SwampNut Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 To put a fine point on it: A starter motor is the highest consumer of electrical power in a vehicle, and puts the most strain on the battery. If it's able to run, then everything else should be able to run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandman Posted December 1, 2020 Author Share Posted December 1, 2020 (edited) OK. Do you not agree with Superhawk996's previous opinion that the bad cell battery is not the cause of the crank, but no prime issue? Edited December 1, 2020 by sandman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwampNut Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 I'm agreeing with him, and adding an explicit point that I think is what he's saying. If there is enough power to run the starter motor, there's enough power to run a fuel pump. There's no logical reason to think that a battery would be bad enough to make the fuel pump fail and the starter motor still run. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandman Posted December 1, 2020 Author Share Posted December 1, 2020 Makes sense, thanks for the clarification. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superhawk996 Posted December 2, 2020 Share Posted December 2, 2020 In the beginning wiggling the wires or connector at the pump made it work so it seems like the problem is in that area. Wires in the run are very unlikely to have a problem without external signs of damage. The most likely issue would be at the connector. Next on the list would be the connection between the terminals and the pump itself. I don't know how they're attached on the Bird, but a rivet type connection is pretty common and they can get loose & corroded/burnt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superhawk996 Posted December 2, 2020 Share Posted December 2, 2020 Also-fuel pumps, and motors in general, can do goofy shit where they'll work/not work for no obvious reasons. Not common, but I've run into it a few times. I recently had an Explorer with an intermittently dead pump that I was almost certain couldn't be the pump, but everything else checked out so the customer decided to take the gamble and have me replace it. Been trouble free for many months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superhawk996 Posted December 2, 2020 Share Posted December 2, 2020 Just now, superhawk996 said: Also-fuel pumps, and motors in general, can do goofy shit where they'll work/not work for no obvious reasons. Not common, but I've run into it a few times. I recently had an Explorer with an intermittently dead pump that I was almost certain couldn't be the pump, but everything else checked out so the customer decided to take the gamble and have me replace it. Been trouble free for many months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwampNut Posted December 2, 2020 Share Posted December 2, 2020 Yeah, for sure. Specific to fuel pumps, I had one slowly start having intermittent issues on a Seca 650 Turbo. When it finally seized up and I took it apart, it was easy to see what happened. The little needles or tubes or whatever that spin to create pressure were breaking up. There was a place for debris to sit and let it work, but when a piece would get caught, it would fail to start. Key on/off, or jostling the bike, would make the piece move, and it would work again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandman Posted December 4, 2020 Author Share Posted December 4, 2020 Is fuel pump malfunction/failure a known common issue with our bikes? I realize it's 20 years old, but mine only has 15K miles. I agree with superhawk996 that wiggling the fuel pump connector the first no-go that did get it to start, is an important clue. When new battery arrives I'm going to focus on that again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superhawk996 Posted December 6, 2020 Share Posted December 6, 2020 On 12/4/2020 at 9:06 AM, sandman said: Is fuel pump malfunction/failure a known common issue with our bikes? I don't think so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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