I've got a 2012 Bonneville and I have an occasional starting issue, sometimes if I stop the engine then attempt to restart it within a few minutes the starter will only turn a bit then stop and it takes a few goes to get the engine to fire. I'm thinking this may be a sign the battery needs replacing as I suspect it's the original one and I'm fairly sure the bike was parked up for an extended period before I bought it as I believe the original owner had developed health problems. Anyone got any thoughts on this before I go buying a new battery?
https://www.revzilla.com/common-tread/how-to-test-a-motorcycle-battery scroll to bottom of page and find video
I have a 2015 T100 Black and mine does the same! it always has from new, I mentioned it at the 600 service and at the 12 month one too but they said they could not find a fault, it happens mostly when warm and occasionally from cold its annoying but it always goes eventually (the bike is always on an optimate when in the garage)
It's the shitty can-bus system that overrides common sense! From bikes late 2012 onwards If the voltage drops by a fraction it plays up. If you run for example a direct wire to the starter it'll spin for fun!! One day my bike conked just after I set off across a dangerous crossroad which I was committed to and the system shut down and shit the life out of me trying to start with cars tooting and crossing over my lines. Since then I've found a way to bypass it but not had time as yet to adapt.
Am I missing something here? The only vid I found was one about starting bikes in extreme cold using lithium ion batteries.
Did you watch it? What I saw was , if your battery is lithium, is low on charge when you first go to start, then it would give the symptoms you describe the starter will only turn a bit then stop and it takes a few goes to get the engine to fire. If thats the case your battery may be on its way out You need to conduct some tests, Standing voltage, running voltage drop test ( may not need in this case). The bike is allowing the battery to try, so you must have a descent charge, only not enough to start, so you try and this builds heat in the battery and as the guy says " the battery tries again this time with a higher voltage and the bike starts"
On this series of EFI Bonnys many owners think they don't need to use the 'start control' when the engine is warm. This is not the case. In the owners manual it clearly states that the start control should be used on all occasions of starting the engine. In cold weather use position 2 and in warm weather use position 1 always.
and the 'start control' has nothing to do with the fuel air mixture Jez - it doesn't affect fuelling at all. It merely raises the tickover speed. It's not a choke in the conventional sense. But I agree with you it does sound like the ECU and weak battery scenario. However I found with my Bonny IF you use the start control you have less chance of turnover probs.
This is an oft reported problem with the EFI Even with a fully charged battery it would appear that the ECU allows only the smallest tolerance in wether to actuate the starter solenoid or not. Falconneti on one of the other Triumph forums got round this by fitting a small spring loaded button onto the armature to override the ECU when required. He also fitted a switch to enable the default headlight and tail light to be switched off when starting the bike which helped save power in the battery. If the bike is stalled with an immediate attempt to re-start, this has given issues where the ECU has not had time to re-set itself, but this is more like seconds not minutes ?
It's a strange one is this DD I can never understand why when the engine is fully warmed up on re-start you still have to pull out the 'choke' to position 1 Try not do it and the bike will not start. Now being an 'old timer' I know how chokes work and in the old days you stood a good chance of: A) 'flooding' if you pulled the choke out on a warm engine or B) revving the bollocks of it. ECU electrickery has to be obeyed but I'm F***ed if I will ever understand it!
I have a similar device fitted, where when I turn on the bike, the main headlight will not turn on (or if the bike stalls, if I hit the starter, the headlight is automatically switched off). A quick flick of the passing light and it comes back on. Regardless of all that, I still get the odd "I refuse to start" issue, or the case where it does a single turn of the starter but gives up. I still firmly believe the problem is with the clutch sensor in the handle bar, and nothing to do with battery charge. Usually a big ol' pull of the clutch ends up solving the problem. Using the "choke" only helps immediately after the bike has started, to keep it running. It has nothing to do with whether the starter will do its initial job or not, as far as I can tell.
