Hey guys...I'm looking for some advice here regarding my bike. I have a 2007 FLHX.
                      It's the 96ci engine , bumped up to 103ci w/ the cam, heavy breather etc.....Everything otherwise is stock....no fuel pak ....etc...
                         Presently , I have a lil over 13,000 original miles.

The Problem =  The engine is not 'kicking over' after I engaged the battery. 
                         My battery is original , however I brought it in to AutoZone for a checkup and it's maintaning the correct voltage. Moreover, after I discovered 
                         that, I brought the battery home and charged it up anyway. It took the charge and it was hot. The engine 'kick over' and started. I could tell 
                         it was needed. The bike ran well for the next several days.

                        Now, it's two weeks later and I'm experiencing starting problems as if the engine isn't getting 'fire'. I would assume the plugs are bad? or a fuel flow problem?
                        I am ruling out the fuel problem since lately I've been turning the throttle before I engage the starter - I smelll fuel.
                       So , short of bringing the bike in to the 'stealership', I was hoping you all could give me some insight to the problem.
                       
                       This problem occurs when I start it up for the first time in the AM. And it occured again when I left work this PM....
                            Today, I was there, crankning and 
                        cranking ....felt like a fool w/ so many people around.....lol!  but I did get home after a/b 20 non consectutive cranks.
                      Something is definitely wrong ...and I very nervous a/b riding it ...I use the bike for work , primarily....
                         ok, that's it....
                                              Dave

Dump the battery... it's done, trust me it may appear to hold a charge but it doesn't... the ONLY way to test those batteries is under load, and if its the original from 2007 it's due. Do yourself a favor and change it as soon as you can or you're going to cause some serious damage to your charging system and that costs WAY more than a battery. Good luck!:-)

O.K., with EFI you don't need to twist the wick ( throttle) to get fuel. When you turn on the key you should be able to hear the whine of the fuel pump. If not there is a sensor or relay or module problem. IMMEDIATE Failure of either of these would stop your bike as you go down the road. It would be rare if there was anything at all wrong with the fuel pump itself. The electronic control unit (ECU) controls the fuel injection and the ignition system. The crank position sensor allows the ECU to time the opening of the fuel injectors. If you don't have the computer that Harley has you're not going to be able to diagnose anything along these lines.

One of the most common occurences is a loose ground to the battery. Clicking and not firing is a symptom of a number of things as well as a bad ground. Check that first.
The next thing is the alternator. Test that next.
There's not much more I can tell you. Change plug wires. Change plugs. Get a new battery.
Go thru the simple stuff first before you take it in to the dealer. Electronic problems are a pain in the tail to a simple mechanic without all the tools. But I'm hoping it's a bad ground for your sake; it would be so much easier.

Peace

The simplest test would take the battery to HD let them run a test and then have it tested under load. I'm betting the battery is the problem. Loose ground is a possibility but not likely with these symptoms. 1) the age of the battery... if that's the OEM battery it's done. 2) if it were a loose ground it would cook the battery in short order... just my 2 cents.

I have an 08 FLHX and it was built on Sept of 07, I have a little over 35k miles and I changed the battery about a year ago or so. Your bike was built in 06 and with not many miles on it, that tells me that your battery is at least 5or6 years old and it has sat alot. Save yourself alot of headache and change it, I bet this will solve your problems, BTW it is not necessary to twist the throttle when you start your bike.

One can assume the battery is worn out and it needs replaced. You've had the battery for a long time. But what concerns me is that you said the bike wouldn't fire but that it was cranking over and over. At that point the battery was working to start the bike. I believe you need a new battery but I don't believe the battery is the real problem. Keep us posted. I'd like to know what the solution turns out to be. Thanks.
Peace

Believe it or not if the battery is weak on these new EFI models these bikes start having tons of issues... changing the battery can sometimes remedy most if not all the issues.

With the new ECM's if there's not the proper amount of current going from channel to channel sometimes it just doesn't cooperate *shrugs*

I agree. You know the battery has some problems which is why it started the first time after putting a full charge on it.

And like Black9 mentioned the newer bikes, with electronics controlling everything, do some real flaky stuff when the battery is week.

It may not be the battery causing all of your problems, but I would certainly recommend replacing it and getting it out of the equation.

Alright! Thanks Black, Jimmyacorn, Wheels, Lucky!!!
I will definitely get a new battery this weekend...and I'll keep y'all updated on the results!

Yeah hope it fixes your problem man, let us know!

New Battery did the trick ~...... and ($125.00) later and I have an engine that cranks up immediately~ After engaging the battery switch on the console, I then hit the starter button and I'm tellin' y'all....within , what seems like 1second, the bike starts up! Been out riding most of the day....made a few stops for an hour or so...and she starts up w/o any hesitation...I feel good !

Spending that money for the new 'battery' (30L Type), is the best investment I've made in a while....not to mention ...peace of mind!

Thanks everybody for the advice!
Dave in NOLA (Falstaff Beer / this week)

I aint tellin ANYBODY here I told you so but I see this ALL the time!:-)

Glad you're all hooked up Buddydog!

Check your Stater Brother it maight be fried!

Hey Southern, it was a dead battery... relax heheheh

Thanks for the info gentlemen. Guess you know my 07 FLHX w/ 40,000 will get a new battery for Xmas. Santa, are you reading this?

Truly one of the last things that a lot of people forget to check when things start acting funny and if it's cutting out and acting strange or not as normal as you're used to it's almost ALWAYS the battery on the newer bike.

If it has a bad stator you wont be riding one full day at most especially on any dresser. You need a minimum of 11.5 volts to throw that engine with those specs. And if the stator is gone, the odds the rectifier is not going right with it is about 75%. I have replaced more sets of those for clients than I ever want to think about.

A note from the side here...Its called a battery tender, and they are worth their weight in gold. A quick check for the charging system is a volt meter on the battery connections while its running. You will notice it jumping at about 12.5 to 13......Snap the throttle and you can watch the meter jump up to 14.5 plus.

If the meter just sits there doing nothing...The charging system is shot, and just replacing the rectifier or the stator and not both is asking for trouble....And thats my 2 cents...
Good Luck / Slippery!!!

I've heard this one OVER and OVER: Well once in a while during the winter I'll go out and crank the bike up and let'er run for about 10 minutes so the battery doesn't go bad. Here's the problem with that, that battery is losing charge daily and the colder it is the more charge it loses, the problem with firing up the bike and letting it idle is that it will change the battery's state of charge to such a low point that some time in the middle of that next riding season that battery is totally spent. Best thing to do is as Slippery says, get a battery tender, just plug it in and it will maintain the proper state of charge on the battery. Granted batteries can only last for so long until they need to be changed but for the health of a battery, preventative maintenance is always your best bet!

 Hi
i am officially in the club! My beloved 07 Softail won't start, only clicks... I removed the battery, cleaned all of the connections, the voltage meters at 13V. I am thinking about replacing the battery anyhow. Then prolly the starter would be the likely next step?

94zero

Success !
One new battery from Harley for a CRAZY $143:00 and my bike runs like a top. Even a little more snotty. Just
to re-cap: the bike would only click click click when I tried to start it, it metered at 13 volts, But the battery was
shot. One over priced battery and I am all set.

LOL alls well that ends well.. just replaced mine this year,typically last about 4-6 years depending on the amount of recharging & riding.

Ask yourself do you want to be stranded with a dead or low battery in the middle of no where? NO and none of your riding buddies want to hear your excuses on why your six year old battery is dead!!! Nothing worse than someone else's lack of maintenance to ruin your weekend ride.