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Starter solenoid issues ?

cowpoke

Member
On a 09 EG classic

Getting the click....click .... sound when trying to start it.

Been thru the loop of thinking my battery, charging etc might have been the issue, i.e. thought the batt was low.

But now i have a full charge on it, it is my 1st start of the season so it has been sitting.

Anyway when talking to someone else they said maybe the solenoid was sticking and try to give it a light tap, ( I do remember doing that in the day, with cars) I did tap it a bit but nothing yet still clicking.

Anyone have experience with this ?
I don't have a manual yet, so not sure how hard it is to remove it and/or the starter.

Any other possibilities , tricks to try , or troubleshooting ?
 
Check the connections at the starter, measure the voltage at the stater, you should read battery voltage there, when you hit the start button what is your voltage drop
 
There are 4 important connections to check. Positive and negative battery cables at the battery, Positive battery cable connection at the starter and the negative battery cable connection where it connects to the Transmission (on my 03 it is at the rear starter mounting bolt and is the least likely to give you problems). You have probably changed the battery at least once and the battery cable connections at the battery are most often the problem. If either one is loose at all do not just tighten it, take it apart, make sure it is clean, reassembly it making sure it is tight. Coating the connection with Vaseline, silicone grease or Aluminum wire Deox or similar anti corrosion preventive coating. The positive cable connection at the starter (large stud on the solenoid with a rubber boot over it) is more prone to rust as well as corrosion. Again if it is clean and tight a light coating of silicone grease will help keep it free of rust/corrosion. Using a volt meter you can check each connection while you try the starter. First check the battery voltage at the battery posts, then check it while trying to start the bike. Battery voltage should drop to close to 10 volts, if much lower have it Load tested. Check/measure for voltage from the positive battery post to the starter solenoid stud (not the cable or the nut but the stud itself). While trying to start the bike you should see little or no voltage across the cable and connections, test the ground cable from the battery post and the front starter mounting bolt, again you should see little or no voltage across the cable. If you see a voltage check across each connection, Battery post to ring terminal on the cable, from ring terminal at the solenoid to the solenoid stud. If you get a voltage reading this is a voltage drop, Voltage that is not making it to the starter. If you measure voltage between the stud on the solenoid and either starter mounting bolt you get very close to the same voltage as you get at the battery posts again while trying to start the bike.
 
The batt is new, and the connections at the bat are good, clean.
The others I will check.

I'm still thinking its the solenoid sticking... maybe. As the starter engages, it's just the the sol, clicks and sometimes just seems to spin without clicking...
 
Quick note; make sure that the cable ends are next to the battery terminals. All other wire connections go outside the cable. Makes a difference.
 
With the bike in neutral, jump across the starter terminals, this should engage the starter to see if it is working properly
 
After looking at several things, I did take the batt out and had it tested at the local parts store.
It was at a low charge.
Of course I would have done this much sooner, but since it was a new batt from this fall, I figured it should be fine.

Some things I learned and questions;

one guy at the parts store said not to use a old style batt charger, and that you should use a new digital one that says it will do AGM batteries...

Which then brought up the question about using a Tender on it, will that work as well ?


So I'm going to get a new batt, just wondering why it wasn't charged, had it on the Tender, and also, did put it on my regular charger for a while.
So either these are different animals as far as charging, or I have a drain somewhere...
 
After looking at several things, I did take the batt out and had it tested at the local parts store.
It was at a low charge.
Of course I would have done this much sooner, but since it was a new batt from this fall, I figured it should be fine.

Some things I learned and questions;

one guy at the parts store said not to use a old style batt charger, and that you should use a new digital one that says it will do AGM batteries...

Which then brought up the question about using a Tender on it, will that work as well ?


So I'm going to get a new batt, just wondering why it wasn't charged, had it on the Tender, and also, did put it on my regular charger for a while.
So either these are different animals as far as charging, or I have a drain somewhere...
A tender is only good to keep a battery topped off, if the battery is way low on charge a tender will have a hard time keeping up
 
Low charge does not necessarily mean the battery is bad. What did the load test show? Depending on how you had your tender connected, it may not have been able to do its job for the same reason you are having starting issues now, i e, you have a bad/corroded connection somewhere. With the battery disconnected from the bike, use a quality charger and make sure the battery is fully charged. Then go through your connection checks as others advised.
 
Nippedenso starter use brass contacts in the solenoid housing. These contacts get worn badly over the years and are replaceable easily without buying a starter. The starter just clicks when trying to start.
 
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