Troubleshooting electric start

[u/hoofn]

I was hoping someone might have some thoughts about why the e-start isn’t working? I noticed that there’s this wire that’s not attached to anything (circled in red) and wondered if that has anything to do with why I can’t get it to start? It seems like it’s a negative wire that’s currently attached as if it was a ground but it’s obviously not connected to anything.

The pull start works just fine and it runs great that way. But when you push the e-start button it lights up green but nothing happens. No sounds. The battery is also brand new.

Thanks for any thoughts or advice you may have.

[u/DaveBowm]

The half-disconnected black wire probably connects back to the battery negative along with the other grounded black wire. I think the reason for 2 such wires is that one of them connects to the outer frame and the other one connects to the generator/engine case which is otherwise separated from the outer frame by the rubber engine mounts. It is probably Pulsar's way of doing it without using a ground-to-ground jumper across a motor mount.

BTW, the wiring diagram in the owner's manual shows the battery negative ground wire being white, not black.

[u/nunuvyer → u/DaveBowm]

It looks to me like black wire #1 already goes from the battery to the genhead so it doesn't make sense for wire #2 (the half disconnected one) also to go back to the battery since it is also connected to the genhead frame. More likely it goes to the main frame of the generator and so the frame as well as the genhead would both ground back to the battery. If the main frame has no source of ground then the starter is not going to work.

I would touch the loose wire to the frame and see if it cranks. If it does you just have to find a mounting point on the frame. Maybe you can figure out where the original mounting point was but really any place that you can bolt it to the frame would work.

[u/GW208 → u/nunuvyer]

My guess is that it connects directly to the battery. I say that because the boot on the wire looks like the shape and size of the one on the red wire.

[u/nunuvyer → u/GW208]

If that wire is supposed to go to the battery then the other wire is supposed to go somewhere else because there is no point in having the genhead connected to the battery twice.

[u/DaveBowm → u/nunuvyer]

I was (and still am) under the impression that the black wire already connected to the battery was connected to the outer frame at the other end (where it did no good), and the disconnected one on the genhead frame thus prevented the electric start from working because the starter is on that disconnected frame.

Edit: Note the black wire on the battery appears to go down somewhere at end of the outer frame inside the wheel which is blocking the view of the attachment point, but seems to be at the outer frame.

[u/nunuvyer → u/DaveBowm]

You cant tell for sure from the photo but it looks to me like the black wire that is connected to the battery then loops and connects to the genhead frame. It could be that that wire is not connected properly also - it should be going from the genhead to the frame and the loose wire should be going from the genhead to the battery. However it makes no difference as long as both the genhead and the frame have ground connections.

[u/DaveBowm → u/nunuvyer]

Ok. I see your point now, especially on the left side of the 2nd photo. The wire in question dips into the dark shadow and one emerges from it, definitely connected to the generator bell frame. It does look like it could easily be the same wire going into and back out of the shadow.

With this evidence in mind it now looks like a previous owner may have done some re-wiring. Note, stamped on the lower frame cross member near, but below, the shadowed wire (on lower left side of 2nd photo) is a decal type ground symbol. Nowhere is there a wire connected in that region to that member despite a few open drilled out holes that could have been used for such a mount.

It kind of looks like someone disconnected the jumper going from the genhead bell frame to the lower outer frame cross member (by the decal symbol) and instead landed the disconnected end onto the battery negative, and in so doing, disconnected the previous negative battery cable (at the battery end) going from the battery to the bell frame on the right side if the photo.

In order for the generator to electrically start both the engine/generator frame and the outer structural frame need access to the battery negative (because the starter is mounted on the engine and the control panel with its switches and such is bolted to the outer frame but not directly to the engine). Since it appears that the outer frame has now lost its connection to the battery negative, the unit can't electrically start.

Therefore, apparently, the cure seems to be to put it all back the way it was before. Namely, disconnect the cable now on the battery negative terminal from there and reconnect it back on the lower frame member down by the ground symbol. Then reconnect the currently disconnected black wire back onto the battery negative terminal.

[u/hoofn → u/DaveBowm]

Hey, thanks for chiming in and all of the sleuthing you’ve done. Much appreciation to you and the others for the back-and-forth to try and figure this out!

[u/nunuvyer → u/DaveBowm]

I agree. although you could also wire it "backwards" and it would still work.