• Can't post after logging to the forum for the first time... Try Again - If you can't post in the forum, sign out of both the membership site and the forum and log in again. Make sure your COG membership is active and your browser allow cookies. If you still can't post, contact the COG IT guy at IT@Concours.org.
  • IF YOU GET 404 ERROR: This may be due to using a link in a post from prior to the web migration. Content was brought over from the old forum as is, but the links may be in error. If the link contains "cog-online.org" it is an old link and will not work.

Lost all electrical power - then drove home!

C

CC Rider

CC Rider
Member
A couple of weeks ago I got a "Low Battery" notification. That surprised me because the Yuasa AGM battery is less than a year old. Bike started, I drove a bit and shut it off. A couple of hours later it started fine.

Today the bike gave the Low Battery warning again, but it fired up normally. However, it smelled briefly, yeah like something burned. Drove it around the block, shut it off and restarted. Smell was gone, all was OK. Drove 2-hours, parked it. A couple of hours later, it fired up fine. But a short time later, while driving, it lost all electrical power. Bike totally died while rolling down the road, just as I was pulling away from a traffic light. Coasted off the road, a couple of minutes later it started again and ran just fine.

Drove home (1.5 hours on the highway), no problem. But voltage reading on the dash randomly varied from 13.4 volts to 15.0 volts, most of the time between 14.1 and 14.4 volts. After shutting it off for 30 minutes, tried to start it again, got a "Low Battery" notification.

Bike is a 2019 with 21,500 miles on it. I sincerely hope this is just a faulty battery, would appreciate any insights.
 
OK, stupid question time. There is one red battery connection (positive battery terminal) and two black ground leads, one from the battery and one from somewhere else in the bike. I checked a youtube video that shows both black leads connected to the frame, watched that many times to be sure. So why do the two black leads spark when you touch them together without connecting them to the frame? And why two ground wires?

Also I rechecked the battery ground it was loose (has been for the last 21,500 miles I guess). Will wait for the dumb question above before reconnecting.
 
Definitely wait. We've seen disasters in the past from a situation like yours.
 
This has been mentioned often but I'll re-state it. Grounds to the frame should be cleaned very abrasively. The corrosion on the frame at the ground is not easy to see and fairly hard. Sanding those ground connections should be done about once a year. Have read of quite a few instances on here that that kind of weird behavior was caused by a bad ground.
 
Bud said:
Definitely wait. We've seen disasters in the past from a situation like yours.
Click to expand...
Wiring diagram shows a ground wire from the battery and a separate engine ground wire, both connecting at the frame. But I hate the sparks, and yes the disaster I read about was scary.
 
Pete_COG_TN said:
This has been mentioned often but I'll re-state it. Grounds to the frame should be cleaned very abrasively. The corrosion on the frame at the ground is not easy to see and fairly hard. Sanding those ground connections should be done about once a year. Have read of quite a few instances on here that that kind of weird behavior was caused by a bad groun
CC Rider said:
Wiring diagram shows a ground wire from the battery and a separate engine ground wire, both connecting at the frame. But I hate the sparks, and yes the disaster I read about was scary.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

CC Rider said:
Wiring diagram shows a ground wire from the battery and a separate engine ground wire, both connecting at the frame. But I hate the sparks, and yes the disaster I read about was scary.
Click to expand...
Two wires, one from the battery. Engine ground is visible on the right side of the photo, attached to the frame with a separate nut. Presumably the second black wire (not from the battery) is also a ground wire?
 

Attachments

  • IMG_1374[1].JPG
    IMG_1374[1].JPG
    114.6 KB · Views: 61
Yes, both those wires in your photo should be connected to the grounding point on the frame, and the ground point on the frame needs to be clean and free of any paint, corrosion, or dirt, as should the ring connectors on the wires. A good stiff wire brush to clean them off is a good idea.
 
All my connections were tight and looked good from a corrosion point of view, but I followed the advice given and it worked like a charm (much to my surprise). Voltage now steady at 14.2-14.3, problem solved. Looks like fluctuating voltage is a leading indicator of corrosion in connections. Mine has been fluctuating for over 9-months, replacing the battery was not the answer. So glad to learn this while at home not 5-days drive out.

My friends Superduke 1290 mysteriously died then drove home the same way, this is probably not a C14-specific issue. Thanks again for the help.
 
Caig Laboratories makes something call DeOxIt. It's an anti-oxidation/anti-corrosion formula that electronics techs often use on various repair jobs. It comes in several formulations.

I have a shop-sized bottle of D5-100L (strongest formula Caig makes) and every time I have a C14's harness-to-frame connections apart they get sanded and a drop of the stuff applied to the frame. Bolts also get anti-seize applied to their threads.

They sell small tubes of D5-100L that would be perfect to carry on the bike in the tool kit area.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top