My motorcycle?

Question

i have a 800 vulcan and i drove it this morning to got o work and when i stopped at the gas station to fill it up i went to re-start it adn it wouldnt start.I took the key put and in the store with me so i know i didnt leave the the key on, it did a little like click, and then no light or anything was on, and i tryed a few more times and couldnt get the light s to turn on, when i parked it i tryed again and the lights went on for a sec. but it still didnt watn to start.i have no clue about bikes, so i didn tknow if it was my battery or fuse of anything. thank for the help

Answer 1

If the lights won't turn on, I'm guessing battery.  Have the alternator checked too while you're having the battery checked.

Answer 2

Sounds to me like a bad battery.  Motorcycle batterys are very small so unlike car batteries they just work and then not work.  A car battery will usually get worse and worse until it doesn't work.  A motorcycle battery will work then not work.

Answer 3

Probably a bad connection, check and clean the battery terminals....

if this doesn't solve the problem, it's likely a bad battery

Answer 4

Lisa, my first bet is the battery shelled out ( Iowa talk for failed). It could be a fuse but in my experience fuses are just kind of dumb servants, do their humble thing and are never heard from....UNLESS some previous owner handy wired extra speakers, extra lights, wolf whistle or some other mindless doo dad into the electrical system. A team of electrical engineers designed that system for longevity and reliability and Slo -  boy, under the shade tree decides he knows better.

So, if your bike is untampered with it probably isn't the fuzes. Most likely it is the battery. This is a good time to consider joining a tow service along with your insurance. Also a reasonable plan is to change batterys every 2 years, need to or not. It saves moments just like this. Buy a quality battery, at least OEM.

Cheers and you'll be up soon. Hey nice choice of bikes by the way.