It sputtered and then stopped.............

[gez]

Might anyone have an idea where I should start to remedy this incident?

 

I was about 2 miles into a short 4 mile ride on my Road Star ( I know this is a Venture forum, but they are both carbureted and I assume have similar electronic components with regard to running the engine) things were fine when I noticed the speedometer indicated 80 miles an hour while I know I was traveling about 45. The instrument panel then went blank and soon after that the bike sputtered to a stop, totally dead. Trying to start it was like there was no battery in the bike. I was able to leave it where it was and returned to it many hours later when I attempted to start it, it did without hesitation. I rode it home, 2 miles without incident.

 

I appeal to the council of master mechanics here that make this forum invaluable, and ideas?

[Eck]

1st - question: How old is your battery?

2nd - question: Have you performed a pull test on the battery to be sure it is good?

3rd - question: Have you checked / cleaned/ tightened the battery connections?

4th - question: Have you checked for a loose / dirty connection on a fuse in main fuse box?

It sounds like you have an electrical issue since you mentioned the instrument panel went blank. (ignition switch possibly going bad.)

 

OP's another question: Did you fill up prior to going on your ride? If so maybe you have water in gas, but this would have nothing to do with dash panel going blank..

Edited March 14, 2016 by Eck

[gez]

Eck, thanks for the quick response. From your suggestions this doesn't sound too serious. I'll get to work on it.

 

1. battery at least 3 years old.

2. No

3. connections tight and spotless.

4. I'll look into the fuse box.

[Eck]

There are 2 plug-in sockets for the wiring underneath a panel, located under the front of the gas tank where the ignition switch is. These connections may be loose. Pull them apart and apply some dielectric grease in sockets and on the pins to prevent moisture from getting in.

Remove the bolt going thru the rear of the tank and pull the tank back a few inches to free up the wiring harness, that way the panel connectors are free to work on.

 

Also, check the 15 amp fuse all the way to the left of the fuse block to see if it is blown. (Note: It may be a 10 amp fuse and not a 15 amp fuse)

[Zzyzx]

As Eck stated it sounds like it may be battery related but also try turning the key back and forth a little to see if you can get contact.

Turn the key to the run/start position then back slightly and see if the speedo or any of the info lights come on.

If they do and stay on you should be able to start the bike once they activate.

This would indicate the ignition switch contacts may be dirty or going bad.

[GeorgeS]

Check the Fuel tank Vent hole. ( might be plugged )

Fuel petcock should have a Screen, Drain tank, remove petcock, and clean the screen . ( might be a problem )

 

How many miles since the fuel filter has been changed ??? It " Might " be plugged.

 

Find the Ignitor Unit ( wherever it is on your bike ) Remove the electrical plug. and Clean the Contacts ( might be a problem )

 

Find your Ignition Fuse. There is one someplace, make sure it is making good connection.

 

Is this a high milage bike ??? if so, open up the RED, RUN/STOP SWITCH on right hand grip. Clean the switch contacts.

 

Just a few ideas.

 

Another item, you might have an intermittent ON/OFF, Ignition Switch. ??? This is a problem point on Ventures, no sure about your

bike.

[gez]

I've had the bike for three years, it had 2,500 miles when I bought it. It now has 13,000 miles, Oil/filter and tires have been my only maintenance.

[Sylvester]

For sure a battery issue. Had it happen so many times on a Harley 2000 Ultra due to a recurring stator failure issue. It may also be related to your charging.

 

[Eck]

I do not feel it is fuel system related at all being that the dash / instrument panel went blank. You have an electrical issue not a fuel issue.

[Brake Pad]

i had the 04 road star, I added driving lights. I found a ground wire at the wiring done by the shop, of, splice and tape, not male female connect so the wiring created a ground, and kept draining my battery

[cowpuc]

Might anyone have an idea where I should start to remedy this incident?

 

I was about 2 miles into a short 4 mile ride on my Road Star ( I know this is a Venture forum, but they are both carbureted and I assume have similar electronic components with regard to running the engine) things were fine when I noticed the speedometer indicated 80 miles an hour while I know I was traveling about 45. The instrument panel then went blank and soon after that the bike sputtered to a stop, totally dead. Trying to start it was like there was no battery in the bike. I was able to leave it where it was and returned to it many hours later when I attempted to start it, it did without hesitation. I rode it home, 2 miles without incident.

