Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums General Tech .....no start....

Washed my bike this morning and couldn't get it started after....there was no skipping or popping, just cranked over with (seemingly) no ignition. Charged the battery - still nothing....after a few more attempts (and a few hours), it started and ran perfectly. This is the second time this has happenned, and I'm not exactly sure what gets wet to cause this problem....any thoughts?

Could be just about anything in the circuit for starting the bike. Common fix here is to use some dielectric grease on any/all of the connectors and relays. I don't know how you're washing your bike, but if you're spraying it with any kind of pressure, don't.

Go to your local auto parts store. Buy a big tube (like toothpaste toob) of dielectric grease. Also called Bulb grease.
Take apart ALL of your electrical connections (one at a time though) and apply the grease to ALL your molex plugs, screw on wires, plugs, spades, light bulbs, sockets, etc. Even take the battery terminals off and apply it liberally there too. You can't use too much, but you can use "not enough".
This stuff is great and will prevent you from sitting on the side of the road in pouring rain swearing and kicking the bike over into the traffic to smash it into little pieces and to kill it cause you're so PO'd at it. If you've ever been ther, you know what I mean. Not pretty.

Go buy some, more than you think you need. A little tube will be gone in about 15 minutes. You should try to get one the size of a medium sized toothpaste tube, or larger is better, not the little travel size. Buy it. Really, it works wonders.

If you use a hose to wash your bike, never spray the controls, the headlight area, under the tank, or around the key switch.

I'd bet you got something wet that should not be. Greg did the same thing and missed the GA Rally because of it. After hunting high and low, he let her sit for a day or so and she started just fine. I would suggest the same.

i spray all that stuff when i wash her and i've ridden in heavy and i mean heavy down pours with nary a blink, with a whole gaggle of other tba's to boot. i'd bet the most found culprit to "wetness" problems has been the kickstand switch. then again, i've been drinking. heavily.

I'm with you Jeff. I've also ridden in extremely heavy downpours (drained almost a cup of water out of my boots even WITH a rain suit on one time) and have never had a hitch.

UNTIL the last GA Rally... She cut out several times (in rain) on the way up but would fire right up after pulling over. It was definitely the sidestand switch which has since been cured.

I have also re-applied di-electric grease to everything that can be plugged or connected and that is the best solution to prevent water intrusion.

I believe a lot of it depends on how well the bike was prepped by the dealer to begin with.

I agree with everyone on the di-electric grease and not washing the controls. The di-electric grease will also protect the connections against oxidation. Some folks seem to have issues with oxidation in the fuse panel. If you di-electric everything including the fuse blades you'll prevent alot of headaches down the road. As for the side stand switch, it seems to be the culprit in alot of these cases.

Guess I'll check the kickstant switch to be sure it's plug is clean and greased...when I wash the bike, I pretty much hose the whole thing down....is there a "kill feature" in the oil pressure warning system as well?

The ignition stuff is all under the tank except for the handlebar and sidestand kill switches and the crank position sensor. If the engine cranks, the sidestand switch is probably OK but, because of its location, it should be given some waterproofing treatment anyway.
The connector to the ignition module and the starter/headlight relay should both be treated with grease or other water barrier.
I would thing the crank position sensor connector (small 2 wire plug below the carburettors, follow the skinny wire coming out of the right engine case) is the most sensitive to moisture because of the low signal level, so this one should get the most attention.