[level7]

Hello.

I'm trying to troubleshoot a slow/no start problem with the 998.

I put a new battery in that was fully charged. The bike would not start, it just slowly cranked but didn't catch. Now the battery reads 10 volts.

I'm new to Superbikes so I don't know what a "normal" starting 998 sounds like.

Anyway, what is the proper procedure to jump from a car battery if this is okay to do?

I don't want to fry any parts.

BTW, the service manual refers to "starter contactor", what is this called in USA terms? Is this nothing more then the starter relay?

Thanks in advance.

 

[rearviewmirror]

I've jumped my bike from a car before.. just don't keep the car running like you would when jumping another car.

 

[zooom]

okay....1st...jumping from a car in general is bad...if you have done it and been successful without any problems....you are lucky....cars are 12V charging systems and bikes are usually 6V charging systems as far as the battery is concerned.....2nd...a Battery should be reading about at least 12.6 in order to be considered decent for starting a bike...so if it is 10 as you say...I would be thinking it is a bad battery unless you can put it on a charger for a full day and see if it will take a charge and come up....and if it is not a sealed battery...check the water levels in each of the cells!....if it doesn't take a charge then a battery would be 1st to consider....3rd as far as the starter contactor....they are reffering to the Starter solenoid....if you follow the positive lead off the battery,you should see the solenoid with 2 nuts to hold cables on and a little white electronic 2 pin plug connector going onto it....sometimes this works its way loose making for some no-starts....but I don't think this is your problem...because the starter won't even try and click over if this is the case....it'd be like push ignition switch and nothing....at least...that is my 0.02 FWIW!

 

[galaxy]

Jumped from the car before...no problems! Works the same way...positive to positive and negative to negative. My technique (with anything electrical) is to hook up the + first, then the - . Your bike is a 12v system like the car.

 

[level7]

okay....1st...jumping from a car in general is bad...if you have done it and been successful without any problems....you are lucky....cars are 12V charging systems and bikes are usually 6V charging systems as far as the battery is concerned.....2nd...a Battery should be reading about at least 12.6 in order to be considered decent for starting a bike...so if it is 10 as you say...I would be thinking it is a bad battery unless you can put it on a charger for a full day and see if it will take a charge and come up....and if it is not a sealed battery...check the water levels in each of the cells!....if it doesn't take a charge then a battery would be 1st to consider....3rd as far as the starter contactor....they are reffering to the Starter solenoid....if you follow the positive lead off the battery,you should see the solenoid with 2 nuts to hold cables on and a little white electronic 2 pin plug connector going onto it....sometimes this works its way loose making for some no-starts....but I don't think this is your problem...because the starter won't even try and click over if this is the case....it'd be like push ignition switch and nothing....at least...that is my 0.02 FWIW!

Thanks. The shop manual states that the Electric Starting System consists of the starter, solenoid and battery and makes mention of the side stand interrupt (which I have the bypass installed). If the solenoid is okay (bike will crank over slowly) and the battery was good (it was in the beginning) what else can cause a slow cranking start?

 

[DukeDesmo]

Probably not much help but my Bike has always cranked slowly and sounds like it's not going to start and although it always has started the sound doesn't fill you with confidence.

Check the cables and connections on battery, solenoid (starter contactor) and starter motor, if it's struggling to turn over it might have damaged the starter motor, are your lights wired to be on with ignition?

FWIW, I always leave my battery on a tender when in the Garage so that the battery is at it's best for starting.

 

[rearviewmirror]

okay....1st...jumping from a car in general is bad...if you have done it and been successful without any problems....you are lucky....cars are 12V charging systems and bikes are usually 6V charging systems as far as the battery is concerned.....2nd...a Battery should be reading about at least 12.6 in order to be considered decent for starting a bike...so if it is 10 as you say...I would be thinking it is a bad battery unless you can put it on a charger for a full day and see if it will take a charge and come up....and if it is not a sealed battery...check the water levels in each of the cells!....if it doesn't take a charge then a battery would be 1st to consider....3rd as far as the starter contactor....they are reffering to the Starter solenoid....if you follow the positive lead off the battery,you should see the solenoid with 2 nuts to hold cables on and a little white electronic 2 pin plug connector going onto it....sometimes this works its way loose making for some no-starts....but I don't think this is your problem...because the starter won't even try and click over if this is the case....it'd be like push ignition switch and nothing....at least...that is my 0.02 FWIW!

