A Mechanical Puzzle for the Buddy Diagnostic Masters

[jd]

Subject is a 2009 Buddy 150 Blackjack with about 5,000 miles on her. She is mechanically stock except for my having replaced her stupid loud "look at me" tailpipe with a standard Buddy tailpipe, making her usable for more than 20 minutes without causing a headache.

She is always parked attached to a battery trickle charger, and has always started and operated perfectly.

Recently, she was strapped into the back of my pickup for a 700 mile trip from Cincinnati to Hartford. I rolled her down the ramp, inserted the key and attempted to start her. Completely dead. I checked the "Kill" switch, which was fine. I fiddled with the key and tried her again but she was completely without life.

The next day the situation was unchanged, so I checked the battery: 12.4 volts. I checked both of the fuses in the battery box for continuity. Both fine.

Trying to kick start this girl is pretty difficult but I gave her five or six kicks with zero positive results. Then, just for for the hell of it, I pressed the starter button and she started right up!

I turned her off and tried to start her again. She sprang to life and has continued to be fine ever since.

It appears that something I did when I tried kick starting her restored the master electrical circuit, and I have absolutely no idea how.

Any theories on this? I am flummoxed.

[KABarash]

You jostled a loose battery terminal connection back into proper contact.....

[jd]

You jostled a loose battery terminal connection back into proper contact.....

Good guess, but no cigar. I tightened down the battery connections before I went through the kick starting regimen, and it didn't help.

[babblefish]

magic...

[charlie55]

Dead spot on the starter? Perhaps the jostling from trying to kick start it jogged it just enough to make contact. Sorta like whacking the starter on a car with a hammer.

[Mike1nw]

I'd go with that /\

Or a soon-to-fail switch or contact. These beasts must have a relay in there somewhere. I'd check EVERYTHING for corrosion, loose connex, etc.

[k1dude]

You jostled a loose battery terminal connection back into proper contact.....

Good guess, but no cigar. I tightened down the battery connections before I went through the kick starting regimen, and it didn't help.

Did you clean and wire brush both the terminals and clamps before re-installing? Just tightening them often won't solve a corrosion build-up problem.

[jd]

Some good thoughts here.

If I had a dead spot on the starter, would that cause the entire electrical system to go dead? No lights, no horn? That’s what I had.

I never actually disconnected the battery. I just touched the voltmeter to the terminals and made sure everything was tight. No evident corrosion anywhere. Bike is stored and indoors so there’s a minimum of rust, corrosion or even fading anywhere.

But keep those thoughts and suggestions coming in! 😊

[jrsjr]

Some good thoughts here.

If I had a dead spot on the starter, would that cause the entire electrical system to go dead? No lights, no horn? That’s what I had.

I never actually disconnected the battery. I just touched the voltmeter to the terminals and made sure everything was tight. No evident corrosion anywhere. Bike is stored and indoors so there’s a minimum of rust, corrosion or even fading anywhere.

But keep those thoughts and suggestions coming in! 😊

Okay, you have an intermittent electrical problem somewhere which went away temporarily. The problem left some strong clues behind, namely that it originates at a primary spot in the electrical circuit. If I were there...

Battery
This is always my chief suspect. Pull it out and get it load-tested at a battery shop. This is not just a test with a volt meter. A load tester can tell a lot about the internal function of a battery. For example, a crazy dead battery with an internally fully-shorted cell can still read 12.4 volts. The other cells overcharge to make up the voltage difference and the battery is on it's last legs but will still register 12.4 volts on a volt meter. That same battery will totally flunk being load-tested. Do not skip this step.

Battery Connections
While the battery is out, clean the positive and negative wire connectors and the terminals on the battery.

Ground
This is my second chief suspect. While you have the battery out to get it load tested, follow the black (negative) battery wire to the other end where it terminates in a connector. That connector should have a bolt holding it to the frame of the bike. This is your "Ground." Unscrew the bolt that holds that connector to the frame and clean that up just like you did at the battery end. Be certain that you clean up the contact on the frame so that there is nice shiny metal to metal contact and re-install the ground wire to the battery.

Those are the common points of the electrical system. Pretty much everything after that is a branch downstream of a fuse which would blow if there were a short.

Intermittent electrical problems are the devil to troubleshoot. About all you can do is make basic tests and repairs (in this case what I've outlined above) and wait for it to happen again. Or not happen again if you happen to resolve the source of the problem.

Good Luck!

[jd]

Thanks for the thoughts. I shall investigate.

[JettaKnight]

My vote is for an intermittent fault in the key switch.

[charlie55]

Some good thoughts here.

If I had a dead spot on the starter, would that cause the entire electrical system to go dead? No lights, no horn? That’s what I had.

I never actually disconnected the battery. I just touched the voltmeter to the terminals and made sure everything was tight. No evident corrosion anywhere. Bike is stored and indoors so there’s a minimum of rust, corrosion or even fading anywhere.

But keep those thoughts and suggestions coming in! 😊

No, it should not have affected your entire electrical system. I took it from your original description of the problem that by "dead" you were refering to the inability to get the engine to crank.