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Intermittent electrical problems

  • Thread starter Thread starter aussieowner
  • Start date Start date
A

aussieowner

Guest
I purchased a project bike several months ago. Its an 83 GS1100E. Overall it appears that the bike has been well maintained. However, its does show some signs that it has been exposed to the weather a bit.

Ive taken it out for several rides and it performs well. However, the other day while riding, i noticed that the turn signals were not blinking. The indicator light on the dash was illuminated, however, it stayed on solid and did not blink. My first impulse was that i needed to replace the relay.

However, that weekend, when i went to diagnose the problem, everything is now working fine. Blinkers are back to working fine.

The battery is brand new and strong. Headlight seems nice an bright and starter spins strong.

Next i took it out for a ride last weekend and was working on adjusting the idle. In the midst of doing that that it stalls at a red light. I go to restart it and BAM.. No starter. All the lights come on.. Headlight, dash lights, etc all working. However the starter was completely inoperable. Fortunate for me i was at the top of a hill and was able to do a rolling start to get back home.

I limp back home making sure it does not stall. Once i pull back into the driveway, i kill it and try the starter and BAM it works like nothing was every wrong. Ive tried it again several time since and it works every time.

So now im faced with this intermittent electrical issue. My guess is that its the rectifier, however, electrical systems are not really my expertise.

Anyone out there got any suggestions or tips on troubleshooting this?

Many thanks in advance.

/Darrell
 
The starter issue might be as simple as the ground on the solenoid mounting plate being tenuous if the plate is still rubber mounted as my model is. Turn signals can also be as simple as a bulb socket needing cleaning. This all leads into a thorough cleaning of all electrical harness components: grounds, switches, sockets, plugs, fuse box and bullet connectors. After cleaning, everything should be coated in dielectric grease to prevent moisture and corrosion. This is maintenance that has probably never been done and is absolutely necessary. It will also possibly expose hidden gremlins and eliminate a lot of tail chasing in the future. Then problems that are problems will most likely show up as what they actually are.
 
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