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Self cancelling turn signals

  • Thread starter Thread starter knotzilla
  • Start date Start date
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knotzilla

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Hello, the self cancelling turn signals do not work on my 1980 gs850g. I have to turn them off manually, which is no big deal. I'm thinking about whether to try to fix it or live with it. Does anyone have the same problem and, or where is the first place I should start troubleshooting the system? Thanks ted
 
Check that the two wires that come from the speedo gauge are connected. There's a sensor in the speedo that calculates distance and also triggers a timer to self cancel. Something like 500'/9 seconds?
I've heard from some mechanics (long time ago) that the self cancelling signals had operating problems and many owners disconnected those two wires. My '79 1000 had problems and I got tired of not being able to trust the signals. Mine are now manually controlled and I find it much easier to live with than signals turning off before you want them too, etc.
 
Remove the auto self cancelling unit and turn them off yourself.
They are a non-repairable unit and hideously expensive, disconnect it and they work like any other bike.
Dink
 
While we are on the subject. My friend has a bike where you push a button in the middle of the turn signal switch to turn the signal off, which
is so much better than turning your switch from L to R and vice versa.

Anyone know a source for these ? I think his is factory BMW.
 
rckrzy1 said:
While we are on the subject. My friend has a bike where you push a button in the middle of the turn signal switch to turn the signal off, which
is so much better than turning your switch from L to R and vice versa.

Anyone know a source for these ? I think his is factory BMW.
Click to expand...

My ZRX has a push-button reset. If you found a left hand control unit from a wrecked rex it might be a simple swap out.
 
Suzuki did come out with a couple different variations of the t/s switch. The ones on the 78-9 GS1000 had the same kind of switch that you are talking about on your friends BMW BUT you don't push the t/s button in, you rest your left thumb on the t/s button and push down on it.
 
rckrzy1 said:
While we are on the subject. My friend has a bike where you push a button in the middle of the turn signal switch to turn the signal off, which
is so much better than turning your switch from L to R and vice versa.

Anyone know a source for these ? I think his is factory BMW.
Click to expand...


My Triumph Daytona has this too. For that matter, I may have an extra.....
 
Thanks for the info, looks like manual is the way to go. The 1977 Yamaha xs750 triple that I owned had the turn signal switch where you could turn them off by pushing the the button. It operated like this: You would push the turn signal lever to go left or right then let go of it, the lever will then return to the middle position automatically (spring loaded). The signals will stay on until you push the button in. It worked really good. Thanks Ted
 
I just changed the flasher unit under the sidepanel. I would not have minded keeping the self cancelling, but the unit is expensive and only Suzuki sells it. I bought a unit at an auto store for around $5. Having to turn it off manually isn't that much of a hardship.
 
My problem is I go from turning left to signaling right as I can't seem to find the middle or off position so I'm getting a ZX unit where you just push
it off.

dpep said:
I just changed the flasher unit under the sidepanel. I would not have minded keeping the self cancelling, but the unit is expensive and only Suzuki sells it. I bought a unit at an auto store for around $5. Having to turn it off manually isn't that much of a hardship.
Click to expand...
 
rckrzy1,

As far as I know the switchblocks with the 'push to cancel' feature are a Kawasaki idea, found on many of their bikes from about 1990 onwards, I think. Just go to a wrecker (breaker) and hunt around for what you need.

Also, my old '79 GS1000S had a similar set-up; you would just flick the indicator switch downwards when you wanted to cancel them. So maybe one of those switchblocks would do the job, too.

Just some suggestions!

Mike.
 
Our Honda Nighthawk has the push-to-cancel turn signal switch. That bike was manufactured for over ten years starting in the early 90's. You should be able to find one in a salvage yard somewhere if you don't want to buy new.
 
I'm fine with turning mine off, but I need to see how to wire around the self-cancelling device. Mine is not working on the 1100GL either. The 450 didn't have it, so I'm used to the manual operation. Anyone know exactly what I'll need to jump? Just removing the device doesn't fix the problem. Tried that already!
 
ccratin said:
I'm fine with turning mine off, but I need to see how to wire around the self-cancelling device. Mine is not working on the 1100GL either. The 450 didn't have it, so I'm used to the manual operation. Anyone know exactly what I'll need to jump? Just removing the device doesn't fix the problem. Tried that already!
Click to expand...

