Ignition Switch

It had been a beautiful day, and I had just pulled onto the eastbound Highway 4 freeway in Antioch, splitting between the no. 1 and no. 2 lanes when the dash lights went out and the throttle didn't work. Took me a second or two to realize my '04 had died, and there was going to be no restarting it with no display on the dash. Thank God the guy in the left lane let me in so I could coast over to the shoulder and off into the median next to the oleanders. (I didn't have presence of mind to shift into neutral so I could take my hand off the clutch to use it to signal.)

Cheap-ass Foremost Insurance would pay only to have me towed to the nearest dealer -- an outfit I don't know eight miles away -- and since it would be after closing, I'd have to pay to have the bike stored, then towed the next day. (I'm looking for another insurance carrier.) So I paid big bucks to have the local tow guy haul me home, 70 miles.

That was yesterday. I figured it was the main fuse, but no. I dug into it today and it's the "main switch." Just plain dead.

I've seen all the talk here about the '06 switch failures, but I thought my '04 was bulletproof. Ha!

I'm thinking of leaving the old switch in place and using it just for the locking capability, then installing a hidden toggle switch somewhere so I won't have to deal with two keys. One idea is to use a little waterproof switch on the dash somewhere and a big-amperage relay down below.

Has anyone tried this? Also, is there a sanitary way to hook the wires to the red connector into the equation other than just twisting them in with the brown wire?

Did your ignition switch over heat, or did the red or brown wire disconnect from the switch? There is quite a bit of discussion on how to fix this on this forum.

Yes, indeed, tell us.............do you know what specifically failed on your switch?

Ignition switch failures on 03-05 FJRs are not as common as on the 06+ years. In fact, Yamaha will be announcing a recall on 06-09 FJR ignition switches very soon. You might want to talk with your dealer about it. Also, go to the NHTSA site and report it!!!!!

As for your relay question, you need to see THIS thread.

I was in a accident with a pick up truck making a u turn which in turn i went down . Had to tape the windscreen down lucky for me my cortex jacket and leather gloves saved my left arm hand and shoulder from road rash ,Now i am 4 hours from home and it will be dark before i hit home . Look at the gas gauge need gas 20 miles from home full her up pull out to the red light boom bike dies @#(&*^% .Push her into a home depot by the garden center looks like there cleaning up the rest of the place is closed . O.K leave the bike there or think of something ,guy pulls up ask if i need a hand (no i standing here for my looks) He trys to give me a boost no go of course no go the god dam jumper box is dead . He replys i call a feind to come over to try to jump it (LIKE WHEN PIGS FLY ) . To my suprise here come a truck but its a no go on the jump $#@#%%%. One last try the gas station which is 1500 feet from the bike is also a truck stop hey why not i see i hwy truck with a lift gate i ask the guy can i put the bike on the truck and i throw you some cash he says no go (prick) . Here comes i guy and a girl in a u haul 20 footer hey you want to make some cash( he looks at me like i have 6 heads ) what do i need to do, put my bike on the back of your truck and drive 20 miles and drop it off in mooresville , You have a deal i am going to mooresville anyway end of story NO . Him and me cant get the beast up the %$#@ ramp , I notice the people at home depot are there working i ask a woman which is the supervisor i need a hand her reply is i can not sent out a man on the clock if he is injured its on my hands (when am i going to get a brake ) But if you wait 10 minutes we will be done let me ask one of the guys if he will give you a hand . Here comes this old frail guy , Need a hand i be right out (this is going to be fun also my shoulder is %$#^hurting me ) He comes out boom bike on the truck me on the truck it only about 110 degrees in there nothing to hold her down but the front brake . Get to the house my shirts is like it just came out of the washer with out the spin cycle , and the reat of me is not doing much better ,Bikes off in the garage give the guy 40 bucks and a thank you . Next day bike starts bring it to the shop before i get off the bike i turn her off and try to turn her on again no go .new switch and $2400.00 in damage from the crash and the guy did not even stop .

SkooterG said:

Yes, indeed, tell us.............do you know what specifically failed on your switch?
Ignition switch failures on 03-05 FJRs are not as common as on the 06+ years. In fact, Yamaha will be announcing a recall on 06-09 FJR ignition switches very soon. You might want to talk with your dealer about it. Also, go to the NHTSA site and report it!!!!!

As for your relay question, you need to see THIS thread.

Click to expand...

Already announced. https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php?s...=113791&hl=

I would scream LOUD to get this covered by Yamaha if it's the same failure....Maybe the need to expand the recall years no matter how rare it is.

Walt, FJRay had a problem with his '03 and posted a lengthy thread on what he did to fix the switch.

I took the damn thing apart today. The solder joint for the brown wire failed. The rest of the switch looked hale and hearty, and there was no remarkable amount of junk or debris in there. I guess I could have resoldered the damn thing, but I don't trust myself making solder joints where the solder is the mechanical connection as well as the electrical connection. Howcome there aren't some lugs there or something strong to solder to?

Fiddling with this thing, I can see that those blue wires that go to the red connector are switched, too. They don't get power from the red wire, but one blue wire gets power from the other. So with an emergency workaround, you'd still have to have the switch on for the bike to run.

That whole relay business that's running that immense thread here right now looks like a wise move. Keep the switch from getting hot. And I now know how to hotwire this beast in about three minutes should the need arise again. All I need is my pocket knife and a wire nut.

I'm buying a new switch, and I'm going to tuck a couple of main fuses in there with my other fuses just in case. I had thought that was the problem when this happened.

Really going to hate having to have two keys. Maybe a locksmith can help, although I've sure read a lot here about that not being possible.

flying junior said:

I took the damn thing apart today. The solder joint for the brown wire failed. The rest of the switch looked hale and hearty, and there was no remarkable amount of junk or debris in there. I guess I could have resoldered the damn thing, but I don't trust myself making solder joints where the solder is the mechanical connection as well as the electrical connection. Howcome there aren't some lugs there or something strong to solder to?
Fiddling with this thing, I can see that those blue wires that go to the red connector are switched, too. They don't get power from the red wire, but one blue wire gets power from the other. So with an emergency workaround, you'd still have to have the switch on for the bike to run.

That whole relay business that's running that immense thread here right now looks like a wise move. Keep the switch from getting hot. And I now know how to hotwire this beast in about three minutes should the need arise again. All I need is my pocket knife and a wire nut.

I'm buying a new switch, and I'm going to tuck a couple of main fuses in there with my other fuses just in case. I had thought that was the problem when this happened.

Really going to hate having to have two keys. Maybe a locksmith can help, although I've sure read a lot here about that not being possible.

Click to expand...

FlyingJ' - happy to hear you're ok. That's what really counts.

Get a new switch, use Brodie's relay/harness, and YES, either you or Yamaha can use a locksmith to keep the keys the same. At the time I was going through your current tribulations, it seemed waaay too long of wait (3 days) to keep the keys 'universal'. Now that all is done and I've forgotten the pain, I'm glad I did.

FlyingJ' - happy to hear you're ok. That's what really counts.

Get a new switch, use Brodie's relay/harness, and YES, either you or Yamaha can use a locksmith to keep the keys the same. At the time I was going through your current tribulations, it seemed waaay too long of wait (3 days) to keep the keys 'universal'. Now that all is done and I've forgotten the pain, I'm glad I did.

thanks. I'm going for the relay/harness. Did you take the unit to a locksmith and have it rekeyed before you installed it?