Electrical problem maybe?

[Cormanus]

I went for a reasonable ride today—a bit over 400 kms. The bike ran fine until I was on the way home when it felt like the engine cut out. The revs dropped for a moment, less than a second. The HISS, engine and oil temperature lights all came on, but went out after perhaps a second.

It happened a number of times on the way home, mostly at a round 3,500 RPM but at least twice when I was backing off the throttle. On those occasions, I had a faint sensation that it was holding the revs a little high. But, like the perceived cut out, it was very brief. In both circumstances, less than a second.

At all other times the bike ran normally. It has oil. It was a very cool day. I guess it could be fuel, but I'm not sure why that would cause the dash lights to come on.

Does anyone have any ideas?

 

[Randy B]

When all of the warning lights come on it is usually an indication of an under volt condition caused either by low RPM not spinning the alternator fast enough, or the charging system failing in some fashion.

Even if the alternator failed the battery should keep the bike running. There could be an intermittent issue with your HISS causing the bike to temporarily shut off, but I don't know enough about it to postulate any further on that.

 

[Cormanus]

Thanks Randy. The oil low pressure light did not come on. I don't know whether there are any recorded faults. I'll have try to figure out how to check tomorrow.

 

[Randy B]

Check this out.

OBD Tool (OBD) - HealTech Electronics Ltd.

EDIT: OUCH!!! $229.00 USD.

 

[Cormanus]

The Mighty Lord Popgun has one of those. Perhaps I could get him to check it remotely for me.

Isn't there a way to read diagnostic codes without one, albeit without quite so much information?

 

[Lord Popgun]

There is Cormanus. I forget the exact procedure (sorry, I just got up!) but it’s easy. I’ll look it up unless someone posts it first. Mostly it is just kickstand down, turn ignition on and look for MIL flashes.

Does sound like what Randy said, a low voltage condition. Check your battery cables for cleanliness/tightness. Do you have a voltmeter?

 

[Cormanus]

Thanks. I have a multimeter and I can just about figure out how to test the voltage of a battery or a power point. I could probably also clean/tighten the terminal connections. A loose terminal makes sense as the bike ran fine all morning.

I'll have a look in the service manual for the MIL flash codes.

EDIT: Looks like you're right. Drop the kickstand, turn on the ignition. I'll try tomorrow.

 

[Lord Popgun]

If you can meter the battery, you can also start the bike and meter it again. If the charging system is good it should read ~14.1v or so.

 

[max]

The bike ran fine until I was on the way home when it felt like the engine cut out. The revs dropped for a moment, less than a second. The HISS, engine and oil temperature lights all came on, but went out after perhaps a second.

Cormanus definitely not fuel, it's electrical and i would think the red e-stop would be a good candidate, water in the switch could have an effect, easy to try if it happens again and see if the symptoms are the same as you described above.
Unless work has been done on connectors in the past, maybe in the headlight area, the connector for this switch lives inside the bucket.

Another culprit could be the sidestand switch; sidestand plus in gear stops the engine as we all found out, have a snoop in that area, is it loose, any damage to the wiring/switch, connector not corroded and clean?
The sidestand switch "talks"to the e.c.u. I have not measured the voltage on it but could be either 5 or 12 volt when the switch is open ( down position i think ), the switch is connected to ground on one side and to terminal b22 on the e.c.u. and also connects to one side of the clutch switch, in other words ; to test the sidestand switch you would disconnect both spade terminals from the clutch switch and connect a voltmeter on the one that changes the voltmeter reading when the sidestand is operated with the ignition switched on.

Of course the fact that it works does not mean it is reliable........

So two options to try out for next time, all the best.

Apart from the engine stopping what lights come on if you operate the sidestand whilst on the centerstand in gear ( and disregard the oil pressure switch )?

If the fault was in the main switch/fuse the meters would have swept so that is not a plausible candidate, we are looking at a safety circuit fault best as i can figure from what you tell me and it is highly unlikely that any fault codes have been "set" in that case.

 

[Cormanus]

Thank you, popgun and max. I'll try to follow those up in the morning and report back.

