Bike: 02 954

Situation: Tried to start as normal, it sounded and acted normal (all gauges etc..) for about 2 seconds and then heard a click somewhere and then went completely dead (as if battery was yanked out).

Preliminary diagnosis done thusfar:
(Run switch on / fuel okay)
Checked battery and it's fine.
Checked cables and connections to battery and all seemed to check out fine.
Checked fuses and all seem okay.

Query: What is next thing in order of priority that I should check?

Additional notations that may be of help: Only thing I did different that may (or may not) have anything to do with the cause of this is that when I first turn key to on position I usually wait a few seconds before hitting the start button but this time for some unknown reason I turned key to on position and immediately hit start button .. does that make any difference? Keep in mind, in the brief couple of seconds before everything died, everything did sound and look normal (all gauges came on and the noises sounded normal)

 

Not a mechanic (not even close), but it looks like you might be a canidate for atrouble-shoot of your electrical system (just my two cents).

 

Well you have to tell us what happens now? We cant give you accurateadvice without knowing how the bike acts now.

I guessing it wont start now because of the name of the thread?
does the fuel pump prime?
lights work? tail lights, turn signals, head light
gauges work?
spark?
BAS/TOS?
Give us as much as you can, that info would give us a good start though. and RHU is correct, its in the wiring.

 

Nada, Nuthin, Zilch, Zip, Zero

Best example I can give is; Imagine you ride your bike one day with no problems - everything runs and sounds as it should and the world is beautiful and humming birds are singing, then turn it off and next day go to start it and for a brief 2 seconds all lights / gauges / sounds are the same as they've always been, then "click" and everything goes dead like a solenoid fried or something ... another words, if I was trying to do this purposefully, I would imagine I would get the same results if I pulled the battery out and tried to start it. Keep in mind the fuel did try to prime right before bike called it quits and gave me to gtfo.

I'm sure it's something very minor (at least I hope) but short of checking fuses and battery I'm not sure where to go next.

 

You could have popped a fuse- check them all. If the starter stuck on and the motor fired up you could have blown a fuse... _my 2 cents

 

ok so the lights dont come on at all as if the battery were out, no power to anything? It will be an easy fix but please give me some specific info on the questions below. I have an idea of what it might be right now, but i dont want to take a stab in the dark. more info will make it easier.

Ok when you turn the key "on" now do the gauges light up? If you hit the start button will the motor turn over? try it with the kill switch on and off. Does your headlight come on when you turn the key on? tail light running light work? brake light come on when you hit the breaks? when you turn the key on does the red light on the instrument pannel flash?
Please answer these questions so we can help you.
To pin point the problem we need that kind of info, when it comes to wiring a little thing like that can give you the biggest clue. I had lots of wiring issues with my bike and fixed it all recently so the info is fresh in my head and i might be able to help you.

 

Yes, nothing turns on .. no power of any kind.


The simple answer is "No" to every one of the questions above (and I did turn kill switch off/on and retried it with no luck) ... the long answer is that the answer was yes to all questions above right up to the point where I pressed the starter button at which point everything went dead but bike never started (all worked fine the previous day and I've done nothing to the bike since).

I have a feeling it's just the simple 3 amp fuse that's inline with the postive battery cable .. that fuse looks fine visually but it could be the very end that's not visible that's messed up. I'm going to go out right now and buy one of those fuses and test to see if that's the issue or not ... so in the mean time, please tell me what else you think it may be in case that doesn't solve it. Thanks (i'll keep you posted)

 

Ok, your right, the first place to start is the fuses, simple and quick to check, make sure that 30A is good and then check all of the smaller ones too, use a multimeter to check them, just make sure they have continuity(spelling?). also make sure they are in the proper spots when you put them back, i put a 10A in a 20A spot once and my headlight wouldnt work and i couldnt figure out why, it was the fuse.

If that does nothing, the next thing to check is the Regulator/Rectifier (R/R), which is what im going to put money on from the sounds of it. Take off the tail fairing and the tank(might not have to take the tank off, cant remember). unplug the R/R and look at the wires and the plug at the end of them, they should be brightly colored red, yellow, green or something along those lines, If the plastic on the wires is discolored(brown usually) or melted then your R/R is bad in which case your bike will act like it is, might have fried your battery too when it went, make sure your battery has ~13 volts and holds it over night when its not connected to anything, should not drop below 12V if it drops at all. also check the plug, the metal should be silver or gold colored, if its corroded or burnt youll be able to see it.

If it looks ok, then download the manual and test the R/R per the manuel instructions to make sure its good. Let us know about that and we'll move on to the next thing if that is not it.

 

okay, i think we can rule out fuses (although you never know) .. i don't have a multimeter (i'll go out and get one) but i did replace every fuse in the fuse box as well as the 30A one right that's separate and right next to a black box with a cable plugged into it (not sure what that one does but I replaced it just in case) and it's still dead. (i replaced each fuse with the same amp fuse that was in there to begin with)

this is just a guess but i don't think the battery is fried because when i connect it to the battery tender, the green light comes on indicating it has full charge.

so i'll go to the next step now and check the r/r per your recommendation and let you know. thanks for your help

just out of curiosity, if it is the r/r, how difficult is that to replace and how mechanically inclined do you need to be? .. just want to know if i should take it in for service or if i should attempt to replace it on my own thanks again

 

DONT TAKE IT IN lol there are two bolts that you have to unscrew from the subframe, unplug it, get the new one, bolt it to the subframe and plug it in. really simple procedure. If you can open a beer, you can replace the R/R heh, its really that simple. The stock R/Rs dont seem to hold up well, the one on my bike went and i got a nice aftermarket one with large fins to keep it cool and havent had a problem with it thus far.

Yea the battery is probably good, i wouldnt worry too much about that, but it would be a good idea to get a multimeter, its a life saver when diagnosing electrical problems.