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Message started by jonnychop on 03/06/09 at 08:31:38

Title: new battery going dead
Post by jonnychop on 03/06/09 at 08:31:38

My fellow savages ive got a good one for you my 91 savage has an electrical prtoblem, here are the symptoms when i turn the switch on the lights are bright and starter doesn´t turn over very well but it started, i immediately thought it was a bad battery so i bought a new one and put it in, starter turned over very well and started right away drove it to work everyday for a week, next monday morning same symptoms only now lights are very dim and starter won't turn over at all only clicking noise and later battery is completly dead, it will push start i feel that something is sucking the life out of my battery so i checked all wiring for bad bulbs stripped wires corroded connections but everything is ok, i pulled the starter and the battery and having them both checked this afternoon.

Diagnosis anyone? :-/

Title: Re: new battery going dead
Post by verslagen1 on 03/06/09 at 09:04:04

1st, is it charging from the bike? Got 14volts at ?rpm ?
2nd, pull neg term off, use an amp meter to detect current while ig is off, and on.

Title: Re: new battery going dead
Post by Charon on 03/06/09 at 09:24:38

Sounds to me like the charging system isn't working. You are going to have to do a little troubleshooting. Get your new battery charged up fully and install it in the bike. Get yourself and the bike to a spot where you can see the headlight shining on a wall. Turn on the switch and observe the brightness of the light. Start the engine. Once the engine is running observe the brightness again. When the engine is sped up to about twice idle speed you should notice the headlight get a little brighter. It often will, from idle, become noticeably brighter then "cut back" a little. If it doesn't brighten up at least a little from idle, the charging system isn't working. A digital voltmeter can tell you more, but the headlight check is quick, easy, and all the needed parts are already on the bike.

Title: Re: new battery going dead
Post by jonnychop on 03/06/09 at 09:26:12

Thanks versalagen1 where exactly do i check if it is charging from the bike, sorry if this is a dumb question, but i think i know where this is going, do you think my bike is not charging the battery, and i ran on the battery charge all week untill it was dead,(only a 10 min ride to and from work) I will run these two checks tonight when i get home. what is the worst case scenario? should i still have the starter checked? :o

Title: Re: new battery going dead
Post by jonnychop on 03/06/09 at 09:33:14

Thank you Charon come to think of it i do remember that the headlight did NOT get brighter when i installed the new battery and revved up the engine as it usually does but didn´t think much about it at the time, i will definitly check it out tonight, what should i do if it is not charging? :-?

Title: Re: new battery going dead
Post by Charon on 03/06/09 at 09:53:05

The voltage regulator is supposed to be under the seat, unless someone moved it for style purposes. There should be a connector with three yellow wires. Those three wires come from the alternator, in the engine. Disconnect the connector. Using an ohmmeter and measuring back toward the engine, you should have continuity from any of the three to the others. There should be no continuity to ground from any of the three. If you don't have continuity, follow the wiring down to the engine. It comes out of the engine near the drive pulley, and if it isn't properly secured it can move against the belt and get damaged. If you find damage, repair it (butt-splice crimp connectors work just fine). Recheck. You can then verify alternator output. Start the engine and rev it up a bit above idle. Using a voltmeter set to measure AC volts, measure between all combinations of the three wires. You should get enough voltage (should be over 100 volts at 5000 rpm) to attract your attention if you touch it. If that passes the problem is likely the regulator.

Title: Re: new battery going dead
Post by jonnychop on 03/06/09 at 10:29:34

Charon thank you very much come to think of it, last night when i was checking the wiring i took the pulley belt guard off to check the wire that goes to the kickstand and found a lot of crud around the alternator wires couldn´t clean it as it was past midnight and had to go to work early this morning, but i didn´t see any damaged wires frayed or exposed a lot of crud and oil (just fixed the famous oil leak at the head about a month ago) what if the problem is not the regulator but the alternator what then?

Title: Re: new battery going dead
Post by Charon on 03/06/09 at 16:25:39

There are really only two parts in the charging system. One is the alternator stator, which you can check with an ohmmeter and a voltmeter as above. Note that it is possible for a wire to break inside its insulation, so you need the ohmmeter to check it out. The other is the voltage regulator, which as a practical matter you can check only by substitution. Neither is repairable. According to Clymer, some Suzuki dealerships have whatever test setup exists to check the regulator. You can purchase another regulator and try substitution, but once an electrical part leaves the dealership it is usually not returnable for any reason.