I have a 2006 FXSTI and after it sat for a while I went out to start it in preparation for a ride. However when I tried to start it nothing happened. No noise except for the fuel pump starting up. I then realized that the speedo. is blank but the Neutral light and oil light is on. The headlight works (both high and low) and does not dim when trying to start it, the horn works and the rear light is on and works when the brake is pressed. However there are no turn signals working.
The first thing I did was check the battery and have it charged so it's fine. I replaced both the starter and system relays. I used a multi-tester to check each of the fuses and they all tested good. I thought maybe it was the starter switch itself but then I don't understand why the turn signals won't work. My key fob is the older kind that's not required to be right there for it to start. But I did try to use it just to see what would happen and there was no response at all. At this point I'm not sure what to think. I've done alot of searching and so far everybody has found a bad fuse or relay.

Any help would be appreciated at this point. I don't want to start throwing money at it just to see what finally fixes it, so I thought I'd post this and see if somebody can at least steer me in the right direction. Thanks.

 

I know that you said you had checked the battery, what voltage did you get?
you want to see 13.5 to 14.5 vts to really be good. tired batterys will read 12.5 vts but dive once you hit the starter.
You may want to pull it and have it load tested to be sure.

 

Have you replaced the batterys in the security fob? If you move the bike does the alarm go off?

 

I really wasn't clear about it, but I took the battery and had it load tested and they said it was fine. I also had them give a full charge just to be sure. It's a 2 year old battery that stays on a battery tender. After charging it showed 12.8v while removed from the bike. After reinstalling and while trying to start it, it showed 12.2v. I was told these were good numbers.

I have not replaced the batteries in the fob since the fob is not required for mine to start. No turn signals flash or anything when it is moved.

 

12.8 & 12.2 is not good enough. Replace it.

 

Okay, I took the battery to a local HD dealer for testing and it tested bad. Plus I had a friend put it in his bike just to verify and it wouldn't start it. So I borrowed a good battery from from him and tried it in mine but had no luck. I'm starting to think the TSM is bad but I'm not really sure how common it is for them to fail. I'm not really sure what else to test at this point.

Any further help would be appreciated.

 

12.8 should be plenty for a bike battery. most batterys even in cagers only have a 12.0-12.8 surface charge on them anyways.

if you have a service manual and can read wiring schematics trace the wiring from the TSM back to the battery and relays to see which wires should have batt volt on them. should be at least one, if not 2 or 3 of them. i've never looked at a schematic for the TSM so i'm not 100% sure on how many power circuits there are.

one thing to check real quick is to pull the ign switch up and look at the connector and see if its melted. you may need to disconnect the connector and look down into the terminals to see if anything looks burnt. it may be burnt just enough to allow some voltage through, but not enough to feed all circuits. if it looks ok, with the ign switch on, use a volt meter and make sure you have batt voltage going in and coming out of the switch. the switch could be burnt up internally that you couldn't see unless you have superman x-ray vision..

 

Did you check your sensor ground harness at the base of the tank?

Did the dealer actually load test the bat or put a volt meter on it?

 

[QUOTE=FroggyFatBoy;10859183]12.8 should be plenty for a bike battery. most batterys even in cagers only have a 12.0-12.8 surface charge on them anyways.

** I had the HD dealer put the battery on their machine and it gave me a printout that says it's bad. I had my friend test it in his bike because I just wanted to make sure. **

if you have a service manual and can read wiring schematics trace the wiring from the TSM back to the battery and relays to see which wires should have batt volt on them. should be at least one, if not 2 or 3 of them. i've never looked at a schematic for the TSM so i'm not 100% sure on how many power circuits there are.

** I have not checked the actual TSM circuit. I'll check it out and see if I there are any other relays or fuses to check. **

one thing to check real quick is to pull the ign switch up and look at the connector and see if its melted. you may need to disconnect the connector and look down into the terminals to see if anything looks burnt. it may be burnt just enough to allow some voltage through, but not enough to feed all circuits. if it looks ok, with the ign switch on, use a volt meter and make sure you have batt voltage going in and coming out of the switch. the switch could be burnt up internally that you couldn't see unless you have superman x-ray vision..

** The ignition switch was changed out last year. I did unplug the wiring for testing and got battery voltage. There were no signs of burning visible. I used a wire to bypass the switch and got the same response, still nothing in the speedo. and no turn signals.
Thanks for your response. **

 

OK. That was the first best move you could do as far as I am concerned. Replacing parts with the shotgun hunt approach usually only costs money and time when it comes to HD electrical issues. I used to take that approach but I finally spent some time researching HD electrical issues and looking at wiring diagrams and decided that old school thinking on my part was worthless.

If you have a lot of experience with Harleys you may do better than I did. Here's what I learned...

1. Most people at Advance Auto etc. don't know how to test a Gel battery.

2. The KISS principle is king. Start with the obvious and a good friend's bike and swap parts that you suspect instead of replacing them if you don't have one of those break out boxes that Harley says you need to test the electrical system... or using that high dollar testing method that they call the 'wiggle test'.

3. Eliminate far out possibilities based upon reconstructing the issue(s) that led up to the problem. Your bike sat... if it really only sat, then nothing mechancial is likely to be the culprit.

4. Grounds are a big deal with ECM's. Battery power is a big deal with ECM's. Sensors are a big deal with ECM's. If any of these are deficient the ECM won't let you start the bike. What kind of environment did the bike operate in and sit in? Is it likely to produce corosion? If so, woe is you... there are probably 40 or so locations where corosion in the electrical system could be causing the problem. I know... I had an ignition switch fry on me while riding... no fun. My speedo was the first experiment in this area... I got a used one and replaced it which made my problems seem to go away. I probably wasted a bunch of money.

5. Induction ammeters are cheap at MADEINCHINA TOOL COMPANY (a.k.a. Harbor Freight, etc.). That is the way to test your battery and starter. You put one of those on the big fat red line that runs from your battery to the starter and hit the switch with the spark plug wires removed. If you get a reading over like... 300 amps I think it was... you have a problem with conductivity... either in the starting system somewhere or the starter itself. A starter that won't turn mechanically will cause this also but not with the other symptoms that you have.

6. The other advice you got about testing your battery's voltage was good. Cranking amps and the required voltage output are different than sitting still voltages (see 5 above). If your buddy's battery starts his bike without hesitation you may have other issues. If it is one with some time on it, it probably won't get across a lousy ground. Jumping the bike at the same time that you have a known good battery installed using your car battery can help eliminate batteries from the equation as long as your bike's cables are clean and firmly attached. Mine get loose after a time just from riding vibration. I can tell because I start to hear a 'clack' when I hit the starter and I take my seat off, tighten the terminal bolts, and everything is just like new again <grin>.

7. If you >regularly< washed your bike with a high pressure spray hitting everything on the bike (like I do) and then had to let it sit (which I don't because I use mine as regular transportation) #4 above is probably spot on.

I feel for you man... I spent a lot of time doing stupid things chasing these kinds of issues on my bike as a DYI shadetree mechanic (a.k.a. beer drinking head scratching self taught idiot). I learned a lot about electrical systems that I didn't know before in the process, however! <grin>

That's my buck fitty...

C#