# My Harley quit starting!



## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.


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## Fort Fun Indiana (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


> It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.


First step: change your spark plugs.


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## Defiant1 (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


> It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.




Smack the starter with a hammer.


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## there4eyeM (Oct 29, 2019)

Thank goodness the sound level of the world has reduced!
Here's to the same thing happening to all Harleys everywhere.


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## Bo Didleysquat (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


> It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.



Take both batteries to an HD dealership and have 'em tested?  I would not jump from a car personally.  Battery should last ya about 5 years of it's taken care of, trickle charged over winter.  The newer lithium batteries will last longer, I don't bother with them; twice the price.

1340 EVO if I recall?  Corroborated/ fuel injected?


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## Tax Man (Oct 29, 2019)

While the plugs are out try to start agian to see if the starter is good.


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## 007 (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


> It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.


I retired from Harley Davidson as a Master Tech. First thing I would do is load test the batteries, both of them. If they load test good, then you need to check the amperage draw on the starting circuit when the starter button is pushed. If it's not drawing full current when you hit the start button, then your starter is probably bad, but do check all the connections first.

How old is the bike? Do the lights dim when you hit the starter button?


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## Fort Fun Indiana (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


> Crixus said:
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> > It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.
> ...


But first, try the 15 minute, $15 fix of putting in new spark plugs.


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## 007 (Oct 29, 2019)

Fort Fun Indiana said:


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Uuuum... no. Sparks plugs have exactly NOTHING to do with the start circuit. FIRST thing to do is load test the batteries.

It's very simple... it's either the battery, the wiring or the starter. It's not the solenoid either so forget that. It wouldn't turn over at all if the solenoid was bad.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

Fort Fun Indiana said:


> Crixus said:
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> > It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.
> ...




That's up there with the rebuild.


Fort Fun Indiana said:


> Crixus said:
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> > It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.
> ...




Yup. Plugs AND wires. Already bought them. They will go on when I do the solonoid.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

there4eyeM said:


> Thank goodness the sound level of the world has reduced!
> Here's to the same thing happening to all Harleys everywhere.




God doesn't like you.


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## Fort Fun Indiana (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


> Sparks plugs have exactly NOTHING to do with the start circuit. F


I didn't say they did. I am saying that fouled plugs can produce the syptoms he is experiencing. And since this fix is quick and cheap, and unless they have recently been replaced, it's worth doing to possibly save some time and money.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

Bo Didleysquat said:


> Crixus said:
> 
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> > It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.
> ...




Yup. Had batteries tested. They guy recommended checking the starter and related parts. The new battery was the first thing checked. I need one of them testers to. Good point thanks. Here is a link to the specs on a 2008 superglide.

2008 Harley-Davidson FXD Dyna Super Glide


I also forgot to mention that the prior owner added a train horn. I poked around there some and found another suspicious item,




 

That's the wireing for that horn. 

@Ft. Fun Indiana, here are the plug wires. All of that will be going adapt.



 

Lots of neglect on this bike.


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## Bo Didleysquat (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


> there4eyeM said:
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> > Thank goodness the sound level of the world has reduced!
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If they would keep an eye out for us using vision we wouldn't have to go the auditory pathway.  Fuck 'em.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


> Crixus said:
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> > It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.
> ...




2008 23+ thousand miles and about 5 years of sitting off and on.


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## Bo Didleysquat (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


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Cool!  Had a 98 Superglide for a few years.

2011 CVO Street Glide these days.


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## Fort Fun Indiana (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


> and about 5 years of sitting off and on.


And if you tried starting it with old gas, you could have fouled your plugs.


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## Bo Didleysquat (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


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Nice low mileage, The sitting around ain't good.  But ya stole the thing price wise, so hey.


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## Bo Didleysquat (Oct 29, 2019)

Fort Fun Indiana said:


> Crixus said:
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Sta-Bil is your friend anytime she's gonna sit a while.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

Fort Fun Indiana said:


> 007 said:
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> > Sparks plugs have exactly NOTHING to do with the start circuit. F
> ...




