After looking at one of the grounding "spiders" or shorting pins I have some observations about the issues that some have had with these.
The wire size is barely adequate to carry the load that is distributed through these pins and connectors and thats if everything is clean and shiny.
Add in some moisture, heat, and a little corrosion and eventually you have a failure at these junctions.
But that's the easy part. Once it actually fails you have a problem that can be diagnosed but there are many things going on before that junction fails.
With todays tiny surface mount electronic components being so sensitive to electrical noise I would expect to see many seemingly unrelated issues crop up long before the junction actually fails.
Things such as surging, noise in your farkles, gauge flucuations, ecu failure, ignition problems and many more may be attributed to this noise long before a complete failure happens.
I would suggest that diagnoses of ANY!! electrical problem that you may be having should start with these grounding points.
Just because you dont see any corrosion or burning doesn't mean that the junction is viable. A small amount of resistance in grounds will wreak havoc with electrical components.
A perfect example is a bike that has had multiple failures of a ecu or dash. Replace that component and it works. "For Awhile"
With fresh electronics that can get by with a minor ground issue will fail as the electronics "age"
Replace it again and everything works so the owner or technician assumes it was another failure of that part.
Maybe not!
If the failure was caused by an inadequate ground it's gonna happen again. Depending on the strength of the new part it could happen soon or it may take many months or even years.
Personally I believe the wire size is adequate for each circuit but the connectors and jumpers are the problem. Not being weatherproof they will corrode as they age.
The best solution would be to do away with the connectors and solder each one. BUT! If your bike is under warranty you can count on a claim being denied if a technician doesn't understand why this was done.
The next best solution is to disassemble each connector, clean it and slightly crimp each one to make sure it's a tight fit on the shorting "spider"
Apply high grade dielectric grease to each connector before you put them back into the plastic holder and make sure that "spider" is clean. Fill the cavities with grease and then push the jumper back in.
Finally an most importantly!
Disassemble and clean all connections at the battery and main grounding lug. Apply dielectric grease to these and reassemble.
FARKLES!
Since these bikes all seem to have this problem and the factory didn't see fit to run circuits for accessories, the only proper way to wire the power and ground wires for accessories is straight to the battery for the power and either to the battery or main grounding lug for the ground. Piggybacking another circuit in todays vehicles be they scoots, cars , or bulldozers is asking for trouble.
Engineers are tasked with designing things that do the job adequately but "just barely" to save weight and money. Asking a circuit to do it's job plus provide power for your heated suit just won't cut it.
Geno
The wire size is barely adequate to carry the load that is distributed through these pins and connectors and thats if everything is clean and shiny.
Add in some moisture, heat, and a little corrosion and eventually you have a failure at these junctions.
But that's the easy part. Once it actually fails you have a problem that can be diagnosed but there are many things going on before that junction fails.
With todays tiny surface mount electronic components being so sensitive to electrical noise I would expect to see many seemingly unrelated issues crop up long before the junction actually fails.
Things such as surging, noise in your farkles, gauge flucuations, ecu failure, ignition problems and many more may be attributed to this noise long before a complete failure happens.
I would suggest that diagnoses of ANY!! electrical problem that you may be having should start with these grounding points.
Just because you dont see any corrosion or burning doesn't mean that the junction is viable. A small amount of resistance in grounds will wreak havoc with electrical components.
A perfect example is a bike that has had multiple failures of a ecu or dash. Replace that component and it works. "For Awhile"
With fresh electronics that can get by with a minor ground issue will fail as the electronics "age"
Replace it again and everything works so the owner or technician assumes it was another failure of that part.
Maybe not!
If the failure was caused by an inadequate ground it's gonna happen again. Depending on the strength of the new part it could happen soon or it may take many months or even years.
Personally I believe the wire size is adequate for each circuit but the connectors and jumpers are the problem. Not being weatherproof they will corrode as they age.
The best solution would be to do away with the connectors and solder each one. BUT! If your bike is under warranty you can count on a claim being denied if a technician doesn't understand why this was done.
The next best solution is to disassemble each connector, clean it and slightly crimp each one to make sure it's a tight fit on the shorting "spider"
Apply high grade dielectric grease to each connector before you put them back into the plastic holder and make sure that "spider" is clean. Fill the cavities with grease and then push the jumper back in.
Finally an most importantly!
Disassemble and clean all connections at the battery and main grounding lug. Apply dielectric grease to these and reassemble.
FARKLES!
Since these bikes all seem to have this problem and the factory didn't see fit to run circuits for accessories, the only proper way to wire the power and ground wires for accessories is straight to the battery for the power and either to the battery or main grounding lug for the ground. Piggybacking another circuit in todays vehicles be they scoots, cars , or bulldozers is asking for trouble.
Engineers are tasked with designing things that do the job adequately but "just barely" to save weight and money. Asking a circuit to do it's job plus provide power for your heated suit just won't cut it.
Geno
