Clicking sound when pressing starter button

[freetime2247]

Ok, thought I had a bad battery. Tested battery under load and it only showed seven volts when pressing starter button so I replaced with a new battery. On my second ride after letting bike sit for a few weeks I pressed starter button and got the old familiar clicking sound and no starter engagement. Sounds like I have another issue other than the battery. What do I check next and how? I do have have a GS911 which I haven’t used to diagnose this problem.

 

[dirtrider]

8 minutes ago, freetime2247 said:

Ok, thought I had a bad battery. Tested battery under load and it only showed seven volts when pressing starter button so I replaced with a new battery. On my second ride after letting bike sit for a few weeks I pressed starter button and got the old familiar clicking sound and no starter engagement. Sounds like I have another issue other than the battery. What do I check next and how? I do have have a GS911 which I haven’t used to diagnose this problem.

 

Morning  freetime2247

 

Test your new battery voltage under load again, if below 11 volts then look for some sort of parasitic load draining the battery while motorcycle is parked.  Or just fully charge the battery then try starting it again.  

 

If battery is low then you need to measure the electrical system for a key-off  parasitic power drain. If you find the parasitic draw is too high then you need to start disconnecting things starting with any non OEM added accessories until the power drain goes away.  

 

If battery tests OK as far as voltage under load goes then you need to find what else is causing your problem. You can use the GS-911 for some tests but you need to define what you need to test for first.   

[freetime2247]

Ok, battery test under load voltage is about 11.5 volts. So doesn’t look like battery is the problem. Still making clicking sound and starter won’t engage.

More things to check.

[dirtrider]

38 minutes ago, freetime2247 said:

Ok, battery test under load voltage is about 11.5 volts. So doesn’t look like battery is the problem. Still making clicking sound and starter won’t engage.

More things to check.

Evening freetime2247

 

How much load did you put on the battery to test it? 

 

How did you put the load on it? 

 

Can you test the battery voltage when you actually try to crank it? 

 

It might be something else but that clicking usually points to a low battery issue.

[freetime2247]

I was testing the voltage at the battery terminals when I was engaging the starter button. Not much voltage drop on the battery. I’m gonna see if I can try a different battery to make sure it is or is not a battery issue.

[dirtrider]

On 2/5/2022 at 6:25 PM, freetime2247 said:

I was testing the voltage at the battery terminals when I was engaging the starter button. Not much voltage drop on the battery. I’m gonna see if I can try a different battery to make sure it is or is not a battery issue.

Morning  freetime2247

 

This is probably not a valid battery load as the starter isn't actually cranking the engine. About the only load you are putting on the battery is the system electronics & the starting relay.  If you want to use the starter to load the battery then it needs to actually motor & crank the engine over. 

 

Try charging the battery THEN see if it will crank the engine. 

[freetime2247]

3 hours ago, dirtrider said:

Morning  freetime2247

 

This is probably not a valid battery load as the starter isn't actually cranking the engine. About the only load you are putting on the battery is the system electronics & the starting relay.  If you want to use the starter to load the battery then it needs to actually motor & crank the engine over. 

 

Try charging the battery THEN see if it will crank the engine. 

I fully charged the battery and still getting the clicking sound from the starter area. I've pulled the starter relay and will test that next. After that, I'll pull the side panels so I can inspect the starter to make sure all wiring is tight. Assuming that's all good I'll pull the starter as a last resort.

[Hosstage]

Have you tried jumping the battery?

[freetime2247]

4 hours ago, Hosstage said:

Have you tried jumping the battery?

Have not tried that since my battery is indicating 12.75volts.

[Skywagon]

Freetime...it may or may not be your battery.  See the below thread.  A similar issue happened to me about 2 months ago.  Battery looked good on meter, but turned out battery was the issue.  DR will solve for you, but do suggest as Hosstage said to try and jump it.  Check your manual for instructions for jumping.  On my 14RT it want's the donor engine to be running.  On a different bike it does not want the donor engine running.

 

 

[Hosstage]

Batteries can be funny things. Ground cables too.

 

[freetime2247]

I'm pulling the cowling off this week. I'll first check for loose cables or wires. If I find none of those then I'll try to jump start before I pull the starter.

[freetime2247]

I jumped the bike with my spare old battery and the starter did engage and start the bike. Now I’m thinking it is a battery issue and I purchased a bad battery.

 

[dirtrider]

23 minutes ago, freetime2247 said:

I jumped the bike with my spare old battery and the starter did engage and start the bike. Now I’m thinking it is a battery issue and I purchased a bad battery.

 

Morning  freetime2247

 

That is kind of what it was pointing to, either a bad battery or poor battery cable connections. 

 

Seeing as it did start after installing the new battery you might put a voltmeter on the battery posts with it running just to verify that your charging system is working (should be charging 14 volts or higher) 

[Skywagon]

Where did you hook up the jumper cables?  Direct starter or direct battery?

[freetime2247]

57 minutes ago, dirtrider said:

Morning  freetime2247

 

That is kind of what it was pointing to, either a bad battery or poor battery cable connections. 

 

Seeing as it did start after installing the new battery you might put a voltmeter on the battery posts with it running just to verify that your charging system is working (should be charging 14 volts or higher) 

 I did check the voltage while the bike was running and it was just a tad over 14volts.

[freetime2247]

47 minutes ago, Skywagon said:

Where did you hook up the jumper cables?  Direct starter or direct battery?

Put newest battery back in bike and used jumper cables to old battery. Bike cranked without any issues. No clicking sound. However, neither battery alone will crank the bike and both indicate about 12.75 when fully charged.

[Hosstage]

Same question posed earlier, where are you connecting your jump battery?

[dirtrider]

37 minutes ago, freetime2247 said:

Put newest battery back in bike and used jumper cables to old battery. Bike cranked without any issues. No clicking sound. However, neither battery alone will crank the bike and both indicate about 12.75 when fully charged.

Afternoon freetime2247

 

12.75v (no load) is not a good indicator of battery condition. Lots of basically bad batteries will show well above 12.5v at open circuit but fall to nothing when a decent load is placed on the battery.

 

If by chance your new battery is good then you might want to run a voltage drop test from the installed battery to the starter's (+) stud during attempted cranking. You need to go from the ACTUAL battery (+) post not the cable that is attached-to the (+) post. Anything over .5 volt voltage drop shows a problem in the cable or the cable attachment to the battery (+) post.