1994 Yamaha Timberwolf 4x4 Electric Start Problems

[bassplayer1972 10]

I have a 1994 Yamaha Timberwolf 4x4. The electric start button worked fine when i was out hunting in the early hours of Sunday but in the evening all i was getting was a click click click when i pushed the starter button. Pull starting, it fires up no problem. I removed the battery and one of the cells was half empty so i topped it up and charged. Still goes click after i put the battery back in it. Posts are clean too. I heard that the starter brushes can be replaced. Thanx for the help guys.

Gary

[GEARHEAD01 10]

if you found 1 cell low i would charge it fully and put it under a load test. it should not go under 9.6v if it does then you need to replace the battery. but usually id your starter clicks but does not go it is a very good possibility that the battery is getting weak.

your friendly neighbourhood mechanic

[DirtDemon 12]

X2 on the battery thing, most likely need a new one, but like gearhead said, have it load tested first just to make sure of its condition.

[Raptor8 10]

It's either the battery or a bad connection between the switch and the handlebars. click click click tells me it's battery time...

[team_realtree 10]

OK here goes...very poor responses leading you in the wrong direction so far.

The first thing that you want to do is weed out as many potential suspects as possible.

First you want to see if your battery and starter are in good working condition. Heres how:

1. Remove the wire that is attached to the starter. There should be a rubber boot over it and a little nut holding a red wire to it.

2. Remove the battery from the ATV with the negative and positive wires still attached.

3. Hook up the negative wire to a good ground. Simply touching a bolt on the engine may work but insure that it is firmly pressed against an un-corroded or unpainted surface so you are not getting false results.

4. Take the positive wire running directly from the battery and touch it to the starter terminal where you previously removed the existing wire

At this point if your battery and starter are in good working condition you should have seen sparks periodically and the engine should have cranked. If no sparks or cranking check that the ground is good. Then check that the ground is good again. No sense in buying a new starter or battery over a dumb mistake. If it still won`t crank get your battery tested. If its fine rebuild your starter.

If the engine cranks fine you know that your battery and starter are not the problem and the problem lies in your electrical system.

The "click" you are hearing is the solenoid. If you don`t already know a solenoid is simply a switch. It allows current to flow to the starter once you activate another switch known as the ignition. The fact that it is clicking tells me that the solenoid is working properly.

Off of the solenoid is a blue/white wire that runs to a little black box known as a starter cutoff relay. If you post back on here needing the instructions I will post how to test that box. Most likely that is your problem. It is 29.99 to order the new cutoff relay online.

A little tip to get you back on the trail- assuming your starter and battery ARE working properly you can temporarily start your atv by touching a piece of metal to both terminals on the solenoid. The one on the left is the input which always has 12V and the one on the right is the output which only gets 12 volts when you turn the key or press start. By touching a piece of metal across both you allow current to reach the output and in turn crank your engine....

Let us know how it works out!

[Ajmboy 421]

Very detailed explanation team_realtree. I have to disagree with the "poor responses" comment though....People try to help others here in any way they can.

* Adjusted thread title to include manufacturer and issue rewording, for better searches.

Edited October 24, 2010 by Ajmboy

[GEARHEAD01 10]

first off you do not have to remove the battery from the quad with the wires attached. just take a screwdriver and jump it across the signal post and main power supply to the starter.

second if you have a click noise then the starter cutoff relay is working because all that controls is the soleniod. if you put full voltage and amperage through a relay then you will melt it.

third if you have a poor ground you will not even get a click because you need at least 8 volts to click the solenoid on the starter.

fourth do not forget to check the starter reduction gear. all atvs are 1 to 1 which means you have to increase the torque of the starter and reduce the amperage to turn it.

The fifth thing is a weak battery will cause this problem before a starter will, because the part that almost always goes on a starter is te solenoid.

so in finishing half of the work the person above is telling you is a waste of work. you can test the starter in wone easy step, as long as the BATTERY IS OK! the very first thing you check in any starting or charging system is check your BATTERY and that is what all manuals will tell you when diagnosing the starting, charging system.

My best advice to anyone is to by a factory manual and diagnose it following the manual. then you will have done it properly. This I know because of 4 years of mechanic school.

If you actually read his comment his starter goes CLICK! and he had to top up his battery because he had low cell. did you know if you run your battery cell or cells low on acid it will cause oxidization which means that it corrodes the plate or plates and will kill the cell very fast and will most likely crack the plate.

