Quote from: 5thAve on October 11, 2008, 07:55:46 AM
Never jump start a bike!  You can fry your regulator/rectifier that way

Quote from: Esteban on October 06, 2008, 10:36:28 AM
Hey all,

I was having a hell of a time trying to start my '07 GS500F w/ 2.6k miles on it this morning.  I got the bike about 4 months ago and absolutely love it, but it has been giving me some grief this morning.  I've had a similar problem once before, but was able to start it up after a while.  Here are some things I tried:

1. Of course, choke was fully on.
2. Tried priming the carbs
3. Tried push starting the bike (in a high gear)
4. Tried jumping the battery with my car

Here is a video so you can hear the symptom: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA0C_LI71BQ
It almost sounds as if the battery is low (i.e., starter isn't turning the engine), but trying to start with jumpers had the same effect.

Any ideas as to what could be the problem (and hopefully the solution???)?

Whats interesting is that on each occasion the starter is begining to operate before the solenoid drops out and starts clicking......with this in mind I wouldnt rule out a problem with the starter, possibly the winding is breaking down to ground......But lets start with the easy stuff first.......get the battery properly load tested and the specific gravity of the electrolyte checked at an auto-electrical shop and make sure its fully charged, check all the connections between the battery/solenoid/starter and make sure they are clean and tight particularly the grounds. Take the starter cover off, the motor out and check the motor is free to turn by hand. Make sure its fixings including the cable connection are all clean and tight when you put it back in.

If this doesnt cure the problem you can only then start to suspect an issue with the motor and/or solenoid.

Ok, updates and another video.  I haven't been able to ride for over a week because the starter solenoid is no longer clicking and it almost sounds as though the starter motor is free spinning (?).  Here is a video with the new sound: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMeDuIclWpU

Since shooting that video, I've been checking the battery voltage with a multimeter and finally bought a battery tender from my local dealer.  In the video, the battery is pretty low, but it is making the exact same sound (with more vigor) with a fully charged battery.  I'm hesitant to take of the starter cover and work with the internals because I bought the bike new about 3 months ago, so I'll probably have to get it towed to the shop (since I don't know anyone with a pick-up and tie-downs).  Any recommendations about what to do next??  I'd love to get into the nitty-gritty and (hopefully) get things working, but since the bike is still almost new, I want the dealer to take some responsibility and fix it on their time & dime.

Bike is nearly new, has warranty - agreed...let the stealer fix it.

If anything serious, they pay for it and sort it.

If not, they'll still sort it and its highly unlikely it'll cost you much if anything....

Goodluck 

Hey any news on your bike?  I decided to register because your issue sounds exactly like mine ... although you didn't run out of gas beforehand.

So the other day my bike ran out of gas (not completely, there was very little left in the tank), and had trouble starting.  I couldn't get it started after trying a few times, and then I noticed the gas was so low.

I went and got a couple of gallons, put em in the tank.  Next I try to start up and it will crank at most once, then click.  I think the battery is low in both of our cases.

Quote from: theonewolf on October 30, 2008, 04:36:09 PM
Hey any news on your bike?  I decided to register because your issue sounds exactly like mine ... although you didn't run out of gas beforehand.

So the other day my bike ran out of gas (not completely, there was very little left in the tank), and had trouble starting.  I couldn't get it started after trying a few times, and then I noticed the gas was so low.

I went and got a couple of gallons, put em in the tank.  Next I try to start up and it will crank at most once, then click.  I think the battery is low in both of our cases.

yup! definitely the battery is drained. You tried to start the bike too many times and you drained the little battery.
Starter motor takes a lot of juice out of battery so you'll need to give your battery a good charge and try again.
You may also want to turn your petcock to prime for a little while (1 minute or so) to let the gasoline get to the carbs before firing her up 
cheers
Kamil

Yeah, I went across the street to an auto shop and they charged my battery for a few hours, $3

Starts right up now.  Only issue is that I left PRI on overnight...but I just posted a new thread asking about that http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=45095.msg505302#msg505302.  So I haven't ridden yet

cool, you're going again.

the only worry about PRIME is the slight possibly chance that one of your cylinders would fill or partially fill with fuel. if that were to happen, and you tried to start the bike, you'd likely bend or break a valve. the same thing could happen if your petcock failed, but your bike is fairly new.

