My riding lawnmower was doing this and I’ve watched multiple videos and this is by far the most thorough, well-explained, and straightforward video I’ve found.
Your tutorial saved me hours of frustration. I checked all my connections, charged the battery and my mower would not start. After reading all the comments I discovered 2 other guys had the same problem. My battery was fully charged, and was good after putting a load on it at the parts store. It needed a booster to start for some reason, but when it started I got so excited I mowed my yard of 2+ acres. Im a new subscriber and thank you for the video.
After overcoming the big wall of awful that was my clicking mower, I did all the steps you suggested and found it was a ground on the battery and solenoid that fixed it! Life saver! Thank you. I agree with what everyone else said about how helpful and clearly you described the likely failure points.
I have a John Deere 185 Hydro lawn tractor with a 17HP Kawasaki FC540V engine and a Nippon Denso 12800-2810 starter that had an intermittent "one click, no start" issue. I installed a $16.00 knock off John Deere AM107421 Starter Relay Kit from eBay and it solved the issue. This video helped me track down the issue caused by low voltage at the starter solenoid.
Thanks for this video. My yard machine was running and then nothing but click. You’ve given me lots of things to check out and hopefully I’ll have it fixed. Great video.
Outstanding explanation in troubleshooting a riding mower. With simple equipment. Right to the point. I need to say your a excellent technician and teacher.
Thank you so much for including the little blurb around 7 minutes about the brake switch. I was convinced I had a brake/seat/blade safety switch problem, but could hear the solenoid so you eliminated wasting more time on that for me.
If not the best well explained video on RU-vid, it's one of the best videos that are well explained step by step. Unfortunately not all of us are familiar with those testers but this guy is a brain! I wish he lived in the Tampa Bay area!
Thanks a million for this video. Very clear step by step testing. At the end all the tests pointed to the problem being in the starter motor. It was getting the correct voltage but not spinning. I thought to myself that if this happened in the car I would give it a couple of bangs with a hammer,so I tried it and guess what? It worked and has continued to do so. I guess that over the winter the thing had seized up…Bendix or whatever. I thought this might help someone before they undertook removal and repair/replacement.
So simple when explained professionally. Everything starts and ends at the battery. Connections to every circuit and appliance. Battery pos neg,Solenoid, safety switches, starter, key switch, fuses, and ground.
Thanks for the great video, helped me to find out my issue was battery ground cable was lose where it connected to frame! Guys like you help so many of us trying to trouble shoot.
Just my two cents but you can test the fuse by the two contactors on top without removing it-it has saved me a lot of headache when working on cars-just wanted to pass along the advice- Great video!
Dude! I was stumped. I checked safety switches and ignition along with many other things. I have a brand new battery too. I heard a click under neath my seat and it was the solenoid. Saw your video and removed the solenoid. Cleaned the ground, the battery terminals and the starter terminal. Jumped on and it started! Thanks!
Thanks a ton, you tip was very helpful!! Being an owner of new to me landmower; my zero turn wouldnt start, heard the solenoid tick but the motor didn’t start. However, took courage after seeing your video to pop open the driver seat, put my battery boosters in and vola! My zero turn started right sway
This video was outstanding,,, I liked that you moved right along,,, and didn't hesitate with unneeded information. Off to check my mower now. Thanks man.
Thank you for your expert knowledge. I was able to follow your step and found the ground wire next to solenoid that was loose. Btw, ever since I replaced the engine two year, the headlights is always on. I was able to live by so far by disconnect the battery each time. Wonder if you know the cause for that
2 month old mower started doing this. I found the ground from battery was connected to a painted surface. A little wire brush and presto, better than new. Great walk thru video on diagnosing this issue.
Straight to the point ,all buisness,superb video.Thats the way it's done,very professional .No comedy ,blackened teeth hokie jokes ,just give us The Video don't act or try comedy not y'alls profession,The subject of the video that's all!!thumbs Up
Good troubleshooting procedure. I was hearing a click, but like a small relay. Found out that was the fuel cutoff solenoid by the carburetor. When in the start position, only ~5.5volts at the battery. Somewhat similar to this situation, It was the positive cable to the battery wasn't tight. It stated a few times after re-installing the battery in the spring, I guess after a few mows that loosened the connection.
