How are heated grips typically wired?

[HaulinAshe]

30 people read my other post so far. They must have all gone to sleep, because nobody answered the question I included on that post. Reposting here in hopes of gaining an answer.

The Yami grips are shown as two elements that are wired in series to the controller. Are all heated grips wired in series, or are some wired parallel?

 

[JimLor]

According to the directions here! I have the Dual Stars and just use a hi-off-lo switch. Works just fine. If I had to do it over again, I'd insulate the clutch side bar with some electrical tape or something else. It's funny, when I'm riding both sides feel the same, but if I take my gloves off the throttle side is noticeably warmer. Didn't answer your question but at least you got mail!

 

[ionbeam]

Heated grips and grip heaters can come as series or parallel. These days it is almost universal to find series wiring. Traditional Dual Star grip heaters have had two heater elements per side (two elements on each individual heater tape) which gave the user a choice as to how hot they wanted the grips to be. In the DS case, you could hook the two heat elements on each grip heater in series or parallel but the right and left side were hooked in series. IIRC, the more recent Dual Star offering only comes with one heat element, though you can still find the older two element types.

As long as the resistance of the heater elements are calculated properly it technically doesn't make any difference if the grips are in series or parallel. Practically, the series connection uses less wire and more importantly, fewer connections.

While we are at it, you can find heated grips, heater elements that wrap around the bars, heated covers that slip over existing grips and tubular heaters that slip inside the bars and heat the whole bar (Polly comes to mind here).

Was there an answer to your question someplace in all these words?

 

[Pierre]

I wired my Yam heated grips in series.

Use the temperature controleur that comes with it, ( only 1 control for both sides )

There is a difference in temperature, but it s not that bad, almost not detectable with gloves on.

 

[kaitsdad]

I've installed the Honda Heated grips - and they are wired in series.

(Edit 03/01/2007 - improved picture detail)

 

[sprint_st]

30 people read my other post so far. They must have all gone to sleep, because nobody answered the question I included on that post. Reposting here in hopes of gaining an answer.
The Yami grips are shown as two elements that are wired in series to the controller. Are all heated grips wired in series, or are some wired parallel?

Jeff,

I've been trying to de-crypt my service manual's wiring diagram, maybe I'll get there in a year or two, but like ionbeam says you can wire either way. For example Gerbing gloves are parallel and Widder gloves are series, thus running those two items off the same controller can be exciting. The question really is how does Yamaha's FJR wiring harness wire the heaters, parallel or series? I am very interested in getting the Honda kit but may go with Brand X. My big question is whether folks use the FJR's wiring harness to wire up the Honda or Brand X heaters. Right now, especially after looking at the discussions in the other recent topic, I am leaning at just wiring the whole thing outside the wiring harness. Why? Because when I see folks talking about plugging into those grey and black connectors near the steering head, I'm not sure "if they know what they do" if ya know what I mean. Those connectors go back to the controller, the ECU and a bunch of stuff. If the ECU is connected to the controller in any way, shape or form, I for one, am NOT plugging in anything doesn't have YAMAHA stamped on it and is blessed by the YAMAHA engineers in the land of the rising sun. It would be a lot less risky to reach down and turn up the control when the hands are getting cold and turn it down when they are warm rather than have the ECU determine what it thinks is best.

 

[sprint_st]

I've installed the Honda Heated grips - and they are wired in series.

Did you use existing wires in the FJR harness? Since ground looping shouldn't be an issue on heaters did you just use a frame ground and where did you tap the hot lead to?

 

[temp357]

I've installed the Honda Heated grips - and they are wired in series.

Did you use existing wires in the FJR harness? Since ground looping shouldn't be an issue on heaters did you just use a frame ground and where did you tap the hot lead to?

The Honda installation is pretty straight forward:

1) use the template to cutout the right size hole for the controller - this step took the most time

2) install the grips

3) install the wiring harness which has four connections:

one connection to each grip

one to the controller

and a connection to the bikes power...which you need to clip and reterminate

4) attach the lead with the fuse to the hot connector on the blue connector under the dashbox

5) ground to the frame or battery

 

[HaulinAshe]

Did you use existing wires in the FJR harness? Since ground looping shouldn't be an issue on heaters did you just use a frame ground and where did you tap the hot lead to?

