954 Cranking issue's (go figure)

Gruvin2 · 06-30-2008, 5:28 PM

03 954

Symptoms are.....will crank for a short duration. Perhaps 6-8 turns then not having enough power to crank. Fuel pump activates every time. Lights stay on but flicker while cranking. Lights stay on after crank power is gone. Battery is near full charge. Only takes 5-6 minutes for battery to go to green on trickle charge. Battery is less then 6mo old. Never sat over the winter. Seems if the temp is just right ..not to hot or cold the crank power is "ideal" enough to start w/o issue. I have been having to bump (pop the clutch) the bike to start it. Generally while riding throughout the day stopping for gas/meals it will start back up without issue. As the temps have risen this has been occuring most often.

I originally thought it was my R/R as they are notorious but it seems the charging system is fine. Could this be the starter relay/starter motor as I suspect or am I missing something?

As always any insight is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

D.Nac · 06-30-2008, 9:46 PM

try jumping the battery from a car and see if it cranks. Sounds like your battery is bad.

NordicusMaximus · 07-01-2008, 11:03 AM

Agreed, you may have a bad cell in the battery, I can crank mine when it's flooded for about 30-60 seconds no problem on my battery, and I only use a Battery Tender to trickle charge it.

While your battery may have the proper voltage, it does not sound like it has enough current, CCA's (Cold cranking amps) to sufficiently fire the bike. Also, check all the ground points on the bike, the engine, etc, to make sure they are all clean and not broken/corroded.

stormi · 07-02-2008, 12:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by D.Nac

try jumping the battery from a car and see if it cranks. Sounds like your battery is bad.

With the car off!

I had a similar problem, this test made it really easy to determine what the problem was:
Technical Article: Fault Finding Guide - ElectroSport Industries

I use it for every weird electrical problem I have now. It helps me rule out the AVR system, and also to find "poor connections" that can create issues with the charging system.

It may not be the solution, but it might help you find the problem, or at least rule a few things out.

Good Luck!

Gruvin2 · 07-02-2008, 10:03 AM

Only reason I don't suspect it my battery is it still keeps lights on and such even after it can't crank anymore. I agree with the lack of cold crank power lacking. Also odd that it will get full charge in a few min but even after full charge isn't always enough to get it going....it is much more obvious with the heat as of late. How can I rule out what "IS" working properly?

One other thing i forgot to mention....While sitting in bumper to bumper traffic the other day in 90+ with my highbeams on and the fan running & engine temp around 225 the bike died. Luckily I was on a dowhill grade and was able to easily bump start it back to life w/o the highbeams on and had no reoccurance after that....

Still trying to figure what i need to test & what to look for. I will take a look at the link provided for help as well. Thanks again.

stormi · 07-02-2008, 3:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gruvin2

Only reason I don't suspect it my battery is it still keeps lights on and such even after it can't crank anymore. I agree with the lack of cold crank power lacking. Also odd that it will get full charge in a few min but even after full charge isn't always enough to get it going....it is much more obvious with the heat as of late. How can I rule out what "IS" working properly?

A shorted or dead battery takes not time at all to charge. What's the voltage across the terminals when charged, and after you crank it a couple of times?

Quote:

Still trying to figure what i need to test & what to look for. I will take a look at the link provided for help as well. Thanks again.

Definitely go through it, It's saved my buns a few times.

Also, check that cables are tight and that there is no corrosion.

Gruvin2 · 07-03-2008, 2:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stormi

A shorted or dead battery takes not time at all to charge. What's the voltage across the terminals when charged, and after you crank it a couple of times?

Definitely go through it, It's saved my buns a few times.

Also, check that cables are tight and that there is no corrosion.

Will do. I have not checked the voltage coming off the battery since its fairly new. I'll get back after a volt check.

Charles486 · 07-03-2008, 2:59 PM

definitly sounds like a bad battery to me, if you go straight from charging to the bike and it does what you described its the battery, if it does that after some running time then it could be stator or r/r but if it does it right away you need a battery

stormi · 07-04-2008, 12:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charles486

definitly sounds like a bad battery to me, if you go straight from charging to the bike and it does what you described its the battery, if it does that after some running time then it could be stator or r/r but if it does it right away you need a battery

The stator would manifest other issues too, wouldn't it? since it's the powerhouse for the bike, if it was under performing, wouldn't it run poorly too?

The RR could be a problem too that's what my problem was when I had similar things happen, but it took out the battery) , but I would definitely go through that test before you start throwing parts at it. All that's needed is a multimeter, and preferably a second set of hands, but not necessary.

You might even luck out and find out it's a bad connection. I've had that happen a couple of times. I've actually never had that test misdiagnose, nor heard of it, and I promote it a lot on the forum that I own.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gruvin2

Will do. I have not checked the voltage coming off the battery since its fairly new. I'll get back after a volt check.

I had a battery go bad ( one cell failed) in less than a year. The nice part was that it was on warranty. Kind of a downer to have taken care of it properly and still have to replace it in the spring though.