I had a pinto that this happened to. I did all the hard stuff first, then my brother comes along, lightly tugs Althea plug wires one by one, and about the third one in the wire came lose from its connection leaving the little clamp on the plug. I have also seen this happen in cars when the plug wire isn't connected solidly as well.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

Bo Didleysquat said:


> Fort Fun Indiana said:
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Yup. I dug this one out of a pile of crap. And I bought it for $1,000 bucks.


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## 007 (Oct 29, 2019)

Fort Fun Indiana said:


> I am saying that fouled plugs can produce the syptoms he is experiencing.


No they won't, at all, period.

The "click, click" sound is from not enough voltage and/or current to the starter, period. It's got NOTHING to do with the spark plugs. I went to SCHOOL for Harley Davidson at Motorcycle Mechanics Institute in Deer Valley, AZ, and worked for 13 years as a technician. I KNOW what I'm talking about.

But, if the OP doesn't want to take the advice of a factory trained Harley Technician, whatever... I don't give a fuck.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

Fort Fun Indiana said:


> Crixus said:
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Forgot to mention hay to! All the old gas was drained and the tank rinsed out. I rode it allot, for a few months. It just needs to be fought up on maintenance and alittle work.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


> Fort Fun Indiana said:
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> > I am saying that fouled plugs can produce the syptoms he is experiencing.
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So would you say relay first and see what happens? I'll buy a tester Friday and send pics of what it says.


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## Bo Didleysquat (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


> Fort Fun Indiana said:
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> > I am saying that fouled plugs can produce the syptoms he is experiencing.
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Sounds like ya kinda do.


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## 007 (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


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Nope... relay is fine, or it wouldn't turn over at all. Same with the solenoid. It's a wiring connection or the starter, providing the battery IS good.

With the Delphi fuel injection, even if it turns over, it still might not start if the battery is below 12 volts. You should have at least 13.5 volts in your battery, and it should charge at 14.5 volts.


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## HereWeGoAgain (Oct 29, 2019)

95% of Harley's are still on the road,the other 5% made it home.
Be grateful you're among the 5%......


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## 007 (Oct 29, 2019)

Bo Didleysquat said:


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Sounds like you're jealous I'm a Harley tech.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


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Okay, so test battery, then as it runs I want it to charge at the 14.5. Now if it charges at the same 13 or over charges at 14+ then would I need to look at the stater/rectifier? Or am I drifting into the weeds?


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## TroglocratsRdumb (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


> It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.


*just reminder, when kick starting a big motorcycle beware of the kick-back*


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


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An, and here is another question. I posted this pic above,



 

That little blue wire go's to a after market horn. Could that have anything to do with it?


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## 007 (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


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You need to "load test" the battery, not just check the voltage. It can have 13 volts but under load it falls flat on it's face.

And if and when you get it running, check the voltage at the battery posts, and if it's under 14.5, you have a charging problem. Could be the voltage regulator, could be the stator. That's a whole another set of checks, best done by a tech at a dealer.


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## TroglocratsRdumb (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


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no kick start?


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

TroglocratsRdumb said:


> Crixus said:
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> > It go's "click, click, putt, click, click, etc, etc. the battery is a gonner. Completely flat. So I got another older battery and got the same. So I took the battery out all together and joked the bike up to a non running car battery and got the same. I will also note that all the lights work, headlight nice and brite, fuel pump pumps, it just don't start. So the plan is, rebuild the solonoid, replace the relay, and check ALL the wires Inbetween for any ware or damage. I'm not a machanic so if any of that sounds wrong please let me know. Thanks.
> ...




No kick start dance for me! Not ever! I'll park on a hill first!


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


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I agree.


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## 007 (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


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It could be causing a "static drain" on the battery causing it to go dead, but causing the bike not to start, no.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


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007 said:


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I'll get more stuff up Friday. More detail. Was going to do it today but I gotta work. Maybe get some sound so y'all can hear what I'm talking about.


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## TroglocratsRdumb (Oct 29, 2019)

I had


007 said:


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the diodes in the alternator can short-out sometimes and drain the battery all of the time


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

TroglocratsRdumb said:


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No. The sons of anarchy didn't have them so I won't either. And the kick start dance was one of the biggest reasons I held off owning a bike for so long. Kick starting a bike is what caused the invention of awesome new cuss words.


