It was on an optimate thing though

So were ours and they still went caput within 2 years

Chris it could be a back feed through the Reg rec/ alternator windings !simple to check! isolate the alternator by unpluging and then see if the neutral light goes out when ignition off!

Put a multi-meter across the terminals of the battery,reading the battery voltage.Then press the starter button.The voltage should only drop to about 9v.If it buggers off down to lower than that,i would change the battery.If it stays at battery voltage,then the solenoid is not fully closing OR there is a dodgy connection between battery,solenoid and starter.

The light seems to be behaving itself at the moment though

Your getting 12v what when it's running?

When it's running it should charge over 12.5v as it needs to get over resistance in the batt.

But ti does sound like either your batt has died (most prob)
or the buzzing realy is faulty. Had same noise once on my 916 but bump started it in 3rd and it never happened again.

Age996 i would have thought at least 13.6 v ;)

13.6 to 14.2 is a correct charging voltage.

sprag clutch

I wouldn't be in a hurry to sling a battery away before getting a meter on it and checking the voltage readings.

BTW the 13.6-14.2V referred to above is with the engine running at a decent lick, not at idle. The 12.5V is more like what you should see with the bikre idling.

Those white connectors to the solenoid are often the culprit. Orthe solenoid itself. If you clean up the connector, you can bridge across the two big HT terminals with a screwdriver or summat. If that starts the bike, then the solenoid needs replacing. They're cheaper than batteries.


All that's not to say that the battery isn't the most likely cause, though.


Or the rectifier....:roll: