Bike died !
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Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 48
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From: Ottawa, Ont. Canada
Bike died !
Went for my last ride about 4-5 days ago - went to start it up this evening...and nothing - dead!!!
Took the battery out and it reads only 2.5 volts - so it toast.
Hooked up a seperate 12 v 2.5 amp supply to the bike to see if anything else is wrong and I hear a ticking noise when you first turn the key on to the ACC selection, turning it to full on causes the electrical to die, or so it seems.
Any ideas. Plan to go get another battery and a tender tomorrow - but how could this happen in the first place??
Thanks
rob
Took the battery out and it reads only 2.5 volts - so it toast.
Hooked up a seperate 12 v 2.5 amp supply to the bike to see if anything else is wrong and I hear a ticking noise when you first turn the key on to the ACC selection, turning it to full on causes the electrical to die, or so it seems.
Any ideas. Plan to go get another battery and a tender tomorrow - but how could this happen in the first place??
Thanks
rob
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Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 48
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From: Ottawa, Ont. Canada
Yes, thanks for the tip on the charging needs. I did some further reading last night after posting and saw several topics on the electrical demand - which far outstrips the little power supply I put on. It's a real puzzler! I suspect I damaged the battery over the winter using my battery charger rather than a battery tender - which I read about last night as well. So it seems the battery finally gave up. I hope installing a new battery along with the battery tender (and using the battery tender each time the bike is parked), will solve the problem. At least with the new battery I can test the stator and rectifier to see if they are properly working, once the bike is running. If it dies again, I will have to take it back for servicing at the dealer.
Thanks for the comments.
Rob
Thanks for the comments.
Rob
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Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2008
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From: Ottawa, Ont. Canada
Update to Bike Died...
So in the end I had to replace the battery - I guess I totally fried the original one over the winter but it had enough life to last at least the first month of riding here. So I replaced the battery, checked the current draw to ensure nothing else was draining it - so far so good. Checked the charging circuit (13.7 volts - right on target). All seemed well until I got home from work the next day. I shutoff the bike and it does NOT go into the heartbeat mode on the alarm system, and I can hear a faint whirring sound periodically every 3-5 seconds under the gas tank. Ok, now what !! When you look at the fuse panel there are two relays - one to control the system and one to control the starter. I swap them and the problem goes away AND, the bike goes into heartbeat mode on the alarm system within 5 seconds (whereas before I swapped the relays, it was taking up to 2 minutes).
So, i'm going back to the dealer to pick up a spare relay and keep it in the toolkit on the bike.
After swapping the relays I had no problem starting, running or anything else. Both relays are the same part number as well. I also have the battery tender now hooked up to ensure a full charge. An expensive lesson but I learned quite a bit.
rob - breathing a sigh of relief now ...
So, i'm going back to the dealer to pick up a spare relay and keep it in the toolkit on the bike.
After swapping the relays I had no problem starting, running or anything else. Both relays are the same part number as well. I also have the battery tender now hooked up to ensure a full charge. An expensive lesson but I learned quite a bit.
rob - breathing a sigh of relief now ...
Road Warrior
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 1,337
Likes: 3
From: Houston, Texas
Yep that whirring sound was the result of a bad relay. Also most likely the drain on your battery. Coat the prongs of the relays with dielectric grease to inhibit corrosion and careful not to let water run down to the relays when you wash your bike.
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Joined: Jan 2007
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I had the same problem (noise) on my 07 1200L. The relays had severe corrosion on the terminals . I cleaned the terminals with sand paper and then put them back in with dielectric grease. It's caused by the way the wiring harness lets water down into the relays. Check out the "why is my iac cycling" thread at www.xlforum.net
So in the end I had to replace the battery - I guess I totally fried the original one over the winter but it had enough life to last at least the first month of riding here. So I replaced the battery, checked the current draw to ensure nothing else was draining it - so far so good. Checked the charging circuit (13.7 volts - right on target). All seemed well until I got home from work the next day. I shutoff the bike and it does NOT go into the heartbeat mode on the alarm system, and I can hear a faint whirring sound periodically every 3-5 seconds under the gas tank. Ok, now what !! When you look at the fuse panel there are two relays - one to control the system and one to control the starter. I swap them and the problem goes away AND, the bike goes into heartbeat mode on the alarm system within 5 seconds (whereas before I swapped the relays, it was taking up to 2 minutes).
So, i'm going back to the dealer to pick up a spare relay and keep it in the toolkit on the bike.
After swapping the relays I had no problem starting, running or anything else. Both relays are the same part number as well. I also have the battery tender now hooked up to ensure a full charge. An expensive lesson but I learned quite a bit.
rob - breathing a sigh of relief now ...
So, i'm going back to the dealer to pick up a spare relay and keep it in the toolkit on the bike.
After swapping the relays I had no problem starting, running or anything else. Both relays are the same part number as well. I also have the battery tender now hooked up to ensure a full charge. An expensive lesson but I learned quite a bit.
rob - breathing a sigh of relief now ...
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