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Slow starting 08 ST

1K views 18 replies 6 participants last post by  tylercraige 
#1 ·
I got my 08 just a couple months ago and it’s my first Sprint and first Triumph. I’ve changed the oil and some other very minor things to make her more presentable.
I just found out that the 08 has a better ecu than the 05-07(?) and it should startup instantly. I haven’t timed it but mine starts after cranking for probably 1-2 seconds. Just long enough to make me wonder if something is wrong but then it runs fine.

Is this normal? Or should it be starting quicker when cold?
For reference, I came from a Kawasaki Versys 650 that started instantly pretty much every time and this is definitely slower than that.


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#5 ·
Okay, and I just saw the post from Steve Ford saying his is the same. I've had both an '06 1050 with the v1 Keihin and a later one with the v2 Keihin. The later bike fired the instant you hit the starter, the earlier bike cranked a few times before firing as you described. It always started though. Might just be a consequence of the particular map you have loaded - leaner perhaps, a consequence of ever tightening emission limits.
 
#7 ·
My'08 starts instantly from cold. Hot is not a problem. However if the battery is not in tip top condition on cold starting, the engine can crank over for a few seconds before firing. If the battery is low it might crank for 5 seconds but still fires. I find the 1050 engine needs a 100% battery.
 
#11 ·
My experience with 4 '08 Sprints is their starter/battery/solenoid/earth cables are undersized. Upgrade to thicker wire gauge or buy the Stoltec upgrade kit and will spin up so quickly you'll hardly hear it before it fires.

If you decide to do this, also upgrade your charging cables and never burn an RR or stator (provided you do it early enough) and get some decent headlight brightness by doing same to your headlight cables. Don't forget to install a relay for the high beam loom. The factory forgot to do that....
 
#12 ·
My experience with 4 '08 Sprints is their starter/battery/solenoid/earth cables are undersized. Upgrade to thicker wire gauge or buy the Stoltec upgrade kit and will spin up so quickly you'll hardly hear it before it fires.

Good idea! This is the first I’ve heard of upgrading the cables.
That’s definitely going on the list of upgrades to come.
 
#13 ·
Well, I'm back to worrying about the slow starting issue. Last night it was VERY slow to start. Probably cranked 6 times, then sputtered, one more crank and it started. Ran seemingly fine after that. On my way home (dusk) I noticed by gauges and headlights flickering. Now I'm starting to dig into stator/RR diagnostics. Pretty sure this is all related.

PO replaced the battery in the fall (cheap one) and again in the spring (better battery)
I thought nothing of it at the time but now I'm thinking the charging system hasn't been working very well since the fall.
 
#15 ·
There shouldn't be any light fluttering (obviously).
Cruddy ground connection or crusted connector would be my guess.
Check that 30A fuse and see if it looks it was subjected to a lot of heat at one time.
I had to clean the female spades with ammonia and then contact cleaner to get it back to working properly.
 
#19 ·
I think I got it!
The other day when I checked my voltages, I noticed a clicking while starting the bike. (With the seat off)

After passing the charging test I tightened the battery screws for good measure. They were already pretty tight.

Today I took it apart further and saw the washers were hitting the side of the battery, keeping the leads from getting snug.
I moved them to the top screw holes (side once in place) and the connection is much better!

 
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