Why not just diagnose the problem first and only wire around it if the T/S control unit is bad. There are around 8-10 wires going into the control unit and all the inputs and outputs can be checked right there at the control unit. All you need is a good wiring diagram a test light and an ohm meter (for checking speed input). It's really a pretty simple system....If it turns out to be a bad control unit, you would need to do some wiring mods to make it work right. What are your symptoms exactly?? Maybe could give you some pointers.....Billy
 
As outfitted on my bike, there are two components of the self-cancelling system. One, of course is the self-cancelling sensor itself in the speedometer assembly which is controlled by the discharge of a capacitor over a period of about 10 seconds once a sustained speed over 9 mph is reached.

The second component is the turn signal switch itself, which on my bike has five positions. These are:
1. Center (Off)
2. Extreme Left (Left Turn Signal - spring loaded - charges the sensor capacitor and returns to Left.)
3. Left (Left Turn Signal while the sensor operates. Signal turns off after sensor capacitor is discharged.)
4. Extreme Right (Right Turn Signal - spring loaded - charges the sensor capacitor and returns to Right.)
5. Right (Right Turn Signal while the sensor operates. Signal turns off after sensor capacitor is discharged.)

Note that when the self-cancelling system is working properly, the switch is not returned to the Center (Off) position, but is turned off automatically in the Left or Right position. A properly operating switch will be returned to those positions by the springs in the Extreme Left or Right positions.

A switch that is defective, old or gummy/notchy may stick in the Extreme Left or Right positions, and the turn signal will not turn off unless the switch is moved manually. The sensor is still operating properly on my bike after 26 years, but the turn signals are reliably self-cancelling only on the right side. This is because the spring in the Extreme Right position is working properly, and returns the switch to the Right position after it is released. The left turn signal sticks in the Extreme Left position, and won't turn off unless it is manually moved. This switch is intermittent. Most of the time the left turn signal will not self-cancel because of sticking, but if I shoot WD-40 in the switch I can get the spring return to work temporarily. I have also noticed that it will sometimes spontaneously start working. I suspect that this may be weather related, and humidity may cause a hygroscopic switch component to bind.

I can start the sensor in a sticking Extreme Left, and carefully move the switch to the Left position. This will allow a "manual setup" self-cancelling signal. When engaged in the Left position and the switch is not returned to the Center position, the signal self-cancels.

I suspect that some who have turn signals that are not self-cancelling may have turn signal switch problems such as I have described. If it is caused by a sticking switch, it would be easy to overlook that it might not be the sensor at fault. That's because when the signal keeps flashing longer than desired, the rider wants to turn it off right away and returns the switch to the Center position. Moving the switch to the Left (or Right) position would just start the sensor capacitor 10 second countdown, and would appear to the impatient rider that nothing will turn off the signal unless it is moved to the Center position.
 
dpep said:
Our Honda Nighthawk has the push-to-cancel turn signal switch. That bike was manufactured for over ten years starting in the early 90's. You should be able to find one in a salvage yard somewhere if you don't want to buy new.
Click to expand...

But I don't think the honda has a choke lever like the kaw does.
 
Well, honestly, I've got several weird issues on mine that I'm working through, so I'm not ready to give up on the self cancelling unit yet. The PO obviously was wiring challenged. I worked on it yesterday and got some issues resolved. I put an R/R back on it and the system appears to be charging properly now. I got the front brake light switch working and determined the rear one is not working (power in, no power out when engaged).

There is an aftermarket ignition switch on the bike, and I'm not sure if he did some disconnecting when he installed it. I've found several wires in the main loom going to the front of the bike that appear to have come out of a factory connector. I can find the same wires on the wiring diagram that look like they go to a switch of some sort. Unfortunately, the switch is not named on the factory wiring diagram. All the switches I'm aware of on the bike appear to be named. This one is just to the left of the coils on the diagram and contains 6 wires. If I remember right, there is WR, WG, Gr, RO, YW and OG wires. The YW is not one of the ones that is hanging out of the loom but is involved with the headlight. The Gr and OG are hooked together and the rest are basically not hooked to anything. The headlight does not work on low beam, but I've really not worked on diagnosing that just yet. Also, the front turn signal lights come on and stay on when the ignition key is switched on. I don't believe they should be, but someone correct me if I'm wrong. The back ones don't come on.

The turn signals are not working at all. I was in the process of trying to figure out exactly where the power to the switch comes from last night when I decided to quit. There is a LBl wire that goes to the switch and then a B and a LGr wire that come off it depending upon which side is turned on. The LBl wire comes off the turn signal relay but currently does not carry any voltage, so the switch isn't getting any voltage to pass to the back. This is with the turn signal unit still plugged in, key on and bike not running. Anyway, I'll plug away some more this afternoon and over the weekend and hopefully come up with something, but any advice is certainly much appreciated.
 
Oh, and Boondocks, thanks for the detailed explanation of the system. That's very helpful!
 
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