Too Cold to Start, or Starter Clutch Going Bad?

[IanDMacDonald]

Just got the clutch actuator arm back on. Man, those Barnett Clutch Springs are stiff!! Anywho, turn the key and hit the starter and the whirl sound of the starter spinning. I looked down at the kicker to make sure it was not out of place, and hit it again. A few turns of the engine and whirl sound again. Bike started just fine the other day @ 50°F.

[D0wn5h1ft]

Just got the clutch actuator arm back on. Man, those Barnett Clutch Springs are stiff!! Anywho, turn the key and hit the starter and the whirl sound of the starter spinning. I looked down at the kicker to make sure it was not out of place, and hit it again. A few turns of the engine and whirl sound again. Bike started just fine the other day @ 50°F.

It's too cold. Same thing happens to me when it gets this cold (7F this morning). Especially if you're running 20w50 like me . Switch to 10w40 for the spring if it stays this cold.

[IanDMacDonald]

Haha, there is no way I'm switching oils again. 20W-50, and nothing else from now on. Cold it is, thanks Gabe.

[natemoen]

Sometimes all the oil drains from the starter clutch area and it can't grab. Some have squirted oil into the are that the starter goes into the engine.

Or you could kick start it still it starts or primes all the passages with oil.

[James England]

Yep, completely normal in the cold. Also, you may find that when you engage first gear, the bike lurches forward or stalls, or crunches. Again, this is caused by cold oil. I always warmed mine up for a while, pulled the clutch several times and blipped the throttle, then engaged first gear.

That whirring is annoying though but definitely cold oil is usually the cause....

[jayel]

poor design but it is what it is

[Courtney]

If I haven't started the bike for awhile, or it's start of the season and I want to drive the bike, I always put it in 3rd or 4th gear with the clutch pulled in and the rear brake on BEFORE I hit the starter. That breaks the oil stuck clutch plates apart without killing you. :-)

Yep, completely normal in the cold. Also, you may find that when you engage first gear, the bike lurches forward or stalls, or crunches. Again, this is caused by cold oil. I always warmed mine up for a while, pulled the clutch several times and blipped the throttle, then engaged first gear.

[DGXSER]

OK, so I will be the voice of dissention. No matter how cold it is out, and I always keep 20W50 in the bike, I have yet to have an issue with getting the bike to start IF...yes IF...the battery has good full charge on it.

Now, anytime the battery is getting weak, I may not get full engagement of the starter clutch. We have all heard that half hearted crank followed by the whining grindy almost coughing noise. But get a full charge on the battery and it goes away.

So, there is more to it than just the temps.

[IanDMacDonald]

That's what my gut told me Don, and I'm not happy to hear that. I had an AGM battery that passed charging and a battery analyzer I bought. However, put it on the bike and slow starting showed it was not good. Put the Walmart battery on it I purchased two years ago, and started right up. However, a Walmart battery is a Walmart battery, and I think that even though the charge is holding, it's probs a dud now too.

[D0wn5h1ft]

That's what my gut told me Don, and I'm not happy to hear that. I had an AGM battery that passed charging and a battery analyzer I bought. However, put it on the bike and slow starting showed it was not good. Put the Walmart battery on it I purchased two years ago, and started right up. However, a Walmart battery is a Walmart battery, and I think that even though the charge is holding, it's probs a dud now too.

AGM batteries do not play well in the cold. I have the same problem with my AGM. It's not that your battery is bad it's just that they suffer at reduced temperatures whereas wet-cell don't as much. When it gets cold you have a great reduction in the battery's CCA (cold cranking amp) output. AGM batteries are very resilient in that they put up with being frozen and then thawed out. That doesn't mean they can perform at extreme temperatures, just survive them.

Take a look at this graph for some rough numbers:



As you can see at even 32F AGM batteries suffer at 60% reduction in capacity (which translates into fewer CCAs). Today we were down to 7F...you can do the math.

[motoman]

AGM's are still wet cell lead-acid batteries, just absorbant glass matting between cells being the difference(changes flow rate of electrons).

[IanDMacDonald]

But it was 50° when the battery was slow to turn the motor over. That's the ultimate load test for me.

[DAVINCI]

+1 to the comments about a hot voltage source for the starter clutch to catch.

Before you go blaming the battery, clean and tighten all of your electrical connections to the starter motor. And I mean also remove the starter and clean the lands on the engine because that's the only ground return for the starter and it goes unattended. I added a return leg to the battery for a better ground at the starter.

[DGXSER]

FWIW, those Wally world batteries are all I ever buy. (well, I get the Meijer ones since the Walmart batteries locally never come with enough acid). I got four years out of my last one, and that is without removing it over winter or putting on a charger over winter.

[IanDMacDonald]

Alright Davinci and Don, one more thing to look at besides an oil leak Thanks. Just another thought, I wonder if I weakened the battery letting it idle for ten minutes while looking for plug color (box fan in-front obviously)?