Youll need at least 12.2 volts or a 50 percent charge to start the motorcycle. Itll just make clicking sounds. If not . When the battery is dead and you turn the key, the magnet tries to magnetize the gear, which causes the clicking sound. If that causes it to start, the switch may need cleaning and/or there is a bad connection in it. Motorcycles have very important lubricants and oils that allow them to function under the Is It Normal For New Motorcycle Brake Pads To Rub? Starter Continues to Crank After Bike Fires Up, 3. With that out of the way, lets check if the starter relay is receiving power. Keepin' all the left over parts. For the rest of us, the first step to diagnosing a seized engine is to roll the bike up and down the block. Gonna use 'em to build another bike! In some cases, corrosion or a bad connection would not show up with a multimeter, but it will with a test light. Turn the key to start and hold it there. So, the battery is providing ample current. If it starts that way you have carb issues. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. The starter should spin/crank the engine. The multimeter should show you that the circuit is an open-loop while the button is off. When you say "won't start", I assume you mean that the starter motor will not spin when you press the start button. ho0w do u test a starter relay??? Gas should not be used if it has been sitting for longer than 6 months. Lack of conductivity is the general cause of starter relay failure, often due to exposure to harsh weather, road debris, dirt, and grime or corrosion at the hands of various destructive riding or storage conditions. If the load test fails, then individually test each battery and replace any faulty ones. It clicks quite fast, like 400 clicks per minute. That can cause electrical connections to overheat and melt. This is what I have found when it comes to clicking issues when starting your motorcycle. Motorcycles and automotive repair have been a big part of his family for generations, therefore its only natural that he decided to become a heavy-duty diesel tech. Required fields are marked *. One of the two terminals comes straight from the battery and has +12V going to it at all times with the ignition on. the clicking was a relay not solenoid. (Explained). If you have to press your starter button multiple times to get the flywheel spinning your pistons to get the engine running, theres good sign debris, dirt, corrosion, and overheating are interfering with your motorcycle starter relay. That said, you dont want to go through the same thing again any sooner than you have to; lets take a look at the root causes behind that bad battery. Not even a click from the starter relay. Related:How To Tell If A Motorcycle Fuse Is Blown (Explained). Again, if the engine turns over youve found your problem and need a new side stand switch. Were here to get to the bottom of the 3 most common reasons your motorcycle clicks instead of starting; lets put her in gear and get back on the road! Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Check The Starter Solenoid. You can use a multimeter, but the side stand switch is made up of only two wires its extremely hard to mess it up. Keeping your motorcycle at peak performance is very important for safety and having an enjoyable ride. No-Click No-Crank: When this occurs, power is not being sent to the solenoid, making it very unlikely that the issue is related to the starter motor. I suggest that you get a new starter, and the problem should be resolved. Your battery could be reading 12.6 voltage even if it doesnt have enough current to start the bike. Kyle currently works as a mechanical engineer and graduated with a minor in automotive engineering. Nothing but a click. If it helped you sol. yeah, i've jumped my bike using my car and have had no problems. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. Jun 18, 2017. The starter should crank the engine. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. thats the only fuse I can see under the seat.. it s fine not burnt out you really need to see what voltage your battery is holding if its below 12v it going to just click, you my want to make sure your battery connections are tight and not corroded, make sure to check the ground wire connection too, if its clicking your fuses are good. While its unlikely that one of them is bad, they still fail from time to time and prevent the starter motor from working. Knowing how to fix a failing starter relay might save you from being stranded on the side of the road someday, scratching your heads, and asking yourself, has my starter relay gone bad? If you have power coming from your start button it should be measurable. If this is indeed the reason your bike clicks while youre trying to start it, Im afraid you need to replace your motor. If the solenoid isn't the source of the click, tracing the sound should take you to the relay on those models. Sometimes cleaning the corrosion can boost the starters life for years, delaying the replacement. You need a fully charged battery in the bike.Your bike does not have an alternator it has a generator. However, if you went through all the troubleshooting steps of the section above and your bike still wont crank, the starter itself might fail. Those clicking noises can rapidly spoil someones day. Lets start with the basics first, as theyre so easy to overlook. When braking, there are different kinds of My name is Kyle Cannon and I love everything about motorcycles. The battery gives power to the magnetization while the starter is the component that directs how each part functions in the starting process. In this case, since the starter solenoid is bad and wont connect them together we will connect the terminals ourselves by shorting them. This website or its third-party tools process personal data.In case of sale of your personal information, you may opt out by using the link. the 4P* starter switch works = starter relay switch clicks only (noticed a tiny connection spark) R3. Remove the screws and cover carefully noting the spring placement and direction. For more information about a seized motorcycle engine, see my article here. The stator would cause the relay to click and no crank.? Get a quick visual check on the wiring. That will tell you for sure about the battery, and it does sound like a battery problem. Make a list of plausible reasons and theories. sdjp op