I have an 01 F4I. Recently I went to go out on a ride with some friends and my bike would not start. Thinking it was the battery I went to pop the clutch and i did start so I went on my way. Anyway it ran with very little power so I took it out on the highway thinking it was the battery nearly dead and needing to be charged. After about a hour of cruising around I put it away and when I went to start it it still wouldn't start.

Now here is what I have noticed. When I turn the key to the on position my speedo does not show any numbers, just the neutral light comes on. The horn and headlight are very faint. Now since I was able to pop the clutch I still thought the battery was completely dead. When I do get it running it runs without much power but if I give it throttle the headlight and horn are full power.I took the battery off and put it on a charger and it read 100% charged. I checked all the fuses and they are good as well. Now I am thinking it is a stator or rectifier/regulator.

I did read the sticky on diagnosing charging system problems. The problem with it is that that was on an f3 and not everything matched up. I guess what I am really asking is what is wrong with it?

Cliffs
Read charging system sticky
Bike will not start on own. Can be pop started
No numbers show up on speedo
Battery and fuses are all good.

 

most likely have a dead battery. your battery can read charged but the cells may not be fully functioning so it will "die" quicker and wont really hold a charge. so when you start imagine having a large power draw that wipes it that it wont start. you can test the voltage of the battery with a multimeter and if it drops to zero and goes back up its most likely a dead battery....


Simple answer go to autozone or something and get the battery checked. or buy a new one and see if that solves the issue... first one is cheaper and free

 

Thank you. After the gym this morning and before work I will get it checked out. Hope this is it! Now another question. I have just replaced this battery in July.(The battery that was in there was very old so I did not question it dying) It worked fine till a couple weeks ago. Now could this just be a bad battery or is there something that could be causing this problem?

 

Guy at auto zone check the battery. Said it was 10.3 volts. But couldn't do much else because the battery is not in their computer.

 

Update: Took the battery to one of the local motorcycle shops. Guy said it was completely dead and he threw it on a charger for me. Said if I put it in and it starts up and ride around for a couple days then bam doesn't work, then I have a charging issue.

 

10.3 volts is low for a battery that being said they should have been able to tell if the cells were bad. Anyway to answer your question with electrical it could be lots of things. Other than going at with. Multimeter there are few things you could do. Did you buy a cheap battery? I know I did and it cost me cause it died in 6 months so I needed a new one and didn't scimp and now it works great. If you battery is fine and not charging, use the charging sticky to test the regulator and rectifier. Those change the voltage from ac to dc and make sure too much power does not go to the battery. A short could cause a battery drain and the only way to tell that is find it with a multimeter. A loose cable could have done it but that is more unlikely but it never hurts to check connections

 

had the battery completely charged and still no luck. So the problem is somewhere else. Is there a possibility it could be the ignition? Anyway I am not very good with electrical so I might just be putting it in the shop in a couple weeks when I get some money together.