free website stats program Stumped (again) | Page 2 | Harley Davidson Forums

Stumped (again)

Just UPPING my post count.....:rofl

Even though the battery is new USUALLY I find that the ground cable is Tough to get tight and stay that way... Movement/tightening on the positive side is easy. The Ground side is the one that seems to come loose easily...

I just installed a NEW batter and when I checked mine,,,,,BOTH need re-snugging.:small3d023:

Probably NOT your problem , but when there do Check... AND let us know...

Just some Thought...

signed....BUBBIE
 
That year, the main circuit breakers tended to develop continuity problems. Measure the voltage on each side the main circuit breaker, while running/loaded/ignition on. If the votage is not the same on both sides, you may have found it.

Low voltage could do what you describe. Even gauge-type speedos appear to have processors in them. Processors will shut down below a fixed input voltage threshold, to prevent them from doing unpredictable things. Other stuff could work at lower voltages. I would be concerned about the ECU, which also has a processor in it.

You will want to pull the code associated with the check-engine light. It will be there, even if you have to find it in the "historical" codes. Codes are you friends, when trying to find out what is up.

Good luck,
Rich P

Harley Davidson Forums This may help understand the main breaker problem
 
Thanks for all your replies. Taking off the fairing etc. didn't happen yet as it was pre-empted by a mandatory mall-crawl (Christmas shopping) with my wife and daughter.

Today, eventhough it is 72° here in Falls Church, it is also pouring so I seriously doubt it'll happen today.

I did check the battery cables (battery side only), they are clean and tight. I have not checked for codes as I didn't know how to until Jack pointed me in the right direction. Very helpful article. I'll try it next change.

Oldhippie mentioned the ignition switch issue. Coincidentally, when touring the NE this summer with my son, before he went to USMC bootcamp, we broke down in Cazenovia, NY (Long story and still mad at HOG roadside assistance). Some very helpful people at the Performance HD dealership in Syracuse determined that the ignition switch had gone bad. As this was apparently so rare, they didn't have one in stock, nor did surrounding dealerships. They "rigged" it and we drove the rest of our trip having to insert a homemade plug into the wiring harness every time we had to start. Goes without saying that I obtained and replaced the ignition switch soon after I came home. Even-though you mount it and just plug it in, might something be wrong there?

yes I do have a VDC gauge on my dash and I am usually reading around 14v. This is not affected by the issue occurring. Nonetheless I will follow TQuentin1's instructions as to the sniffing when I can.

r_k_dragon; I do not have a upgrade tuner installed. RibEye also mentioned the main circuit breaker issues, I had issues with that breaker before, see http://www.hdtimeline.com/touring_models/40693-lost_all_power_at_65mph.html and have since replaced it with a 40A Maxi fuse.

Again thanks for all the tips, and i will be reporting back once I have news.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi all,

After a generally good riding year with about 9.000 miles my 03 ultra is throwing me for a loop.
For the last couple of weeks I have some electrical issues(?). Here's what happening.

I am happily motoring along and than, without rhyme or reason:

1) speedometer needle drops to zero
2) odometer doesn't display anymore
3) radio/cd player/aux ipod input stops working
4) check engine light comes on.

While this happens the speedometer gauge light and radio display light stay on...

Engine keeps purring without a hitch, but when I have to stop, she will not idle, and stalls. I can keep it slightly revved, and can drive like this all day, but in city traffic that gets old really quick.

The episodes used to last 15 seconds to 1 minute, than everything would go back to normal, check engine lights goes off, and engine idles normally. Over the last week or so it's happening more frequent. Today, as it was a nice riding day in Washington DC, I took her to work. My commute is about 40 minutes (suburban,and city driving) and it now mostly happens continuously. I am afraid I am going to hurt it if I keep driving this way. so I plan to take the fairing off tomorrow and look for electrical wiring issues?

Any help, ideas, suggestions will be highly appreciated.

Thanks.

The exact same thing happened on my '06 flhtci, I took all the fuses out cleaned the fuse and the block, coated the fuses wirh di-electric grease.
Also unplugged the ECM and cleaned it and coated with di-electric grease, no further problems. That was avout 15k ago.
 
Had the same typ problems with my 03 RK.
Speedo went crazy, blinkers didnt work right, bike would run but then died at a stop. It did start up again.

Bad speed sensor was my problem.
 
My 2010 Ultra had a VERY similar issue this summer on a Road Trip. I suffered with it but it got to the point where it sounds like you are now. My ignition switch was bad. Engine would run, but pretty much all the displays were wacked. I could also switch the ignition switch to run, but the starter wouldn't engage unless I wiggled the ignition switch. Also after jiggling the switch all my indicators came back to life.

I ain't no mechanic, but your problems sounds REALLY close to what my Ultra was doing. The good news, after having it changed, worked like a champ. Good luck with it man, hope you get it fixed soon. joe
 
01 rk wrote:
The exact same thing happened on my '06 flhtci, I took all the fuses out cleaned the fuse and the block, coated the fuses wirh di-electric grease.
Also unplugged the ECM and cleaned it and coated with di-electric grease, no further problems. That was avout 15k ago.

As this seemed to be the easiest to do, I just went ahead and did it. Then I went for a ride. After about two miles it happened again, so "No Joy" with this, but it doesn't hurt to have clean fuses :s

TQuentin1 wrote:
Do you have a Vdc meter on your dash? If so, when this happens, what voltage are you reading? Does it drop to battery voltage which at the time is pretty low? If any of this is happening, I would be suspicious of the VR. It may also point towards an intermittent problem with the stator. Open up the inspection cover on the side of the primary (not the derby cover) and take a sniff. See if the fluid smells burnt (pungent nasty smell). Run through the tests for the charging system in Self-Help

I said before that my VDC reading is not affected by the issue occurring, but I am wrong! When the speedometer needle dropped and the radio went off, I noticed the voltage gauge go up to over 16V!. Any thoughts on that?

Alternator and stator were replaced just over a year ago :(

Thanks
 
GUESSING:

Seems to me that a short would Draw maximum against the V. reg. and the stator...

That is my thought. Some one else will chime in here.:eam

signed....BUBBIE
 
I agree with BUBBIE on max draw, but to me it would be amps. to increase and not voltage.Volts=CurrentXResist..Or Current=Volts/(divided by)Resist. Hence if you had 12v/10 omhs you would have 1.2 amps drawn. But with a direct short you would less resist, say 1 ohm, then you would have 12amp. draw. However if I understand the Reg./Rect. correctly it should only put out a max of 15-15.5 Vdc. If it is putting out 16+ at your gauge I would lean towards the Reg. being bad,intermittently. I would test your stator anyway as it could of caused the reg. to go bad.Where's Hoople when you need him??
tourbox
 
I agree with BUBBIE on max draw, but to me it would be amps. to increase and not voltage.Volts=CurrentXResist..Or Current=Volts/(divided by)Resist. Hence if you had 12v/10 omhs you would have 1.2 amps drawn. But with a direct short you would less resist, say 1 ohm, then you would have 12amp. draw. However if I understand the Reg./Rect. correctly it should only put out a max of 15-15.5 Vdc. If it is putting out 16+ at your gauge I would lean towards the Reg. being bad,intermittently. I would test your stator anyway as it could of caused the reg. to go bad.Where's Hoople when you need him??
tourbox

You are correct if it was a short resistance would go down ,amps would go up.
sounds like voltage regulator problem. Test stator and make sure there is no problem there.
I don't know what Harley's logic is on there modules but on some cars if voltage gets to high some modules are programed to shut down to protect themselves.
 
Back
Top