I had a craftsman YT3000 ride on mower.I had no idea how to fix it.The mechanic had a look at it n reckons its something else.He started it up with his truck terminal n still won't start.I replaced the old solenoid n a new battery n still won't started.He reckon the main motor key to start it came off or did I hit something hard like iron.It turns but not enough power to start it.He had a quickcheck up its still won't start.I watch your video n I think this might do it if I follow the video.clearly.in steps n.It mite work.I live in Rarotonga,Cook Islands n it hard to get parts for.the machine.I.really like watching this videos n others mainly on ride ons.Kia orana from Rarotonga.
Thank you! I have a 1998 mtd Ranchking 16.5hp opposed twin I bought used. I just about changed everything on my mower to finally get it running the last thing I did was change both battery terminals and put a new starter on it (my solenoid was clicking too but wasn't cranking)...also my heads were flooded so I pulled sparks out, flamed up the chamber to get it dry, slapped the spark plugs back in and it finally got going. I also had to adjust the idle on the carb to get it running stronger, because it used to die out when mowing sometimes. Also of note, just to provide yall with as much info as I can, I put new battery, new spark plugs, new magneto, new fuel lines/filter, new engine oil. I took the heads off and sanded off all of the carbon buildup on them and the pistons, also threw some seafoam in there for good measure. I also attached a new solenoid. Just about the only thing decent on it was one of the belts and the blades are still good. I'll be getting 2 new tires for it soon as well.
I'm a 20+ year electrician and a 10+ year home business small engine mechanic. So, this is my advice on testing this type of issue... When you test, always put your tester ground directly to the battery. That way you eliminate a bad ground from your testing. If you get power to the starter with the ground on the battery, that tells you your entire positive side of the circuit is good. At that point you could move your tester ground to the engine (where you started), if you get zero or any voltage lower than what your battery voltage is, then you know there is a bad ground. I've had several issues with bad ground from the battery to the frame strap. Testing using the battery as your ground allows you to more accurately isolate the issue. Also, never trust the thread of the bolt as your ground. Threads get painted and also allow for oxidation. Always, always, always clean the metal pieces with a grinder, sander, wire wheel, etc... so there is a good clean connection from the wire directly to bare metal. A three post solenoid can give you different results if there is not a good ground at the base plate of the solenoid. In that case there won't be any noise from the solenoid because the control circuit of the solenoid won't get voltage due to the ground. In this case test for voltage from the neg. battery post to the control post/wire of the solenoid. If you get voltage there but not from the ground strap on the solenoid to the control post then.the ground is bad on the solenoid strap. Electricity is hard to see, unless you blow it up. Lol.
Very helpful! Appreciate the diagnostic algorithm, this is one for the playlist! Suspect the battery is toast with that low of a reading. "Batteries don't die, they're murdered" LOL.
Thank you for the video! Mine is doing the exact same thing. I think you may have saved me from spending more $$ throwing parts at it! Keep up the great work
Thanks! This is a great video because it covers every possible things that could go wrong and offers solutions for each on.e It goes beyond standard troubleshooting into things a repair manual wouldn't like noting that the paint on the frame could make a bad contact. Very clear about everything. More videos should be like this. And I'll be checking out what else I can learn from this channel!
Best breakdown, And step by step, I wasn't sure about wiring the solenoid but when you explained it could go either way, Then I thought maybe I'll attempt to do mine. Thank you !
Before you break out ANY test equipment, make sure the blades are DISengaged. Sounds simple but my Hustler zero turn almost fooled me. It has a toggle switch/solenoid that won't allow power to the starter if in the ON position, but it WILL click. Glad I caught my mistake before I started unbolting stuff. Just thought this might help someone.