 

[Lord Popgun]

Max is a smart man Cormanus. What he says here is the thing to check. I need more coffee.

 

[max]

Good morning m'lord, coffee works for me too.

Cormanus as a second clue; did you use the sidestand in between when the lights came on or was it left in the same position?

Could be it never happens again, just depends.

 

[Cormanus]

Max, after the lights came on I stopped and put the stand down. Then I put it up and kept going and the fault happened several times again. Then I stopped and put it down and put the bike on the centre stand and stopped and started it faffing around with the kill switch. After that I rode home and the fault recurred yet again.

PS I like coffee too, although I prefer tea first thing in the morning. At this time of day, neither is my beverage of choice. That, I suspect, is one reason Lord Popgun only hands over the keys of the cellar when he wants something.

 

[Lord Popgun]

Ya know, I’ve been wondering where those keys got off to :beerchug:

Max mentioned water in the kill switch. Haven’t seen any gripes about that on the CB but that is a possibility. The ST1300 is known for water in the switchgear problems. I’ve had it happen on the windshield raise lower switch. Worked properly after it dried out.

The fix on the ST is to open the switch gear, clean it and lube it to prevent the water intrusion. I’ve never done it to mine :-/ That would have been a good winter project.

 

[SportsterDoc]

+1 for side stand switch issues...either switch or switch connections or weak side stand spring bouncing.

If not, then loose connection in ignition circuits.

600 miles on Can Am Ryker first week.

 

[Cormanus]

Battery was reading 12.75 or so and 14.3 running. Then a tad over 13, so I assume the battery and charging system are OK. The positive terminal screw was a little loose, so I’ve tightened it.

I started the bike with the meter connected and it read a 10.03.

Have to take it for a ride now.

Enjoying the Ryker, Doc?

 

[max]

13 volts or more means the bike's charging system is keeping up with the electrical load ( all the bits ) on the bike.
So that sounds normal and as expected but worth checking.

If you want to eliminate the sidestand switch temporarily whilst riding; connect one of the terminals ( the one connected to the sidestand switch ) to the chassis of the bike, use a piece of wire and make sure the chassis ground is a reliable contact on the chassis.

This is just a convenient point to use in eliminating the cause of the stalling.

This will bypass ( jumper ) the sidestand switch and the wiring to it so if the problem still exists it is not the sidestand switch and we can eliminate it.

If the clutch switch is not connected it means the bike can be started as normal except not in gear, the start circuit uses the neutral switch to energize the start relay inside the fusebox as per normal, the ground side of the starting circuit uses either the neutral switch or the clutch switch in order to start the engine.

 

[Cormanus]

max, how do I disconnect the wire from the side stand switch? Does it just pull out?

I've got my fingers crossed it was the loose terminal, although part of me knows that will be too easy.

 

[max]

Better to post pics this way;

Voltmeter red probe slips into the connector with the white stripe, black probe sits on the top of and makes contact with the fork leg.


with the ignition switch on the voltmeter should read close to 5 volts dc.;


When the sidestand is up it should read 0 volts;


here is a closeup of the black/white connector;


The red probe fits loosely between the brass connector and the plastic cover of the terminal, just be sure to put the terminal on correctly, it should not be easy to slide off the switch terminal.

Theory;
This is a "dry" contact, meaning it carries very little current and is an input to the e.c.u.
As opposed to a "wet" contact that carries the current the switch is rated for like mains light switches.
"Wet contacts tend to clean themselves every time they are operated by melting and cleaning a bit of material to make the contact.
"dry contacts are not self cleaning and are more susceptible to contact failure if not very well designed for the conditions.

So i think the sidestand switch could be the reason your lights came on for a short time because it is an e.c.u. input and the thing to look for is the exact same voltage every time the sidestand is up, ( close to 0 volts is a good contact ) if this value changes a lot the contact is not reliable.

When i tried my sidestand switch over twenty times 19 times it read 0,005 volts and be sure the probes make good contact.

Also wriggle the wiring of the sidestand switch whilst checking the 0 volt reading to check for intermittent contact of the wiring.

 

[Cormanus]

Thank you.