To team realtree know you stuff before you comment it is very disrespectful to the other people who try to help on this site.

Your frienldy Neighbourhood Journeyman Mechanic.

[team_realtree 10]

first off you do not have to remove the battery from the quad with the wires attached. just take a screwdriver and jump it across the signal post and main power supply to the starter.

second if you have a click noise then the starter cutoff relay is working because all that controls is the soleniod. if you put full voltage and amperage through a relay then you will melt it.

third if you have a poor ground you will not even get a click because you need at least 8 volts to click the solenoid on the starter.

fourth do not forget to check the starter reduction gear. all atvs are 1 to 1 which means you have to increase the torque of the starter and reduce the amperage to turn it.

The fifth thing is a weak battery will cause this problem before a starter will, because the part that almost always goes on a starter is te solenoid.

so in finishing half of the work the person above is telling you is a waste of work. you can test the starter in wone easy step, as long as the BATTERY IS OK! the very first thing you check in any starting or charging system is check your BATTERY and that is what all manuals will tell you when diagnosing the starting, charging system.

My best advice to anyone is to by a factory manual and diagnose it following the manual. then you will have done it properly. This I know because of 4 years of mechanic school.

If you actually read his comment his starter goes CLICK! and he had to top up his battery because he had low cell. did you know if you run your battery cell or cells low on acid it will cause oxidization which means that it corrodes the plate or plates and will kill the cell very fast and will most likely crack the plate.

To team realtree know you stuff before you comment it is very disrespectful to the other people who try to help on this site.

Your frienldy Neighbourhood Journeyman Mechanic.

Unfortunately it is you that has failed to read the initial posters question. No where does he say that the starter is going click he simply states that when he presses the start button he hears click click. I assume that is the solenoid and you should too. I don`t know what would make a starter make a click when you press the start button. You would hear the armature spinning if it was getting current. I don`t know what you are going on about with gear ratios and I highly doubt the initial poster does either.

If you really want to get picky put a volt meter on the output of the solenoid and press the start button. If you still don`t get 12V I recommend the steps I set out earlier. If you do than rebuild your starter.

Gearhead- nit picking at every point I made with a different way of doing it will not fix this guys quad. I had this EXACT problem on my 2wd 95 timberwolf so I know what I am talking about. The guy asked a question and the only reply he got was check your battery. I felt more detail was required so I went in depth with simplistic steps on testing a battery and starter.

The steps I set out fixed my quad and I think they will fix yours as well. By the way the solenoid going click does not mean the cutoff relay is working. Unless the clymer manual is mis printed the troubleshoot step after you distinguish that your solenoid is clicking is to do a test on the cutoff relay. Again my suggestion stands- test the cutoff relay.

[Raptor8 10]

So you're 23 eh real tree? we should be coming to YOU for advice? I've been a Honda tech for 27 years and a Yamaha tech for 24. I have 6 ATVs in my garage, all mine.

I take great offense to your smartassed comment.

A lot of people would be walking if not for the good hearted and experienced people on this website. That does not include you. Fix that attitude kddo, before a moderator takes action.

[team_realtree 10]

So you're 23 eh real tree? we should be coming to YOU for advice? I've been a Honda tech for 27 years and a Yamaha tech for 24. I have 6 ATVs in my garage, all mine.

I take great offense to your smartassed comment.

A lot of people would be walking if not for the good hearted and experienced people on this website. That does not include you. Fix that attitude kddo, before a moderator takes action.

Man relax...I made an account because I had the EXACT problem this guy had with the EXACT atv. I'm not sure why you are taking "great offense" to me saying your response was poor. The guy was thinking he had a fried starter hence the reason he asked about replacing brushes so I told him how to bypass the electrical system and test the starter. I get nothing out of this except the satisfaction of helping another timberwolf rider get back on the trail.