if you smelled gas (heavy heavy gas smell) when you walked over to your bike, and noticed it on PRIME, taking the time to remove the spark plugs with the tool kit (underseat) and turning the rear wheel (while on centerstand) will void the cylinders of any fuel. don't use the starter, as you might end up with a flamethrower that way

new battery or charged battery, you should be fine.

i started leaving my bike under it's cover at night with a 60W shop light on the headers for the cooler nights. it helps a good deal since the temperature of the oil is kept up around 65F instead of the 35F outside temperature. i can literarlly thumb the starter for around 3 seconds and the bike starts. just something to think about for cooler weather.

make sure you're not turning your key passed the LOCK setting, as that will leave the taillight (parking light) on, and drain the battery quickly.

your bike doesn't charge well until you're above 4-5000 rpms, so keep that in mind on your commute

nice bike, love the blue

Quote from: theonewolf on October 30, 2008, 04:36:09 PM
Hey any news on your bike?  I decided to register because your issue sounds exactly like mine ... although you didn't run out of gas beforehand.

The clicking is apparently a battery related issue, but the latest noise I am getting is just constant spinning.  I hooked up my multimeter to check the voltage drop when trying to start the engine and wasn't too happy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBFeBb6uaIo

I actually had the bike towed to the stealer today and the mechanics all agreed that it sounded like something was stuck in the starter.  Hopefully it is all covered by the warranty.  I hate to have this happen to a practically brand new bike..

Esteban,

Please provide an update - it may help someone else.

Quote from: sledge on October 11, 2008, 08:01:04 AM

Quote from: 5thAve on October 11, 2008, 07:55:46 AM
Never jump start a bike!  You can fry your regulator/rectifier that way

if done improperly. especially DONT run vehicle. but jumping off of vehicle battery while not running woirks jsut fine. some argue against this, BUT the vehicle battery has more than enough balls to start teh lil gs. if it dont, either 1 vehicle battery is dead/dying or there are more problems with gs

Quote from: ohgood
i started leaving my bike under it's cover at night with a 60W shop light on the headers for the cooler nights. it helps a good deal since the temperature of the oil is kept up around 65F instead of the 35F outside temperature. i can literarlly thumb the starter for around 3 seconds and the bike starts. just something to think about for cooler weather.

This sounds like a good idea...  I have to store my bike outside under an all-weather cover during the riding season (until it gets too cold to ride), so this might help once it starts running again.  *sigh*

Quote from: Berowra on November 05, 2008, 03:21:25 AM
Esteban,

Please provide an update - it may help someone else.

I'll keep the thread alive as long as the problem persists (i.e., until it's fixed). 

It sounds to me like a starter problem. I've had the same problem with cars before. Try firmly tapping on the starter with a hammer or wrench but not hard enough to dent the motor. The motor isn't fried or anything, it's just not engaging. If the bike is already at the stealer, lets hope those idiots fix it soon.

Quote from: ke7syv on November 05, 2008, 01:34:40 PM
It sounds to me like a starter problem. I've had the same problem with cars before. Try firmly tapping on the starter with a hammer or wrench but not hard enough to dent the motor. The motor isn't fried or anything, it's just not engaging. If the bike is already at the stealer, lets hope those idiots fix it soon.

I called the stealer today and it turns out that one of the bolts in the starter motor was loosened and ultimately came out.  The guy didn't give me much info over the phone, but I'll get more info when I go over to pick it up (hopefully Saturday).  From what he said, it sounded as though the clutch in the starter that gets the motor turning was no longer fastened and now spun free.  I'm hoping that the clicking starter problems I was having before (at the beginning of the thread) were due to the starter motor stalling and being unable to turn because the loose bolt was catching.  If the bolt happened to vibrate back into place I could start it, but then, 2 weeks ago, I am hypothesizing that it just completely came out.  Again, damn, on a 4 month old bike with 3k miles??? Argh.

i bought an '06 late model new off the showroom floor 6 months ago. found that i'm having the same problem on those cold michigan mornings. appearantly the dealer i bought the bike from prepped the battery when they got the bike, so it essentially sat in the dealership for over 2 years. i have since replaced with a new battery and have had no more problems. make surew you find out when you buy a new bike the date they prepped the battery and if the date is not tomorrow, make them swap it out before you take delivery.