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Electrical/Wiring Assistance in Houston?

Mondo

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Aug 10, 2016
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Location
Katy, TX
Hey all, I’ve been attempting to chase down an electrical gremlin and could really use some assistance from someone with more skill in that area than me.

The bike: 2007 BMW G650Xchallenge

The issue: turn indicator light on the instrument cluster (dash) remains constantly illuminated, and I do mean constantly...key in any position, key off, key out of the ignition, that light is always on. Clearly this is an issue as the constant draw drains the battery. This is fine at home as the bike stays on a trickle but I have a week long trip coming up in August that will be all off-road with no ability to charge the battery at night. Waking up to a dead bike in the middle of nowhere is just not appealing.

Are there any electrical experts in the Houston area that would be willing to take a look? I’m happy to pay for services rendered, beer or cash;) Or does someone know a shop they recommend that will do this type of work? My guess is wire not grounding somewhere, chaffed, etc. I just can’t trace it.

Thanks!
 
does it blink when you turn on either signal? Is there a change in intensity?

I don't know that either of those things matter, but they may. Have you tried simply disconnecting the battery and reconnecting it? That may reset it. I'm not familiar with your bike nor am I any electrical expert. Just trying to think of things that may help.

is this possibly a code thing? fault code gone wrong maybe?
 
I'm no wiring expert by any stretch, but I've found that modern vehicles of all sorts will use instrument lights for the craziest warnings.

That said, I'd suggest you try a couple of things: (1) Check all 4 corners of the bike & make sure all your blinker and running lights are working. (2) If it's a cheap replacement, try putting a new flasher in. And NY83 has a good suggestion in (3) disconnecting & reconnecting the battery.

I also did a quicky google & didn't find anything. But you might try doing a deeper dive with the search engine of your choice.
 
Thanks guys. I should have clarified a few things:

1: aside from this constant illumination on the dash, everything else is functioning as per normal; blinkers, headlights

2: I have previously completely removed the battery and disconnected and checked all the wiring connections I can find. Reinstalled the battery and ensured all connections and fuses were proper and the problem persists.

As long as there is power running to the dash (key in or out doesn’t matter) that light is on.:headbang:
 
If you are willing to ride to Sugar land next weekend I could have a look at it . 21 years fire alarm DC tech looking for shorts / grounds / opens in high rise buildings .
Use to make my own classic truck wiring harness , and drag bikes . Many of my friends have had me add all their electrical gadgets on their motorcycles . PM me for a phone # if you like .
 
ooo thats a bad problem to have, on that bike. could be the diode relay is bad. they put all the diodes that prevent back feeding in one gizmo.
a leaking electronic flasher could let enough current through to light up the small bulb on the dash, on that bike it is integrated onto the circuit board in the instrument cluster. key off there should not be any power going to it pointing again towards a diode that is leaking current back through system.

I would start by finding location of the diode relay and unplugging it and see what that does.
 
Look for any signs of somebody working on the wire harness . That will probly be the problum . If everything is factory stock something internal in the dash has failed and if I remember that is a sealed solidstate dash unit . I would rig up a good battery disconnect switch of some sort and shut the power of at the battery when you shut the bike off .
 
Look for any signs of somebody working on the wire harness . That will probly be the problum . If everything is factory stock something internal in the dash has failed and if I remember that is a sealed solidstate dash unit . I would rig up a good battery disconnect switch of some sort and shut the power of at the battery when you shut the bike off .

Cagiva, that sounds like a solid solution, at least for the short term. Any recommendations as to how exactly to wire it and hardware to procure? Ideally I would want a switch located on the dash. I see debates about using the + or -terminal etc. any guidance would be awesome.
 
Cagiva, that sounds like a solid solution, at least for the short term. Any recommendations as to how exactly to wire it and hardware to procure? Ideally I would want a switch located on the dash. I see debates about using the + or -terminal etc. any guidance would be awesome.

This is easy to do .
 
Mondo came over today at 8 am . a trip to EPO on Fondren gave us a 50 amp DC rated switch . I made new extended battery cables out of #8 marine grade wire . Solider every connection , and routed the new full power kill switch to his dash panel. Before all this I took my Fluke meter and did some testing . The bike is in near show room condition , and No butcher work has been done to any wiring . previous owner really took good care of the bike . Determined it is the gauge cluster with the parasitic draw on the battery . At $600 it was decided the $30 worth of electrical wire / heat shrink / battery terminals / and switch was the way to go for Mondo .
 
Watch soldering connections on bikes. They have to put up with a lot of vibration, and those style connections will break down over time. Crimp connections are best on most vehicles. if you have power issues down the road, check those first.

Just a warning.
 
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