When my buddy had a Thundermax ECM installed on his 11 Streetglide, the installer said to not use the kill switch because it would lose the idle memory. Something about the Thundermax being a windows based program and the kill switch was just like shutting off a computer the wrong way. Made sense at the time to me, not sure if is BS.

 

Never had a kill switch fail. Can't say the same for the ignition switch.

 

It was BS.

 

It sure would be easier to jerry rig a broken kill switch than a broken ignition switch to get you home.

 

It doesn't matter. You are going to turn your ignition switch off every time anyway to keep from running your battery down. The kill switch is the one you don't have to use so as for as I'm concerned it's the one switch that will never wear out on my bike.

 

Really? This thread is still alive?
This is better than a oil or helmet discussion.

 

I only use the kill switch when I'm in a situation where I don't want to let go of the front brake, such as on a hill. I've never used one since I started riding. My old Pan just had a key switch and a big ole kick peddle that would fight back much to often.

IMO, it probably doesn't make a donuts hole worth of difference to the bike as to which way you shut it down. Either way, it's off.

 

I agree with the front brake scenario as well. It just makes sense, doesn't it.

 

I have to admit there have been a few times when I have used the Kill switch and then neglected to turn off the ignition switch. Fortunately, somebody noticed my mistake before any harm was done to the battery. I'm going to stop using the kill switch for a while and see if it makes any difference.

It really is amazing how long these stupid threads can go.

 

I typically use Shell oil.