Battery Not Being Charged

[glupanow]

I was on a ride last weekend and all of a sudden my audio went out. I was not happy but became even more unhappy when a few minutes later, the speedo started doing weird things and then went to 0 - even though I was on the freeway. Anyway, a couple of more minutes and the bike died. Battery was dead. I got a new battery and brought the bike home. When I got home, I check the batteries - both would hold a charge. Then I put one back in the bike - it started and ran fine. Then I checked the battery connectors while the bike was running - I read about 11.4 volts and slowly dropping.

So, it appears as though the batteries are fine but are not being charged during riding. What do you folks think - stator? / regulator? or maybe a short?

I've done a lot of work on my bike myself - but not tackled much in the electrical area. Any thoughts on how to check this would be appreciated.

 

Thanks,

George

[Gambler]

My bets on the stator

 

Gambler

[KiteSquid]

Is it under warentee???????

[AmnChode]

Being it is a '99...I have my doubts...at least not a factory one.

[FreezyRider]

My 99 did the exact same thing to me the day after I bought it, and the regulator and battery were brand new (prior owner had this happen and thought a new battery and regulator would fix it....wrong). I immediately suspected the stator, so tested it following the instructions in the service manual. It tested OK. So I decided to pull the new regulator off, it is not unheard of that a new one can be defective. When I pulled off the connector, I saw the problem. One of the wire connectors inside the connector plug was not making good contact. The "female" side had spread apart a bit, therefore the spade part of the connector wasn't making good contact. I used a pair of needle nosed pliers to snug up the connector a bit, then loaded the connector socket with dielectric grease and plugged it back in. Never had the problem again.

I'd suggest you check that connector.

 

Good luck!

[glupanow]

Thanks all for the responses. I suspect the stator as well - but definetly will look at all of the connections carefully to make sure they are all snug. It is a '99 and I have over 50,000 miles on it. I've never had any problems with any of the electrical - but that also means when I make sure the bolts are all tightened down at the beginning of riding season - I don't even think to look at electrical connectors.

 

Thanks again for the help - I hope to have a chance to tear into it this weekend and I'll let you all know what I find.

 

George

[Squeeze]

As i'm not familiar with the 2Gens i can't help on Locations of the Connectors, but you need to check the three Wires(white or yellow) coming from the Stator.

 

Check them for Resistance as stated in the Workshop Manual and also with the digital Multimeter setted on AC 2 to 20 Volts. You should read around 15 Volts when the Engine is running at 2k RpM or above and measured between each of the Wires. Also, check each Wire versus Ground when the Motors running on Idle. This should give you no Reading.

 

If the Resistance and the Voltages check out fine, you may need a new Regulator/Rectifier. Check the outgoing DC Voltage on the red Wire versus Ground. If this reads between 12.42 and 12.6 Volt the Ground Contact of the R/R may be the Culprit.

[glupanow]

Well, I finally got to troubleshooting my battery charging problem. I took the advice offered by FreezyRider and started by checking the regulator/rectifier. Once I looked inside the connectors, I didn't see any problems. But, I put some dielectric in there before putting it back together and - just like magic - the bike starting charging the battery when I started it.

That's a much easier fix than I thought it would be. I guess that connector is in a spot that gets a lot of air and what not and does tend to work itself loose.

Thanks, Freezy for the great tip.

 

Now if the weather would clear up...

 

George