No necessarily. Its okay to use the headlight every once in a while, but just dont make it a habit. You should hear a clicking sound; the clicking noise is the starter relays internal contact. Did you find wrong information or was something missing? (PS: We read ALL feedback). There are three main reasons why a motorcycle clicks when you try to start it. As for the clutch . To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. Use your multimeter in continuity mode to measure the resistance between the two wires that go to the start button. Start the motorcycle as you normally would. The battery may be giving enough power to the magnet to polarize the gear to turn the fly wheel, but there is literally an unbreakable amount of pressure on the flywheel that turning it essentially becomes impossible. You can determine how much current the battery holds by taking it to an auto parts store. Validate the solution and keep a record of it. - just like you normally would when starting your motorcycle. The solenoid acts as an electromagnet field, activating the starter motor into cranking the flywheel. Thanks alot, Sean Second disconnect your cable from the starter motor and the green wire to your solenoid. He loves restoring motorcycles, has a vast knowledge of how they work, and has sold his restoration projects to customers from all over the United States. Lets move on to some other tests to confirm the problem is indeed your relay. Testing the relays circuitry lets you know point-blank whether the starter relay is the faulty component. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". Either your starter cable is loose and/or has corroded terminals, you have a bad ground, have a bad starter solenoid, or you have a bad starter. The starter is what assists the magnet in the polarizing process. Check the frame where the battery is grounded and make sure that is clean and tight. Do not skip this step. At 12.2 volts, 50% charged, and so on. STEP 1 - Begin at the batteries: Charge the batteries and perform battery load test on the battery bank. I believe your starter (tested out correct) and your current connections (engine started after installation) are ok. The battery charges the magnetization, but the starter then applies and systematically transfers power. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. Fortunately, two of the three most common causes of a clicking motorcycle are simple to repair in the comfort of your garage. Flywheel damages You can identify the flywheel as the large wheel that is located between the engine and transmission. That said, many of these symptoms are also the symptoms of a failing starter motor or a bad solenoid. Could you bypass the starter solenoid and start the engine? A motorcycle starter goes bad usually because of age. The best offense is a good defense; routine maintenance per your bikes OEM-suggested spec intervals includes frequent oil changes and inspections. A broken motorcycle starter relay can be disassembled and cleaned or rebuilt if it fails due to dirt, debris, moisture, or corrosion. Charging a motorcycle battery can take anywhere between 8 20 hours. The engine won't turn over and your car won't start. Bladeracer is most likely correct. A seized engine will click instead of starting because the motor parts inside are all locked up to the point where the crankshaft cannot turn the bearings. I knew my relay was n/g when I got the click I wacked the relay with a screw driver while holding the start button and the starter cranked. What if it happened in the middle of nowhere? How to Tell When a Motorcycle Starter Relay Has Gone Bad If I apply battery power (pos and neg) directly to the coil it does engage the starter. Check out my article here to learn more about what happens when a motorcycle battery freezes. The pistons and their rings, rod bearings, and other critical parts overheat to seizing or fusing. So, in review, why is your motorcycle clicking instead of starting? If you suspect your motorcycles inability to start is due to a dead battery, you should charge it. Do not undo the bolts holding the relay, as some types of relays are grounded through them. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". Adversely, your starter might keep running after the moto starts if the relay fails. If the current is too low, you may need to simply get a new battery by that point (which is convenient because youre already at a parts store). replaced relay and put the starter button in, so as not to get stuck on the road. If your motorcycle is clicking when you try to start it, there are a few tests you can do to find the exact culprit. Heres a good video showing you how to test the neutral switch on a basic one wire design: Youll most likely have to remove the switch and test it for continuity at the neutral position with a multimeter. you know the drill. Continue with Recommended Cookies. Not to mention, if you have an exposed wire generating the charge, thats hazardous all on its own. If your motorcycle's starter relay has gone bad, you could experience your starter clicking while you're trying to start the bike, while in some cases, the bike might be cold dead, with no sounds at all. Steps and advice for troubleshooting equipment. Give each one a solid tug this is a good way to find corroded wires that are barely holding together. You may have a seized engine if the tires give resistance and do not roll. Since you have to uninstall and dismantle the relay to clean it anyway; why not just throw a freshie on there once you got the sucker off. Then, you charged your battery, tested your battery at home, confirmed its reading full. Now its time to try to start your bike again. Heres how you do it: The starter solenoid (also known as starter relay) is usually located somewhere under the seat and near the battery. Those clicking noises can ruin someones day pretty quickly. There are many, many safety switches that wont allow the starter to turn over if they arent closed, for example: neutral switch, side stand switch, clutch switch, etc. Or was something missing consent for the cookies in the category `` motorcycle starter relay clicks but no crank '' problem! Do not undo the bolts holding the relay fails, many of these symptoms are also the of! To it at all times with the basics first, as some types of relays are grounded through them and! 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