Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums General Tech '03 BA turns over,won't start, two backfires

Well, my bad luck continues into my motorcycle:

I rode her last week for around 20 miles with no problems.

Yesterday, I tried to start her and the starter turned and the motor turned, but no running motor.

Today, I tired, again. The same thing, except I ran the battery down and had to connect it to my car battery with some small jumper cables.

Over the course of an hour, taking liberal breaks to let the starter cool, I eventually got it to where it wouldn't turn over continuously (the motor). I also got it to backfire, twice, not close together in time.

After 30 minutes, leaving it on the jumper cables, I went out and tried it, again. The motor turned over three times before it started (one revolution of the motor), backfired, and died.

The battery is only a few months old and the bike was ridden, at least every couple of weeks, through the winter.

Fuel and fire in the right timing is what it takes to make one go. Pull one of the spark plug wires and see if you are getting spark.
Pull spark plug wire from spark plug in the top of head. Plug spark plug wire onto a new spark plug. hold new spark plug to the side of head to make ground. Spark yes or no? If yes what color? If blue or bright yellow check other side. Same test. If no spark then there is ya culprit. If both side spark then fuel system tests. If carburetted take bottom bowl off of the right hand carb. Place plastic container under carb bottom. Open pet ****** does fuel flow freely? No, fuel filter and gummed up petcock and needle seat. If yes. Carb cleaning time.

No spark on either side with a new plug, but I put the wires back on and the bike started after three cycles of the engine and a little sputter before roaring to life. The headlight is fluttering a bit, though. Also, it seems to be running a little rough. I need to take it to the car wash, but am afraid it will die and not start again.

Got it cleaned and back okay. It was running great by the time I got three blocks from the house. I left it running while I sprayed off the windshield and the wheels/front and rear parts of the motorcycle. I got home and left it running while I used an air hose to dry it off and a towel to finish up. I turned it off for a few minutes before I restarted it to pull into the garage (driveway a large hill). It fired up just fine and ran great.

Any ideas what the issue was and ways to prevent it in the future?

How old is the battery?

Back out today, just clicks, no turning. I'm guessing the battery is dying. That really sucks, it's a Yuasa I bought on 03/07/2012.

What doesn't make sense, to me, is it not firing right up when I connected it to the car battery.

It probably isn't the battery since you already tested with an automotive one. You stated that you weren't getting spark when you checked but then it started up. You need to check all your connections.
1. Take the fuse box apart and clean/tighten/seal with dielectric grease all connections. This applies to any electrical connection. Look for signs of corrosion.
2. Pull the fuel tank and check the coils. Primary and secondary connections.
3. Check the sidestand switch connection. Water in the connection or switch will mess things up.
4. Pickup coil wire connections. Unplug the pickup coil and check for continuity. Can't remember what the resistance should be for the coil though. Corrosion?
5. With the seat pulled, check all the connections under it. Pull each apart and look for corrosion again.
6. Headlight bucket wiring
7. Kill switch wiring. Is there water in the switch?
8. Ignition switch is another potential problem area.

Can't remember any others. This takes time but it is the only way to cure an intermittent electrical problem. It sounds like you cranked that starter for some time, probably too long. If the bike doesn't start after a few seconds, continuing to crank without fixing something will only ruin your starter.

It appears to have been a combination of a low battery and flooded engine. The battery checked in just over 12. Took it out and charged it to over 14, has fired up nicely since then.

my was acting sorta like that. a quick bypass of the sidestand switch & it never happened again

Hope the solution was a simple as that.... my spidey sense is telling me otherwise.

Something to keep in mind, I thought I had a battery problem when my 04 was new. At the time I had a very low speed short commute to work everyday, turned out I wasn't riding it long and fast enough to recharge the battery. Got a tender, no more problem.