Main Fuse Keeps blowing when kill switch turned on after battery boosted in parking lot.

Please help.

I have a 2007 VFR 800. I put a new battery into the bike 2 months ago and have had no problems. Two days ago I accidentally left the key in the on position and killed the battery in a parking lot. A kind gentleman with a pickup truck came along and offered me a boost. I accepted and he connected his jumper cables and boosted my bike. The bike started and ran fine.

I got home and shut the bike off. When I came out to ride the bike again a few minutes later I turned on the key and turned on the kill switch. I didnt hear the fuel pump prime and no FI light came on. I tried to start the bike and all it would do is crank and crank but not fire.

I checked the fuses and discovered the main fuse 30A next to the battery and starter relay had blown. I replaced the fuse with another and the bike started and i had no problem for 2 days. Today I went out to ride the bike and again I turned on the kill stitch and heard a pop and no fuel pump. I checked the main fuse and again it was blown. I replaced it again and this time the bike started. I let it warm up and then turned it off to try the kill switch and starter again. Once again it blew the fuse. I went through three more fuses. The fuse doesn't blow every time. Sometimes i can start it 5 or 6 times before it blows.

Can anyone tell me what might have happened? The problem started directly after boosting the bike. What could be causing the fuse to pop? I think it happens when I turn on the kill switch.

I am some what mechanically inclined but know little about the electrical system. Any help would be appreciated as the dealer will most certainly rape me for diagnostic testing.

I seriously regret having accepted the jump start.

 

If the guys truck was running at the time then you probably severly damaged the R/R and thats probably what's causing the fuse to pop. You should test the regulator and while you are at it check the stator.

 

Ok. I have a multi meter. Any idea how to test them and what to look for? The odd thing is it doesn't blow every time. after the first time it blew directly after the boost I replaced it and drove it for 2 days no problem. Then tonight it blows again. I replace the fuse again and it either blows right away or blows after starting five or six times. If it was the rectifier that was gone wouldn't it blow every time I started the bike? I will definitely test both Im just trying to understand.

 

Intermittent electrical problems are a pain in the ass. Check out this post here: http://vfrworld.com/forums/5th-generation-1998-2001/39277-how-fix-common-regulator-stator-failures.html

 

Also the main fuse and the red and white wire that is connected to it are getting really hot when the bike is reved up.

 

I think the red w/ white stripe goes to the R/R. I found this if you want to know why jump starting a bike from a running vehicle is bad news. Jump Starting a Bike

 

Oh and make sure it's not just a loose connection at that 30 amp fuse. A loose connection could cause a heat build up and pop the fuse.

 

you should give all the connections behind the fairings a good inspection.
primarily the connections that the left and right hand controls and the ignition key switch plug into.
i was having a lot of weird issues and it turned out to be those connections.

 

Check the connectors on your head light as well
All good advise above :thumbsup:

 

Check your starter relay, thats the thing under the red cover to the left of bikes battery. Check the connections to your R/R, Check your connection from your stator to your R/R on the right side of the bike (three yellow wires, go directly to R/R.) Bear in mind that, alot of people solder these connections together and do away with the plugs because they are a source of heat...

Dollars to donuts, your gona find a fried connection on one of the above mentioned items...Keep US POSTED! inquiring minds wana know, good luck...DMM are fun huh...

 

Ok so I have checked all the connections to all the above mentioned items. Not a single fried connection. I have disconnected the starter relay the r/r the fuel pump and also had the battery load tested. No dice. Even with all those things disconnected as soon as you flip the kill switch on it blows the fuse.

Now Im going to begin the process of testing all the wires to see of any are burned or melted.

 

Okay that sounds like a good plan. I know how frustrating these electrical problems can be. One of the other problems that I had was broken/shorted out tail light and license plate wires from the seat smooshing and rubbing on them. This was blowing out instrument and tail fuses.
I would check those wires and any around the gas tank and seat area that maybe getting damaged by the seat and tank first. Also check all the connections plugging into the tank and that area. Also check and see if the pump is operational. If it can be hotwired to run or if the pump itself is faulty and that is what is blowing the fuses.

 

that red white wire goes to your ign and clock, stop the madness with replacing the 30 amp fuse. disconnect your battery, ohm from the pos to ground k.o(key off), then k.r(key in run/start pos). post back what you have. then pull fuses one by one with k.r and post back

 

and if none off the fuses eliminate the short, pull the engine stop relay and also pull ign switch and check it for damage

 

if still shorted unplug your r/r

 

just going through the prints on that bike

 

Well after an entire day with no results but frustration I finally gave up and had it towed to the dealer.

I tried disconnecting the R/R, the fuel pump, the starter relay, the starter motor, and inspected the kill switch and had the batter load tested. The main fuse blew with the key on and the kill switch turned to on with each of these items disconnected. I took a multi meter and checked as much of the harness as possible looking for shorts. All I could find was the red and white wire from the fuse to the r/r was grounded permanently. I test ran a new wire and no dice with that either.

I sincerely appreciate all your help. Thank you. Now I can not wait to see how hard the dealer rapes me and how long they have my bike tracking down what could be a needle in a hay stack. Ive learned my lesson. Never going to have anything jumped off another vehicle ever.

 

Here she is last week when she was not feeling so unwell.

 

Hey, sorry to hear you ended up having to take it in. Please keep us posted as to what they find. Hopefully it will help someone else out.

 

I've got to admit at the risk of sounding a bit melancholy...today was a sad day watching it go on the tow truck naked with out her fairings or seat and dead as dead can be. I have a strong emotional attachment to that bike.no wait. It has an attachment to me. I swear it has a soul. All our Precious VFRs do. Don't ask me how I know that but I do. I know that bike is special in the very same way I know that a cbr 600 or a gsxr 600 is not. It's exactly like how I know a Ferrari 458 Italia is a masterpiece of automotive engendering but a Maserati qutaroporte is just ok. Its the same reason a Boeing 747 bores me but every time I remember seeing Concorde fly as a kid I loose my breath. There is something about our vfrs that make them special. Maybe it's the history. Maybe it's the way they sound. Maybe it's the legendary performance and comfort of a machine that's truly the jack of all trades. What ever it is there is something about the VFR that elevates it above anything else. Something about it that makes it what it is. The best bike ever built.

I hope she will be ok what ever the cost!

Go ahead call me crazy.