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## ReinyDays (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


> No kick start dance for me! Not ever! I'll park on a hill first!



I teased my oldest brother mercilessly the first bike he bought without a kick start ... "for the wife dammit" ... expecting me to believe the Trident was running ... I'm not that stupid ...


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## TroglocratsRdumb (Oct 29, 2019)

I had an 57 Royal Enfield Indian once.
It was an English motorcycle.
The shifter was on the right side and the back brake was on the left side.
The throttle was on the left side and the clutch was on the right side.
It had a positive grounding system.
It was a backwards nightmare.


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## TroglocratsRdumb (Oct 29, 2019)

Put a current meter between the battery and the positive lead.
If it is pulling current when everything is turned off, it's the alternator.


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## 007 (Oct 29, 2019)

TroglocratsRdumb said:


> Put a current meter between the battery and the positive lead.
> If it is pulling current when everything is turned off, it's the alternator.


A "current meter" is called an AMMETER.

It's not going to be just the alternator. It could be about anything from the ignition switch to the tail light, and Harley's don't technically have an alternator.


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## 007 (Oct 29, 2019)

TroglocratsRdumb said:


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Actually, a Harley doesn't have diodes in an alternator.  The charging system consists of the stator and the permanent magnets in the rotor. The diodes are in the voltage regulator, but yes, if they're shorted out, they can drain the battery, but before that, the battery will probably be dead because it wasn't charging.


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## Fort Fun Indiana (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


> The "click, click" sound is from not enough voltage and/or current to the starter, period.


True, but i thought he said it was then turning over....he said it fired a couple times...


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## flewism (Oct 29, 2019)

I was going to offer advice but this thread is comical, I've been laughing my ass off for the last 5 minutes , Crixus take 007 advice or don't, keep the laughs coming people.

 Crixus if that thing was in my garage it would be fixed in the 2 plus hours this thread has existing.    I done with work so now homeward bound, we will see if you guys are still at it tomorrow.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

Fort Fun Indiana said:


> 007 said:
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Pretty much. All the lights come on, fuel pump does its thing, then when I hit the ignition it will go click, click, putt, click click. When the battery is charged it will even fire and want to go, but by then the battery is dead. It wants to go, but can't. Far as the plugs and wires go, I think they are the ones that came with it in 2008.


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## Fort Fun Indiana (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


> When the battery is charged it will even fire and want to go, but by then the battery is dead


So, when it fires, it's not consistently turning over, when trying to start? That's where i am confused. If the starter is merely "clicking", it shouldn't fire at all, unless maybe the starter is shot...


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## TroglocratsRdumb (Oct 29, 2019)

007 said:


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I have had an alternator that would charge while the engine was running, but drain the battery when the engine was off because one of the diodes was shorted out to ground. Most modern alternators have the voltage regulators bulit in them.


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## cnm (Oct 29, 2019)

Fort Fun Indiana said:


> But first, try the 15 minute, $15 fix of putting in new spark plugs.


Plugs are not a factor if it's not turning over, as evinced by 'click click'.

edit...Ah, done already I see.


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

Fort Fun Indiana said:


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Yup. Hit ignition and you get the click click putt.


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## cnm (Oct 29, 2019)

I'd be checking the main power feed to the starter motor at both ends if it's going 'click click'. Take it off, clean it, make sure it has a good [tight] connection when it's put it back.


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## cnm (Oct 29, 2019)

Crixus said:


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What is 'putt'? Is it turning over?


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## Crixus (Oct 29, 2019)

cnm said:


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Yup. Then more clicking.


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## flewism (Oct 30, 2019)




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## Larsky (Nov 14, 2019)

When I picked up my FLTR in 2007, first accessory I bought was a shop manual. I do my own repairs. Fuck those so called "techs" at the stealership. Glorified parts changers. Most won't touch anything older than an Evo.

My pig. Bought new in '07, 60k miles on it currently:


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