[The Great Kazoo]

I've been experiencing extended cranking before the engine starts when the bike is cold and been sitting for 24 hours or longer. Some times it's worse than others and it definitely doesn't seem normal for a modern Honda engine. Has anyone else experienced this condition?

 

[TennesseeSmith]

Both of mine take a lot longer to start than the other bikes I've had recently. (Except for the Trophy which just plain wouldn't start)

I think the battery is a bit under-specified for this bike.

 

[Ravgardner!]

Well yes, it does crank over a few times before starting when cold. But it is consistent in doing this. About equal to my Honda autos. Don't think it is a problem. I'll let you know when the temps get down to freezing if the number of rev's before starting change.

 

[cjm76]

What do you call "extended cranking"? I also have always thought that mine seems to crank a long time. But only compared to other bikes that I have had. I just went to the garage and timed the crank time - about 4 seconds. Based on that I would guess that I see it in the 4 - 6 second range all the time.

 

[bob]

Mine takes longer than my ST did. But the ST was carbs with choke and only started within 2 seconds if I did it right... and the temps were warm. If I botched the start by forgetting the choke (happened a few times) it took a LOT longer. Winter time temps and the ST would take maybe 4-5 seconds even with the choke set right. The CTX is very consistent so far. Very predictable. And as @Ravgardner! says, we'll see what happens when the temps really drop.

 

[flytrap]

Last weekend I took a trip to the North Carolina Mountains. On Sunday morning I was greeted by a thick layer of frost and ice on my seat and luggage. Ok. Here is a good test of the battery and the starting mechanism. To make the situation worse my friend has a BMW 1600 GT and the startup would be a kind of competitive test of engineering. Both bikes fired right up just like in normal temps. I run a GPS and Hyper lights. After the trip was done I hooked up my Battery doc. The light went immediately to green. No problems in this area.

 

[csdexter]

All my carbureted bikes started easier (sooner) in cold weather than in warm weather. At the extremes, both my Yamahas started almost instantly in very cold weather (choke on, throttle closed) and in the first 2 seconds in very warm weather (choke off, throttle a bit open).

All my fuel injected bikes starter harder (later) than the carb ones, in all situations. I haven't noticed any difference between warm/cold/wet weather start times on both the Sportster and the CTX1300.

All my bikes (regardless of fuel metering type) started instantly when the engine was warm.


My personal guess for the fuel injected ones being "lazy" (but constant) to start is either:

• the ECU intentionally waits a few engine revolutions to make sure all sensors are operating as they should and give sane data
• the ECU intentionally waits a few engine revolutions so that at least some oil can make it to the bearings before the engine is spun up at full speed and force by being ignited

 

[sleepngbear]

My personal guess for the fuel injected ones being "lazy" (but constant) to start is either:

• the ECU intentionally waits a few engine revolutions to make sure all sensors are operating as they should and give sane data
• the ECU intentionally waits a few engine revolutions so that at least some oil can make it to the bearings before the engine is spun up at full speed and force by being ignited

I'm gonna say it's quote probably both of these; and just to add to the first one, it waits until it has good readings from all the sensors before pumping fuel through the injectors and it 'knows' just how much fuel to deliver for those conditions.

 

[The Great Kazoo]

Thanks all for the feedback!
Sounds like the general consensus is that its normal. To clarify when I say cold I don't mean anything extreme, just that the bike is at ambient temp (60ish). The main difference is if the bike had run that day but has cooled to ambient temp it starts in a couple of revolutions/seconds. Also my experience with the "extended cranking" condition is as others have described but is intermittent and only happens occasionally when the bike has sat for a day or so. Unfortunately, the service manager at my local dealer has the personality of a rock and barely acknowledges my concern or attempts to explain his finding/experience. On my second dealer visit for its first service I provided two videos of a fast start and one with the delayed start and asked again if its normal (same indifference). If he had mentioned the ECM explanation I would have said ok - makes sense.

 

[csdexter]

(...)Unfortunately, the service manager at my local dealer has the personality of a rock and barely acknowledges my concern or attempts to explain his finding/experience. On my second dealer visit for its first service I provided two videos of a fast start and one with the delayed start and asked again if its normal (same indifference). If he had mentioned the ECM explanation I would have said ok - makes sense.

He probably (and sadly) has absolutely no idea how a fuel injection system works and what it is designed to achieve; hence doesn't feel particularly enthusiastic about lending advice or professional opinion there.

Apparently, the vast majority of mechanics have no clue what the thing they're wrenching on is supposed to do and how -- they're very comfortable with only knowing how to take it apart and put it back together, which is very sad.