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Voltage Readings and Pulsating Lights

W

w.m.reyda8050

Guest
Guest
Greetings Everyone,

I just joined COGs and hope to find some answers on an issue I am running into on my 2003 Kawasaki Concours with 55 000kms on the clock here in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The bike's starter performs great and never has an issue, however sometimes immediately after starting the lights will pulsate. You can see this in the dash when the Neutral light is on as well as the headlight. When I have this condition and hook up a multi-meter (aka voltmeter) to the battery, the voltage readings are in the range of 14.7 - 15.2V. At rest, the battery readings are just above 13V. Also to note, after riding for some time, it seems like the bike has a loss in power and when trying to maintain a constant speed the RPM's tend to fluctuate.
Is this a battery issue or an alternator / stator / rectifier issue or both? I have checked all wiring and fuses and connections. No issues were found. Is there another area I should be looking at? Possibly ignition? Any help in regards to this issue is greatly appreciated! Thank-you!
 
Welcome! I can't offer any help but I'll be interested to read the comments about what might be going on.
 
Sounds like u NEED to read the threads from SISF about free power for the c10. If ur new to the forum and COG in general SISF (steve in sunny florida) is 1 of the wisest guys around regarding the c10 and c14. He is a industry sponsor with his company shoonaben engineering. He has developed numerous upgrades and mods for the c10. In general.the c10 suffers from poor grounding. As a member ull be able to access the tech area of the club for more information...
 
Two immediate considerations to rule out. Ground connector faults due to corrosion and age. Multiple connector block checks for faults due to moisture and/or debris ingress.

Solution visually inspect all. Discount them. Shine a bright light to them. Clean and debride as necessary. Labor intensive perhaps but cheap fix.

In same vein check alternator connection. Also check j-box connector. Mine was full of road debris and oil when I first got bike. It gave all kinds of strange electrical gremlins till cleaned!

Lastly listen or feel for relays in J-box sticking, oscillating and/or failing.

Of note my fork air connector at on time leaked oil within the fairing nose. All connectors got doused over time. Took a cup of simple green and soaked each connector, rinsed, air dried with can air, then used electric contact cleaner.

This worked for J-box connector too. Pulled box and cleaned its contacts too.

J- Box failure is always a consideration for oddball electrical gremlins. This due to sticking relays and diodes in circuits.

I live in a subtropical region. Moisture ingress and corrosion damage into connectors requires vigilance.

Sometimes it is necessary to pull a connector pin and debride it individually due to corrosion. Simple to do with a small tiny screwdriver.

Of note: I always make effort to turn all plastic/rubber connector shields down so debris falls out of them and is not collecting in them.

Perhaps more than was asked but so apropo to long term C10 ownership. Good luck!
 
Konehead34 said:
Sounds like u NEED to read the threads from SISF about free power for the c10. If ur new to the forum and COG in general SISF (steve in sunny florida) is 1 of the wisest guys around regarding the c10 and c14. He is a industry sponsor with his company shoonaben engineering. He has developed numerous upgrades and mods for the c10. In general.the c10 suffers from poor grounding. As a member ull be able to access the tech area of the club for more information...
Click to expand...
Hello and thanks for the response! I have stumbled on Steve's videos while doing internet searches. Agree with you 100%, his tips are definitely noteworthy. The ground fix might be something to try. Have you ever had any experience with the voltage regulator (aka stator)? Could this maybe be the cause for voltage readings to be up and down while running?
 
Mercer said:
Two immediate considerations to rule out. Ground connector faults due to corrosion and age. Multiple connector block checks for faults due to moisture and/or debris ingress.

Solution visually inspect all. Discount them. Shine a bright light to them. Clean and debride as necessary. Labor intensive perhaps but cheap fix.

In same vein check alternator connection. Also check j-box connector. Mine was full of road debris and oil when I first got bike. It gave all kinds of strange electrical gremlins till cleaned!

Lastly listen or feel for relays in J-box sticking, oscillating and/or failing.

Of note my fork air connector at on time leaked oil within the fairing nose. All connectors got doused over time. Took a cup of simple green and soaked each connector, rinsed, air dried with can air, then used electric contact cleaner.

This worked for J-box connector too. Pulled box and cleaned its contacts too.

J- Box failure is always a consideration for oddball electrical gremlins. This due to sticking relays and diodes in circuits.

I live in a subtropical region. Moisture ingress and corrosion damage into connectors requires vigilance.

Sometimes it is necessary to pull a connector pin and debride it individually due to corrosion. Simple to do with a small tiny screwdriver.

Of note: I always make effort to turn all plastic/rubber connector shields down so debris falls out of them and is not collecting in them.