 

I appeal to the council of master mechanics here that make this forum invaluable, and ideas?

Getting some awesome advice here (IMHO) Gez.. Right in line with what has been mentioned thus far, here is what I think may be happening..

 

(IMHO) If your scoot has a fully charged battery and a fault in the charging system somewhere it will start and run fine until the battery runs down.. As the battery is discharged and goes below needed system voltage/amperage - strange things will start happening.. Anything electronic can be affected - I had a situation like your talking about and I turned on my blinker and every time the blinker would wink the bike would try to die - really weird eay.. So you come to a stop, bike is dead.. Let it set for a while and the battery will recharge itself somewhat just from sitting, enough to restart the bike and ride a little ways UNLESS the fault in the charging system has to do with battery drain from something gone to ground..

What you have described sounds to me like a non charging situation without an abnormal battery drain situation - you following me? Making any form of sense? If this does make sense and you are still able to follow me YOU are probably in a very small group of folks who are able to do so

Now,, all that said,, what I think you might want to do is charge the battery in your bike, take a volt meter (I see Harbor Freight has em on coupon sale for 6 bucks this month - same type I carry in the maintenance department on my scoot) - put it on DC Volts = 20 and turn it on, touch the + lead of the meter to the + post on the battery and the - lead to the - on the battery.. Look at the read out on the meter, should show 12ish volts. Now start the bike up while watching the meter, a small increase in rpm should show 14 volts ish as you spin er up a little.. If you see no definite increase in your meter you can be assured somethings up with the charging system and I just about bet that is what you will find..

Thinking we are working on a 2nd Gen here right? Never owned one but have owned a few 1st Genners.. I know early 1st Gens are known for stator problems - from experience.. Seems to me that I have read more about bad regulators on the 2nd Gens though so that is the first place I would check if the bike were mine and the charging system checked bad as mentioned above.. Thinking there is lots of info on the site about checking/fixing reg problems if what I am talking about is correct..

 

Does any of this make sense?

 

By the way,, another way to easily check your bikes charging system is to start it up and watch the headlight as you bring it up off idle - it should brighten up just a tad as you rev it - probably sounds corny but I have monitored my charge systems like that for years.. I know,, sounds kind of like old school nonsene but it does work.. I am also the type who will occasionally drift to the side of the road onto rumble strips or purposely look for cracks in the roadway and hit them to listen to my tires to see if they are probably inflated - may be a good thing to consider all that BEFORE you take my advice :big-grin-emoticon:

[djh3]

Gez once you got your handy meter there here is something else you can check for. Put meter on amps. Disconnect either battery lead. Put a meter lead on each side of battery wire that is disconnected. IE: one on wire, one on battery terminal. Key off and see if it is drawing any amps/voltage. This would be what they call "parasitic" drain, or battery goes dead when sitting in garage for awhile. I really have to lean towards the battery being suspect. For the reason mentioned of the gauges going wacko and the fact it is 3 years old. If you can, charge it up and then go by autozone or advance and have then load test the battery, see what the status is. If you need a new one I have bought 2 from Bohannon Battery up towards Jacksonville. Most under $100 shipped.

[gez]

BAsed on advice, I went and bought a meter. Yup, spent the seven bucks and added another tool to the box. I'm not foreign to working a wrench, did brakes on the car a few weeks ago and a water pump on the truck last week. But, electronics baffle me.

 

Battery reads 12.4 volts at rest, with engine just above idle, 13.8 volts. I've not had a problem with the battery discharging. I don't ride this one often and it usually starts without a problem after sitting a few weeks. I'll pull the battery and have it load tested. Baby steps. We'll get to the bottom of this.

 

Thanks to all for sharing your wisdom.

[Eck]

Appears by the readings you posted that the charging system is working, but that does not mean the battery is TAKING the charge.

It is best to take the battery out and have it tested under a load, and knock that part of the equation out of the park.

 

If battery test comes back positive, meaning the battery is OK, I would then begin looking at the connectors I mentions in post #4 above.

Once the connections are cleaned and you have applied dielectric grease to them and you STILL have the problem, then my next place to look at would be the ignition switch.