[jvocl350]

I have a 1972 cl350 which has been running immaculately for a few months after a carb rebuild and some other basic maintenance attention. It was totally functional electrically (electric start, turn signals, headlight taillight, brake light, horn etc) until a few days ago when the electric start would only "click" when engaged. I can still kick-start the bike pretty readily (2 kicks at the most) but now when i ride it after kick starting it i hear firecracker pops (misfires,backfires?) where i did not use to. Clearly I am desirous of fixing electric start and at the same time hope that the new pops help diagnose the problem. I have a multimeter and have gotten a 12.8V reading on my battery after trickle charging. But if i kick start and run it i get high7s/low8s volts on battery if i apply multimeter then. My guess is that this is pretty straightforward fix for someone who knows what they're doing...unfortunately I don't

 

[J-T]

Take your battery to an auto parts store or shop and have it tested.

 

[outobie]

battery seems toast...

now to figure out why it's toast...is it old, did it run low on water or is your bike's charging system not working

charging systems on these bikes are marginal when working perfectly and inadequate when slightly off.

 

[Rothafella]

Jvocl350 did you ever find a solution to your problem? I had a somewhat similar situation today and thought I would ask here before posting my own thread.

 

[Mydlyfkryzis]

Low battery voltage will cause misfires at idle and generally poor running.