Japan Meets Britain

[Vince Lupo]

Managed to get on the road this morning before it got too oppressively hot (a humid 97F is forecast for today!). I put in 125 miles and made it back home by 10:30am. A few new roads that my wife recommended -- very narrow twisty roads (of the 'slow down to 10mph' variety!), so they'll definitely go the in back pocket for future reference.

The corn is 8 feet high!

Cornstalk Honda by Vince Lupo, on Flickr

I did end up having one issue today -- after I stopped to take the above photo, I went to start the bike back up, and all I got was the 'click' of the solenoid. It didn't trigger the starter. So I turned the ignition switch off and on, made sure the bike was in neutral, and it did the same thing. Eventually it did connect with the starter and I was on my way. About 20 miles later I stopped for gas. The same thing happened, only this time it didn't ever engage the starter. I ended up having to bump start it, and headed straight home. I checked all the connections when I got home, and everything seems to be in order. I still have the 'click' of the solenoid and nothing more. The lights, horn etc work, but not the starter. As an aside, I did put the battery on a trickle charge yesterday, as I hadn't ridden the bike in a few weeks, but I don't think that necessarily is connected to the 'clicking' of the solenoid. The bike started normally this morning before I left for my ride, and it started again normally when I filled up at the gas station around the corner from my house.

So is the starter dead? Is the solenoid dead? How do you tell which might be the possible culprit (if it is either one)? If the solenoid is making the 'clicking' sound, does that mean it's good? I looked up how to 'jump' the solenoid with a screwdriver, but I'm not really sure how to do it with confidence.

Any thoughts???

[G-Man]

Vince

Because you can hear the solenoid clicking, it means that things are moving inside. The solenoid is just a big relay so when it clicks it should connect the two big terminals together which send power to the starter.

It could be that the terminals inside the solenoid are dirty or burned out. The easy way to find out if the starter is dead is to short those two terminals together with a screwdriver or other suitable device. Push firmly between the studs and the starter should turn. If the starter turns, then the solenoid needs cleaning, repair or replacement. If the starter fails to turn then you have a problem with the starter. Could be worn brushes, dirty commutator or other issues.

Just my thoughts.....

G

[Vince Lupo]

I just tried the bike again, and it started! Now, it's been sitting for about 5 hours, so it's cooled down. Could it be that the solenoid is the culprit when it gets hot?

[jleewebb]

sounds sortta like intermittent symptoms I had when windings in my starter were failing, shorting out. attach voltmeter to battery and push starter button when it won't turn over, significant drop in voltage means starter is getting power. You can try jumper cables -- hot to starter terminal, ground to engine, to see if it'll turn over.

Here's a post from back then: http://www.honda305.com/forums/starter- ... %20rebuild

[G-Man]

Vince

Temperature could affect either part.....

Which part is likely to suffer most from a hot engine?

G

I just tried the bike again, and it started! Now, it's been sitting for about 5 hours, so it's cooled down. Could it be that the solenoid is the culprit when it gets hot?

[Vince Lupo]

If I had to choose, I'd say the solenoid.

[G-Man]

Vince

That would be the easier option, but which part is situated between two exhaust pipes and bolted to a hot engine? :-)

G