Sounds like a bad battery, bad battery connection, or bad ground. I'd bet on bad battery from what you've said so far. You said if you were on the throttle a bit it would run, so the stator is putting out enough to compensate for the battery.

Sounds out of the fuse box seems bad though. Maybe its just one of the relays not getting enough power but i really don't know about that.

 

bad battery connection, or bad ground.

Yep ^^^^
Remove the main ground wire to the engine case & clean it up .
Then , shoot some WD-40 into the key switch ( through the key entry ) .
I have also seen some batteries with an internal "plate-short" where they'll be fine one minute & not have enough amps to engage the solenoid the next .

 

The battery has 12.8 volts and even when the outty completely shuts down electrically, my reverse lights come on as bright as can be. They are wired directly off the battery.

I'm guessing something is shorting out.

 

would get a manual, find the wire that is after the switch, test that while giggling the switch if the voltage isnt rock solid its likely the switch. shouldnt drop much voltage either if it drops more than could be mud in it or the connections for that cicuit

 

Replace battery

 

I'll try those suggestions.

I took the ignition switch apart and it looks fine. I'm guessing just the normal wear on the contacts. I also took the connector off the ECM and any connections that I could easily access and they all looked good.

 

One more thing, probably not related to the issue above, but I can no longer start it any any gear other than park or neutral and lost the brake lights as well.

 

Unrelated, that would be a failed brake switch, it would only affect the ability to start in gear with the brake engaged.

 

Too big of a coincidence to not be related. Definitely some major electrical problems. If its not connectors I'd bet on grounding.

 

Brake switch on the rear foot brake assembly probably has a broken wire under the boot.

 

I'll add that to the list of things to check into?

I just ordered a new Yuasa battery. The build date on my bike is 10/2011. Assuming the battery is installed on the assembly line on the actually build date, it's now just over 6 years old. My fingers are crossed that is the problem with the electrical system.

Thanks for the suggestions so far.

 

Muddinmike, the brake light switch is indeed bad. I disconnected the terminal and jumped the terminals and the brake lights come right on and it will start in gear. I'm still thinking that issue has nothing to do with the loss of the complete electrical system while riding?

 

most likely not your battery or it wouldn't even turn over your atv.
if your jiggling your key switch and it seems to start then, i would try that route.
i have read some things on bad key switches on some of the years, yours could be one.

 

Skeeter- that's what I thought too. But, a few guys here on this thread and a buddy that turns wrenches for a living all said that an intermittent short in the battery can cause this problem I'm having. Frankly, I'm I don't think jiggling the key made it start. It was more of a luck of the draw thing. Sometimes, when I'd turn the key, it would power up for a second, then pop! Go dead again. I'm going to order an ignition switch anyway for the hell of it.

It stinks that it is starting and running great now. I don't want to be the guy that is ruining the ride for everyone on Saturday, breaking down every few minutes.

 

never heard of an intermittent short in a battery? that's a new one to me..
i dont know about that one!! sounds to me like somethings no contacting right.
could be the keyswitch or cables, if you have a winch, check your power leads also..

 

I have a new ignition switch, brake switch and battery on the way. I removed all the grounds last night and sanded them down to shiny metal, including the cylinder head where the engine ground cable bolts to. Nothing was loose or corroded, but a good thing to check anyway.

 

Be sure to install them one-at-a-time So you can follow through on the exact cause .
And get back to us ......:tools1:

 

I'm going to have to install the ignition and brake switches at same time before I leave, since it requires the side plastics and right footwell to be off. I won't be able to do that on the trail if it craps out. I'll bring the battery and necessary tools along with me and swap that out of it does shut down.

I did find a few ground wires on the right side that are bundled together. The bolt was a little loose, so I cranked it down. It wasn't loose enough that the grounds were flopping around on the holddown bolt, but enough to where I could pivot them on it.

 

If you could pivot them around, that is too loose. The higher the current demand the worse that kind of connection becomes.

 

Well, maybe that solved my issue?

Only way to find out is this weekends outting. I'm usually the guy pulling everyone else out of the woods. I hate to be the guy getting yanked out.

Of course, this started right after I bought and installed a Tiger Tail tow system...

 

Well, here's how the ride went down on Saturday. Got around 2 miles into the trip, bam! It did the same thing as before, completely dead again. Do nothing, but wait a couple of minutes and it fires back up, but won't idle on its own, I have to feather the throttle. Dies again (electrically dead). Get the tow strap out and have my buddy that is riding my trusty Rancher 350 pull me about a mile. We get to some real tricky terrain and I decide to fire it up, starts up and runs perfectly back to my house. I get brave and decide to give it another go and the machine performed and ran 100% the rest of the night. Went about 38 miles (rough terrain, , tight tree spacing, steep hills and very rocky). I can't say that any of the parts I threw at it did a thing to fix it, since it still crapped out a few times early on. I hate knowing that it can happen again, at any point...

I just bought a new multi-function switch, my hi-beam function crapped out by the end of that ride, and just to eliminate it as a potential issue, as the kill switch is one of its functions.

I'll follow up with any updates on the next ride.

 

Another ride, same deal... After watching a video on YouTube, a fellow had a similar issue with his 570 Outty and it was traced back to the ECM. Moisture got in and corroded the circuit board. It's a 1k gamble that I'm not so sure I want to take a chance on. So far, new battery, ignition switch and multifunction switches haven't done anything. Cleaned all grounds. I'm thinking fusebox or ECM.

Recap: sometimes it'll just die electrically, sometimes it'll power back up and when I start it, it won't run with out me feathering the throttle. Even when it powers down, I always hear a buzzing from a relay in the fuse box. I swapped relays with one that was identical and still makes no difference. Not sure which one it was, since my fusebox decal has faded to nothing.

Video link (warning: this fellow HATES Can Am)

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-x9Hrkb8hjM


Any other suggestions?