Bikes are 12V... I agree that hooking a 12V to a 6V would be a huge problem, but Ducati's are 12V systems and hooking a car to them is no problem. Like I said before, I just wouldn't have the car running, the output of a car alternator is a lot stronger than a bikes, but in the case of starting bike the current of the battery alone is more than enough. Worst case just push start it if there is enough juice to prime the fuel injectors and you don't have a slipper clutch.

 

[level7]

Okay,

DesmoDuke, you described my starting sounds exactly. I guess it's the way the bike turns over. From your description, my bike sounds like it starts normally or at least just like yours .

I jumped it from my Jeep. The jeep wasn't running. Against sound advice, I did it anyway. My gamble.

It took a few cranks then Vooooooooom, rattle rattle rattle .

There doesn't seem to be any ill effects. No electrical smoke or burning smells and all electricals were working properly.

After it idled and reached the middle of the temp gauge, I turned it off. Then turned it on again and it started without any help. It seems to start easier once it is warmed up.

Maybe the battery wasn't fully charged when they shipped it. I checked it and it read 12v and change but I didn't pay attention to exactly how many volts it had.

Once my battery tender comes back from getting fixed, I'll hook it up and see if it starts cold and with a fully charged battery.

Thanks for everyone's help.

Oh, BTW, my belts are fine. Replacing them wasn't as bad as I had thought. Rather simple actally. It really isn't rocket science.

 

[jr49erfan1]

Cold Starting

My 998 doesnt start well if its cold as well. My garage is heated (space heater) and the bike doesnt hesitate to start in the mornings. If I dont have the heat on though, and it sits in the cold, its hard to start and I have to jump it by car.

 

[rearviewmirror]

My 998 doesnt start well if its cold as well. My garage is heated (space heater) and the bike doesnt hesitate to start in the mornings. If I dont have the heat on though, and it sits in the cold, its hard to start and I have to jump it by car.

Do you have a battery tender on it? If not I highly suggest because I wouldn't want to regularly jump start my bike.

 

[galaxy]

Another thing you can do to avoid getting a tender and has always worked for me....RIDE IT!!! Naa, JK. I know some of you have to deal with winter and down time for various reasons.

 

[jr49erfan1]

Where can I get a tender?

I ride her 4-5 times a week, its just when she gets cold she's hard to start. I've ran the battery down trying to start her cold a couple times. Then I have to jump her. Once she's brought up to temp, or kept in a controlled environment (heated garage), starting is not an issue. I am totally ignorant in regards to battery tenders. Where are some places to pick one up, what should I be looking for, and what should I be looking to pay for one? Also how am I hooking it up to the bike? I've noticed some electrical connections under the tail that I assume are to be used with a tender. Thanks for the enlightenment,

Jason

 

[level7]

Earlier on, I had a Battery Tender on my bike. It would start up when it was on the tender. But then the Tender fried my battery (it got so hot I couldn't touch it). I confirmed it with Deltran and I had to send the unit back for repairs. I've heard nothing but praise for the Battery Tender, figures that I would get a bum charger

I guess the 998 needs a warm garage and 100% fully charged battery to start. Talk about high strung sheesh They are very tempermental but man does she go

 

[st2lemans]

okay....1st...jumping from a car in general is bad...if you have done it and been successful without any problems....you are lucky....cars are 12V charging systems and bikes are usually 6V charging systems as far as the battery is concerned

40 years ago, sure, but every bike I've owned/ridden since ca. 1970 has been 12V.

No reason not to have the car running, either, unless it's an old heap with a bad regulator. The characteristics for car charging systems are exactly the same as for bikes. I accidently left my ST2 on park overnight last August, and the only way to start it was to jump it from a running car.

