I posted a topic on here earlier this month about my Wolverine not starting, and still no luck after everything I've checked. Here's the scenario:

Starter solenoid buzzes and vibrates, but doesn't engage the starter.

Battery is fully charged (~11.3 volts while turned off, ~14.3 volts while idling).

All fuses are intact.

All connections are tight and secure.

I pulled my spark plug last night and the entire tip looks like it was burnt black. There's no buildup on it at all though. I'm not sure if this has any significance or not.

I'm probably going to end up taking it in, but I wanted to check once more to see if anybody has any ideas. I really don't want to go to the stealership, but I gotta do what I gotta do.

Thanks everyone!

 

What have you done so far? Have you Replace your spark plug? Did you use the pull start to start it? If it is older like mine, try to push start it. If it starts and runs, then it is either your starter or battery, and it sounds like your battery is fine.

 

The pull-start works, so the engine runs fine. That's why I'm unsure if the condition of the spark plug means anything. If I push the start button when I'm trying to pull-start it, nothing happens, the solenoid just buzzes.

One thing I remember about starting the bike when the electric start worked is that I'd usually have to push the throttle (while the engine was turning over) to get it going. Is that a bad thing?

I called the dealer yesterday and they were certain that it couldn't be the starter, but it seems to me that's the only option I'm left with.

 

I believe my buddy had a similar situation a couple of weeks ago. It ended up being his battery. The battery tested good but a new battery cured the problem. Not sure what was wrong with the original battery and why it tested good but there was something wrong with it. Not sure if this cure your problem or not but it might be worth looking at.

 

I agree that it is the battery. THat is the same reason I replaced mine. Give it a shot for $34. You will have twice that into it before you are out of the dealer.

 

Thanks guys - that's a good point about trying a new battery just to be certain. It helps knowing that someone else had a similar issue and for whatever reason it turned out to be the battery.

Hopefully that'll be my deal too!

 

I had a similar problem. All connections looked good, good battery, fuses good. Still only buzzed. What I discovered was I had 12 volts on one side of the fuses and about 4 on the other side. The fuses near the battery were packed with mud. Remove the covers, blow them out, and polish the connections. Problem solved.

 

Interesting. From what I remember, everything looked fairly clean, and I don't really do a lot of mudding around. I'll check things again just to be sure though. Thanks!

 

The 11 volt number is too low , connect your volt meter to the battery and hit the starter button and take a reading . High possibility of a bad cell !


Geo