Huge Electrical Draw

[JARichmond]

Hey everybody. I've been riding my XS this season as my daily driver and have loved it. Putting the last few years into maintenance has made this year so much better and has made the bike exponentially more reliable. There are, however, problems that I've only been able to uncover with extended use, Which brings me to this thread:

The brake lights seem to draw a ton of power from the bike, and it's especially noticeable when using my hi-beam or especially stopped at a light with my turn signal flashing. Sometimes it'll draw enough power to actually stop the signal from flashing and just leave it in the "powered" position until I let off the brake (then it'll resume flashing). While flashing, the signals will also draw enough power to dim all other lights including headlight and dash lights.
I've done some digging on this forum as well as other forums and think it may be a bad ground or connection somewhere. My guess is a ground or the brake light terminals, but I was hoping to get a second opinion from someone who has encountered this problem themselves.

Before switching out to LED brake lights, I'd like to remedy the problem rather than just cover it up.

Some notes: Battery reads 13+ volts when pulled from the bike, and passes load tests. The charging system is working well, as it delivers the appropriate voltage above 2k RPM. Wiring is bone stock (save for e-start delete). Starts and drives mint.

Thanks in advance for all of your input

 

[16VGTIDave]

Have you upgraded your headlight? I had similar symptoms after installing an H4 55/60W headlight. The charging system couldn't keep up at an idle with the headlight, turn signals and brake lights. LED brake lights helped, as did LED turn signals. But the real fix was installing an HID conversion kit that draws 35W. More light, less heat, and less power consumption. What more could you ask for?

 

[JARichmond]

I haven't changed my headlight since I got it. Just pulled off the cover and it's the stock 30/40W bulb. Might look at an HID conversion when I get this sorted out, however. Where did you get the kit from?

 

[16VGTIDave]

You may want to check your charging system just to make sure it is in good order, as well as every connection you can get to. A slightly corroded connection can play havoc. The ignition switch is a commonly overlooked problem point.

I got my HID off of eBay. I bought a Bi-Xenon motorcycle kit. It moves the HID capsule up and down for low and high beam. Make sure to get a kit that has the metal shield in front of the capsule or you will have lots of glare and annoy other motorists. I'd also suggest 4300K colour temperature as it is the brightest and closest to sun light. Lower is too yellow, and higher is too blue/white.

 

[JARichmond]

I'll double check the charging system as the manual says. I just need to figure out where I put my multimeter. I will do it after work tomorrow.
I'll also look into the HID conversion. Thanks for the info Dave!

 

[smurfy71]

Sounds like the same issue I had when my field coil wasn't working.

 

[JARichmond]

Tested my system today. I took the resistance between white wired from the coils and found a little bit of a discrepancy. As opposed to the 0.72 ohm reading I was expecting, each reading showed 1.4 ohms. From someone who's frighteningly low on funds, could it just be a bad connection somewhere? Or will I have to pull the alternator to find out?

I did find one of the white wires to be frayed (and managed to short out my bike this morning, blowing the main fuse). Could an exposed and somewhat damaged wire be the cause of all of this frustration.

Thanks everybody for your input!

 

[arfstrom]

I did find one of the white wires to be frayed (and managed to short out my bike this morning, blowing the main fuse). Could an exposed and somewhat damaged wire be the cause of all of this frustration.

I am the one that says the wire is bad, under the back half of the motor, just before it rises to go to the battery case. tel tale sign is the wire is baked/crispy/crackly as you touch it. Fast and dirty just replace that section, make sure you use a real crimping pliers. not that one you got for the stereo system. Then during winter fix the whole run. I would be afraid of lack of space in the wire routing in and around the drive sprocket, for the extra space taken up with the connectors. even if you stagger them. Since that area is generally covered with oil, dirt, and beat with other crazy debris that the chain magically grabs and throws into that zone. Then if you manage all that, you might have the same luck as me, and break the one o-ring on the neutral switch, requiring you to wait for a local supplier or mail for the new o-ring to get there.

Good luck

 

[JARichmond]

That's exactly where it is. Right as it exits the underside of the sprocket cover. The tubing is exactly as you describe, baked and crispy (now I want chips ).

Thanks for your help!

 

[smurfy71]

My white wires measure 1.2, but they are all consistent. Have you checked the field coil? It sounds like you're not charging.

 

[JARichmond]

I haven't been able to check the field coil yet because the bike is my daily driver and I'll need to have a weekend to pull it apart. Right now I work full-time, and use it for my commute. I can't test it at the moment (with the fuse problem) but I think that I'm just charging below the 14.5V threshold that the manual recommends. My readings are also all consistent, so I'm not sure what to make of it.

On the bright side, the draw isn't affecting my riding to the point where it's unsafe. The flashers still flash and the lights still work, just it takes a bit of care to make sure the other drivers are aware of my intentions.

Out of curiosity, what's the alternator output at idle (1250-1500 rpm)?

 

[smurfy71]

Not sure of the actual out put, but my charging bumps up about 2 volts.

You can crack the field coil at the connection. If I recall correctly it's the red and green wires coming up from the generator.

 

[JARichmond]

The field coil has got two green wires coming out of it as well as a grey and an orange. No red to be found. The resistance there was within spec at 4.2 ohms (manual recommends 4.0 +/- 15%). The wires may differ between models, as well as specs.

 

[xschris]

Not sure of the actual out put, but my charging bumps up about 2 volts.

You can crack the field coil at the connection. If I recall correctly it's the red and green wires coming up from the generator.

The sohc bikes are not the same as the dohc ones.

 

[smurfy71]

The sohc bikes are not the same as the dohc ones.

Right! I knew that.

 

[arfstrom]

Down and dirty, just replace the white wires. they are toast. the off season is coming up, you can do a proper re-wire job, before next spring. As long as we know the wires are toast, everything thing else is fine. This is normal for our 30 year old bikes. Except for the people that have modified on purpose, those of us keeping the status quo, some where over 30k miles, this happens. once you "TEMP SPLICE" new wires in there you will be just fine. like i said, there isn't room to put all the connectors at the same place, you have to stagger them. there is nothing wrong with the field coil, just those 3 wires.