Tom

P.S. I've even jumped my car from a bike.

 

[rearviewmirror]

Earlier on, I had a Battery Tender on my bike. It would start up when it was on the tender. But then the Tender fried my battery (it got so hot I couldn't touch it). I confirmed it with Deltran and I had to send the unit back for repairs. I've heard nothing but praise for the Battery Tender, figures that I would get a bum charger

I guess the 998 needs a warm garage and 100% fully charged battery to start. Talk about high strung sheesh They are very tempermental but man does she go

There was a thread on a different forum detailing the use of battery tenders.. I've always been told NOT to leave it on there 24x7x365, of course I fried a battery before I was told. Now I just put the Tender on once in a while if the bike is sitting for a week or long and just for 1 night until it shows the status full green, then I remove the Tender. And of course they come with the hardwire kits which is great, I see more and more Ducati's now with their BT hardwire dongel sticking out... :think:

 

[rearviewmirror]

I ride her 4-5 times a week, its just when she gets cold she's hard to start. I've ran the battery down trying to start her cold a couple times. Then I have to jump her. Once she's brought up to temp, or kept in a controlled environment (heated garage), starting is not an issue. I am totally ignorant in regards to battery tenders. Where are some places to pick one up, what should I be looking for, and what should I be looking to pay for one? Also how am I hooking it up to the bike? I've noticed some electrical connections under the tail that I assume are to be used with a tender. Thanks for the enlightenment,

Jason

Look for a Battery Tender Plus, it has the hardwire kit and the regular aligator clips. You shouldn't pay more than $45 for a BT Plus and just about every place sells them that is associated with auto's or moto's so just lookup your favorite retailer.

 

[level7]

I ride her 4-5 times a week, its just when she gets cold she's hard to start. I've ran the battery down trying to start her cold a couple times. Then I have to jump her. Once she's brought up to temp, or kept in a controlled environment (heated garage), starting is not an issue. I am totally ignorant in regards to battery tenders. Where are some places to pick one up, what should I be looking for, and what should I be looking to pay for one? Also how am I hooking it up to the bike? I've noticed some electrical connections under the tail that I assume are to be used with a tender. Thanks for the enlightenment,

Jason

Go to any motorcycle shop and they'll have it or shop on line at ebay for an even better price. 30 -50 dollars, battery tender jr. or battery tender plus

Unless your dealer installed a Battery Tender connection, there shouldn't be one on your 998. The undertail wiring is usually for your tail lights and license plate light.

You would install the supplied leads to your + and - battery posts, plug the main unit into an outlet and then connect the unit to the leads. The "Plus" model has all the leads supplied I'm not sure if the Jr. has the battery leads.

You'd want a Battery Tender with the battery leads since you wouldn't want to drop the fairing all the time to connect the charger.

 

[jr49erfan1]

Look for a Battery Tender Plus, it has the hardwire kit and the regular aligator clips. You shouldn't pay more than $45 for a BT Plus and just about every place sells them that is associated with auto's or moto's so just lookup your favorite retailer.

Thanks for the tip on the BT Plus. Ill be on the look out for one. Also where are some of the common mounting locations for the hardware kit, because as I alluded to earlier I have 2 electrical hookups under the tail of my bike that I have no clue about? Check the pics???

 

[level7]

Thanks for the tip on the BT Plus. Ill be on the look out for one. Also where are some of the common mounting locations for the hardware kit, because as I alluded to earlier I have 2 electrical hookups under the tail of my bike that I have no clue about? Check the pics???

I don't have my service manual here so I don't know what those are but they aren't for a trickle charger...I have them as well.

 

[rearviewmirror]

I don't have my service manual here so I don't know what those are but they aren't for a trickle charger...I have them as well.

I ran mine from the battery to just on the frame where the vertical cylinder exhaust port and rear shock are. I attached it to the frame with the wire wraps that are holding the rest of the bikes wires... I see a lot of 996's like this..