Key on No power

[Guest Bluestreak]

A few times on my 2007 RSV (23000 mi) I have tuned on the Key and nothing, no lights, no radio. Sometimes I have seen a flicker of lights and then no visible power. I wiggle the key, work the clutch handle back and forth, and move the side stand up and down and usually I get lights and radio and then it starts. It has never died on me going down the road... yet. I find that my radio presets are all gone and have to reset. Is there any way to determine for sure if this is the ignition and what is the best fix if it is beginning to fail? I read about a relay harness on Delphi that is plug and play but I wonder if the ignition would still need replacement?

 

Thanks for any advice.

[buddy]

Don't know about yours but I had to replace mine 7yrs ago

[Rick Haywood]

Do you have passing lights and are they run through a relay? Either way my guess is where the switch plugs in under the tank is melted and loosing contact if you pull the tank and look the plastic pieces will be melted. I cut that out and wired direct, soldered it and heat srink wrapped it

[djh3]

I make the kit your speaking of on the Delphi boards. Before going all out on the ignition switch its self being bad you need to do some systematic checking. First is the battery up to voltage? 12-13v. Check and clean the ground and power connections. Check the main fuse, use an OHM meter. The fuse is located on the left side, below the regular fuse box and you have to remove the floorboard to get to it. Yea I know real convenient huh. Also check the connections there at that relay point. Mine worked fine, got home from a 3000+ mile trip 2 days later went out to run to store and nothing. Main fuse was bad.

There are a couple write ups around about cleaning the contacts up in the OEM switch to get a few more miles out of them. I would recommend installing the by-pass relay no matter what the out come may be.

It takes the current that would normally be going through the ignition switch - across the contacts of the switch that frequently get intermittent and fail due to heat buildup - and runs that current through a relay.* the ignition switch still controls the relay coil that has been added*(unless you get the keyless model, then it is toggle switches*that you add) so when you turn on the ignition switch, the relay closed and all the current that USED to*go across the ignition switch contacts ends up at the same place but gets there via the relay contacts.* turn off the ignition switch and the power to the relay goes off too.

 

this means that your ignition switch should not have any reason to fail and should last for the*foreseeable future!

 

 

it is a simple matter to install his kit, just unplug a plug that goes to the*ignition switch and insert this relay kit in between the*plugs and also connect a ground lead

[Guest Bluestreak]

I make the kit your speaking of on the Delphi boards. Before going all out on the ignition switch its self being bad you need to do some systematic checking. First is the battery up to voltage? 12-13v. Check and clean the ground and power connections. Check the main fuse, use an OHM meter. The fuse is located on the left side, below the regular fuse box and you have to remove the floorboard to get to it. Yea I know real convenient huh. Also check the connections there at that relay point. Mine worked fine, got home from a 3000+ mile trip 2 days later went out to run to store and nothing. Main fuse was bad.

There are a couple write ups around about cleaning the contacts up in the OEM switch to get a few more miles out of them. I would recommend installing the by-pass relay no matter what the out come may be.

 

Sounds like a plan. thanks

[wes0778]

Just thinking outside the box here, but I don't believe a failing ignition switch will delete the radio pre-sets. This sounds more like you are losing battery voltage(same thing as when you disconnect the battery) somewhere.

Check all the battery cable connections.

[Cougar]

[djh3]

Yea guys thats my usual plan of attack. KISS Start with battery, check volts and connections. Then work my way to the main fuse. When mine went bad it absolutly stunned me. Like I said I had just got off a 3K plus mile trip and never so much as had a slow start. Walked out to go to the store and nothing. Took me 2 days almost to figure it out. Where the main fuse is located it get some pretty nasty things thrown at it. The main power cable runs down there to the starter solinoid also.

When you do get it corrected you still may want to consider the by-pass realy, and especially if the plug under the tank is burned up. Check this thread out.

[beltfed50]

I make the kit your speaking of on the Delphi boards.

 

 

How would one less gifted in the "wiring dept" acquire one?

[djh3]

Send me a pm or e-mail and I'll get you some installation instructions and order info. If you can get the seat and gas tank off your in business. Its plug and play.

[Guest Bluestreak]

Ok, Ok I did find a loose ground at the battery. I had added an extra aux outlet sometime back and I guess I didn't tighten my connections good. That would explain loosing the radio presets.

 

I did OHM-check my fuses and battery voltage and the ignition connector under the tank. They all appear good (no melted connectors or wires) and now I know where to find the main fuse that you have to stand on your head to get to... Wonder whose idea that was?

 

I did go ahead and order the ignition relay harness from "djh3".

 

thanks for your input & advise.

[djh3]

YEA that was my though to on the fuse. I have read that some fellow riders have elected to relocate the fuse to a more accessible area. Mostly by the main fuse box. But heck if you moved it under the fender it would be just about as easy to get on the road if you were broke down. I wonder what engineer laid that out?

In my 40 some years of working on things mechanical a bad ground is probably 70% the cause of an electrical woe.