Paladin Battery/Electrical Issues...

[LowBrewTow]

Today the trails were open and it was a beautiful day so my girlfriend and I decided to take our newish Chinese dual sports for a ride. We got about a mile and a half down the single track trail and my bike died. It wouldn't crank over and the dashboard kept cycling on and off. The voltage reader was low. If I didn't try to start it the dash lights would stay on for a minute but as soon as I attempted to start it would die and then cycle on and off.

I had to drag the bike up and down a very sandy trail back to the road while my girlfriend drove back to my house and grabbed my truck. Not a great first day of trail riding. My girlfriends Lifan Xpect has the exact same battery so I swapped them out to see if that was the cause. The voltage reader looked good but the bike still won't start. It won't even crank, I can just hear an audible "click" type of sound coming from the electrical components. Just one click then nothing. I checked the two fuses under the seat and they were fine.. any suggestions?

I had installed a wireless charging phone mount: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C8LXTPG6?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_ti tle_1 but I don't believe there should have been any compatibility issues. Its wired directly to the battery but it has an on/off switch and it was not left on since my last ride.

[OldGuy]

We don't have any electrical diagnostic info on these (that I am aware of) so I would suggest starting w/ checking ALL connections. Pulling the spark plug (which is a bit of fun from what I have read here!) would allow you to see if it cranks over without any compression. Thinking about this, is there an issue with the starter itself, or with the circuit to kick it over? Then again, your battery was low which suggests something is draining the battery. Being able to measure draw from the battery would be useful if you could do that. Check off, on, starting -



Not sure if you can access wiring to operate the starter from an external supply, that would clarify that aspect ...


Sorry, I realize this may not be a lot of help. Just thinking out loud, offering whatever I can.

[LowBrewTow]

electrical diagnosis is something I have zero experience in. It was very odd the way it died. It was idling for maybe 5 minutes while I test drove the Xpect. As soon as I went to on throttle with the Paladin it died and never turned back on. There is some electrical gremlin draining the battery and not letting it start now. I almost thought the battery blew up like what happened to the other guy. There was a ton of green powder under the seat. Turned out it was the green plastic battery rubbing on the bike that was causing it.

Ive already spent so much time and money getting this bike up and running only to have it immediately shit out on me the first time I'm out in the woods. The new KTM 390 enduro R is looking mighty fine this summer.

[LowBrewTow]

So I was able to jump the bike by touching the starter solenoid with a screwdriver. It fired right up. So do I have a bad solenoid or could it be something else?

[Mumen Rider]

From what you describe it sounds like a bad starter solenoid. These bikes use a generic cheap solenoid unit. Nibbi makes one that is double the price of a generic unit but who knows if it would be more reliable. I do know their ignition coil isn't pumping out anywhere near what it's rated.

[GypsyR]

Sounds like to me you have one of those bad battery cable connections that LOOKS fine but isn't. With a known hot battery the simple brute force diagnostic technique would be to hold down the start button (or really, get a helper too) while you yank and wiggle wiring. When it cranks you know you are close to the problem.

[J4Fun]

So I was able to jump the bike by touching the starter solenoid with a screwdriver. It fired right up. So do I have a bad solenoid or could it be something else?

I guess you mean crossing the big posts to get it started? If that’s the case you must have a loose connection with the two wires that operate the solenoid. To make the solenoid work it has to be grounded and have a hot from the starter switch. Somewhere close to the solenoid there’s a loose connection or the solenoid is bad but that doesn’t sound like your problem with such a new bike. Just my thoughts…

[LowBrewTow]

I bridged the solenoid terminals with the screwdriver. I wouldn’t be surprised if the it is a bad solenoid being such a new bike. There is a solid bike in there but it’s behind a lot of cheapo crap you need to put up with.

But I’m still curious why the battery died while running. I’m going to try the “brute force” technique and see if it reveals anything. I guess it’s time to invest in a multimeter too… The wiring on this bike is a head scratcher. Way too much slack in some areas and not enough in others. Makes it hard to put things nice and neat without doing some serious rewiring.

[LowBrewTow]

It looks like the battery used in these bikes is discontinued. On the SKYRICH website the HJTX4 is nowhere to be found.

[Mumen Rider]

The Skyrich HJTZ5S-FP-C would fit and is a direct replacement.



4.45"D x 2.76"W x 3.35"H



113mm D X 70mm W X 85mm H


For anyone else reading, a NOCO Lithium NLP5 is also a direct replacement that cost less. Amazon has it as frequently returned but I don't know which model it's referring to and or if people are using the correct charger to charge these. I've had no issues with mine.

[LightSmith88]

Hey there! LowBrewTow, are there any updates on what may have been causing the problem here? I am curious what you found out.