ELECTRICAL NIGHTMARE - 5th Gen - please help

Discussion in 'Mechanics Garage' started by kiwivfr, Dec 17, 2009.

  1. kiwivfr

    kiwivfr New Member

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    Hi Guys,

    I know this has probably been covered in the past, but I have done everything I can find / think of, and STILL having electrical!!. A little bit of a description :

    5Th Gen with 38k, have replaced R/R (honda OEM), new battery, and replaced stator (honda OEM), still drains the battery after 3-4 rides to work. This morning was warming the bike up, NO HEADLIGHT !, got to work HEADLIGHT working (while running). Started no issue, rode home with no headlight, turned off, tried to start again, dead as a mackerel (although the fan was running). At some point in its history, this bike has had an alarm fitted, but this is not connected at the present (the earth is hanging off the loom under the seat not connected). If the other work that the previous owner is anything to go by, this hasn't been well installed. But thats just a hunch. Something is draining the battery, but I dont know how to work out what. Any advise would be appreciated.....
     
  2. crustyrider

    crustyrider New Member

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    make sure your stator is putting out the required voltage pull the stator wires loose and check....you will need to have a fully charge battery to have the bike run off of..if the numbers are correct reconnect it and then pull your RR loose from the battery isde and check the volts there... pretty sure you will find your problenm in those two steps is your stator wired in the correct sequence?...

    Good luck
     
  3. squirrelman

    squirrelman Member

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    Try pulling out all fuses then placing an ammeter between battery positive terminal and red wire to wiring harness, then replace fuses one at a time.

    Ammeter should jump when the circuit that's draining battery gets activated, next check your wiring diagram for which components are powered by that circuit.

    *********************

    "stator wired in the correct sequence?..."

    don't think there is any particular sequence, yellow wires are interchangable, i think.
     
  4. kiwivfr

    kiwivfr New Member

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    Thanks Guys, Stator was replaced about a month ago, and is wired correctly (have just checked). The stator that I pulled out was pretty toasted, compared to the new one. Will have a look with the ammeter tomorrow and see how we go.
     
  5. mello dude

    mello dude Administrator

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    Check with Joshua at - Wire My Bike - he's the vfr electrical guru.

    Good luck

    MD
     
  6. rccaulfield

    rccaulfield New Member

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    Did you say the earth from the alarm is bouncing around under the seat? Other then what youv done have you a bad earth somewhere on the bike- headlights giving you a clue as to where perhaps?
     
  7. steven113

    steven113 New Member

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    If it was mine I would start by eliminating every bit of the wiring and added accesories that the PO installed and start over(a hack job of an electrical system on a bike is just future problems to arise). While you have the fairings off, unplug every connecter you can get to one at a time of course. Clean and inspect each one, replace any that are damaged and pack all of them with dialectric grease. Of course the same goes for all grounds. Once this is all done squirlmans sugestion by testing with a voltmeter as you add fuses is a great way to narrow the search for your electrical gremlin.
     
  8. dizzy

    dizzy New Member

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    Start from square one. Charge your battery, just do a simple VDC test while running to make double sure you're charging system is operative. Go for a short ride and double check charging while the bike is hot.

    Make double sure that bike alarm is disconnected...if it were me, I'd physically remove it from the bike and throw it away. I've seen them cause problems more than once.

    Check your key off current draw using an ammeter as Squirrelman suggested. First check for a larger draw, like 1.0 amp or bigger. If none, check for a smaller draw...I'd go down to the milleamp range. Anything more than maybe 10 milleamps and start pulling fuses and connectors to see where it's going. A quick way to give you an idea, is to disconnect the negative battery cable and touch it to the terminal...you shouldn't see a big spark. If you do, something is definitely sucking on your battery.

    Make sure your fan isn't running all the time, only when it's supposed to. They draw several amps and can 'tax' the charging system more than you might think.

    If your headlight is working intermittently, flick your starter button. They are wired to go off while the starter button is depressed (at least the US models). Sometimes that switch can become a bit sticky.
     
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