I recently got a chinese 50 cc atv that had some wiring issues. I started with replacing the key ignition and some burnt wires and removing a toggle switch the previous owner had put in ( I assume to disconnect the battery when not in use ) It did start and run after that but would kill a battery in a few minutes. I then replaced the starter relay solenoid and CDI box. Now I can't even get it to start , won't crank over or anything. I disconnected the kill switch on the back. I even shorted the two posts on the starter solenoid and the motor turned over but real slow, the battery show 11.59 volts. Where do I go from here, do replace the voltage regulator and or the stator/magneto.

 

Sounds like you have multiple problems. First, make sure you have a 7 amp fuse installed off the battery that feeds everything else other than the starter motor (though the solenoid). This keeps wires from burning up.

Then jump your quad battery to your car. Does the starter turn then? Does the solenoid go click? If you short the solenoid does the starter motor turn at normal speed?

You reported a battery voltage of 11.59 volts. Was that voltage measured with the solenoid terminals shorted and the starter turning over slowly, or was that voltage measured while the starter was _not_ turning? 11.59 volts for an unloaded battery is way low.

If your battery goes dead within minutes then your charging system is not working. If the battery gets drained by the quad with the ignition off then likely the voltage regulator is bad. Unplug it and see if the current drain stops.

 

I think the voltage regulator could be bad so I will try replacing that
Thanks for the advice

 

LynnEdwards,
I unplugged the voltage reg. and the voltage on the battery stay the same. I checked it at the battery with the key on, lights unplug, all the handlebar switches unplugged,and the tail kill switch unplugged. Would the voltage reg. cause the machine to not even turn over ? I am slowly starting to understand these machines

 

Let's back up a bit.

Do you have a charger? Have you tried to charge this battery?

11.59 volts unloaded signifies a partially discharged battery (which would be fixed with charging) or a bad battery (not fixed with charging).

You can eliminate battery problem altogether by jumping your quad to your car. If the quad now cranks over normally then you know you have a bad battery or a dead battery. The next obvious step is to charge the battery (with no more than two amps for small atv batteries).

If the battery charges (i.e. it will crank the starter motor with the kill switches on for at least 30 seconds), but doesn't hold a charge overnight, then the battery is either discharging internally (bad battery), or discharging current into the quad (bad quad). So charge the battery and let it sit overnight disconnected from the quad. Reconnect it in the morning and try and start the quad (with the kill switches on) for 30 seconds. If the battery is dead it is bad. If it only discharges overnight then the quad is draining the battery. That's a whole new subject we can go into if need be...

Quad batteries are ruined very quickly when they are left sitting around partially or completely discharged. So if you have a bad charging system then the quad may start up and act fine after you replace the battery for a couple weeks. But as the battery runs down it starts getting ruined from sitting around that way. Thus the new battery eventually stops working and the cycle repeats. The moral of this story is that it is imperative that you check the charging system with a meter after you replace the battery in order to avoid an encore performance a few weeks down the road.

To check your charging system start up the quad and measure the battery voltage with a meter at a fast engine RPM (headights off). You should measure 13.5 to 14.5 volts DC. If you do, your charging system is working. If you don't, it isn't and needs attention.

Now we are back up to my previous post. If you have a good battery that goes dead after you shut the quad off (ignition switch is off too), and your battery holds a charge overnight while disconnected (i.e. it will crank the starter at normal speed when hooked up the next morning), then usually the problem is a bad voltage regulator. But because you have creative wiring and a battery in unknown condition we need to first indentify whether the battery is good or not. Once we know that we can dig deeper.

A bad voltage regulator will *not* keep the quad from cranking if the battery is charged up and good. Neither will a CDI, kill switches, or stator (these may keep a quad from starting, but will not stop it from cranking). Instead of stabbing in the dark by randomly changing things, I think you need a meter. They're cheap ($20 for a really fancy one - much less for a basic model from harbor freight), and with a little practice and acquired skill can save you a lot of aggravation, frustration, and keep you from purchasing a lot of unnecessary parts.

 

I guess I didn't give all the needed info. I am sorry.
I have a new 12 volt battery and old 12 volt battery(the one that was in it ) and a regular battery charger with a two amp setting. I also have a meter, but very limited knowledge on how to use it. I can use it to check voltage.It is a RadioShack digital multimeter. I did check the voltage on the new battery yesterday and it was 11.97 volts when I hooked it up the quad. I still couldn,t get it to turn over ( like the kill switch was on ) I then jumped the soleniod posts and the engine turned over but slow. I checked the battery while still hooked up and the voltage had dropped to 10.59 and seemed to be losing volts steadily. I unplugged the voltage reg. and the voltage remained the same.So to recap what I have done after I first got the quad
1. I hooked up a new battery and the wires started smoking. 2. I replaced the burnt wires and removed the toggle switch and wired in a new key switch. The quad ran for about ten minutes and battery was dead. The stator/magneto cover was really warm almost hot 3. after reading different posts I replaced the CDI and the starter soleniod. I cannot get it to turn over since then, with out jumping the soleniod posts. I don't know if I have a bad switch some where or a bad voltage reg or the wiring is so screwed up it is beyond repair. With limited knowledge on how to use a multimeter this could be a real challenge. I believe I can fix it , just need instructions. So I hope I have given you ll the info that you need this time
Thanks for your patience
Macmatt

 

got a entire kasea 50cc mighty mite . im parting it out. stevens94z@yahoo.com

 

Did you ever find out what caused the wires to smoke? Which wires smoked? Is it possible that you wired up the battery backwards?

11.97 volts on a battery means it is not charged up. Disconnect the battery from the quad and charge it up. I'm thinking that maybe the quad is sucking up all the charge current and not allowing any charge current into the battery.

Never mind the problem with the start switch not working right now. This will be easy to fix later. Right now get the battery charged up before it is ruined from sitting around partially discharged. Then lets figure out why the battery is going dead.

You said the quad ran for ten minutes, then the battery was dead. The magneto cover was really warm... These are classic symptoms of a shorted voltage regulator. If the regulator shorts across from the output side to the AC input side, the battery will discharge rapidly through stator battery charge winding. The current is limited only by the stator resistance, so the current will be high (roughly ten amps), and the stator winding will be dissipating about 120 watts. So the stator would get very warm. Here's how to see if that is your problem:

After you charge up your now disconnected battery and your battery voltage is holding steady at 12.6 volts or higher, pull out your main fuse and reconnect the battery. Take your meter and set it to the 10 amp current scale. Move the meter probe from the volt/ohms jack over to the 10 amp current jack. Insert the meter leads across the empty fuse holder clips (one lead on each of two clips). You should read zero amps. Turn on the ignition switch and turn on the headlights. The headlights should light up and you should read roughly 3 or 4 amps of current.

If you don't read current with the headlights on (and the headlights don't light) you don't have your meter set up right, or the internal 10 amp fuse inside the meter is blown (which won't keep the meter from working on volts/ohms readings). If the headlight test does read current then your meter is setup correctly and working in current mode.

If you read current with the ignition switch off, or if you read substantial current with the ignition switch on and all the quad lights are turned off, then unplug the voltage regulator. If the current goes to zero then your regulator is bad.

 

Keep the old CDI, for now anyway. It may be good. It is possible that the new CDI is bad. However the CDI will not stop it from turning over.

***** The kill switch on the back,(if it is a tether switch), should be wired together, otherwise it is activated.*****