Bought 91' VFR750 today, stator wires already caught fire!

Hey everyone - I wasn't planning on joining so soon, more like lurking for a while, but unfortunately I need your help!

I just bought a 91' VFR750 today. The bike has about 30k and is in good shape for its age, appears well taken care of. PO had it for 8 years, didn't ride it much.



So, I rode home - about 15 miles, took another joyride later in the night, then a few hours later took it for another ride.

I noticed on the ride that there was a bit of smoke and a melting plastic smell but I thought maybe it was the fuel stabilizer burning off or a bit of chain lube or something burning on the header.

However, I noticed a lot of smoke, then flames. Long story short I walked the bike 30 blocks through lower Manhattan to get home and just took the fairings and tank off to get a look.

I immediately saw that the 3 wires from the stator were burned through. It looks like an extremely common problem and I've already read a lot about it.

One thing I'm trying to figure out is that I can't find the white 3 prong connector everyone is talking about. My stator wires appear to go directly into the wiring harness then to the RR. The only connector is the one that goes into the RR - and it looks fine.

Everyone else seems to have issues with the connector going bad. What does it mean that my wires have just burnt through right in the middle of them? Do you think that the PO of the PO might have already possibly replaced the stator wiring and bypassed the connector. What do you think? Here are some pics of the wires.





Is there a way to get this thing on the road temporarily? I'm consider just soldering some 12ga wires close to where they come out the stator and running that all the way to the RR. However, since I've already had 1 problem with the wires burning through, am I setting myself up for more?

I also plan to do the stator resistance check tomorrow. What are my options at this point? I'd like to avoid immediately dropping $300 on an R1 RR and wiring kits and whatnot if possible.


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From the pics it does look like the connector block has been replaced, were there solder joints where it burnt out? I don't know much about electrics but unless the PO did a crappy job, the wires shouldn't burn without the connector. Possibly you had some kind of short ( the burnt wires look suspiciously close to the bracket that holds the connector in place when it's there) I would replace the wires, then give the whole electrics system a good going over (follow "the Drill" thread on this site) Provided it's not overcharging badly you should be able to check if its all working with the bike running (running, not ridden) before you spend a pile of money. Budget for the upgrade in the future though.

 

Bit hard to tell but if the burnt wires are the stator wires I would think that this was because they weren't insulated from each other properly, rubbed through and shorted out. Sorry but I would say stator and rec/reg will be toast

 

1. Don't ride this bike unless you know that the battery is in proper condition. ( properly charged )

2. Make sure you do the resistance check on the stator, before rewiring, or you may be wasting your time. If it's shorted, you'll have to start all over.

3. If possible, stagger the solder connections of high power wires. No matter how good the joint, it will always be higher resistance than straight wire. There's no sense in adding to the problem, by creating a hot spot. Make sure that the connection is sealed properly. Corrosion is your worst enemy.

 

Thanks for the tips. I will check the stator first, if it's okay then I will rewire.



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Just got a better look in the daylight - you guys were spot on. The wires weren't even soldered just twisted together!


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Congratulations on your purchase! Don't cut that rear mud flap off for gawds sake :loco: cut those wires back and do a resistance test, you can run the bike and switch your dmm to ac too and do a test. I believe in manuals for everything I own. I hot two of these bikes btw, r/r should be upgraded if stator is chit. If any of the three yellow wires touch btw your screwed. Do the tests and keep us posted.

 

The world is full of clowns and the problem is some of them touch motorcycles.......The wires weren't even soldered just twisted together!

 

Well I got some 10ga wire, cut off the burnt part and soldered it up to the stator, then into the wiring harness.

How can I tell if the RR is bad? I turned the bike on and ran it for about 10 minutes, turned the idle up to 4k rpm and the highest voltage I could read at the battery terminals is 13.7 volts. Is there a better way for me to test?

Also I just touched the RR and it nearly burned my hand. That's after only 10 minutes of idling. I could only imagine what an hour of stop and go traffic would do.

Lastly, the wiring harness is also very hot to the touch.


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One more thing - this is what my RR looks like.







Is that stock or has it already been replaced?


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Considering maybe going this route http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/...ving-the-rectifierregulator-to-a-cooler-spot/


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I guess I should have said run, instead of ride, the bike, with a suspect battery. If you still haven't put your battery on a proper charger, you're risking more damage. It is not recommended to test the charging system with a low battery. All the readings will be wonky. This is why it is running hotter than usual.

That is an RR that is used on several Hondas. If you plan on keeping this bike for a while, I recommend getting a new one.

 

I have not had the battery on a tender yet, it was showing about 12.5 volts earlier but I chalked some of that low level up to it almost catching fire last night and not getting a proper charge for a while

Unfortunately I'm at my gf's place in Manhattan where I have only a few tools and none of my bike stuff, also have to work on it on the street with no power. Today I did the soldering with a propane torch.

I need to to get the bike back out to my shop in Brooklyn to do any real work.

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Holy shit. :cower:

 

Nice 91, Sorry to hear your timing wasn't so good on the electrical hic-up, though this place will get you through this as you can all ready tell. Congrats though on the purchase, once past these you'll be seeing nothing but smiles. That being, LOL, when you get tired of those rims, let me know

 

Well I rode her for about a half hour tonight, all seemed fine, except when I forgot to turn the petcock back on and ran outta gas 2 blocks from the apartment

After remedying that though it was uneventful. When I replaced the wiring from the stator I routed it around the left side and then over the engine (through that cylinder shaped hole where the frame is connected, I think?). I wanted to purposely leave the soldered parts sticking out from either side of the bike so I could monitor them periodically and make sure they didn't get too hot.

Today I also ordered a $30 R1 R/R off eBay, so I'll put that on once it comes in. Will also likely redo the wiring from stator to R/R and from R/R to battery per the other threads on here.

In the meantime I'll keep riding and monitoring and hoping I don't burn my new ride to the ground!

Thanks for the help, it's been a wild 24 hrs of ownership.


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And once you get past these probs fit a voltmeter to it so you can monitor the voltage and hopefully prevent another meltdown

 

+1 on the meter

Feel better checking it, especially when using heated jacket and gloves. Harness holding up so far, passing 60,000 miles. I carry a spare R/R.

Cheers.