CB left me stranded today

[redbirds_imp]

The weather turned so nice this afternoon I decided to ride to Baxley, GA and visit some of my former co-workers at the AT&T office. Reaching Baxley, I stopped for gas. Ready to leave, turned the key, watched all the lights come on and the clock needles sweep and then...nothing, all the lights go out and the bike has no electrical power. Turned the key to off and tried again and still nothing, no relay clicks. Pulled the seat and pulled the fuses, all were fine. A multimeter was borrowed and battery has over 13 volts. Rechecked the fuses with the multimeter and all check good. Called Sparkey to ask for the trailer and a tow home. Got home just before dark and will investigate this problem tomorrow.

Any ideas on where to start will be valued as I know there are some very smart folks on this forum.

 

[the Ferret]

Yep check the neutral switch up under the left handlebar switch and see if it has come unplugged.Little 2 pronged jobbie.

 

[Retsel_imp]

I probably don't qualify as one of

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[redbirds_imp]

Yep check the neutral switch up under the left handlebar switch and see if it has come unplugged.Little 2 pronged jobbie.

But could that kill power to the entire system. When you turn the key there is no response, as if there is no battery in the bike.

 

[Retsel_imp]

The "very smart folks" but I would check that you have a good chasy gnd and then work my way down stream with the volt meter and find out where you lose the 13 volts.

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Sent from my XT1096 using Tapatalk

 

[redbirds_imp]

Will definitely check grounds, thanks for the heads up.

 

[Retsel_imp]

I guess my poor use of Tapatalk on my cell phone is proof enough of my lack of qualification as a "very smart folk"!

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[quietguy_imp]

There is at least one of those plugs on the right handlebar as well. There is also a switch at the kickstand that locks out the starter as well. Perhaps check that for oil or crude buildup.

 

[the Ferret]

There are a number of switches..main ignition switch in center of gauge cluster, clutch interlock switch under left hand switch assy, side stand switch down by top of side stand, emergency kill switch on top of r/h switch assy ( switch underneath is the brake light switch I think) and the tip over switch ... not sure where that is located.

There may be a fuse directly off the battery as well.

 

[redbirds_imp]

There are two fuses directly off the battery and they're behind the left side cover, directly under the upper frame rail. A domed plastic cover hides them and mine has a razor sharp edge that will slice a chunk out of your finger (I have the band aid to prove it). Both these fuses tested good.

Seems to me that a relay should be heard to click when you turn the key on to trigger the lights and prime the fuel pump. Somehow, power is not getting to the lights, fuel pump or anything else for that matter. Maybe I have a bad relay. Strange how everything came on as normal initially when I turned the key on and then everything went dead.

 

[White Dog_imp]

Let us know the prognosis/fix. Motorcycle electrical problems are the worst things to handle. One mechanic once said "It is usually a grounding problem." Take that for what its worth.

 

[kmoney_imp]

Cycle the kill switch off and on a couple times? I doubt that's it (and you've probably done it), but I've been told by a couple mechanics not to use this switch often, as the contacts can wear out and cause the situation you describe. I think this is also the only switch that will positively kill power to every system in the bike.

 

[flynrider]

Let us know the prognosis/fix. Motorcycle electrical problems are the worst things to handle. One mechanic once said "It is usually a grounding problem." Take that for what its worth.

That's what I would guess too. I've seen bikes with the same symptoms that Redbirds is having. It always turned out to be a loose or dirty ground, either at the battery or where the other end of the negative cable connected to the bike's frame.

The loose connection is enough to handle the small current flow when the ignition is turned on, but breaks when the high starting current flows.

The odd thing is that this problem is usually associated with older bikes that are more likely to have corroded or loose connection points.

On the bright side, it's an easy thing to check out and eliminate as a possible cause.

 

[curlyjoe]

Cycle the kill switch off and on a couple times? I doubt that's it (and you've probably done it), but I've been told by a couple mechanics not to use this switch often, as the contacts can wear out and cause the situation you describe. I think this is also the only switch that will positively kill power to every system in the bike.

Ignition switch failure could be the problem too. The 2P connector for the ignition switch is in the headlight housing if you wanted to test for continuity with ignition switch on/off.

 

[Ole]

I will go out a limb here and say a bad ground. Or even a loose neg terminal on battery. Been there done this!

Bought a Honda VTX 1800 brand new. What you described happened to this bike a few times when new. Followed all the grounds to the frame? At one location, Honda primed and painted the frame then put a ground there! Not good I would lose one cylinder. Scraped all the paint and primer off and never happened again.

