G2 wont kick, possible wiring issue

[mike kever kombi]

hi guys,

i picked up a Yamaha G2 about 7 years ago, for use at my campsite. When i first got it, i took it home, squirted it with some color, reupholstered the seats in marine vinyl, and added a back seat. The only real problems i ever had with it, were a loose connection at accelerator stop switch, and if it sat too long, the fuel pump diaphragm would dry out, and i would need to take it apart, and clean it for it to pump again.

last year we decided to bring it home in the fall as the paint and upholstery were looking tired, and we were going to redo them. The cart was in the garage and my wife needed to move it to get something. when she parked it she left lights on and key in on position, so the battery died, wasnt a big deal as battery would need to get pulled when i washed it before paint anyway. I pulled the battery, put it on the charger then installed it. thats when all hell broke loose.

back by the connection for the back up buzzer, and fuse(s) the wires caught on fire. I got a copy of the wiring diagram so i could redo the wiring in that section, and thats when i realized, that somebody had hacked the wiring.

there was only 1 fuse, and that was for the negative side, the pink wire for the back up buzzer, was spliced at the main switch, and used to power tail lights, the red wires for the fuse in back, were cut inside the loom, and the positive fuse had been deleted.

the cart had been grounded to body, presumably to make lights work, the oil level indicator light is missing, and the brown wire from ignitor unit was cut, and a few other things to get power for front lights.

i spent the day yesterday cleaning everything enough to work on, and being able to discern the different colors. i unwrapped everything so all the wires were exposed, and ran everything the way it is shown on the wiring diagram (i think), the only difference being the oil warning light that is missing, ive got the black, black/red wires connected (completing the circuit back to ignitor unit, as if light were lit), and all the aftermarket lights have been disconnected.

after all this, i go to start it, and nothing. its as if the accelerator stop switch was disconnected. I pulled out the multi meter, and started testing everything. Full power at battery. getting less than full power at stop switch, selenoid, generator and ignitor unit. getting same varied results at grounds.

full power at battery with key in off position, drops about 3 volts, when key turned to on. i printed the trouble shooting tips in the sticky, and will hook up my power probe tonight and do a check down, if i have time. if not it wont be till wednesday.

few questions.
-there should be no voltage drop across any of the leads correct? (or very minimal at worst, but not 1/2 voltage) could this be a faulty voltage regulator? how would you check that?

-by completing the circuit for oil warning light, have i locked out something in ignitor unit?

-Is there a way to bypass ignitor unit to check starter? can i just jump terminals on selenoid?

- my key switch looks to be factory, but there are only 2 position, on or off. no check position. is it possible switch is just worn? will this affect operation?

i know that i am kind of putting the cart before the horse, asking questions before doing the proper trouble shooting. i am just hoping maybe someone with more experience can identify some problems, so i dont have to tear apart the harness again, which i probably should anyways, and point me in the right direction.

thanks in advance,
Mike

[motojoe1988]

U have to find the sweet spot on the key switch as in found mine one day when playing with the key.

[motojoe1988]

I don't think g2s should be grounded to the frame only negative on the battery. When I got my cart it had lights that are wired all wrong grounded to the frame and I kept pooping fuses. Hope this helps. Also maybe check battery under load I think anything under 12 with pedal pushed I'm means a new battery may be on ur to do list. Please anyone if my info is wrong please correct me. Thank you. Good luck buddy

[mike kever kombi]

No, the circuit for the cart should not be grounded to the frame. Everything should return back to battery.

The battery is dropping voltage because there is something that is drawing load from it with key on, but no generator going to recharge it. The battery was new last year, so that shouldn't be a problem. Nonetheless I will put it on the load tester and check it out.

It's raining right now so I cannot work on cart, but I have made a checklist for both ground and positive connections to check, with and without keys on, as well as continuity checklist, and a resistance check list. Should make it easier to diagnose using a systematic approach, as well as recording results. It will make it easier for me to visualize this way.

I also have the factory service manual from Yamaha, so I will look through that and see what I find.

I am hoping that I just forgot to hook something up, or perhaps crossed a wire when redoing it. I really don't want to rip into harness, after I cleaned everything up and rewrapped it, but I will if I have to, and call it a lesson learned the hard way.

[mike kever kombi]

Checked the battery. No good, so that is one problem. Pulled the harness and verified everything is wired correctly. It is

Pulled the battery from my Silverado to check, but it is a side post, and cart is top post, so I just depressed gas, and locked it in place with vice grips, the touched leads to terminals, and it kicks.

Will have to get new battery, then verify that mechanicals are good.

[motojoe1988]

Kool hope it was just that simple of a battery

[sho305]

The frame is not grounded with a stock G2/9. I did ground mine as my lights have no ground wire its the mount bolt. Never had a problem until my ground wire failed one night and my lights got real dim. I stopped right away as I knew what the problem was.

Grounds are all wired as you likely found out. Great cart but wiring is one of its faults, grounds love to get old and have bad connections so keep an eye on them.

Power goes to the key, pedal, then ignition and start solenoid. All powered up and you have ground then that part should work.