what Posted September 27, 2015 Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 The street triple has been giving me some issues every now and then when I try to start it. It happens both with cold starts and after it has been running for a while. I'm curious if there are any Triumph know-it-all's on here that might know what the issue is. Here's what happens: All things set to "on" on the bike, kick stand up, ready to start. All electric is working. Hit the start button All electric cuts out for a few seconds and then comes back. All trip meters, clock and whatever else is reset to 0.0/erased. Sometimes it takes a couple minutes for the electric to come back at all (bike is totally dead with key set to on position), sometimes it is instantaneous. Playing with the clutch sensor wires/under the ignition harness doesn't seem to do anything noticeable. Not ruling this out though. Battery connection is solid and not oxidized. One concern I have is that the original owner did some minor electrical work to the bike in order to install heated grips. May be a short/damaged wire due to this? The problem has gotten progressively worse since I picked the bike up in May. At first the ignition wouldn't work once in a blue moon (starter button pressed, nothing happens) but I wouldn't lose electric. Not sure if the current issue is related or if it's a totally separate problem? Any help with this is appreciated. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubba Posted September 28, 2015 Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 If it's like a lot of the modern bikes, the current for the lighting system is shunted thru a 2-position switch to minimize the amp draw during the start process. My guess is that the contacts in the start switch are either dirty, sticky, corroded or fried. Take the switch pod apart and clean the contacts and then consider installing a relay for your low/high beam headlights to keep it from happening again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motocat12 Posted September 28, 2015 Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 I thought by the title it was a Triple converted to an E bike. THAT would be fun, but not really a triple. Some Euro bikes will reset the clocks on a bad battery even while running on occasion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonik Posted September 28, 2015 Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 Get the battery tested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
what Posted September 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 I should mention that after about 5 minutes of dicking around the bike eventually starts up like nothing was ever wrong. Thanks for the replies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpoppa Posted September 28, 2015 Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 Check you battery connection. I've seen that cause many electrical gremlins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
what Posted September 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 Will do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casper Posted September 28, 2015 Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 My Daytona 675R was doing the same thing. It was the battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vf1000ride Posted September 28, 2015 Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 (edited) Guys, it's a Triumph. They are still wired by the dark lords from Lucas electrics even if the names have been changed to confuse current owners. I would still have the battery checked but also check the wiring from the switches down past the steering stem. On the Speed Triples and also on some of the Sprint series bikes triumph ran the wire loom too tightly past the steering stem and it causes the wires to either be pinched or pulled apart in that area depending on the clamp that holds the wires to the frame. Check your bike by turning the steering to full stop in both directions and see if the problem gets worst. You also want to look at the wiring with a good flashlight while turning the bars and make sure it moves freely without binding. Also check the main wire loom connector under the gas tank that comes from the switch gear to the rest of the bike. I have seen overheated and burned pins at that plug on Speed Triples. Not sure that the Street Triples would still have these issues as this is stuff I have seen on 2006-08 model year bikes but it can't hurt to take a quick look. Edited September 28, 2015 by vf1000ride 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimTheAzn Posted September 28, 2015 Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 +1 on replacing the battery. Mine did something similar when my battery started going. My CBR didnt seem to care as much with a weak battery. The Daytona is finicky when it comes to that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
what Posted September 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 New battery it is. If things persist I will do as Bubba and vf1000 suggest. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casper Posted September 29, 2015 Report Share Posted September 29, 2015 +1 on replacing the battery. Mine did something similar when my battery started going. My CBR didnt seem to care as much with a weak battery. The Daytona is finicky when it comes to that.Same. CBR and ZX10 were fine until the battery puked completely. Triumph gets pissy when it's low. Won't even bump start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
what Posted November 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2015 Update - Rode the bike to work today so I could drop it off at a co-worker's place for winter storage this evening, and, of course, being the final ride of the season (10 miles), the bike started acting up. The bike seemed to think it was overheating and started flashing the full heat bar, the check oil light and the check engine light. When this happened, it was maybe 50 degrees out (around 5:30 this evening) and I had only been riding for around 8 minutes. I stopped, turned the engine off, turned it back on and let the fan go for a bit then cut all power. After re-starting the bike, the temp gauge was down to normal range (50%, average in cooler weather). I shut the bike back off, checked the oil level (fine), checked the coolant level (fine) then disconnected/reconnected the battery. Doing this got rid of the check engine light and the error wasn't thrown again on the remaining 4-5 miles to my co-worker's garage. I've dug around a bit but come up with no leads on buddy google and figured I would see if anyone here might know whats up. I'll add that I didn't notice any weird smells or behaviors when all the warning lights were flashing and didn't hear any weird noises. I think the Blazing Trumpet is due for a dealership visit in the spring regardless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helmutt Posted November 27, 2015 Report Share Posted November 27, 2015 Did you check the loomed harness around the steering head and under tank connection like vf1000 rec'd? Sounds like you have a short or bad connectivity somewhere and may have progressively worsened. Electrical issues can be a bitch, but at least it's the end of the season instead of mid summer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
what Posted November 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2015 I moved wires around to see if I could create a short (no success) but I haven't disassembled it to check things out. I guess I'll put that on my project list. It seems like a short somewhere to me too, it's just finding where the hell it is that's going to take 5 years and some counseling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motocat12 Posted November 27, 2015 Report Share Posted November 27, 2015 (edited) If that fan is coming on in 50 deg weather that means the temp is up. coolant leak + air in the system, stuck thermostat? Edited November 27, 2015 by motocat12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
what Posted November 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2015 If that fan is coming on in 50 deg weather that means the temp is up. coolant leak + air in the system, stuck thermostat? I'm not certain that the engine was overheating. The temp gauge jumped from the usual 5-6 bars to flashing without any in-between. The time between turning the bike off and starting it up again was a matter of 10-15 seconds and that was enough to drop the temp gauge down to the 5 bars it was at before the overheat warning. I checked for a coolant leak, checked the reserve and it was at the correct level. I suppose the thermostat could be stuck. I'll double check all of this though just to rule it out. If I set it up and let it idle and it throws the same error then coolant is probably the issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motocat12 Posted November 27, 2015 Report Share Posted November 27, 2015 Laser thermometer around? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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