My 2012 dyna fat bob has a red warning electrical system light that comes on at highway speeds. Pushing the right front brake lever forward causes the light to turn off. Has anyone had any experience with this or have any thoughts? I've taken the bike in to my local HD dealer 2 times now and they can't reproduce the issue and haven't been of any assistance.

 

Is the bike new to you or have you had it for a while? Also, have you done anything to it recently or changed ANY parts out?

 

This occurred after I had the bike's 5k service check @ my local HD service center. Frustrating since they can't seem to find (or repro) the issue. I googled and others have experienced this same problem (http://www.fixya.com/motorcycles/t15...na_fat_bob_red). At this point I'm just looking for suggestions/thoughts I can pass along to them to investigate.

 

you'd think the ecm would record fault indicators.

 

My red light was intermittently flashing last fall. I had other problems not as you describe but the cure was a new Body Control Module (BCM). Fortunately it fell under warranty for me.

 

Pushing the brake lever forward suggests that it may be adjusted too tight.

There is a small switch in the handle housing that connects power to the brake light.

It may be that the brake handle is pressing on the switch so that contact is very nearly made all the time.

Riding may produce enough vibration to make contact intermittently or possibly wedge the handle against it enough to make the contact for a longer time. Could also just be some little POS stuffed in there from the road.

If that's the case, it may be that the BCM is complaining that you are riding with the brake on.

I don't know for sure but there are other interlocks / alarms that do not appear in the codes such as trying to start the bike in gear and not having the clutch pulled in.

Just suggesting that you have a look at the brake handle adjustment per manual. If there is still a problem maybe open the handle and look inside to see if the switch is OK.

 

I have a 2012 Fat Bob and was having the same problems... On a ride I took a stop at a waterfall and it wouldn't start again, I called the dealer and they said there was a recall on the regulator (why they didn't send out notices is beyond me)... but might be something to look into?

 

You might try to if you can get any codes from the bike. Link to the procedure that works on my 11 Bob:
https://www.hdforums.com/forum/elect...tic-codes.html

Only I haven't had any codes to see yet. Hope it helps.

 

Old original post, but this just happened to me on my 2012 Wide Glide. Took it to the dealer and the code said front brake switch. Must be a part that is prone to problems? Anyhow, I glad for the diagnostic code system. Saves a lot of time searching for problems.

 

I have exactly the same issue on my 2014 Fat Bob. It first occurred on a (nearly) top speed run (I slowed down when I saw the red light) and now occurs more and more frequently - any sustained travel at 130km/h + (80 mph +) now sees the light come on. A simple push forward of the brake lever fixes the problem for a few kms - it is just annoying.


I have discussed this with a contact at a dealer (also a Fat Bob owner) who has told me it is a common problem. He has had the switch replaced on his bike a couple of times which fixes it for a while. Apparently the spring in the lever mechanism (not sure what or where this spring is as I haven't pulled it apart) is a bit weak. I suppose this is another one of those Harley "character" things.


If I come across a fix I will post it (the bike is due for a service after the holidays). One thought I had was to buy a set of the edge cut levers (I think the holes go right through ). A bit crazy but maybe they will result in lower wind resistance at speed and hopefully fix the problem (or at least make it happen less often) - don't look so bad either .