| Author | Message | ||
     Björne666 |
Just coming home from this springs first ride the bike just died. When I am turning the ignition key NOTHING happens. No lights, no indicators, no fuel pump, no nothing. All fuses ok. Battery ok. Switched places on all 3 relays. Is there a main fuse somewhere? Anyone had problems with the ignition lock? Ideas greatly appreciated! Bike is 2004 XB12S. /Björn, Sweden | ||
| Glitch |
Sounds like a disconnected ground. Check all the cables again. Good and snug, don't just look, take a wrench and make sure they're snug. Good luck! | ||
| Rsh |
Yes there is a main fuse, unfortunately I do not no the location on an "S" model, on the "R" model its under the seat next to the battery and rear brake fluid reservoir maybe the "S" is the same. Good luck. | ||
| Buelltroll |
Also check your kickstand and clutch switch. I'm having the same problem on my dirtbike. Unfortunatly it doesn't have a kickstand switch and the clutch switch is good.  | ||
| Jos51700 |
Mainfuse on S model is Green 30 (Maybe 40?) Amp fuse in the fuse block. I never did understand why S and R had different main fuses. | ||
| Jos51700 |
How do you know battery of OK if nothing works? Did you Check it with a meter and all of that, or just did you just A S S U M E? | ||
| Jos51700 |
If you PM me, I can tell you how to jump/hotwire the ignition switch, but I will not post that on a public forum. | ||
| Lighting |
The other day I went to turn my bike on and was dead, checked the battery, about 10 volts so I try to charge and din't held the charge so I proceeded to call the dealer and explained to them the situation, they advice me to bring the battery in and after they tested they give me a new one since was still under warranty | ||
| Björne666 |
Turned out that the Ignition key fuse was blown. Looked ok, found it while troubleshooting my way from the battery. However, the fuse keeps blowing. Any known places where wear could be expected on a 2004 XB12S? The electrics are maybe not really the best part of this bike... Have found a few areas where the wires have worn quite bad. Thanks for all input so far! :-) /Björn, Sweden | ||
| Rsh |
My 2003 XB9R kept blowing the ignition fuse when I would press the start button. In my case it was the speedo sensor that caused the problem. I disconnected it and and no more fuse blowing. I left it disconnected and rode to the dealer and bought a replacement, I installed it and all was good with the world again. It takes less than 10 minutes to disconnect and could be worth a try. However If you have worn wires as stated I would try to isolate those as well. | ||
| Jos51700 |
Could be worn through in the steering area, but most S models I have seen wear through in the wire snaking under the seat. Easy harness diagnosis? Disconnect every connector you can find, install new fuse. If fuse doesn't pop, plug in connectors one at a time until fuse blows. Then trace the wires in that circuit. | ||
| Chainsaw |
My 2003 XB9R kept blowing the ignition fuse when I would press the start button. In my case it was the speedo sensor that caused the problem.  Same thing happened to me too. | ||
| Tunes |
My 2004 XB12S kept blowing the ignition fuse when I would press the start button... Dealership replaced the harness... nothing. It was the gray wire coming outa the fuel pump that was worn thru and shorted to gnd. | ||
| Buelltroll |
My dirt bike turned out to just be a gunked up butt connector on the starter button. Check your connections n shoot some wd40 in them or add dialectic grease couldn't hurt. But worn through wires would be a more likely place n if not now then eventually will be a problem. | ||
| Ratbuell |
You said "this spring's first ride". Look for mouse turds, something may have hunted for a snack over the winter. We took the fairing off a customer's Ultra Classic a couple seasons ago to diagnose a no-start...the ENTIRE fairing was full of turds, hay, insulation...and chewed wires. | ||
| Bcool83 |
>> Could be worn through in the steering area, but most S models I have seen wear through in the wire snaking under the seat. +1 This happened to me, on a 03 XB9S. If you squat down on the left side of the bike and look up at the steering head/back of flyscreen area, you'll see where the harness moves from the frame to behind the flyscreen. The insulation had worn away on a couple wires at this spot (right under the little plastic "hat" that holds the harness in place there) and they shorted out sometimes... Taped up the wires, added some loom, and good to go... | ||
| Björne666 |
