Suspected rectifier fault

Hi, I know this has prob been asked before and after trawling through the Internet and forums I'm still unsure of a couple of things: My 99 reg vfr800 cut out on me a couple of days ago which just happend to be the hottest day of the year so far! I was sitting in traffic and when I tried to start it was as if the battery was flat and didn't have enough power to start it. After an hour and a half she fired up again no problem. The mechanic tested the charging on the battery, which is brand new and found 13.7 volts coming from the rectifier. So these are my questions:

1.When a rectifier fails can it cool down and continue to work again?

2. I'm going to fit a pcu fan but I think this will just prolong the inevitable, is this just a short term fix?

3. I've heard the best replacement is from ricks site in the US, are there no other alternatives? Honda quoted me £240 for a replacement which is too much for me!

Also my indicators take ages to start flashing once I turn them on, has anyone had this before? This goes away once the engine has warmed up.


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How did the R/R plugs and connectors look? Any signs of burning or melting? At minimum you should replace the R/R and wiring harness. I've owned two 3rd Gens and both have had similar electrical issues and my bikes only needed new R/R's. My friend Vince's 4th Gen also had similar issues but with Vince's bike we ended up changing his stator since the bike continued to die after installing a new battery, new harness and R/R. The strange thing was that his bike would only display the problem when we were out riding never when testing in the garage. Most electrical components fail when they get hot so we concluded that it was likely the stator since it was the only thing we hadn't touched and a new one seems to have solved the problem after alot of head scratching for months. I also highly advise to check you ground points and even add another or two. PC fans will help but the bottom line is that the stock R/R's are garbage and are notorious for failiing so go ahead and get one and save yourself the headache. Check >>> www.wiremybike.com for more info and parts pricing.

Rollin

 

I had the identiclal issue you're describing on my 6th gen. IDENTICAL. I've posted here and you're welcome to search post started by me.

Anyway, I went through and checked grounds, pulled all connectors, cleaned them and applied di-electric grease and buttoned everything back up. I haven't had an issue since.

I was hit by your scenario last summer. I've put about 1200 miles on the bike since then and it's been flawless since then. I just got doen with a 700 mile ride from des moines, Iowa to wichata falls, texas with no issue electrically. IT's been in the 90 degree range here a couple of days and no problems still electircally. I'm thinking dirty connecters were causing high resistance. Cleaning/greasing them I think took care of my issue.

Hope you get your's figured out.

Chip

 

To answer your queries:

1. yes, it can
2. yes, it is
3. Rick's makes a nice aftermarket RR

BZ

 

Ok, went for the short term solution: a pc fan, not sure how long it will last but just don't have the funds to replace the RR. Hopefully this will give me time to troubleshoot the issue. I've read that it could be stator or the harness or even just a bad earth, these are all avenues worth pursuing even if they prove less likely candidates.


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I may as well just get the uprated RR. I'm sure that at around 2k revs it's spluttering a bit, I think due to a weak spark? Does anyone know it this is also a symptom of a failing RR?

On a seperate issue, I slightly overfilled her with too much oil last weekend when I changed it, I'm going to drain the excess but have I caused any damage?


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She stalled on me again last night on the way home, fortunately a fellow rider gave me a jump start and I nursed her home with no lights. Suffic to say the fan mod didn't work for me in the warmer weather! I've now ordered the uprated RR from David silver spares and wished I hadn't tried to go down the cheep fix option! Lucky for me she didn't cut out in a dangerous place.

Thanks to the guy who stopped - so there is a camaraderie among bikers!


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