Bike randomly died

BigRiig · 07-24-2024, 03:55 PM

I was riding into work today and the bike randomly died. For context, I ride about 50 miles to work, mostly freeway. I average roughly 70-75mph on the freeway and once I hit the city streets, I am in stop-and-go traffic until I hit my office (roughly 4.5 miles). I've done this ride one a week for the last few months with no issue.

This morning, while coming through the city streets, the bike randomly shut off at low speed. The FI light was on and when I tried to start the bike, it would crank but not start. I shut it down completely, turned it back on, and it started right up. The bike didn't show any signs of rough idle or any other problems. I kept riding and about half a mile later, it shut off again. Same thing, I tried to crank it but it would only crank and not start. Shut it down, turned it back on and, BOOM, fired right up.

Made it the rest of the way (roughly 1 mile) with no issues. My first thought was low oil but I quickly checked when I parked and it was within the two lines in the site glass. Second thought was bad fuel but I filled up when I left my house and no issues the entire drive. Plus it was mixed with the 1/3 tank of fuel already in there.

I also checked for fault codes and found none. I haven't done any major repairs or modifications to the bike in about 3K miles so I don't think I could have left a loose wire or connection. Any thoughts?

UPDATE EDIT: On the ride home the bike sputtered or shut off probably 8-10 times. When it sputtered, it almost gave the feeling of running out of fuel. The outside temp was also much hotter than this morning. The last time it completely stopped running, I had a random thought to push down on the fuel cap and felt a faint 'click'. I rode the rest of the way home (~2 miles) with no issue. I don't know if this could be related to the fuel tank not venting/pressurizing correctly. I have owned the bike for 10 years and have never encountered this issue.

redjay · 07-24-2024, 05:03 PM

My thoughts would be either a faulty ignition switch or a poor ground from the battery to the chassis/frame ?

BigRiig · 07-25-2024, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by redjay

My thoughts would be either a faulty ignition switch or a poor ground from the battery to the chassis/frame ?

Perhaps the switch if you are referring to the red switch on the handlebars. The ground doesn't make sense because I still have power. If the bike went completely dead, I could see that as a possibility but I am going to check the battery connections anyway.

Also, see my updated edit above. Will post this afternoon once I have a chance to look at the bike.

redjay · 07-25-2024, 07:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigRiig

Perhaps the switch if you are referring to the red switch on the handlebars. The ground doesn't make sense because I still have power. If the bike went completely dead, I could see that as a possibility but I am going to check the battery connections anyway.

Also, see my updated edit above. Will post this afternoon once I have a chance to look at the bike.

I was referring to the ignition switch, where the key goes.

BigRiig · 07-26-2024, 01:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by redjay

I was referring to the ignition switch, where the key goes.

Is there a way to test it?

redjay · 07-26-2024, 05:57 PM

Seeing as it is an intermittent problem I am not sure. Electrics are not my thing.

I wonder if is possible to rig something up to bypass the ignition switch to see if the issue goes away ?

BigRiig · 07-29-2024, 03:51 PM

UPDATE:

I pulled off the ignition switch to check the wires and all looks good. I figured I would check to see if it started. The bike had a bit of trouble turning over almost like the battery was low. It would crank for a bit and then the starter would click and the power would shut off. I used a jumper and was able to get it started. I just let it idle for a bit before shutting it down and plugging in the tender.

When I plugged in the tender, it showed 0.0 volts which was weird. When I would wiggle the plug, it would jump up to 12.5 and then drop back to 0.0. At this point, I removed the seat and lo and behold, the negative battery terminal was loose...SMH. I tightened it down and the tender jumped right up to 12.5 volts. All seems to be well but I am going to take it out for a ride today just to make sure that was the issue. Honesly it is a big relief if so.

redjay · 07-29-2024, 05:47 PM

I tighten the battery terminals 2 or 3 times a season and they always need a little bit of tightening every time. Check the battery post too. Seeing as the terminal was somewhat loose the post might need a bit of a clean.
Glad the issue was not a major one.

BigRiig · 07-29-2024, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by redjay

I tighten the battery terminals 2 or 3 times a season and they always need a little bit of tightening every time. Check the battery post too. Seeing as the terminal was somewhat loose the post might need a bit of a clean.
Glad the issue was not a major one.

