[John Baemel]

Sucks! After 6.2 hours on the meter I had to install because Yamaha doest include one, stock battery died. hadn't started it up in about a month but it was on the trickle charger and walked up to it yesterday and dead... I have a smart battery charger that desulfides and that couldn't even save it.

Apparently Yamaha doesn't even think much of their own batteries because they won't warranty it. Dealer wasn't much help... they said I had to bring the whole quad back to them, 140 mi round trip. No thanks I'm beginning to regret this purchase

 

[JimP]

Sounds like there is a different problem other than the battery.

Mine is going on 3 years and zero problems with the battery except for the time that I left the ignition on over night. My Kodiak may sit for over a month or even longer without starting and it has always fired right up.

I'd check for battery drain when the engine is off plus there may be a problem with your battery maintainer.

 

[KodiakAfishyo]

Sounds like there is a different problem other than the battery.

Mine is going on 3 years and zero problems with the battery except for the time that I left the ignition on over night. My Kodiak may sit for over a month or even longer without starting and it has always fired right up.

I'd check for battery drain when the engine is off plus there may be a problem with your battery maintainer.

I agree with jimP, I have let mine set for over month with no charger on it and it fires right up.

 

[CanadianKodiak700]

Sucks! After 6.2 hours on the meter I had to install because Yamaha doest include one, stock battery died. hadn't started it up in about a month but it was on the trickle charger and walked up to it yesterday and dead... I have a smart battery charger that desulfides and that couldn't even save it.

Apparently Yamaha doesn't even think much of their own batteries because they won't warranty it. Dealer wasn't much help... they said I had to bring the whole quad back to them, 140 mi round trip. No thanks I'm beginning to regret this purchase

^^ that right there is why they want the bike, not just the battery.... there is an underlying issue drawing current

 

[Jonnied10#]

Sucks! After 6.2 hours on the meter I had to install because Yamaha doest include one, stock battery died. hadn't started it up in about a month but it was on the trickle charger and walked up to it yesterday and dead... I have a smart battery charger that desulfides and that couldn't even save it.

Apparently Yamaha doesn't even think much of their own batteries because they won't warranty it. Dealer wasn't much help... they said I had to bring the whole quad back to them, 140 mi round trip. No thanks I'm beginning to regret this purchase

Possibly an issue with the hour meter? How long did you have the quad before installing the hour meter?
Do you have a digital multi-meter you can use to check for current draw with the key off?

 

[CanadianKodiak700]

Possibly an issue with the hour meter? How long did you have the quad before installing the hour meter?
Do you have a digital multi-meter you can use to check for current draw with the key off?

The bike should have hour meter in the display pod, if it's a new 700 kodiak, that's a stock feature, not an add on meter

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[TRW]

Batteries can go bad, and a new one can be bad, but all the comments here are likely right about an issue. The dealer might work with you a bit on the long commute to fix it, but that is what you might want to do.

And I know how you feel, you spend a lot of money and buy the best and then have issues, that is very painful. Hopefully this will be solved soon and not reoccur.

 

[KodiakAfishyo]

I would take it in under the warranty to have the electrical system checked out if you have any more issues with a new battery. That's what your warranty is for even if it is a long drive, (I'm assuming they are your closest dealer) I would make an appointment with the dealer so you can wait for it and take it home the same day, because it shouldn't take them more than half day max.

 

[Warren]

Sucks! After 6.2 hours on the meter I had to install because Yamaha doest include one, stock battery died. hadn't started it up in about a month but it was on the trickle charger and walked up to it yesterday and dead... I have a smart battery charger that desulfides and that couldn't even save it.

Apparently Yamaha doesn't even think much of their own batteries because they won't warranty it. Dealer wasn't much help... they said I had to bring the whole quad back to them, 140 mi round trip. No thanks I'm beginning to regret this purchase

I have a 2016 kodiak 700. Bought it new. Battery lasted three years. I have a out 20 hours run time. After recharging original battery a few times. Bought a new battery. Everything was fine til weather cooled off. Having g to charge battery, and it Not starting. Looking for a hint as to what to look at.

 

[JimP]

Check the charging voltage on the battery with the engine running, it should be around 14.2 volts. At least that is what I see on my aftermarket gauge.

 

[TRW]

If I understand your question, it is not even starting with the battery charged. A simple test to isolate the issue would be to try jump starting it, if it starts properly, that helps determine a weak battery or the wiring in the battery/starter circuit. If it still does not start well, then you need to start looking at the starter circuit, or even the starter. My 2016 700 starter failed and the symptoms were similar to yours.

 

[Warren]

have two batteries. original 3 years old, one 5 months old. neither will start the atv. they both drop to 7 or 8 volts when trying to start. relay buzzes. jumped with truck ran for 30 minutes. putting out 14.7 volts. shut off, let sit 15 minutes. relay buzzes, does not turn engine over.
Both batteries charge fine. show 12.7 volts not connected to atv.

 

[JimP]

Take the batteries and put a full charge on them. Then take them down to a parts store and get them load tested. If you have a battery shop in your area get them to do the testing.

With you being able to jump start it points to bad batteries

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[TRW]

JimP has good advice, let us know what you find!

 

[thomasr]

I'll just chime in on the fickleness of batteries. I bought my wife a brand new Toyota Camry back in March. While leaving a friends place on July 4th, we got the dreaded click-click of a dead battery. Nothing was left on. Used a jump pack and got it started and made it home. Being it was so new and under warranty I didn't attempt to do anything with it. The next business day I had to jump start it to get it to the dealer. They tested the battery...bad! I had them test the charging system just for grins and it tested good. I'm a multi-repeat customer so they treated me right and installed a new battery. Brand new car, less than 3,000 miles and 4 months driving and the battery went bad. So...it can happen.

 

[Jonnied10#]

Have you noticed that manyALL new car dealershipshave a large jump starter pack on wheels, and use them often.
That is because the batteries in new cars spend most of their life in a mostly discharged state due to the fact that they are not charged on a regular basis like a car or truck used often.
These batteries sulfate due to this condition and are never able to provide full cranking power from the day you purchase the vehicle.


On another note, the OP stated that the Kodiak draws the battery voltage down to 7 or 8 volts while pressing the starter button, but it will start when jumping it to start. I think this is because the extra starting capacity of the two batteries combined provides enough voltage to energize the starter without the excessive voltage drop.


This leads me to believe that the starter is dragging for some reason and is most likely the issue.