Fuel Guage Flashes

[creole]

Has anyone ever seen the entire fuel gauge flash on and off, like two flashes- pause, then flash again? My bike died the other day while riding home about a mile from work with the gauge flashing. It was like someone turned the key off. No sputtering or anything, just died, with all the electrical components still on. I pulled over, turned the key off, back on, fired it up and came on home without any incident.

 

Any thoughts?

 

Thanks,

Creole

[kevin-vic-b.c.]

First thought has to be... out of fuel?

second is fuel filter

third is fuel pump

fourth.... malfunction ???????

[First_N_Last]

Has anyone ever seen the entire fuel gauge flash on and off, like two flashes- pause, then flash again? My bike died the other day while riding home about a mile from work with the gauge flashing. It was like someone turned the key off. No sputtering or anything, just died, with all the electrical components still on. I pulled over, turned the key off, back on, fired it up and came on home without any incident.

 

Any thoughts?

 

Thanks,

Creole

 

Where there any UFOs in the area?

[eusa1]

my first 03 rsv did that a few times before the ignition switch failed.

and a buddy's 05 did the same thing.

mike

[creole]

No, UFO....LOL. Yes Full Tank of gas, maybe only down one bar. My first thought was that I bumped the kill switch on the throtle (done that a few times by accident), however not the case in this incident. Second thought was I didn't get the ignition clicked in the "run" position good and a bump in the road made it disconnect. Still not sure because the only thing I did, was: stop, turn the ignition off, turn it to on, start it up and went on home. I couldn't find anything in the Clymer's manual about the entire gauge flashing only the bars on either end. Maybe it's just a one time thing and that's all.

 

Thanks for the thoughts though

[M61A1MECH]

Could be the proverbial canary in the coal mine telling you the ignition switch is on the way out. According to the manual the only time the fuel gauge should flash is if the fuel gauge, sending unit or thermister is bad. If the fuel sensing system is bad the main gauge will flash a pattern of on and off eight times, then off 3 seconds, then repeat for 3 cycles after that either the first or last segment will blink. If first unit (left most) blinks 8 times then the thermistor is bad, if the right most unit blinks the sending unit is bad. Neither of these problems should result in the engine shutting off, so it is likely that there is a faulty circuit someplace else, like the ignition switch that is mimicing a faulty sensing unit some how, and causing the diagnostics system to be fooled about the real problem.

[Guest tx2sturgis]

Seafoam.

 

[Guest Slab_Ryder]

My Fuel Gauge acted like that towards the end of the Battery's Life.

[spear]

Where there any UFOs in the area?

Just what I was thinkin'!

[creole]

Maybe it's a combination of things. I do believe there's a problem with the fuel sender (or the low fuel light) Neither of those indicators work, I just know when it's time to fill up and always leave the reserve just in case. Didn't worry about it because the fuel gauge worked and this bike goes sooooo much further on a tank of fuel than my last one....seems like forever. My Harley friends got nuthin on me now....'cept a biger payment.....LOL. I've only had this bike since last February. The PO told me the battery was bad, however I've not experienced any real symptoms of that while it was ridden regularly (His wife wouldn't let him ride it, so it sat most of the year he owned it). Now it's sat most of Nov. Dec. in my garage due to cold weather and we had one spring (perfect) day in January last week and I rode it to work.......snowed the next day, go figure Oklahoma weather.... It was slow cranking after sitting, maybe I should put the charger on it before the next ride and see if it happens again.

[bongobobny]

Yah! I'm thinking down the road you are going to be another victim of the dreaded ignition switch failure...

[Cougar]

mine did that when my sending unit was going bad replaced it and all was good to go.

[KeithR]

Is the plug loose maybe? I've seen that on mine before and if I remember correctly and it was the plug.

 

Keith

[WildBill1]

Has anyone ever seen the entire fuel gauge flash on and off, like two flashes- pause, then flash again? My bike died the other day while riding home about a mile from work with the gauge flashing. It was like someone turned the key off. No sputtering or anything, just died, with all the electrical components still on. I pulled over, turned the key off, back on, fired it up and came on home without any incident.

 

Any thoughts?

 

Thanks,

Creole

 

Sounds like loose battery leads or also the ground terminal has become loose at the frame.

 

WildBill

[BradT]

You did not comment if the flashing fuel light still flashese or if it stopped flashing. Refer to the manual as the amount of flashes tells you the answer as to which part is faulty.

 

Can't remember but after a series of blinks my fuel gauge would blink one bar on the empty side of the gauge. Fuel sending unit, so I bought a replacement, and when I took the old one out there was a broken wire which I could have soldered easily.

 

Thinking the stalling was something else.

 

Brad

[creole]

Thanks for all the info guys. In answer to an above post. The gauge no longer flashed when I got going on the road.......what's "the dreaded ignition switch failure"? The book doesn't say anything about the entire gauge flashing....not that I can find anyway. I have had the tank off last summer to do something under there. Can't remember what it was at the moment, suppose it might be worth a look at the connection. Maybe I'll diagnose the sending unit while I've got it off, been wanting to fix the "low almost out of gas, pull over and fill me up idiot light / F odometer counter thingy" anyway.

Edited January 16, 2013 by creole

[M61A1MECH]

The Clymer manual may not speak to the entire entire fuel gauge flashing but the Yamaha service manual does, go back and look at my post on the 13th.

The entire gauge flashes first and then either the left or right most segmenrt will flash telling you which unit is bad, the thermistor or the sending unit.

[creole]

Ahhhhhhh, Thanks M61A1Mech.......