bSb7-ycV8L0 (don't click, but copy / paste)

That eliminates the possibility of a battery issue because it didn't start, even with another battery.

I've checked the fuses, and they're ok. I've check the ground connection, and that looks ok as well.

Has anyone experienced the same, or a similar situation? Any idea what it could be?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers !

 

This sound means that the battery is delivering enough current to pull in the starter solenoid, but not enough to run the starter motor. The load of the motor pulls the voltage below the hold-in voltage of the solenoid, which causes it to release, which removes the load, which allows the voltage to go back up, which pulls the solenoid in... Wash, rinse, repeat...

The most likely causes are a weak battery or a bad (high resistance) connection between the battery and the starter or the battery and the engine ground. If you can't identify a bad connection, it would be a good idea to have the battery load tested. The fact that it starts some times makes me think a bad connection is more likely. Also, since metal contracts when it gets cold, bad connections tend to get worse in cold weather.

 

Thanks for your reply. Would you rule out a starter issue? Because I am about to take it apart...

I don't think it's a battery issue since I tried to start the bike with another battery and it didn't work either (second link).

I tested the resistance on the negative cable going from the battery to the starter and I got 00.00 / 00.01 ohs.

I did check the connections and couldn't see anything loose / corroded / unusual.

Is there anything else I could check before I start taking everything apart?

 

it's possible the starter is drawing way too much current, but I don't think that's the most likely cause, especially since it works some of the time. When it does start, does it sound normal, or is it struggling?

Put a volt meter directly on the battery terminals. What is the voltage when you try to start? Try to start it, for 10 seconds, then cautiously work you way down from the battery positive terminal to the starter motor, and from the starter mother back up the engine ground cable to the negative terminal of the battery. If you feel something hot, you've found the problem.

 

Well now it doesn't work at all, ever. Last time I managed to turn it on was about 1 month ago, and it did sound normal. But no luck since that day.

When I put the voltmeter it shows 9.3V when I am starting it.

Tomorrow, I'll try your idea, to try to start it for 10 sec and check if it's hot around the cables.

 

What did it measure before you tried to crank? Get the battery tested. (Charge it first.) If it's been on a charger it should do better than that.

 

13.3 V bike off, 12.6v when it's on but engine off.

But as I said, it is not (or not only) a battery issue because I've tried with a booster, I've tried jumping with a car and I've tried with another battery.

 

When you measured 9.3 volts were the probes on the actual lead terminals of the battery or were they on the ends of the battery cables?

Did the starter performance degrade over time or was it more on or off?

The starter may have an intermittent short (now permanent) but that is not a common failure mode.

I would still have the battery tested.

 

Since we all know the battery is bad anyways (9.3V) tells us that right off the bat, why not replace it and see what it does at that point. It's gonna need one anyways, might as well rule out the battery as the cause. Just because you tried to jump it off another vehicle and it didn't doesn't mean it couldn't still be a bad battery. I would replace the battery, clean and tighten all connections at the same time, then report back.

 

As I explained, I've tested with another battery (actually 2!) as well and got the same results. 9.3V during the starting of the engine is a normal value.

Also, I've checked all the connections, they're ok.