Perhaps more than was asked but so apropo to long term C10 ownership. Good luck!
Click to expand...
Thank you for your response and detail! I have checked all connections. The J-Box is good. Might do the ground fix that Steve from Shouldabeen Engineering suggests. Do you think voltage regulator could be causing the voltage to go up and down?
 
Yes the voltage regulator. I had that going on with the 900. (no J box) A new regulator fixed it.

Finding a new OEM regulator for a then 45 year old bike is not an easy task. A used on E bay was hit and miss. So I installed a new version that replaced the OEM regulator. It was not a direct plug in and play but no complaints.
 
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Charge circuit wiring connectors can give intermittent symptoms as well aching and overheating of connector. Some bypass connector and solder wires in charge circuit. Fault should be visual and revealing. If you have checked connectors you have ruled that out.

I would refrain from changing parts in a intermittent circumstance without knowing part has failed.

Partial failures in electronics are not common unless overheating. Part fails and that is that.

Wiring joints and solder joints on other hand do fail intermittently all to commonly.

Food for thought.

Oh P.S. There is a entity on internet that makes all new and modern charge hardware for C10 if you need such.

Will try yo find you a link. Reasonably priced to boot!
 
www.bikerperformance.com

ElectroSport Regulator / Rectifier - Kawasaki ZG1000 / ZG1200 (86-06)

The ElectroSport ESR025 is a regulator that replaces the internal regulator inside Nippon Denso alternators
www.bikerperformance.com

www.ebay.com

Motorcycle Regulators for Kawasaki Concours 1000 for sale | eBay

Get the best deals on Motorcycle Regulators for Kawasaki Concours 1000 when you shop the largest online selection at eBay.com. Free shipping on many items | Browse your favorite brands | affordable prices.
www.ebay.com

These two links are not the one I was referring to. But in same price range.
 
In the full service manual section 15, ground terminal F on the voltage regulator and start the bike. If the voltage output is greater than 13.5 volts, then that points to a faulty regulator. If it is below, then that points to the brushes, field and stator windings as having the potential problem.

Both my 86 and 2005 bikes did the same thing as yours is. Above 1500 rpm the voltage goes down to its proper level. The extra ground added (steve'e power mod) didn't do anything for my 2005. I had added murph's extra light harness before that, so I believe that improved the grounding issue by itself.

I don't have the issue of fluctuating rpm's when trying to maintain a constant speed or a loss of power. Only thing I could think of is your ignitor coils, or your pickup coils might be starting to give out when heated up. My pickup coils gave out after ~ 70,000 miles on my 86, but the whole bike would just shut down until it cooled off.
 
Tim R said:
Another little piece info with a bad regulator: Burning out light blubs lately?
Click to expand...
Thank you Tim for the information. Greatly appreciated!! To answer your question about bulbs, yes can say I have. First one was a rear taillight, then not too long ago the headlight. Also to note, one of the mini bulbs in the instrument cluster has been burnt out for some time and I just have not gotten around to replace it yet.

Looks like I will be ordering up a new Voltage Regulator. Thank you Mercer for the information on the part. I have found a supplier here in Canada who carries this part. Once installed I will update everyone on my findings.
 
Also for review:

forum.concours.org

Pulsing, Flickering lights solved

I have been struggling with flickering lights for over a year but over last few months have become quite troublesome (more on that later). Searching the COG forums I found several threads on the pulsing or flicking light issue so it is not uncommon. There never seems to be a conclusion, you know...
forum.concours.org forum.concours.org
 
My experience with Connie electrical problems is simple: Throw money at the problem.

Remove the motorcycle battery. Look at the motorcycle battery and take note if it is under size, or the wrong part number. If you have a receipt, take it with you and buy a new battery. Do a side by side comparison of batteries before you leave the store. The usually accurate NAPA auto parts store lists a wrong dimension battery for the Connie C10.
( I think ...) the Connie uses an automotive type constant current charging system. You want a good ground between the battery, the regulator and the alternator. When you have a nice fresh battery and good grounding to the charging system whatever remains as a problem will probably be a lot easier to figure out.
 
Interesting electrical solution. Have never seen that in any troubleshooting flowchart on repair.
Would only throw money at a battery or electrical problem after a known fault was revealed by testing.

Would certainly note fluid in cells if battery has tops. Check charge, grounding and will any battery meet it's start load spec.
But those do not cost money.

Otherwise you have a lot of money thrown down at good parts. That and will have the original problem still.
That process might would be akin to throwing money at politicians to fix same problems as last election cycle.
Seems I digress.

But hey what do I know. Do service my Connie at the house of frugal!
Throwing money at fueling expense and good lunches along the way gets my vote. He he.
 
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