ok here we go. Ive dealt with bikes for a very long time, over 20 years experience and also a trained motorcycle mechanic. only ever took my bikes for mot all other aspects I dealt with as im mechanically minded. I recently had a chap contact me about a street triple 675 with a starting issue. so I did the usual and checked the engine off batt voltage it was below 11.5 volts. the ign on voltage was down to about 10 volts. so basically a bad batt,the chap said it was his third battery and so the story began. he had a starting issue he went to triumph and they said it was the stater motor, so he bought one. fitted it and the issue was still there,he swapped that starter back over and got his money back. they then sold him a new battery and it was ok for a few months,he took it back and got batt number 2 ok again for a few months,then went back and got a third battery again ok for a few months then contacted me. so upto date we go. he used an optimiser and charged the battery up. I went round following week and he then tells me that before the battery issue he had an issue where he would start the bike and it would start ok,hed go for a ride and stop for fuel (so bike is up to temp) hed fill up and when he goes to restart it wont,so hence why he went to triumph and they sold him a new starter,they then also said that the engine is trying to seize when hot. so back on topic. I got the bike started all ok, once warm turn it off then wont re-start, so I did a volt check and the battery has gone below the 12.5 volt required to start. jump started bike from a car and it started fine so the engine is not seizing when hot. so whilst the bike was running I checked the voltage and there is no good charge rate from stator. did a check on the output of the stator and the readings should be 20v ac at idle and no more than 70v ac at 5000 rpm. well we had 22-25v ac on idle and 90-110v ac at 5000 rpm. so either the reg/rectifier is up the stuff or the stator is, we went for the cheaper option and we bought a FH012 reg/rec,fitted it and the charge rate was good 14.3v for almost 1 minute then it went back to 11.5 volts on idle, so the stator has fried a brand new reg/rec. asked him to purchase a new stator and he stated he had been in contact with some company and they had told him it would be the ignition sensor not the stator. he got a new sensor and I went back and installed it. guess what that made no difference at all. so I spoke to the company and the person I spoke to said she would refund the sensor if he ordered the new stator complete with sensor. it arrived and I installed it with new gasket,replaced the reg/rec with another FH012 and also charged up the battery. fired the bike up, it started fine, checked the voltage to the battery and it was charging at 14.3 volts (happy days), at rest the battery was not holding a charge so I left it with him to get that battery replaced. he contacted me and said he'd replaced the battery. he did a voltage check with engine off 12.8 volts,cranking at 12.6v and running charge rate of 14.3 volts. so hes happy and so am i. moving on he then gets an mot booked, takes it there all ok, during the mot test ride by mot guy the bike dies and will not restart. they get it jump started and they take it back, obviously they have failed it. so the bike is now back home with my mate. now due to no mot,we cant try the bike on the road but can get it up to temp. he does have an aftermarket loud can on-triumph refused to remap ecu for exhaust can so hes run it with out the remap. but does anyone know why the bike will die whilst being ridden and will not restart. PLEASE can any one help as im getting really fed up with this damn triumph. the chap is now going down the route of thinking the compression might be low and is looking into buying a compression tester, he also has no Haynes manual so need one of them as well. I have suggested he gets it plugged into a diagnostics machine, he already did that when the start issue first occurred and triumph said there was no faults on the bike. plase any help would be appreciated. regards kevin.
Sounds to me like you’ve fixed the charging issue and this is now another problem. Obviously you need to check the voltages again to discount any reoccurrence of the fault.
The MOT test surprised me as well. I’ve never taken a bike for a test where they’ve taken it for a test ride.
no that was a strange one for me too and ive had a fair few mots. over the 30 years ive had more than 50 mots and that includes all bikes and cars ive owned.
You say to start that the engine usually wont restart after a run but now just dies when ridden/running? I would also be looking at a charging issue BUT i think there is something else that's causing the regulator/alternator problems...whether its the starter or solenoid or its relay i dont know but i would be checking the loadings during start condition, failing that has the wiring ever been messed with? and are you measuring the running voltages at the battery or elsewhere? Sounds totally electrical to me really cant see it being either exhaust or compression related or it wouldn't be inclined to start at all.
It sounds like the stator connector is breaking down - this is common especially when a MOSFET Shunt Regulator is installed. So one minute it appears the voltage is good then suddenly falls off a cliff and looks like s stator or R/R failure. So check your cables/connectors for melting/burning. For stator, MUCH simpler check - leave ignition off, disconnect and measure resistance between any ONE of the three terminals to an engine ground point - this must NOT be short - if you get zero or low resistance the stator is fried; if it reads open, then stator is good. Remember you are checking any one pin to ground NOT pin to pin.
ok. the voltages are being tested at the battery to ensure its charging-14.3 volts at idle and stays at that voltage during the increase of the rpm, as it should. if it fluctuates it could be starting to fault but it stays the same so its good as far as I'm concerned the wiring has not been messed with its the original loom. the only thing that has been changed is how the reg/rec works-I was advised to run a new cable direct from the positive of the regulator straight to the battery. doing this has made the battery good for charging, before I did this it would not charge with the old stator. the negative/earth for regulator is also new and goes straight to the nearest earth/ground point. I have also done a continuity check on the plug from loom for regulator and the neg/earth goes to earth.The positive does go to battery but also goes to neg/earth as well. this could be where the issue starts. the charging of the battery on the bike has been resolved but may have gone caput again. I have never had so many issues with a bike as im getting with this triumph and its very frustrating. im just relieved I don't own the bike.
this will be rechecked on my next visit. however this is a new stator with ign sensor and not a triumph one as they are over £400. will let everyone know the results from my next visit.
this will be rechecked on my next visit. however this is a new stator with ign sensor and not a triumph one as they are over £400. the connector is also brand new and fitted by me all tested before it was fitted to new regulator/rectifier. will let everyone know the results from my next visit.
was the old stator actually bad? Does it pass/fail the isolation test? (even if removed you can check between any of the three terminals to the centre core of the stator) - did old one LOOK burned?
hello. yes the stator did look burned on four of the coils but the women my mate sent the pic to said it didn't look too bad. I will check the isolation on the old one as let you know the results. thanks
Good luck its sounds a real pain, the reg + straight to battery is good and i always make sure that it has a very good earth.. bad earths are one of the biggest killers of electrics on all vehicles. and very common.
