Bayou won't stay running without starter button held

[Atv crazy]

I have a 1996 Kawasaki bayou 300 2x4 it starts right up Everytime but dies as soon as you let off the starter button if you hold the button it will stay running but don't want to burn starter up please help.. i have put a new battery in, new coil, new plug, replaced cdi, ignition switch, check and cleaned all connections and grounds..

[quadmaniac]

Have you checked your starter relay? Pull out the fuse and put it back in. The relay may be shorted. I looked on amazon, it's under $10 and it should look something like this:

 

Edited January 23, 2017 by quadmaniac

[Atv crazy]

I will check when i get home mine looked a little different then that i dont thank mine had a fuse in it but the main fuse off the battery is good.. Thanks will update later..

[davefrombc]

I  found the wiring diagram  for your   Kawasaki  online .  The  ignition switch works through the   starter relay, so  as  quadmaniac  says,  it  is most likely  a faulty starter relay..   As long  as you  hold the starter button  you  are  getting  ignition  power as well  as  starter run  but releasing the button  does not  allow  power to  continue  going to the  ignition circuit.

[Atv crazy]

Thanks alot guys i really appreciate the help i will order one tonight and go from there will update one way or the other..

[Atv crazy]

So i got the starter relay today i put it on and still when you let off the starter button its like your hitting a kill switch..

[davefrombc]

Check the  engine stop switch to  see if it   is  stuck  on, and also  trace the  wires.  We  may  have misled you  on the relay..  There  are  two  of them.  One  is the  starter circuit relay  and the  other  is the  starter  relay  itself.. If  it  is the relay , it will  be the  starter circuit relay.  If that is the one you replaced,  check the  engine stop switch.  According to the schematic  it   should be  open  when the  engine is  running. Closing it  opens the ignition circuit and kills the engine.  Holding  in the start  button  feeds power to  the  ignition circuit until  you  release    the  button.

Edited February 3, 2017 by davefrombc

[Atv crazy]

After installing the new relay i thought maybe the switch so i bypassed the engin kill switch and starter button with jumper wires and a push button at the main harness plug where the kill/starter switch plugs into the main harness and it still does the same thing guess i will order the other relay and try that..

[davefrombc]

The kill switch  should be  open, not  jumpered. .Disconnect the  kill switch and do  not join the wires together  (no  connection  between wires or contacts,  "open",   connection  between  wires  "closed") .   The  kill switch needs to be  open  for the   motor to  run.

[Atv crazy]

I will try that and see what happens next thanks alot..

[Atv crazy]

If i disconnect eather wire on the kill switch it wont even crank over i took the harness completely loose from everything and checked each wire all the wires are good all grounds are good but still same thing it starts great and runs till you let off starter button im at a loss any other ideas would be greatly appreciated

[davefrombc]

My only remaining guess is the  starter circuit relay. If that  isn't it, I'm  beat. After  you  mentioned that  disconnecting the  kill switch  nothing worked, I went  back to the   wiring  diagram  again.  It doesn't  show  the configuration  in  the  run state, so  I  can't  guess what  is open  and closed. Obviously  from  what  you said , the  kill switch  must be  closed rather than  open  as I  thought.  I  see the starter switch  also   connects to the  igniter ( CDI  box). If the starter circuit  relay  isn't  the culprit, that would  only  leave  the  CDI  box , and that  is an expensive  box to  replace. It looks like it  may be time to  bite the  bullet  and see a  Kawasaki  mechanic . I've exhausted  my  guesses and  without  being able to  physically  get to  it with  a  meter  and service  manual , I'm  beat.

[Atv crazy]

Well thanks for your help i will post back if i figire something out.

[skidooer_3]

On 2/2/2017 at 9:53 PM, Atv crazy said:

So i got the starter relay today i put it on and still when you let off the starter button its like your hitting a kill switch..

If your start button wiring is shorted you are hitting a kill button.  Disconnect the starter button from the harness and jump across the solenoid with a screwdriver and if the bike starts and then dies after removing the screwdriver then it's not the starter button, but i'm betting it is.