Have found wear in multiple places. The electric system is really poor laid out... Have reinforced the worn places. I cannot make the fuse pop by pulling the wires. It struck me that the ACC fuse blew the other week and I replaced it with a 10A instead of a 7,5A. My current problem with the ignition fuse popping could be related as the ignition fuse actually feeds the ACC fuse... Will try 20A as ignition fuse instead of 15A. Maybe my stronger head light bulbs, aftermarket turn signals and DynaTek shift minder flips the current over the limits of the original 15A fuse... /Björn, Sweden (Message edited by björne666 on April 08, 2008) | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
Nothing is more frustrating than intermittent short circuits, is there? Here is a two year old discussion of the problem that you may find useful. http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/327 77/211173.html?1152707968 | ||
| Björne666 |
Gentleman_jon; thanks for the light bulb tip! Will make one up tomorrow. Seems like a not to unusual phenomenon with worn wires and intermittent shorting... | ||
| Jos51700 |
Installing bigger fuses is BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD. If the current draw from your accessories is that much, install a relay, please. If you insist on installing bigger fuses, carry a 10mm wrench in your pocket, and keep a fire extinguisher handy to stem the flames while you hurriedly pull the battery cables to stop the fire. Especially on a bike that, as you've mentioned, likes to rub wiring through. 2.5 amps = 25 watts in a 12 volt system So you could, in theory add 60 watts (5Amps*12Volts=60watts) of power to a system rated to stop short at anything over 180 watts. That's 33% more power than it was ever designed to hold, even at 5 measly amps. So, if it ever DID need that power, and it was available, (the fuse won't blow whereas it would've before), the I2R loss (which is heat) equals melted wiring, and fire. Grab a lit 60 watt incandescant light bulb if you don't believe me. High beam on your bike is 65 watts from the factory. You can cook a hamburger (albeit, slowly) on that kind of heat. Put the stock fuses back in, and if they don't blow, everything's OK. In other words, find the issue and fix it properly, please. I'm betting that your accessories are not helping the issue, and I would try disconnection them and seeing if the issues go away. | ||
| Ratyson |
+1000 to what Jos said. The fuses are set to blow at 7.5A and 15A for a reason. The reason is to protect the electrical systems and the rider. Putting a 10A in for a 7.5A allows the system to draw a 25% increase in power.. NOT a good thing. Blown fuses are an indication of a problem. Replacing them with larger fuses is not the solution to the problem, it only masks the symptoms. The problem is still there, and will eventually lead to a failure, and probably a catastrophic one. (Message edited by ratyson on April 08, 2008) (Message edited by ratyson on April 08, 2008) | ||
| Björne666 |
Thanks for your concern guys, but replacing a 7,5A fuse with a 10A or a 15A fuse with a 20A will not lead to fire or any other catastrophy. In the event of a short the fuse will still blow. Just some milliseconds later. With the extra load I have added on the acc and ignition circuits going up one "size" on the fuses won't bother me much. Wire areas on the bike sure are sufficient to carry the currents involved. The ignition fuse feeds the acc fuse and various other stuff. Adding 2,5A extra on the acc fuse moving the problem to the ignition fuse suggests that it is not a short, but higher power consumption than the original fuse was calculated for. So if an extra 5A (as that is the next rating available) on the iginition fuse solves the problem I will be happy. Ignition fuse is fed from battery fuse rated at 30A. If the bike keeps blowing fuses there is a short that I haven't found and if so I will need to start dismantling the wire looms and harnesses... :-( /Björn, Sweden EDIT: Jos; Euro spec head light is 55W. And sorry, where I have written ignition fuse I ment key switch fuse. (Message edited by björne666 on April 08, 2008) (Message edited by björne666 on April 08, 2008) | ||
| Jos51700 |
I will send, all costs paid, the burnt wiring harness from my 1972 Dodge Dart, just to show you that 2.5 Amps will make a significant different in the way your wiring is dealing with that extra load. I have done exactly what you are describing, and I have fixed an XB that the owner did what you are describing. It's your bike, and your life, I guess..... | ||
| Björne666 |
No disrespect, but 2,5A requires approximately 0,35 sqmm of wire and the wires on the bike for the 7,5A circuits are heavy enough to carry 10A. Read more on square sectional wire area versus current here; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_wire_gauge However, I found wear in a new place and I belive this to be the root cause. Thus the original fuses are going back and safety and order is restored  Thanks for all your input! /Björn, Sweden | ||
| Jos51700 |
Glad you found it! That link is great, for solid-core wires... |
