HillbillyD 1 Posted September 12, 2023 Hello, New to the Forum. Just purchased a new to me 1987 Honda Trx 350 from a guy. Got it for a steal at $400 due to it not running. Installed a new fuel pump, inline filter, drained the old gas from the tank and filled with fresh gas. It runs like a dream. The issue I am having is the only way to use the electric start is to jump the starter solenoid. I assumed the starter solenoid was bad so I replaced the solenoid with the same result. The neutral light comes on like its supposed to. When I hit the start button on the dash it doesn't click. Only thing I have noticed is the neutral light will dim when hitting the start button. The kill switch is stuck in the middle as far as I can tell. I did not see anything on this exact issue when looking through the forum. Is there anything common to look for? Going to check grounds tonight and see if there is any issue there. Someone has painted the frame at some point so thinking that is possibly it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeepwm69 7,619 Posted September 12, 2023 Welcome aboard. Is it a TRX350D or a TRX350A? 87 was a weird year that had two different models, and while they look very similar and share the majority of parts, they do have different electrical systems. Given that the neutral light dims when you hit the start button, I'd say that you have a break somewhere in the wire between ignition switch and the solenoid, or the start switch and the solenoid. When you hit the start button, it sends power to the solenoid. It sounds like power isn't getting all the way to the solenoid. Look at the plug going to the solenoid, should be yellow wire/red tracer and light green wire/ red tracer. The green is ground, so with the start button pushed, you should have 12V at the yellow wire and ground at the green wire. If not, trace those wires back and see if you have that at the source of the wires, which is the start button for the yellow and the CDI for the green. You can download the factory service manual in the "service manuals" tab at the top of the page, and the wiring diagrams are on page 291-292 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fishfiles 20,145 Posted September 12, 2023 Hi , welcome to the forum , I would look at the ground cable , especially since you said PO painted it -- check the positive too ---- after market solenoids are junk from my experience with them Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HillbillyD 1 Posted September 12, 2023 (edited) I'm unsure which one it is. Unsure how to tell the difference honestly. I will check those tonight. Unfortunately this thing had some shady repairs at times in its life. I appreciate the feed back on it. I will see what I find and bring it back for the group. These things are completely new to me. I was born after they were made but love the look of them. The cables did look okay on the battery side. I did pull them and clean them up to be sure. I will double check to make sure they are good this evening. Attaching a picture of the beast in reference. And a picture of the connector ( black one on the left hand side of the picture) that is attached to the solenoid wires if you may know if it's factory or not. Edit - I did fix those connections when installing the new solenoid. Edited September 12, 2023 by HillbillyD Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeepwm69 7,619 Posted September 12, 2023 26 minutes ago, HillbillyD said: I'm unsure which one it is. Unsure how to tell the difference honestly. I will check those tonight. Unfortunately this thing had some shady repairs at times in its life. I appreciate the feed back on it. I will see what I find and bring it back for the group. These things are completely new to me. I was born after they were made but love the look of them. The cables did look okay on the battery side. I did pull them and clean them up to be sure. I will double check to make sure they are good this evening. Attaching a picture of the beast in reference. And a picture of the connector ( black one on the left hand side of the picture) that is attached to the solenoid wires if you may know if it's factory or not. Edit - I did fix those connections when installing the new solenoid. Pretty sure that's a D, although stuff can be swapped around on them. Look in the middle of the frame right up front, and there should be a sticker that looks like this. It will say 350D or 350 on it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fishfiles 20,145 Posted September 12, 2023 Need to figure out if you have a 87 350A or a 87 350D cause they are different animals , you might find a tag on the frame under the seat or in the front --------------- in the pic I posted below , it shows both models to hook up the same way at the ground , trace the cable from the battery , #16 goes to one of those two bolts that hold the starter in , take the bolt out , polish up the wires' end terminal and the bolt and then reattach Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HillbillyD 1 Posted September 12, 2023 Attached a picture of that plate. I do not see a d so I think it's a 350A. I will check that ground. I appreciate all of the help. Will report back this evening/ tomorrow with an update Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fishfiles 20,145 Posted September 12, 2023 1 hour ago, HillbillyD said: Attached a picture of that plate. I do not see a d so I think it's a 350A. I will check that ground. I appreciate all of the help. Will report back this evening/ tomorrow with an update Yea , it looks like it is a 08 ( August ) 1986 so it would be a 350 A as the 350D didn't come out till 1987 as far as I know , what is the 10th digit of your serial number , 1986 is G , 1987 is H Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HillbillyD 1 Posted September 12, 2023 10th digit is a H Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HillbillyD 1 Posted September 13, 2023 (edited) Alright, last night didn't go as planned. The PO didn't tighten the ground for the starter all the way. When to break the bolt loose to clean the threads, ground wire and the bolt snapped as soon as I touched it. So I will have to fix that and see what's next. Need to pull the carb apart and rebuild/clean. I believe the float is sticking causing fuel to come out of the overflow vent. Edited September 13, 2023 by HillbillyD Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fishfiles 20,145 Posted September 13, 2023 11 minutes ago, HillbillyD said: Alright, last night didn't go as planned. The PO didn't tighten the ground for the starter all the way. When to break the bolt loose to clean the threads, ground wire and the bolt snapped as soon as I touched it. So I will have to fix that and see what's next. Need to pull the carb apart and rebuild/clean. I believe the float is sticking causing fuel to come out of the overflow vent. Move the ground wire to the other bolt ------ maybe the bolt was too long / the threads were messed up / or there was dirt in the thread holes Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HillbillyD 1 Posted September 13, 2023 That's the plan. I want to fix the other bolt to make sure it doesn't cause any starter damage down the road with having only one bolt in it. Hoping to do that this evening Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HillbillyD 1 Posted September 15, 2023 Just an update. I checked the power to the solenoid and have power at the yellow/red strip wire. Made sure ground was good. Ordered a replacement solenoid should be here today will install this weekend and see what happens. Fuel issue seems to be resolved as after loosing the fuel tank cap. Starting with the fuel shut off. Once it started to die out turned the fuel back on and seems to be okay. Will clean/rebuild the carb once I get it to start without jumping the solenoid Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fishfiles 20,145 Posted September 15, 2023 11 minutes ago, HillbillyD said: . Starting with the fuel shut off. Once it started to die out turned the fuel back on and seems to be okay. Will clean/rebuild the carb once I get it to start without jumping the solenoid Sounds like maybe the float is sticking and flooding out the engine , when you turn the fuel off and spin it over it is clearing the cylinder of excess fuel , then it will fire and run Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HillbillyD 1 Posted September 15, 2023 It'll start even when the float was stuck. Still have the start button starting problem to work through Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HillbillyD 1 Posted September 16, 2023 Update on the start button issue. Installed new solenoid and it starts right up. Start button issue was just a bad solenoid replaced with a new bad solenoid that got replaced by a new solenoid. Still need to clean the carb/float 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
