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Hi all,
First a little background. I've owned my 82 GS650L for like 8 years now. It was my starter bike, and it is no longer my daily driver. But I kept it around as a project bike to continue learning about motorcycle maintenance and I do still ride it from time to time. I've been making little improvements here and there, working my way down the list of stuff as money and time allows. One thing that has always plagued me on the bike is the electrical issues it seems to have.
It has always had low voltage to the blinkers, horn, headlight, etc. and lately has been having some starting issues. Occasionally I will push the starter button and nothing happens... this happened the other day when I stopped to fill it up for gas. No clicking, starter motor not turning or anything. I turned the key off and on a couple times and eventually it fired... but I thought I was gonna be calling a tow truck. So I'm scared to take it too far right now.
So, I decided to start investigating. A couple months ago, I found that one of the connectors under the seat was a bit melted. I replaced that with a brand new connector. Then I went through basically the entire wiring harness from head to tail and cleaned each connection with some DeOxit and a small wire brush as needed. Nothing looked particularly corroded. I also replaced the main connectors going to the battery, since they did look a little rough. All of that work and it didn't really have a benefit. I let it be for a while.
Now I decided to replace the burnt out bulb for my high beam light indicator on the instrument cluster. I decided to try an LED bulb for it, and found that upon replacement it would light up but it is VERY dim. A halogen bulb will light up though. So I checked the voltage with my multimeter and it's only getting about 7.5 volts. I also tested the horn (which has really never worked) and it only get like 3.5-4 volts. So it's clear that I am having some massive voltage drops somewhere. My battery is older at this point, probably about 5 years but has not had much use and it's always been on a tender during down times. As far as I know it's still OK since the bike does start and run, and it seems to hold a charge.
Short of redoing the entire harness, where should I be looking? The fuse box is the original, and I have read that those can be a trouble spot. Should I replace that with something new? Recommendations on what to get? I do plan to have the battery tested just to be sure but just looking for any advice for where to go next. If you can't tell, I'm not super electrically inclined. I just feel like I must be missing something obvious with that kind of voltage drop!
First a little background. I've owned my 82 GS650L for like 8 years now. It was my starter bike, and it is no longer my daily driver. But I kept it around as a project bike to continue learning about motorcycle maintenance and I do still ride it from time to time. I've been making little improvements here and there, working my way down the list of stuff as money and time allows. One thing that has always plagued me on the bike is the electrical issues it seems to have.
It has always had low voltage to the blinkers, horn, headlight, etc. and lately has been having some starting issues. Occasionally I will push the starter button and nothing happens... this happened the other day when I stopped to fill it up for gas. No clicking, starter motor not turning or anything. I turned the key off and on a couple times and eventually it fired... but I thought I was gonna be calling a tow truck. So I'm scared to take it too far right now.
So, I decided to start investigating. A couple months ago, I found that one of the connectors under the seat was a bit melted. I replaced that with a brand new connector. Then I went through basically the entire wiring harness from head to tail and cleaned each connection with some DeOxit and a small wire brush as needed. Nothing looked particularly corroded. I also replaced the main connectors going to the battery, since they did look a little rough. All of that work and it didn't really have a benefit. I let it be for a while.
Now I decided to replace the burnt out bulb for my high beam light indicator on the instrument cluster. I decided to try an LED bulb for it, and found that upon replacement it would light up but it is VERY dim. A halogen bulb will light up though. So I checked the voltage with my multimeter and it's only getting about 7.5 volts. I also tested the horn (which has really never worked) and it only get like 3.5-4 volts. So it's clear that I am having some massive voltage drops somewhere. My battery is older at this point, probably about 5 years but has not had much use and it's always been on a tender during down times. As far as I know it's still OK since the bike does start and run, and it seems to hold a charge.
Short of redoing the entire harness, where should I be looking? The fuse box is the original, and I have read that those can be a trouble spot. Should I replace that with something new? Recommendations on what to get? I do plan to have the battery tested just to be sure but just looking for any advice for where to go next. If you can't tell, I'm not super electrically inclined. I just feel like I must be missing something obvious with that kind of voltage drop!
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