XL1200R has about 9000 mls, 2005 model. Pressing the starter button but all I hear is the starter trying to engage. Changed starter, worked one day, next day same problem. Hooked up to chaged car battery, no change. When I changed the starter I saw the gears look good. Checked fuses and starter relay for corrosion but ok. Only think I saw is that the negative pole of the battery showed white corrosion, even afetr cleaning it up next day it was back. Any idea what is wrong?

 

Are you hearing the starter clicking or whining like it's spinning.

What was back the next day, the corrosion or the starter problem?

 

Thanks for feedback. No the starter is just trying to start but does not turn.
The day I had the new starter in the bike it started up nicely, very powerful crank. Then the next day not any more. Can tell it turns the voltage down, the light go dark and the display in the meter flickers. But battery had around 12Volt. The charged car battery showed the same effect. Mechanically in the primary chain all lokked good, no particals in the oil at all. The fallt that was back the next day was the starter problem. Just when i took the battery out then I saw the clamp (- pol) had some white corrosion on it, after cleaning it the day before with sand paper. One think I saw in the manual, there is a crank sensor, might that be faulty? Not sure what the function of this sensor is.

 

First, it's not the Crank Position Sensor, that doesn't come into play until the motor is at least cranking.

Next, a battery that measures 12V is dead. A fully charged battery should measure between 12.6 - 12.8 volts. Yours may need charging or replacing.

The first place to start, as this is a common problem, is to remove, clean and then re-tighten BOTH ends of BOTH battery cables. When you have the cable ends disconnected, pull/twist a bit on the cable connectors to make sure the connectors are tight on the cable.
ALSO, before reconnecting the cables, coat the connectors/connections with dielectric grease. You can get the grease at any auto parts store and it will stop the corrosion which causes bad electrical connections.

If this doesn't fix the problem, let us know.

 

Thanks. Matter of fact I have also changed the minus batt cable. You might be right about the battery. I had it changed before I put the bike back together and over night it got down to 11.8V. Maybe I should get a new battery first and measure the current when everything is off. The white corrosion on the minus pole really is the only hint I have right now. Is there a common reason for this? Does it not require a small current to get the corrosion again over night?

 

The drop to 11.8V like that indicates the battery may have a bad cell, assuming there was nothing on the bike left turned on. If you can recharge it, let it sit overnight NOT connected to anything and recheck the voltage. If it drops down again when not connected, the battery needs to be replaced. OR, take the battery to an auto parts store and have it load tested.
The white corrosion is electrolysis. Coating the connections with the dielectric grease should prevent it.

Edit: yes, if you have an Amp meter, you could check for an unusual current draw when the ignition is off.

 

Had the battery recharged yesterday and resting (disconnected) over night. Voltage still 12.8V, should be ok I guess. When I unhooked it from the charger it was 13.0V. Need to make the current measurement tomorrow morning. Is there anything in the Bike that could prevent the solonoid from engaging the starter to the clutch gear? I mean if I hook up the starter to the battery directly and connect 12V to the solenoid input (leaving the whole bike electric dead) it should crank, right?

 

Yep, a direct connection to the starter and solenoid should spin the starter.

 

After putting the charged battery back in the starter worked fine. Saw some marks on the old ground cable that lead me to the following. The corrosion is probably because the ground wire and the minus pole of the battery is hitting the frame because the room for the battery there is really small. After awhile vibrating the battery housing around the minus pole is leaking and causing sulfate to get out and make the corrosion. Because of the corrosion the contact at the minus pole is getting bad and the bike wont start. Must say its really a pure HD design how the battery fits in the XL1200R holder. Maybe i find a better fitting battery to allow the ground cable to route in there without mechnical stress. What you think? Oh before I forgot: Thanks for your help, its always helpful to just debate an issue and from that usually the root cause at some point is visible. Thanks, Ulf.

 

Loose/bad battery connections are probably the single most frequent problem on Sporties and some Sporties seem to have slightly shorter negative cables than others which I think leads to more problems with the negative cable. I had my negative cable remade 2" longer and I don't seem to have the loose connection issues on the negative post anymore.