team_realtree

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.

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.

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!