Comp monitor no longer works

[dna9656]

Who would have ever guessed that connecting 8 194 bulbs in parallel to the running lights would affect the comp. monitor?

In school they said so long as what you are adding in parallel have the same electrical load the source sees no additional load; or am I mis-quoting?

Why would anyone connect the computer to the lights?

When I was reading the trouble shooting chart it says "don't connect lights to the lighting system as it will affect the comp monitor system."

OK the monitor is not working... is it shot? do I have to get another one? If I can't connect extra lights to the system how are all the other ventures I have seen with extra lighting.

I can move the extra lights to the accessories terminal at the top of the fuse panel. I also have an additional available fused circuit in my fuse panel.

Edited May 23, 2014 by dna9656
Better wording

[Marcarl]

I have added a lot more than 8 194s to my 85, with no issues,,,,, well, not until one line shorted out and then that burned a 'hole' in the CPU. I fixed it with a small wire and solder. Maybe you have the same problem, maybe you have a short and too big a fuse.

[djh3]

LED Ask Flyinfool questions about lighting up a 1st Gen. I think he has a book out on it.

[Neil86]

Is the rest of the dash working.....neutral light, clock etc?

 

Probably the safest way to do extra lights would be to just use a relay triggered off the tailight wiring with power from the battery.

Edited May 23, 2014 by Neil86

[dna9656]

Nothing in the computer comes on.

The book says (on page 7-39):

 

"Don't connect extra electrical accessories to the Computer Monitoring System circuit (tail light, headlight etc.)."

 

Well who would have thought lighting would make a difference?

All my fuses (located in the main panel)are good. I found 4 in-line fuses behind the headlight (in those factory cheapie in-line holders; is there a way to ID them specifically? I'd like to move them to a second panel that's more accessible.) that all test good. I un-plugged and re-plugged all the plugs behind the headlight in case there was some corrosion or other reason they may have become disconnected. The Dash lights come on, apparently when I re-assembled the head light sw2itch I got the copper contact in upside down as the headlight w/n work properly. The high beam would work, the low beam was really dim, and the high beam indicator light stayed on regardless of switch position.

I rotated the copper plate in the low/hi beam switch and it performed correctly. I have disconnected the added lights from the running light circuit. I found a circuit added by a PO that ran from a large tan (in the FRONT running light circuit) wire behind the head light to the added lights in the read. I removed that wondering why you would tap into that circuit when there is a running light in the back to use. I guess I know why now.

I have the '85 parts bike. I will swap the CMS out and see what happens.

[Neil86]

Yes the total current actually flows through the CMU board....this is the input and output

terminals for headlight, brake, tail light.

The front running lights are powered before the CMS tailight input...so the PO was using that section for the

added lights.

If there is power coming in but insufficient current flow out it triggers a bulb failure alarm.

You already checked the brown wire into CMS for battery voltage versus the black ground wire?

 

 

Not sure about these cheap inline fuse holders you found, thinking this is a PO mod....can you check the power side of fuse to find where its tapped into?

[Prairiehammer]

I found 4 in-line fuses behind the headlight (in those factory cheapie in-line holders; is there a way to ID them specifically?

 

There are no fuses behind the headlight in an unmodified stock Venture. The main fuse panel on top of the battery, an auxiliary fuse block in front of the battery and the CLASS fuse holder are the only fuses on a stock First Gen.

 

To help determine what those four in-line fuses are protecting, pull the fuse from each and determine what doesn't work any longer. (BTW, there are no 'in-line' fuses on a stock Venture, if you exclude the CLASS fuse holder; although it is an 'in-line' fuse holder, it is unlike any in-line fuse holder you would find commercially).

[syscrusher]

I didn't know that the headlight, etc. goes through the CMU?

 

The CMU would then need to be capable of sourcing the entire load. Elements wired in parallel create an overall resistance that is less than the least resistive component wired in parallel. If this is a number of ordinary bulbs then the resistance decreases greatly with each added bulb since they are all pretty equal. The load is the inverse of the resistance, as you add elements the load increases with each. When the load is greater than the rated ability to source current or greater than the fuse rating fuses burn, voltage regulators fail, or if your lucky the thermal over-current protection is activated until the load is lessened and the protector cools down. One would expect the CMU? to have thermal shutdown but the only way to know if the damage is permanent is to decrease the load and try it.

 

[dna9656]

I think I got an intermittent ground.

I checked the fuses last night and this am and found them good, replaced the CMS with the one from the 85 and no joy. Checked the fuses again and found accessories (the cig lighter only) was blown (disconnected now) and the Tail was blown, replaced them, blew the tail 3 more times then the dash lights AND the CMS started working.

The CMS is still working (I tested the original one, it now works too) but no dash lights yet.

The weirdness is why I think I have a bad ground. I read about a bad ground here in the forums, traced out the black wire he mentioned (I think) anyway there is a black wire coming from the right side electronics, (CB/CLASS (all disconnected))that's connected to the battery, without removing the right side top of the cowling that's all I see. In the aforementioned post the guy said there was a black gnd from the "METER" (dash) that he traced out to a grounding point adjacent to the battery...ideas?

Where is (and what does it look like) the Reserve Lighting Unit?

