I know there’s lots on various forums about the problems with the starter suffering a power drop from the inefficient wiring loop, but can someone please just help with a very simple explanation of how to fix it??
I have a 2001 Cali EV 1100 and a very comprehensive workshop manual that helpfully doesn’t even tell me which of the 6 relays is the one for the starter/solenoid. The fuses are described in infinite detail, but the relays are ignored.
Any help and advice would be very gratefully received!
There are (at least) 3 different solutions and some models have two relays involved in triggering the solenoid. If the following is oversimplified - sorry i don’t mean to be patronising.
In my opinion the simplest fix is to use the solenoid trigger wire (that is the one with a spade connector that runs to the solenoid on top of the starter motor) to switch on a 12v 30a fused relay taking power from the low resistance wire to the starter directly to the solenoid. All spade terminals need to be insulated and either soldered or crimped with a heavy duty crimp tool, i suggest that all new wires are made up in the correct colour of 14/0.30, 1.0mm² gauge wire cable supplies - use 1mm size
Connect the solenoid trigger wire to a terminal 85 on a the relay 12v 30a fused relay.
See where you can mount that relay on the frame and mount it securely.
Make up a wire to connect terminal 86 of the relay directly to earth (e.g. an eye connector on that frame bolt)
Now press the starter button and that relay will click.
Disconnect the battery
Make up a wire with an eye connector at one end and a female spade connector to reach from the starter power wire connection to the relay
Connect that wire onto the starter motor and the female spade onto terminal 30 of the relay
Make up another wire with two female spade connectors to go from terminal 87 on the relay to the solenoid.
Check the wiring is all insulated not pressed against metal and shielded from weather
Reconnect the battery
Now when you press the starter motor the weedy 12v standard wire is enough to switch on the relay which will draw 12v with lots of amps to fire the solenoid properly
On my GRiSO i had a row of 4 relays jammed together one was the “start relay” and one was the “start maintenance relay”. Once i had worked out from the wire colours which was which i marked them but the start fix meant i never had to look again.