[DirtDemon 12]

He took offense because saying someone's response was poor, is a rude thing to say. I too took a bit of offense to your pompous comments. In no way was suggesting that the battery be the first thing to check "poor" advise. IMO, the only poor advise given was to sit the battery right next to the starter and try and jump it by touching the cables directly to the starter which will defineately produce sparks. Lead acid batteries produce hydrogen gas when they are charged, hydrogen gas is explosive, sparks tend to light explosive stuff off. Have you ever seen a car battery explode? Sometimes it happens just because of a poor connection that sparks under the hood when someone tries to start their car. Load testing the battery is the easiest and cheapest thing to do in this situation. Just because we didn't cover every thing at once, doesn't mean that poor advise was givien, we just gave the man a place to start. You sais yourself, that the "click-click" sound is most likely coming from the solenoid. Why is it that a solenoid would just click? It could be that the battery can't supply sufficient current to event keep the solenoid closed when it tries to turn the starter. Could it be something else? Sure, but the number one cause of a clicking solenoid is a weak or dead battery, or a poor connection to the battery. If he came back to say that the battery was fine, or it was bad but he still had problems after replacing it, we could have gone on from there. It is quite time consuming to write a freakin book like you did, so if you want to go around this forum and answer every ones questions with every possible solution to thier problem, go ahead. But be cool about it. Keep in mind, I say that a person who often give long winded responses like yours all the time, but I have to respond to more than just one thread, so I don't always have time to answer the question for every possible scenario. I will not go as far as adding giving an infraction for rudeness or anything, but I will say that you should cool that attitude down and humble yourself a bit. You seem to have a good bit of technical knowledge, and your input will always be welcome as long as you can give it without being an ass.

Edited October 26, 2010 by DirtDemon

[bassplayer1972 10]

Thanx guys for all your advice. I took the starter apart and the brushes were worn down to nothing. Replaced the brushes and now it fires right up. I appreciate all your help. I'm not very mechanically inclined and you all can talk circles around me when it comes to repairs. I began with the brushes because it would try to crank when i tapped the starter with a hammer. Same thing happened with my Toyota truck years ago when i had to hit the starter with a hammer. so i went on that hunch with my quad. Thanx again everyone.

Gary

[DirtDemon 12]

I was wondering if we were going to hear from you again, I am glad you got it fixed. That is the most important thing. Have fun with it.

[bassplayer1972 10]

I was wondering if we were going to hear from you again, I am glad you got it fixed. That is the most important thing. Have fun with it.

Thanx DirtDemon.

I just wanted to try fixing it after the hunting season is why i took so long responding. I could of maybe did it during the hunting season but i'm notorious for forgetting how to put things back together and losing a part or two. That's why i got someone from maintenance where i work to do it for me. The advice given to me by you guys is great but i'm not too bright at some of this stuff to the point i would need to see it done once opposed to reading it and trying it myself. I do have a manual on disk that i bought on Ebay but i'm guessing the seller burnt all the copies of it because the pics on it are terrible and don't show you much. Thanx again for all the help and i'm sure i'll have more questions down the road. Here's one for you. Are there any lube nipples on my quad for a grease gun or is it a "take apart and pack joints with grease" kind of job. I get a squeak squeak squeak sound when i'm rolling to a stop or starting to gain speed. Thanx again.

Gary

[DirtDemon 12]

Yamaha is the only manufacturer I know of that has put factory grease zerks on their machines. I don't believe that yours has any though. I could be wrong, you might check the CD Rom manual that you have for lubrication info. Your questions are welcome anytime, we are glad to help.

[bassplayer1972 10]

Yamaha is the only manufacturer I know of that has put factory grease zerks on their machines. I don't believe that yours has any though. I could be wrong, you might check the CD Rom manual that you have for lubrication info. Your questions are welcome anytime, we are glad to help.

Thanx DirtDemon.

You are probably right. I've looked everywhere and can't see any. They aren't that big of a machine that you could miss any nipples if they were there. Mine being a 94 probably doesn't have any. I'll check my manual but like i was saying, the pics are terrible so i'll check the exploded pics instead. I'm just happy it isn't an electrical problem i'm having. I never could figure out what those circuit diagrams are trying to tell me lol. Thanx bud.

Gary

[DirtDemon 12]

Anytime Gary.

[Benny Aitken 0]

Hey guys just wondering if someone can help me? I have a 1994 Timberwolf 2x4, I have just put a brand new battery in it and it cranks over when I push the start button but it just isn’t quite enough power to start it? If I hold the start button and help it with the pull cord it starts no worries? And I mean I don’t have to put much effort into it at all to help it start.. could this have anything to do with a stator or a weak starter motor? Cheers guys 

[Mike Weindl 0]

My mid-nineties 250 timberwolf will start with the pull start but the key start won't work. I don't think the battery is charging either but it runs when I pull start it. What is the problem