Problems Starting

[Lone Spyder Ryder]

Need some help please.
this has happened twice now, I try and start the Spyder and nothing happens. Everything looks like any other time I start it but when you hit push the start button nothing happens. I check to see if I have accidentally push the emergency stop button but it is off. The first time it happened, I tried everything I could think of. Checked to see if maybe the battery cables had loosened up but no problem there. I didn't think that was the problem but checked them anyway. Fiddle with ever thing I could think of and nothing. Came to Spyderlovers and checked the post to see if I could find some but no luck here. Went to some other Spyder sites and nothing on any of them. Called the dealer and told them and they told me to have it taken to them. Called to have it picked up and taken to the shop. I went out to take everything out of the trunk and thought I would try starting it again and it started right up. Turned it off and started it again and started right up again. After 5 or 6 time of turning it off and starting it again I called and canceled the pickup and things were fine until 2 days ago and it did the same thing again. It did ever thing it is supposed to do until you hit the start button and nothing happened. It has been raining (thank goodness) for the last few days and I didn't want it going on the back of a flat bed truck 45 miles in the rain so I waited until today and was going to call and have it picked up today but being Sunday I will wait until tomorrow. Went out to day and tried to start it again and it started right up. I have started it 5 times today with no problems. half hour after it started it was fine. Waited an hour and it was fine, waited 2 hours an fine, 3 hours and fine. Its been over 4 hours and it just started fine so I thought I would ask you all if it has happened to anyone on the site, and if so what was the problem. I am going to call and have it taken in to the shop tomorrow but it seems the standard answer if it starts up at the shop the answer will be come pick it up again because the answer is always (could not duplicate problem). Don't want to sound like I am whining but after over 5+ years of getting the same answer. Take it in with a couple problems and they can fix 1 or 2 problems and for 1 or 2 of the other problems it is could not duplicate. So any ideas will be so appreciated. Thank you all and Marry Christmas. Ryde safe.
Leo

[ARtraveler]

An intermittently bad kill switch? Have heard of a couple cropping up.

Very frustrating working with a dealer that cannot come up with a good answer. Electrical glitches are of course the most difficult to find.

Hope you can get a good answer and fix soon. I am not the resident electrical expert, so sorry I cannot be more helpful.

Let us know what you find out.

[Chupaca]

but if it starts and runs you can elininate the battery. Could still be a cable issue wise to loosen them and reset them. Kill switches and ignition switches come to mind. The se's have the brake needing be applied if in gear so there is a switch there the sm's have it in the clutch lever assembly. if you ever find the problem please let us know...

[SPYD3R]

HATE TO ASK, BUT DO YOU HAVE YOU FOOT ON THE BRAKE PEDDLE WHEN YOU START IT....? you may not even think of that from time to time....
go try that...
Dan P

[billybovine]

Some questions.

When you had trouble starting was it in gear every time, not gear every time or did not matter?
When you turned on the ignition key did you hear the fuel pump noise or was it quiet?

[Dudley]

What feels like a tightly screwed battery connection may not be tight enough. If you haven't done it yet, put a wrench to the battery terminal and tighten it until it is TIGHT! Just a thought. You may have a hot/cold connection affecting the tightness.

[bmccaffrey]

Hmmmm
Clean out thr trunk and it starts. Did u hit something that was loose??
I would look for sometjing loose. the wiggle test

[chuck gross]

I have heard of a lot of riders here that like to leave their spyders in gear when they park them and then forget to put their foot on the brake pedal and of course then the spyder won't start. I always put my spyder in neutral when I turn it off but there has been a few times when I accidentally left it in gear and it wouldn't start till I put my foot on the brake.

[Lone Spyder Ryder]

An intermittently bad kill switch? Have heard of a couple cropping up.

Very frustrating working with a dealer that cannot come up with a good answer. Electrical glitches are of course the most difficult to find.

Hope you can get a good answer and fix soon. I am not the resident electrical expert, so sorry I cannot be more helpful.

Let us know what you find out.

That is way I will wait to take it in. Hard enough for them to find a problem electrical problems if the Spyder is not having the problem every time.

Checked for battery screws to be sure they were tight (will be changing those to bolts rather than screws. I started using Permatex - Battery Protector/sealer to prevent corrosion & no signs of any kind of problem there. Did the wiggle test on every wire connection to every thing I could wiggle. Pushed all the buttons several time thinking one might be sticking.

Made sure my foot was on the brake so that wasn't it, I thought about that when the problem first started. I did just go out and start it and it fired right up. The kill switch got me a couple of times on my 08 so that is always the first thing I do if it don't start.

There is one thing I did forget to mention when I did try and start it there were different colored lines running up and down the screen before the display cleared and show all the instruments. Didn't last lone but it took a few second to clear the screen.

Anyway I can do short rides for now and will take it in when it stops starting again. Thank you all for your comments and please have a Merry Christmas to you all.

[GeoffCee]

That is way I will wait to take it in. Hard enough for them to find a problem electrical problems if the Spyder is not having the problem every time.

Checked for battery screws to be sure they were tight (will be changing those to bolts rather than screws. I started using Permatex - Battery Protector/sealer to prevent corrosion & no signs of any kind of problem there. Did the wiggle test on every wire connection to every thing I could wiggle. Pushed all the buttons several time thinking one might be sticking.

Made sure my foot was on the brake so that wasn't it, I thought about that when the problem first started. I did just go out and start it and it fired right up. The kill switch got me a couple of times on my 08 so that is always the first thing I do if it don't start.

There is one thing I did forget to mention when I did try and start it there were different colored lines running up and down the screen before the display cleared and show all the instruments. Didn't last lone but it took a few second to clear the screen.

Anyway I can do short rides for now and will take it in when it stops starting again. Thank you all for your comments and please have a Merry Christmas to you all.

You have just described the same problem I had a few months ago, like exactly the same, including the weird lines on the display. Had to call out my breakdown service to get my '11 RT SE5 home from my local discount petrol station where I had taken it to fill up. At the time I thought (hoped) that it was just a one-off event, but when the same thing happened again a few days later I looked around for advice. It was then I heard for the first time about cranking amps. Seems a battery can show a good voltage but not have enough "muscle" to crank an engine. So I got a new battery and I've no starting problems since. The battery was 3.5 years old and it had been looked after by my C-TEK battery monitor from new, the same monitor that got 9 years out of my last motorcycle battery when I used to ride 2 wheels. Doesn't mean this is a fix for your problem, but the similarity is strong.