On a few long rides I did, if the roads were bad, the neg terminal on battery would get loose. Then the symptom was just what you described on start up.
good luck

 

[curlyjoe]

I checked the service manual and there are multiple ground wires attached to a ground point under the fuel tank. It looks as though you will have to remove the fuel tank to check those.

I guess it's also possible that one of the cells in your battery failed when you turned on the ignition. If you hook up the multimeter to the battery and then turn on the ignition, do you see a dramatic drop in voltage?

 

[redbirds_imp]

With shop manual in hand, eggs, bacon and three cups of coffee downed, started in on the problem this morning and quickly diagnosed.

The starter relay is defective. This relay is the first connection from battery and has two feeds, a 20 amp fused cable on the left and a 30 amp fused cable on the right. The right side cable from the relay feeds directly to the ignition switch. Whilst at roadside yesterday afternoon, I checked for battery on the left side cable only and battery was present there. I then checked both fuses with the multimeter and both were good so I assumed the trouble lay beyond this juncture. If I had checked the right side cable I would have found no battery. Going over all this morning I quickly discovered this and removed the relay and found it to be open on the field side of the fuse and thus not passing battery to the ignition switch.

Had to order a new starter relay at $67 and while speaking to the parts man was informed that Honda has a recall on two models now for this same problem. Unfortunately the CB not being one of them.

 

[Lord Popgun]

I believe this is the first reported starter relay failure on the board.

 

[pdedse]

I like to do my own maintenance on my bikes when I can, but I'll readily admit to shying away from electrical issues because nobody every "learned me" and I haven't had to much with some simple exceptions. Cool that you were able to diagnose the trouble spot.

With shop manual in hand, eggs, bacon and three cups of coffee downed, started in on the problem this morning and quickly diagnosed.

The starter relay is defective. This relay is the first connection from battery and has two feeds, a 20 amp fused cable on the left and a 30 amp fused cable on the right. The right side cable from the relay feeds directly to the ignition switch. Whilst at roadside yesterday afternoon, I checked for battery on the left side cable only and battery was present there. I then checked both fuses with the multimeter and both were good so I assumed the trouble lay beyond this juncture. If I had checked the right side cable I would have found no battery. Going over all this morning I quickly discovered this and removed the relay and found it to be open on the field side of the fuse and thus not passing battery to the ignition switch.

Had to order a new starter relay at $67 and while speaking to the parts man was informed that Honda has a recall on two models now for this same problem. Unfortunately the CB not being one of them.

What does it take for an issue like this on a particular bike to come to Honda's attention so that they do announce a recall? Is it because dealerships report multiple cases, or because of customers contacting Honda directly? When riders fix the issue on their own, maybe it's best to contact Honda anyway so that they are made aware?

 

[redbirds_imp]

I like to do my own maintenance on my bikes when I can, but I'll readily admit to shying away from electrical issues because nobody every "learned me" and I haven't had to much with some simple exceptions. Cool that you were able to diagnose the trouble spot.

With shop manual in hand, eggs, bacon and three cups of coffee downed, started in on the problem this morning and quickly diagnosed.

The starter relay is defective. This relay is the first connection from battery and has two feeds, a 20 amp fused cable on the left and a 30 amp fused cable on the right. The right side cable from the relay feeds directly to the ignition switch. Whilst at roadside yesterday afternoon, I checked for battery on the left side cable only and battery was present there. I then checked both fuses with the multimeter and both were good so I assumed the trouble lay beyond this juncture. If I had checked the right side cable I would have found no battery. Going over all this morning I quickly discovered this and removed the relay and found it to be open on the field side of the fuse and thus not passing battery to the ignition switch.

Had to order a new starter relay at $67 and while speaking to the parts man was informed that Honda has a recall on two models now for this same problem. Unfortunately the CB not being one of them.

What does it take for an issue like this on a particular bike to come to Honda's attention so that they do announce a recall? Is it because dealerships report multiple cases, or because of customers contacting Honda directly? When riders fix the issue on their own, maybe it's best to contact Honda anyway so that they are made aware?

What does it take for an issue like this on a particular bike to come to Honda's attention so that they do announce a recall? Is it because dealerships report multiple cases, or because of customers contacting Honda directly? When riders fix the issue on their own, maybe it's best to contact Honda anyway so that they are made aware?
I called American Honda and spoke with a very helpful fellow, Randy. He took my VIN # and said that my contact would be noted. He also said that it would be good if I could get my dealer to look at the defective part and contact American Honda.