Serious Electrical Problem NEED HELP ASAP
 

OK, so long story short...

Awhile back, the bike starting blowing the gauge cluster/tail light fuse, not very frequently, but enough to concern me.

Fast forward a good bit, and now it's gotten to the point where as soon as the key is on, it blows the fuse.

The bike is my daily, and it's rather difficult to ride without knowing the temps, speed, RPM's, etc (I feel like I've been riding a dirt bike lol)

Also, the tail light being out concerns me, because I really don't want to get a ticket for it.

Not too long ago, before it became a serious problem, I put a security system on, too, and it was working fine, until all of this happened. Now when I try to arm/disarm it, the remote seems like it can't connect to the main system, rendering it all useless.

I'm thinking it's a short somewhere, or maybe a ground not on properly, but has anyone else ever had this problem before? And if so, how did you fix it?

It's not something I need to be dealing with right now, especially with finals coming up, so if anyone can help out, I would greatly, greatly, appreciate it.

I also don't have the money to throw away by taking it to a shop, and my roommate and I are relatively decent at fixing stuff, but the main problem is that we have no idea where to start looking.

Thanks in advance, and please post up anything and everything you think might help.

Kyle

you could run a bigger fuse, but you run the risk of hurting something else. mines done that before, when i first wired my tailights, because it wasnt wired right. it was an easy fix after finding a diagram. check all the things YOU have changed in the wiring, such as the alarm system. usually the factory stuff is good, its generally when we start changing/adding stuff that things start messing up.


**try taking the security system off or something and seeing if it works ok. that could be a place to start.

Take all the plastics off, check all wiring harness connectors you can, look for frayed wires and such. It will take a while, but it's better than popping fuses on a daily basis.

Any chance you have said diagram?

I have the service manual for our bikes (mine is an 01), but I'm not sure if electrical is covered in there or not.

I also was thinking about taking off the alarm and seeing if that helps, although we set it up (as far as I can tell) perfectly, but I'm always down to troubleshoot.

The hardest part is finding time, but that seems like the best choice.

Also, if I run a bigger fuse, and it works (and doesn't blow), what exactly does that mean? I'm not sure if I want to do it for a long period of time, for obvious reasons, but will that in fact help me troubleshoot?

P.S. - sorry if my posts are scattered, it's a rather accurate way of how I'm feeling, haha.

Aken - I'm assuming you mean the ones that go to the gauge cluster, turn signals, tail, etc?

We did a quick look-over and everything appeared fine, but if that's another place to start, I'm all for it.

it wont help troubleshoot. it will just make your gauges work, and putting a bigger fuse in-something else will blow. the diagram should be in the service manual. i would think it is. but i only have the one for my tailight. it was one of the led ones. i dont have a factory one. im not saying you wired anything up wrong one of the wires probably has just frayed bc it was rubbing up on smething. when you take the alarm off youll probably see it. the hardest part is finding it. im sorry-good luck, if youre in arkansas id be more than happy to come help, but im guessing youre from florida.

The schematics are in there, Section 20. If it's not in yours you can download it HERE

Yeah, I'm currently in Tallahassee for school.

I appreciate your help regardless, and I'm printing the page out right now.

Looks like a maze from hell to me, haha, but my roomie digs wiring, so hopefully it'll make more sense to him.

It's Page 460 for anyone else that may need it.

I'm gonna show it to him later, and hopefully we will be able to find a minute to take a look.

If anyone else has any other suggestions, please post 'em up, and thanks to those that have helped so far.

The only think that makes me wonder if it has anything to do with the security system is that it was doing it (blowing the fuse) before, just not nearly as frequently.

Is it safe to say that the security system put it over the top, or what?

I agree.. best way and its time consuming but is to meter each wire end to end and test it for continuity and then each end for a short to ground only for the wires on the problem devices.. the gauges alone have about 20 wires i think.. ( i just wired those gauges onto my f3) you will def need the wiring diagram and a good sunny saturday to sit out there and do it right. dont run a larger fuse because you run the potential of starting a fire not just burning something else out. end result will be a LOT worse than it is now..$$$$.. for the hell of it check all your harness connections in the front for water or corrosion you're in florida right?..

I had to replace the upper harness on an R1 because of a similar issue that caused a no crank. PM me if you need to

Had a similar problem in my F3. Corrosion in a terminal block behind the cluster was the cause. That is the fast approach. If you find it you are in luck. Otherwise, like GT guy said, a saturday afternoon with the diagram and a meter.
Good luck. Let us know how it comes out.
mikey

Yep, Tallahassee for school.

I didn't plan on running a bigger fuse, so that's definitely out of the picture.

I'm trying to find some time to do it, between work and school, I've been going nonstop (and it sucks). Gonna try to start on it tomorrow, but we shall see.

I'll most likely take you up on that PM offer, I'm gonna try the simple things first (remove the security system, make sure that everything is not rubbing and plugged in, etc), and if none of that works, I'll dive deeper.

It wouldn't surprise me if it's something water-related, she stays outside (living in an apartment ftl), and it rains like a mother here (has been non-stop today and yesterday)

I really hope it's something simple, if it is indeed water corrosion how do you go about fixing that? Does the plug have to be replaced, or what?

I'm hoping it is, and I think I know what block you are talking about.

We actually messed with that very one while doing the security system, so there is a strong possibility we failed and didn't plug it in fully, causing water to get in, etc.

If that's the case, I'm gonna be pissed at myself, haha.

Thanks for the help, and I will definitely keep you all updated.