Crispy wires found under seat.

Hey all, new to the forums.

Been having a few electrical gremlins since buying the bike and having done a stack of research, haven't found anything conclusive so hoping someone can help me out here.

Bike struggles to start in the mornings. I have a digital voltage readout on my bike (installed by previous owner) that shows 11.4V. Seems to cough and splutter but starts. If however, once the bike is hot and if I go into a store then I know the bike won't start again when I return.

After a little investigation, I found some poor condition wires under the seat. I don't own a manual but feel this is a possible cause.



Was this part of the bike that was supposed to be recalled? I called my local Honda dealer and they said there are no outstanding recalls on my VIN number.

Would be great to get this figure out before the bike gets put to bed for my Canadian winter!

 

Basic electrical properties, resistance equal heat when current tries to conduct. That wire is a high current main feed and contacts in connector need to be cleaned and burnished to a bright metal finish. Emory boards for fingernail trimmed down do a great job. 11.4v means battery is very low, needs to be 12.6v, you need to check all connections, primarily the three yellow wire connector from the stator (alternator) to the R/R. Nothing to do with recall, just common gremlins due to corrosion of contacts.

Some will chime in with the link to "The Drill".

 

So I got my multimeter on the battery which reads 12.8 yet the digital readout reads 11.4. Wondering if I am losing a power loss between these points or if the digital readout is giving me a false ready?

I have also found that the R&R is OEM. When I am riding, I get a digital readout of 13.9-14V although the R&R gets crazy hot.

Going to check my stator tomorrow. From what I have found reading here, I need to take off the right side fairing and find the 3 yellow wires.

Will report more tomorrow.

 

Yup ... do "the drill". Just search for it.

I replaced all those wires (the dinky one burning up on your main fuse) and connectors (high grade r/c bullet connectors and dielectric grease), and I ran an additional set of redundant wires from the RR to the battery for security.

 

OEM R/R's (and most others) are shunt type units, that is, they shunt unused power to ground, that is why they get hot. Only a "Series" R/R will run cooler. Checkout www.roadstercycle.com for details.

 

Here's The Drill to keep it easy for you. See post #9 specifically.

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

 

Thanks for all the responses guys.

Took the right side off my bike this morning to find that the bike has already had its electrical played with. I attempted to do the DRILL too but unfortunately looks like the yellow wires coming from the stator have been crimped and shrunk. Having said that, I did check the battery before starting and had 12.8V, I let the bike run for a few minutes and measured the charging voltage which was 17.5V!! I then turned the engine off, let it sit for a minute and tried to restart and only got a click from the starter relay by the battery, engine didn't turn over.

I noticed that the R&R is stock, there are also extra wires and what looks like an additional harness and the relay coil whatever that is for? I held it in my hand to see if I could feel a click when ignition was on which there wasn't. The blue wire coming from the voltmeter was loose which I tightened but now does work!?

I have included pictures if anyone could help me out on this one.

I haven't pulled the stator cover off as yet, don't have time to do it today but if anyone else recommends doing this then I will.

Again, thanks in advance for all those helping me out.

 

If the are crimped, then undo and solder them ... or use a high quality connector with dielectric grease (if you're not sure what to use just solder them for the safest bet).

Looks like someone installed a relay for a switched (from ignition) power source for ancillary gear like heated grips, usb port, etc ...

17.5V?? Yikes! Is that off the battery terminals @ 5000rpm?

 

Jeff,

That's off the battery terminals @ idle LOL. I was a little worried to rev it given these voltages.

What kind of amps should the yellow wires be giving me? That will let me know what kind of connectors to get.

Thanks as always.

 

At the battery terminals, you should be getting around 13.2-13.4v at idle and 13.8-14.4v @ 5000 RPM on a 6th gen.

There's likely something wrong with the R/R, the stator, or both. Do you have the service manual (the giant bible)? It tells you how to test both the stator and R/R.

I used 5mm bullets (gold plated) but you're not experienced at soldering, just twist the wires together directly, solder those, and heat shrink.

 

Ok so did you then check battery voltage when it wouldn't start? Sounds like battery could be fried by pushing 17+ volts into it. More testing is required

 

Honda likes to use two grounds (green) and two hots (red) from the output of the R/R to handle the current. Problem with that is if one of the two connectors gets corroded, the other ends up carrying full load.

 

Saga continues.

Today, I performed The Drill. I cut the stator wires that where cut by previous owner (to install additional harness for something) and checked continuity tests and resistance I was getting roughly 0.4 ohms resistance, infinite continuity and 22VAC at idle......climbed 55VAC roughly 5000rpm. Glad to report that the stator in my eyes (and other posts) is OK.

Next, took the battery off and fully charged. Place back on bike and getting roughly 12.4VDC. After start-up and load test, dropped to 9.9VDC. Tested terminals when idle and AGAIN was 17.3VDC! Revved the engine up and the charging voltage went higher.

I decided to completely remove the additional harness that was placed by previous owner (see picture) as I don't know what it was for and have no reason to use it right now.



After removing and replacing original harness connections together, I tested battery at terminal both off and idle...... PERFECT!

This tells me that there is a bad connection somewhere in the additional harness. Not really having too much time to pull cables, I will make this a winter project when the bike is off the road. I will be adding a phone charger (maybe) so could possibly utilize the additional harness instead of throwing it away.

Thanks all for all their input and advice. Good to know what numbers I should have been looking for when swinging through the electrical system.

 

Looking further into this, it appears that the additional harness is infact the "VFRness" from WIREMYBIKE.

Needless to say, there appears to be some sort of fault on it so will be contacting them and asking if they have received this kind of fault before.

 

Further update.....

Took off the left side of the bike this morning and thought I would take a look at the stator......



Not 100% sure but I would say this is pretty toast.

Like I have mentioned, I have been having issues restarting the bike once it is hot. Cold starts appeared to be ok.

Stator also checked out when cold and charging unit seemed ok too when cold. It was the heated issue that I was experiencing.

Anyway what next? Where to order a new stator? Do I go for new or re-wound? Do I need to get a new R&R too?

Thanks in advance.

 

I think you should get a new stator and a Super Mosfet Kit FH020AA from roadsterscycle...

 

Agreed. I do actually want to buy the R&R, Stator and new battery but think I am overkilling the issue.

There are plenty to chose from it seems, Ricks motorsports, wiremybike, roadstercycles, electrosport, amazon, ebay.

BIG question is, who is the favorite supplier?

 

When it comes to electrical components I'd go for roadsterscycle, as his products are highly rated among the folks here & I'm willing to pay $$ for peace of mind...

 

I agree with Nookiaz. The Roadstercycle Super Mosfet Kit is a beauty, very high quality, and installation is a breeze. You should get your bike fixed up now to ride in Fall. Best time to ride in Canada, But ends quickly (Stoopid Winter). Have fun on your VFR. Laker

 

Thanks Laker and Nookiaz, just placed an order with Jack over at Roadstercycles.........the new R&R should be on its way to me tomorrow.

Also placed an order with Bike Bandit and bought the new "Rick's stator", that too should hopefully be here by the end of the week.

Took a look at the blue connector too. Found one side with the earth and other side completely missing.



Got any thoughts on this? I have read that this is one of the things that have to have a great connection.......obviously mine isn't considering it doesn't exist!