So as you all know I picked up this "excellent running" vlx 600 a few weeks ago and after 2 days sent it to the shop for a carb rebuild (I will post some pictures later with questions). I rode it home, about 45 minutes and she ran great. I decided I would ride her to work since its super nice out. 10 minutes in no issues, I down shifted as I came to a red light and BAM! All the power was lost! No bogging down, no rough idle or performance issue noted, simply lost juice. I fiddled with the wires, checked the fuses and still nothing. I just got done reading over some threads about power loss but some of the common things mentioned in the other post I did not experience, Such as power loss prior to dying, hearing a pop, the smell of burnt goodness, the r/r or starter switch being very hot and a blown fuses, though I cant seam to get the cap off the starter solenoid. Nothing was majorly hot (it is 90 degrees out) and all the wiring looks good. (Though it appears at some point the fuse box hit the exhaust because the thick rubber piece around the fuse box is melted.)
Do you mean no power as no lights or anything on the dash? If you get a 12 volt test light it is the fastest way to test power through the system. Start with the main fuse and all the fuses with the key on. And make sure the battery terminals are clean and tight.
Yes no power during mid ride, I did as the forum said and tested the battery which is about 12.8 volts at rest. I did however find the problem with the "starter switch" as partzilla calls it. the fuse was cracked and in pieces and the harness was melted, I am in need of some motivational support as I am not sure if I need to just scrap the bike or if I should keep it. I feel its been one issue after another as I bought the bike to cruise not as a project and at the moment Its not trust worthy. I am sure its the "starter switch" or relay that went bad but would that cause the sudden loss of electrical power? and why would the harness get melted? Would the relay have blown then the fuse or vise versa? I am a little worried I may have a fired harness and that is one thing that is "obsolete". I found relays on line for 8 bucks but is there a way to test the relay I have now to confirm this is in fact the issue? I appreciate all you guys and the help, sadly I am better at working on people then I am cars or bikes.
After looking over your bike did you see any place on the engine, frame or handle bars etc where something may have grounded out, like a scorch mark or a dark place? Bob
Your "starter switch" is most likely not the problem, but the burned connections in the plug most likely are. A weak connection will generate a lot of resistance and get very hot. If you clean up the connectors in the plug, tweek them to make sure they're tight when plugged in, and apply dilectric grease to them before reinserting the plug, you will probably be good to go.
After thinking about this some more; do you have an electrical wiring diagram for the year and make of your bike? these are indispensable when doing trouble shooting of electrical problems.
You mention that you DO NOT have any power to lights etc. I have attached a copy of the electrical diagram for my bike 84 750 shadow, as a sample. I printed this diagram out and then took a set of highlighters to follow various circuits. This example is only to show what I did and give you some ideas. Good luck, Bob
That the main fuse that's cooked and if the OP doesn't have power getting through that main connector to the harness, he's got power nowhere. But I DO agree, he definitely should have manual.
Thank you guys for the reply, I do not have a wiring diagram, I know for the most part no power is 1 of 2 things. The battery or a fuse. I looked over the bike and did not see any signs of a arc or something implying a wire has grounded out though with out exposing every wire this is hard to prove. I looked over the connecter to the starter switch like you said which I believe it's only plastic damage. I ended up pulling back all the tape and plastic to where it inner twines with the main harness and all the wires look fine. There is a replacement harness on eBay for 5 bucks I may buy if I end of keeping the bike but as I said before I am no smart person when it comes to wiring. I thought about what you said about the starter, I agree I don't think it's the starter switch as it has no power period HOWEVER the main fuse plugs into the starter switch and that's where I think at least one problem lays. There are 2 30 amp fuses, one at the top and one at the bottom. If you remove the fuse from the bottom (assuming that's the spare) the top fuse falls out, it is extremely loose and not making a good contact. I don't know anything about omhs or what not but what else can I check? Forgive me for my ignorance on this subject or lack of knowledge. But I am trying
I think I may have covered that in one of my previous posts. It's not uncommon for a connection that's old, dirty, corroded from moisture exposure, weakened from overuse, or all of the above. These bikes receive different kind of treatment from their assorted owners over the years and will be in a varying degree of conditions consequently. I don't know how old your bike is as it's not in your signature. (really should do this as it helps people help you) And while you're at it, I'd check the "three yellow wire" connector on the left side of the bike as well.
Ok so I cleaned up the plug, the wires and terminals themselves looked new, I ordered a new connection piece with terminals so i just removed the red piece and connected the terminals to the solenoid bare still nothing, rechecked the battery ohms and got 10.87, checked the continuity of the solenoid and got 10.87. I am unsure what to do from here, I should still have a oil,neutral or kick stand light with 10.87 volts but I dont have squat. I am still thinking it has to do with the fuse on the solenoid, I ordered a aftermarket starter solenoid from caltric, if this works then ill spend the 80 from honda. Any other things to check? I dont know much about reading the multimeter I know how to check the battery but i went on a limb with the solenoid. I am trying with this site and youtube LOL. I read some stuff about the kill switch BUT even with that not working I should have lights... The lights are key I think.
You should be checking DC voltage on the battery. And fully charge your battery before even messing with it. If you were indeed reading voltage and get 10.87, it ain't squat. Again, charge the battery fully.
ALRIGHT Guys, I hope you guys had a fun and safe fourth,
Did a lot of reading and did what you guys suggested, I replaced the battery still no power, I got the solenoid today along with the replacement plug.I did a continuity test and had power at the key switch,the fuse box and surprising the replacement fuse in the starting switch/solenoid. So I left the original solenoid in place and replaced the plug. STILL nothing I read somewhere on here about a guy with the same problems though his bike was a ACE and he smelt a burning smell and had a pop and it turned out to be his rectifier. I tried to disconnect the rectifier like he did and still had no power. I looked over the rectifier and the plugs were a little yellow, I have a 2003 Honda cbr 600rr and the plugs are even yellower however I noticed there was no protective grease on the shadow, actually out of all the plugs only 2 had grease so I went and bought some "dielectric" grease and put grease on all the plugs and guess what..SHE STARTED!! So now that I got her running I am still curious as to what caused the fuse to blow and melt the plug Could it have been me downshifting causing a surge of power and the rectifier being the issue or????? I rode it around the block a few times but I dont trust her until I have this fully figured out. Thanks again guys!!!
Bad connection=high resistance and heat at said connection=blown fuse. Like I said in my previous post, tweek the connectors to make sure they're tight, not just greased. If you don't, it could well reoccur and it's never in a good place. Just sayin'. Happy to hear you're back in business! Ride safe!
Either with a blade or mini needle nose pliers, tighten the female half of the connectors a bit to make sure they're all a snug fit, grease them lightly, reconnect everything and you should be golden.
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