Man Great video. So many mechanic videos out there that are too long, bad angles, heavy breathers, useless info, etc. and this video had none of that. Great editing to get right to the point and cut the useless shit out. Thanks
Just picked up a jd317 with a new Briggs 23hp and no wiring was hooked up at all so I had to rewire the tractor from nothing . It came with a old reply and it was doing exactly what u said in the beginning of the video about it not Turing the starter .d this helped a lot
Thank you, did everything you have suggested and found out that the solenoid was bad originally it did click but a no start ... got a little sneaky and with the key on I shorted out on the solenoid in original place the incoming 12v cable and the starter cable and the starter motor turned over so the solenoid was defective
There's a stator on these motors also that puts out between 20 and 40 volts, and a voltage regulator that drops it down around 14 volts. One last check I would have done on this is to put a volt meter on the battery while the engine is running to be sure you see around 14 volts while the engine is running. This confirms that the charging system is working to keep the battery charged. Otherwise, repeated starts will eventually deplete the battery. Also, for mowers that have an electric PTO clutch, having the blades engaged puts a load on the battery, which will also deplete it if the charging system isn't working. I'm just adding this point because one question I would have after all the diagnostics is, why was the battery all the way down to 7 volts? It could just be because the battery is old, was sitting all winter, etc., but I would want to be sure that the charging system is working. When the mower is off, you'll see 12.8 volts nominally on the battery; 14 when the mower is running. If you don't see that 14 volts, then something is up w/ the charging system. That's when it's time to check the voltage coming off of the stator, and if you have a voltage there, then diagnose the voltage regulator. On some machines, these may be all-in-one. This was a great video.
Great video! I wish you could diagnose my mower. I get the click, but the starter doesn't turn over. I guess I'll have to go through the troubleshooting steps. But at least I learned that my solenoid is good.
i went through all this numerous times with an intermittent problem - starter would not turn over or trn just a little. next time it would start fine and stay that way for awhile. finally pulled the starter. found a broken chunk of field coil that would jam up and let loose whenever it felt like it. 1 new starter later and I was back in business. 1st time in 50 yrs I had run into that one.
You just saved me some time. I was about to pull the pressure switches out from the deck and brake to check them but I do hear the solenoid clicking so that means power is getting through both and the ignition is working. It makes sense the pressure switches need to be before the solenoid, not sure why that didn't occur to me, probably more just frustration getting to me. I can start it right up from a jump box on the starter so I'm thinking its probably just a bad contact from the battery I need to clean up. Great video.
I was about to do the same but watching this made me think. My mower would randomly not start with the relay clicking. I've had the mower 2 years and this started about 6 months after getting it. Recharging the battery didn't solve the problem. After seeing this and checking everything I became suspect of the battery. Toro supplied a 195 cranking amp battery. Other blogs indicate this is way too low. I bought a 340 and the machine fires up immediately every time. Easy fix after a lot of needless worry. Shame on Toro for supplying such a weak battery,
My Craftsman GTS 5000 had a similar problem. Turned out to be the brake switch. I spent a great deal of time replacing it. When I do maintenance on the mower, I make sure to remove any corrosion from all of the terminals. After that, I spray CRC Battery Terminal Protector on all the terminals. A great tip of yours is to remove the paint from any ground wires connected to the frame. Sometimes the problem will be a buildup of rust.
Great job dude, literally hit every point except the seat sensor . if your seat sensor isnt making contact your mower wont start either. Other than that I learned a lot about electrical conductivity and components. Great vid keep up the good work 👍
It will start with the seat up. If it doesn't then you're in gear or the deck is engaged. I have a 17.5 hp Yardworks tractor, same exact one as in the video, and I start mine all the time with the seat up. I was jumping my starter from the battery.
Also, if the brake switch is engaged, it doesn't matter which position the seat switch is in. The seat switch only grounds the coil if the brake switch is disengaged, or if the brake switch is engaged but the blades are still spinning. That's how you can start and run a mower without being on it. Or get off it while it's still running to move a fallen tree branch.
Very helpful. I am troubleshooting an old Ransome's Bobcat. Starter switch is bad but I have been bypassing it with a jumper cable from the positive battery post to the red post on solenoid. So no feedback of clicking. Last week, no cranking, just sparks at solenoid. Will try your approach to eliminating causes.