I never think to tighten them to be honest. Definitely something I will check more often. I did check for any corrosion while I was there and all looks good. I also didn't think of it because I did two mods earlier this year that required removal of the terminals. One was adding a remote plug for my portable jumper and the other was replacing the tender plug. I tightened the terminals down good and tight but apparently the vibration made the negative one rattle loose.

Lesson learned.

Also, I mod I meant to post here but I got tired of having to remove the seat to jumpstart the bike. This tends to happen on long trips when I charge my cell phone off the bike. I found this terminal plug that works with most small portable jump starters (I carry this one from Harbor Freight). I tucked the plug behind the left side cover and have used it twice now to jump the bike with zero issues. Handy mod if you've ever had the battery die especially on the road.

07-24-2024, 03:55 PM	#1
BigRiig Jr. Member Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: Northern California Posts: 48	Bike randomly died I was riding into work today and the bike randomly died. For context, I ride about 50 miles to work, mostly freeway. I average roughly 70-75mph on the freeway and once I hit the city streets, I am in stop-and-go traffic until I hit my office (roughly 4.5 miles). I've done this ride one a week for the last few months with no issue. This morning, while coming through the city streets, the bike randomly shut off at low speed. The FI light was on and when I tried to start the bike, it would crank but not start. I shut it down completely, turned it back on, and it started right up. The bike didn't show any signs of rough idle or any other problems. I kept riding and about half a mile later, it shut off again. Same thing, I tried to crank it but it would only crank and not start. Shut it down, turned it back on and, BOOM, fired right up. Made it the rest of the way (roughly 1 mile) with no issues. My first thought was low oil but I quickly checked when I parked and it was within the two lines in the site glass. Second thought was bad fuel but I filled up when I left my house and no issues the entire drive. Plus it was mixed with the 1/3 tank of fuel already in there. I also checked for fault codes and found none. I haven't done any major repairs or modifications to the bike in about 3K miles so I don't think I could have left a loose wire or connection. Any thoughts? UPDATE EDIT: On the ride home the bike sputtered or shut off probably 8-10 times. When it sputtered, it almost gave the feeling of running out of fuel. The outside temp was also much hotter than this morning. The last time it completely stopped running, I had a random thought to push down on the fuel cap and felt a faint 'click'. I rode the rest of the way home (~2 miles) with no issue. I don't know if this could be related to the fuel tank not venting/pressurizing correctly. I have owned the bike for 10 years and have never encountered this issue. Login or Register to Remove Ads Last edited by BigRiig; 07-25-2024 at 12:33 PM.
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07-24-2024, 05:03 PM	#2
redjay Top Contributor Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ontario Posts: 6,983	My thoughts would be either a faulty ignition switch or a poor ground from the battery to the chassis/frame ? Last edited by redjay; 07-25-2024 at 10:29 AM.
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07-26-2024, 05:57 PM	#6
redjay Top Contributor Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ontario Posts: 6,983	Seeing as it is an intermittent problem I am not sure. Electrics are not my thing. I wonder if is possible to rig something up to bypass the ignition switch to see if the issue goes away ?
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07-29-2024, 03:51 PM	#7
BigRiig Jr. Member Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: Northern California Posts: 48	UPDATE: I pulled off the ignition switch to check the wires and all looks good. I figured I would check to see if it started. The bike had a bit of trouble turning over almost like the battery was low. It would crank for a bit and then the starter would click and the power would shut off. I used a jumper and was able to get it started. I just let it idle for a bit before shutting it down and plugging in the tender. When I plugged in the tender, it showed 0.0 volts which was weird. When I would wiggle the plug, it would jump up to 12.5 and then drop back to 0.0. At this point, I removed the seat and lo and behold, the negative battery terminal was loose...SMH. I tightened it down and the tender jumped right up to 12.5 volts. All seems to be well but I am going to take it out for a ride today just to make sure that was the issue. Honesly it is a big relief if so.
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07-29-2024, 05:47 PM	#8
redjay Top Contributor Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ontario Posts: 6,983	I tighten the battery terminals 2 or 3 times a season and they always need a little bit of tightening every time. Check the battery post too. Seeing as the terminal was somewhat loose the post might need a bit of a clean. Glad the issue was not a major one.
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