(1993 CBR 600 F2)

So I've got some weird issues going on with my electrical system.

Front-right light is way too dim but the turn signal is bright and blinks at a slow rate.
Back-right light is fine but the turn signal is way too dim and blinks at the same rate.

Front-left light is perfect but the turn signal is dim and blinks too fast.
Back-left light is the same but again, the turn signal is too dim.

(I hope I got that right -- going off memory here)

The back turn signals are so dim that I actually got disqualified while trying to take the test last year.

I know I've replaced a bulb or two but I can't remember which. I'm guessing by the two sides having different blinker speeds that there's some sort of a ground issue or a bulb is bad.

Any ideas on where this problem might be? Thanks!

 

I'm thinking a short not to ground directly (that would blow a fuse). I'm betting that
the wiring has been "user-upgraded", by a PO. Check for anything that doesn't look
'stock' in the harness. It sounds like something is cross-wired incorrectly and adding
load to the dim bulbs on the bike. Since the blink speed is governed by load,
on the circuit, that's also affecting the rate.

The other possibility is a bad ground wire connection. Corrosion, etc is impeding the
flow of current, at some point in the circuit. While your looking the harness over for
patch-work, keep an eye out for 'hot-spots'. Places/connectors that look heat-damaged.
Warped/melted plastic/insulation, burnt looking pins, etc. That might help pin-point
the issue.

One of my personal, must-do's for healthy bike status, I pull all of the connectors,
one at a time. Spray them with contact cleaner and pack the connector with di-electric
grease. Then I re-connect it and moving to the next one. This procedure helps assure
the quality of the connections and prevents future degradation, due to corrosion.

I go thru the entire harness. All connectors, the contacts on any accessable switch,
the battery, bulb sockets, spark-plug wires, etc. One of the most complex, critical and
yet most-neglected systems on the entire bike. People tend to ignore it, because of
it's success at being able to function over time (even with flaws, creeping in).

Hope this helps, Ern

 

Thank again, MadHattr059. Sounds like a lot of work! haha. There's a ton of wires on this thing but I guess it's still better than messing with a car's electrical system.

One thing that does shoot out at me from your post is that a previous owner did add some custom LEDs to the bike. There could be some issues there.

I'm guessing the best way to run through all of the circuitry/wiring is to just pull all of the fairings off, start from the battery, and work my way out? For this problem, do you think I need to mess with anything heading down towards the motor? (If there is anything other than plug wires)

 

Those pesky LED's, that's gonna be your source. To start with the LED's use less load,
that often causes blinker-speed issues. From my understanding, you need to add a
resister to correct for the difference.

If the LED's are added 'bling', the PO probably tapped them into the harness in seriel (instead of parrallel),
to the other lights and they are stealing current (instead of sharing).
Odds are, the mod is the source of your problem, so start there.
If that doesn't deal with it, THEN start inspecting the entire harness.

As for the harness maintenance, I recommended...Yes, start at the battery and work
forward and backwards to ensure throughness. While I consider it essential, it IS an
optional, preventative-maintenance effort. The majority of folks don't bother,
until an issue raises it's ugly head.

 

All right, so I ripped those LEDs off, tightened my front bulbs and everything in the front of the bike is working now. One thing I'm not sure about, but I'm guessing is correct, is that the turn signals will blink faster when I hit the brakes -- is that how it's supposed to work?

Now, I've got the back to fix. It's a horrible mess as you can see in the photo below.

• Right-Side Turn Signal not Working.
• Right-Side Brake Light Works
• Left-Side Turn Signal too Dim
• Left-Side Brake Light not working

I pulled the bulbs off each assembly. I started playing around with the multi-meter, trying to get a baseline reading of what I should be seeing. I noticed that the base voltage is around 10.xx volts. On the right side, where the turn signal isn't working, my voltmeter bounces all over the place. On the left side where my turn signal works, but is too dim, it just simply drops from around 10.xx Volts to around 9.xx Volts.

Finally, there's a ton of extra length in the wires. There's a few wires coming out of the harness that are just dangling. One wire (I'm assuming ground?) that is connected directly to both tail-light assemblies is was just cut and spliced back together in a half-assed way.

Long story short, I've got a lot of work to do. I'm not afraid of doing wiring, and I found a Honda Manual .pdf online that I'm hoping has the right information in. If anyone has any input on this before I get back to it, I'm all ears!