Issue with lights...please help

[tremontinerd]

So today, my bike stalled out at an intersection. I tried starting it back up and the bike didnt want to turn over. It felt like the battery was dead. I got it to the side of the road and noticed the top fuse was pretty bad looking. It looked browned out and such. I cleaned it as well as I could and the bike started right up. I then noticed that all my lights aren`t working. Headlight, brake light, turn signals.

I need to check but I`m thinking maybe something shorted and blew all the bulbs? The guy who ownwd it before me wired a cigarette lighter right in to the bottom of thw fuse box. Could that be rhe issue? Any ideas?

I own a 1980 gs850.

Thanks,

[Steve]

The top fuse is for LIGHTS. That will power the headlight, tail light and instrument lights.
It should not have ANY effect on whether you start the bike or not.

The second fuse is for SIGNALS, which will include turn signals, brake light, horns and warning lights (neutral and low oil pressure).

The screws at the bottom, where you have the lighter installed, are, indeed, for accessories, and are powered by the fifth fuse, which is right next to the screws.

It's quite possible that your battery IS dead. Have you checked the charging voltage? Have you checked the condition of your battery?

.

[tremontinerd]

Steve, thank you for the reply. After the bike stalled and didn't want to start at all, I played around with the fuses. After toying with them and removing the top fuse and re-inserting it, the bike started with no problems at all. The bike is starting and running fine now. To be safe, I replaced all of the fuses and cleaned all the fuse contacts with electric cleaner.

All the instrument lights work fine (oil pressure, gear, neutral). The other lights do not.

All the lights stopped working at the same time as this odd stall. Battery is well less than a year old and holds a charge as I ran it for some time today after the incident.

[BassCliff]

Greetings and Salutations!!

Hi Mr. tremontinerd,

You may want to take your fusebox apart and clean it up. See: Fusebox Cleanup and Cleaning Your Wiring Harness. For more info on the care and feeding of a 30+ year old GS motorcycle, see all the information in the links below. It's your "mega-welceom".

If you are here you probably have a 30 year old motorcycle that needs about 20 years worth of maintenance. In the links below you'll find maintenance lists, documentation, wiring diagrams, "how to" guides, vendor links, tips, tricks, and a whole lot of GS goodness. This is your "mega-welcome". Let's get started.

Let me dump a TON of information on you and share some GS lovin'.

I just stopped by to welcome you to the forum in my own, special way.

If there's anything you'd like to know about the Suzuki GS model bikes, and most others actually, you've come to the right place. There's a lot of knowledge and experience here in the community. Come on in and let me say "HOoooowwwDY!"....

Here is your very own magical, mystical, mythical, mind-expanding "mega-welcome". Please take notice of the "Top 10 Common Issues", "Top 15 Tips For GS Happiness", the Carb Cleanup Series, and the Stator Papers. All of these tasks must be addressed in order to have a safe, reliable machine. This is what NOT to do: Top 10 Newbie Mistakes. Now let me roll out the welcome mat for you...



Please Click Here For Your Mega-Welcome, chock full of tips, suggestions, links to vendors, and other information. Then feel free to visit my little BikeCliff website where I've been collecting the wisdom of this generous community. Don't forget, we like pictures! Not you, your bike!

More links to helpful threads in the forum:
Help! Your Bike Won't Start
DON'T DO THESE THINGS
Help! Your Bike Won't Run Well
Oh God! Pods!


Thanks for joining us. Keep us informed.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[eil]

Make sure you have the proper fuses in the right places. On my bike, the PO mounted the fuse box upside-down, which meant that when I went through the electrical system, I ended up putting a 10-amp fuse in the main fuse position, which actually requires a 15-amp fuse. Was quite surprised when the bike just died on me sitting at a stop light...