Forum

[Norm]

Ok Michael now we know the problem is in the lighting side of the wiring. When you get it to somewhere you can test it. This bike should be D/C headlight so turn the ignition on, then turn the headlight on and it should blow the fuse again. Then come back and let us know what happens

[Michael]

Cheers Norm, your voice of reason is wise indeed. Exactly as you said, turned ignition on, turned headlight on (with that comes the pilot lights either side of the headlight, and the tail light) and the fuse blew. Ignition was on, but engine was not running. Fuse blew within seconds.

[Clive The Motorcycling God]

Having run an EFI electra from new for the last two years (12000 miles now) I have come to the conclusion that in general it is a fine bike. However if there is a vulnerable part it is the wiring. Not the components or the connectors they seem ok. It is the harness that is suspect. I have had several issues similar to those already mentioned. The first was a complete failure of everything after a couple of weeks. That turned out to be the side stand switch which appears to be robust but aint. There is a connector 6 inches away so I just disconnected it and threw it away. That solved that problem. The other complete shut-down came after about a year. That turned out to be a failure of the main feed from the hot side of the battery through the wiring harness to the ignition switch. So a joint must have broken down within the harness somewhere. I put in a new cable (with extra fuse) from the battery to the fused supply to the power relay. That cured that one.

Grunda 12 has the same view as I have re the nasty fuse setup. It was awful when I first took delivery with cables everywhere. All too long and straggly with no waterproofing. I re-wired all three of them and bound all the cabling with fabric insulating tape and clipped them out of the way properly. Although I have kept the original fuses they are not a good arrangement Coincidently, like Grunda I have been thinking of replacing them with proper blade fuses rather that the glass tube type fitted as standard. Ironically a pal of mine bought a standard Bullet the same day as I did and his has blade type fuses ! Strange.

The last problem I had was last weekend when I put the headlight on during misty weather. Everything shut down momentarily until I switched the lights off and then the engine chimed in again after a couple of seconds. Stopped a little while later and checked and all worked as it should. Got home and checked and everything shut down again. I found the the fuse protecting the power relay had almost come out of its clip. Cleaned it up and shoved it back in and all has been ok since. That is the main reason for changing the three fuses for blade types. It's not difficult to do.

[Michael]

If it helps any clever people out there, I just tested all the circuits which the main headlight/pilot/tailight switch powers (I say tested, probably better to say investigated). In each case, nothing bad happened when the ignition key alone was turned, bad things happen when the right hand light switch is in ANY on position (i.e. pilot and tail on, or headlamp, pilot and tail on).




With all lights and bulbs in place, ignition on -> fuse blows. Headlamp removed (i.e. wiring unplugged at block connectors behind the headlamp unit): ignition on -> fuse blows. Pilot lamps then removed -> fuse blows. Stop/Tail removed -> fuse blows.




Just as I am typing this I realised that I never tested the speedo back light nor the EFI MIL warning lamp back light. However, with all other 'bigger' lamps removed, the fuse still blows.




Let us assume that the fuse still blows with both speedo and MIL backlights also disconnected. What am I looking at now? Cos it certainly doesn't appear to be any lamps causing the blow at the moment (especially with a brand new tail light wiring loom in place as of last week).

[Alan R]

Hi MICHAEL-------- have been following this with interest..As I don't own, or have never had any dealings with an UCE/EFi bike maybe I can look at your problem with a detached "eye" so to speak ?? ( No, my retinas'are both OK, thanks !!)--- Sometimes diagnostics just by removal or substitution can be the best approach, especially if you don't have any Electrical or Engineering experiences........I have just read your last post....Did you leave each item disconnected after testing OR}--- did you replace that one then removed another and tested it ??..... If it's the former one then there is a common item that you've not tested yet ie}---- The IGNITION SWITCH itself........ Also, at this point my "gut" feeling is the actual fault is a straight short to Earth; that it's in (or associated with--) the wiring loom, and only happens when the IGN. is turned on-----and only occasionally as well ( because you got to work recently )...Have a look around the headstock area where the wiring loom passes from the mainframe into the headlamp.....Turn the handlebars from full lock to full lock and check for stretch and rub against the frame....Ignition switches have been known to fall apart internally etc...TIP}--- Don't waste fuses, put a 12v/21w bulb in it's place.....That way you can tweak--prod,--- pull etc and still know the results without spending a fortune .... Back in the day I had an old rear bulb holder with 2ft of cable and crocodile clips ( and long,thin pointer) in my dust coat pocket for just such testing...........

[Michael]

Outrageous. Halfway home and pop goes the rear tyre. Not even a slow puncture but a very fast one. Not fun. I hope someone is laughing!!!

[Norm]

Hi Michael,
sorry to hear about the puncture, any idea what caused it. Back to your wiring problem, seeing you appear to have removed all the lighting components that can usually cause a problem, the only thing I can think of is to remove the headlight on switch from the handelbar and see if it still blows a fuse. It may be shorting to earth somewhere in there. Another thing to try is the headlight flash function to see if that blows a fuse.

[Michael]

Not long home and managed to find the half inch spike that blew the tyre. Wheel off and replace tube sometime soon. Bah. However, whilst waiting for help I decided to strip down the RH switchgear on the bars (leatherman came in handy today). Switchgear off and there is a slight nick in the insulation of one 'kill switch' wire but nothing to short on. So I then stripped the waterproofing (which was already damaged) between the switch cluster and the block connector a hot wire melted through a few others. Cause or symptom I wonder. Either way new switch cluster needed. Could all this be due to the hot wire that was nicked and grounded behind the battery box - hope this is all there is!! It'll be pot luck whether the main loom is damaged or not, or if it's just the stubs. Let's see how this goes...

[Bertie the Bullet]

Blimey Michael, I was thinking if upgrading Bertie for an EFI at some point in the forseeable future, but after reading this I don't think I will bother, Bertie has been jet washed and still ran afterwards ok.....may I suggest that you disconnect the battery and remove all bulbs, then ohms test each bulb holders positive connection against the frame (which I assume is negative) using a volt/ohms meter, this should indicate if you have a leak anywhere that is blowing the fuse.

[Norm]

Hi Michael,
good to hear you have found it, was about the only place left. I would assume this was related to the earlier short, just keep the fingers crossed the loom is ok