Edited May 23, 2014 by dna9656

[dna9656]

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk195/dna9656/IMG_0254.jpg

 

My fuse pnl upgrade. I know the top fuse (access. is supposed to be 10 amps. Nothing is connected to it currently

[dna9656]

My fuse pnl upgrade from the top

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk195/dna9656/IMG_0251.jpg

[Prairiehammer]

My word! What is hooked to the FORTY amp fuse?!!

 

 

 

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk195/dna9656/IMG_0254.jpg

 

My fuse pnl upgrade. I know the top fuse (access. is supposed to be 10 amps. Nothing is connected to it currently

[dna9656]

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk195/dna9656/IMG_0252.jpgThe 83 looked a lot like this too. Wonderful, careful job as you can see many imaginative ways to connect a fuse and not spend any money. Fuse box as a insulator or what the hell just use BUTT connectors!

[dna9656]

My word! What is hooked to the FORTY amp fuse?!!

That was the value of the fuse I found in the main fuse holder. I guess I should have checked to see what the real value should be. I have some 30s, I'll change it right away!

 

A 40 amp belongs in there IAW the schematic. Wheew!

Edited May 23, 2014 by dna9656

[dna9656]

I found replaced the dash lights too, I used the 194 LED replacements bragged on in another post here on the forum. I found that#158 bulbs are the listed trade number for the lights in the dash. Are the 194 LED replacements my problem? I switched out dash with the one from the 85 and the lights on it don't come on either hence my question about the RESERVE LIGHT UNIT. Could the LEDs have blown the RLU?

That's why I asked what it looks like and where it's located.

#158 Spec: 14 Volt .24 Amp 3.36 Watt T3-1/4 Glass Wedge Base, 500 Hour

#194 Spec: See [ame=http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005ETCIO8/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1#productDetails]Amazon.com: AGT 10x 194 168 2825 5-SMD White High Power LED Car Lights Bulb: Automotive@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41w%2BqXiwqTL.@@AMEPARAM@@41w%2BqXiwqTL[/ame]

Edited May 23, 2014 by dna9656

[Prairiehammer]

I found replaced the dash lights too, I used the 194 LED replacements bragged on in another post here on the forum. I found that#158 bulbs are the listed trade number for the lights in the dash. Are the 194 LED replacements my problem? I switched out dash with the one from the 85 and the lights on it don't come on either hence my question about the RESERVE LIGHT UNIT. Could the LEDs have blown the RLU?

That's why I asked what it looks like and where it's located.

 

 

The difference between 158 and 194: 194 has a longer life and slightly higher current draw (0.27 vs 0.24).

The LED lights that you put in, draw even less, so no, that didn't 'kill' the CMS. But LED lights are polarity sensitive, ie; they only work when the correct polarity is applied. If you find one that doesn't work, pull it out and rotate the base 180° and reinsert.

[dna9656]

My word! What is hooked to the FORTY amp fuse?!!

 

 

I moved the factory in-line fuses (found fwd of the battery) to this pnl. the 20 amp is for the (now) defunct CLASS and the 40 was the MAIN.

The schematic shows a 40 amp fuse is correct.

Edited May 23, 2014 by dna9656

[dna9656]

Yes the total current actually flows through the CMU board....this is the input and output

terminals for headlight, brake, tail light.

The front running lights are powered before the CMS tailight input...so the PO was using that section for the

added lights.

If there is power coming in but insufficient current flow out it triggers a bulb failure alarm.

You already checked the brown wire into CMS for battery voltage versus the black ground wire?

 

 

Not sure about these cheap inline fuse holders you found, thinking this is a PO mod....can you check the power side of fuse to find where its tapped into?

 

Yes I will do that next while I await more guidance form the Oracle VENTURERIDERS...

[dna9656]

The difference between 158 and 194: 194 has a longer life and slightly higher current draw (0.27 vs 0.24).

The LED lights that you put in, draw even less, so no, that didn't 'kill' the CMS. But LED lights are polarity sensitive, ie; they only work when the correct polarity is applied. If you find one that doesn't work, pull it out and rotate the base 180° and reinsert.

 

Hell they ALL worked, (I think) so I got them ALL in there correctly the first time? Baloney.

 

BRB!!!!

[dna9656]

Prairiehammer and Niel86 YOU are the MAN!!!

All the bulbs work now! Duh LE DIODES

Diodes are what make solid state battery isolaters work OF COURSE the are polarity sensitive.

[dna9656]

Apparently I wasn't paying attention....when I first put the LEDs in. But why did the Computer monitor not work? I donno. I connected the running lights to that large brown wire in the front, I do believe it's pat of the front running lights.

The bike is all back together now, the CM works, the running lights work but still no horn.

[Neil86]

Just a guess....but I would double check the ground at the CMS.....perhaps it was somehow trying to ground through the tail light circuit and when you had the LEDs reversed your ground path was blocked.

[dna9656]

Just a guess....but I would double check the ground at the CMS.....perhaps it was somehow trying to ground through the tail light circuit and when you had the LEDs reversed your ground path was blocked.

 

Give guidance oh Guru and I shall comply...

[Neil86]

Is there a voltage drop between CMS black and battery negative?

[Neil86]

I guess its working now...thats the main thing.