Fuse keeps blowing

DISCLAIMER: I was THRILLED to have been able to even figure out how to access the fuse and change it. i.e. - I am a mechanical nincompoop. So feel free to get all technical but I likely won't understand what you're saying. Suggest that you "Explain it like I'm Five".

So... the other day I noticed that my blinkers and horn weren't working. I replaced the fuse and all was well. The bike sat for a few days because of the weather and when I started her up yesterday, the blinkers and horn were back to not working.

As mentioned in my disclaimer, I am very mechanically inept. So I guess my question to you guys is more of "is there something easy/stupid" I should be checking before I take it to the shop?


Thanks in advance!

 

R/R maybe? Short, ground issues?

 

Problem is with these problems you can chase around for ages trying to find the problem and you need testing equipment and you need to know how to fault find, there is no easy fix because you have a short somewhere and that is often hard to find

 

OK one step at a time - it would help us if you tell us what type of VFR we are talking about - there are quite a lot of different VFRs now, so tell us the year and engine cc/or generation. You may want to update your forum profile to include this information, so it appears automatically alongside all your posts [Forum Actions/Edit profile].

Have you checked to see if the blinkers fuse has failed again? If it has - don't be tempted to just stick in a bigger amp fuse as it may lead to serious damage.

Just remove the fuse and check the fuse. Tell us what you find.

If the second fuse has blown then you have some sort of electrical gremlin causing it to fail. So on to additional questions..

Has the bike exhibited any other weird behaviour? Have you noticed the gauges/clock resetting? Have any of the headlamp bulbs blown?
If yes then you may have RR/stator issues and need to track down Rubo's fault diagnosis thread.

[Can we assume that neither you nor anyone else has done any recent work on the bike - and you have not recently dropped it?]

Assuming we can rule out that sort of collateral damage, then the chances are there is some sort of intermittent electrical short affecting those circuits. Which may mean that somewhere along the relevant circuit, the wiring has sustained damage creating a short circuit. As the fuse is not blowing instantly it suggests you need to focus on the wiring around the relevant switchgear as that will tend to flex a bit as you move the steering back and forth and it may have chafed on something or a connection on the switchgear is working loose.

Find the relevant circuit diagram for your bike and take your time to track and check the wiring to those components, Hopefully that will reveal where the little gremlin is hiding. Good luck.




SkiMad

 

Thanks everyone!

So, a few more details/answers to questions although I am quickly beginning to believe that this is beyond me:

1. I have a 2007. Sorry, I thought it showed up in my profile.
2. I've had an ongoing problem with clock resetting almost since I bought the bike. I've just given up on that but perhaps its related.
3. Recently had new tires put on but that's it as far as repairs.
4. Haven't dropped it.
5. No other weird behavior or blown headlamps.


Thanks again!

 

My first thought is there may be multiple issues.
The fuses blowing seems like a short.
But the clock resetting seems like a grounding issue.

For an inexperienced person, the best I can suggest is to looks for loose or worm wires. Look around the battery, the fuse box, and around your instruments as well.
Beyond that, an experienced person would have to get to checking with some electrical equipment to measure volts and resistance and such.

 

First I would disconect the wires on the horn, put in a new fuse turn the ignition on and wiggle the steering back and forth several times and then check to see if the fuse has blown. If yes, disconect the blinkers and try the same thing to see if that causes it to blow. This will give you some idea if it is blinkers or horn, then we can trying to help isolate the wire causing the problem

 

Often, it's helpful to unplug all components fused on the same circuit and then plug them back in until you find the component responsible for blowing the fuse.

 

Thanks for the update.

I suspect Drewl has got it right - there may indeed be more than one problem here. So back to step by step.



The blown fuse sounds like some sort of intermittent short circuit. Others have already outlined ways to test and locate the fault. Hopefully the above diagram will allow you to figure out what wiring to check.

Do you have a copy of the service manual? If so refer to Section 20 page 23 which shows the left handlebar switch, and the correct electrical switching permutations for those switches. As the left handlebar switchgear contains both horn and indicators circuitry, I would definitely consider carefully removing this unit and cleaning the switch and checking the wires connected to it for defects. You are looking for anything loose or broken or indeed if the switch is full of water or corrosion. If the switch checks out OK then next check the turn signal relay as it can sometimes seize and has the potential to blow the fuse.


I am rather more worried by your comment that the clock resets frequently. Hopefully this is simply due to a battery that is at the end of its useful life, but it may also be down to other well known electrical Gremlins - namely the dreaded RR.

To check for such problems you really need to be able to use a multi-meter to test electrical circuits. If you are willing to try, then the testing process is described in post #9 on this thread - Note the tests need to be done twice - once with the bike cold and then again straight after the bike has been out for a decent ride allowing everything to get good and hot - as some components can check out OK whilst cold but develop faults when hot.

http://vfrworld.com/forums/showthread.php/39277-How-to-fix-common-regulator-Stator-failures

Otherwise if the clock is still re-setting, and you are not confident about using a multi-meter then its definitely time to get the bike to checked over by someone competent at fixing motorbike electrical problems.

Just a thought - there may be others on here living in or near Jacksonville Florida - who might be willing to swing by and help - especially if you have a well stocked beer fridge! So it might be worth creating a separate post asking riders in Florida for help with the problem but placed in the "General VFR Discussions" section of the forum.

Good luck and let us know how you get on.






SkiMad