See this thread. I posted all my wiring details there.

Wiring plan thread

 

[kaitsdad]

I've installed the Honda Heated grips - and they are wired in series.

Did you use existing wires in the FJR harness? Since ground looping shouldn't be an issue on heaters did you just use a frame ground and where did you tap the hot lead to?

I installed runs back to my BlueSea fuse panel specifically for the grips - these are connected to the grips using molex connectors.

 

[sprint_st]

Please correct me if I"m wrong.

Jeff, your wiring diagram is just to add connection points for farkles. If you add heated grips, no attempt is made, whether you use Honda or Brand X to use existing lines in the FJR wiring harness set up for the stock heated grips.

Pretty much the same for kaitsdad. You run from the Blue Sea rather than added connectors, no using the FJR harness heater lines.

I looked at the wiring diagram and I see that you could run the grip connection to the two connectors(items 98&99) near the steering head if you use coupler 5 (50 on the diagram) to wire in the controller in place of item 57 AND you leave the light green/white wire to the ECU unconnected. That uses a switched relay to send the power to the grips. I have yet to search the actual connectors down in the harness but the controller connectors would be the rascals to pin down. If you can find them, then you probably don't have to mess with that coupler 5 at all.

 

[HaulinAshe]

Please correct me if I"m wrong.
Jeff, your wiring diagram is just to add connection points for farkles. If you add heated grips, no attempt is made, whether you use Honda or Brand X to use existing lines in the FJR wiring harness set up for the stock heated grips.

I plan on using one lead from the infamous "blue connector" up front to power the heated grips. That is what Yamaha does, according to the schematic and my testing. The relay that powers the headlights also powers one pin of the blue connector. That circuit is even designated "Headlight/Heated Grip circuit".

The signal circuit from the ECU is not on the blue connector. It is on another connector which I have yet to find, and quite honestly have no use for. My testing showed a firm (zero resistance) connection between that pin on the blue connector and the headlights. The trick is the ground because the other pin of the blue connector is not a ground. You will have to make a separate ground connection for aftermarket heated grips.

Hope that helps.

Jeff

 

[sprint_st]

I plan on using one lead from the infamous "blue connector" up front to power the heated grips. That is what Yamaha does, according to the schematic and my testing. The relay that powers the headlights also powers one pin of the blue connector. That circuit is even designated "Headlight/Heated Grip circuit".
The signal circuit from the ECU is not on the blue connector. It is on another connector which I have yet to find, and quite honestly have no use for. My testing showed a firm (zero resistance) connection between that pin on the blue connector and the headlights. The trick is the ground because the other pin of the blue connector is not a ground. You will have to make a separate ground connection for aftermarket heated grips.

Jeff,

It appears to me that the blue connector is where the stock controller fits and has a hot (G/L) coming off the headlight relay and the R/B line goes to the two grip connectors (black and gray) which should be near the steering head. There is totally separate connector that connects the controller to the ECU and ground. So the way I am reading this is that you can get a relay controlled, switched connection using the G/L at the blue connector and use that for your controller, Honda, Brand X, whatever. The second line (R/B) is what you would connect between the controller and grips which would be in series. You would plug the left leads into the black and the right into to the grey (or vice versa) and the harness would put them into series. The Br line looks like a common ground so you don't need to hook to the frame.

 

[HaulinAshe]

Jeff,It appears to me that the blue connector is where the stock controller fits and has a hot (G/L) coming off the headlight relay and the R/B line goes to the two grip connectors (black and gray) which should be near the steering head. There is totally separate connector that connects the controller to the ECU and ground. So the way I am reading this is that you can get a relay controlled, switched connection using the G/L at the blue connector and use that for your controller, Honda, Brand X, whatever. The second line (R/B) is what you would connect between the controller and grips which would be in series. You would plug the left leads into the black and the right into to the grey (or vice versa) and the harness would put them into series. The Br line looks like a common ground so you don't need to hook to the frame.

That's how I read it too. Have you located the "other" connector (with ECU signal and ground) for the Yami controller? I have not, but have not exactly been digging hard for it either. I have located both the grey and black connectors for the grips themselves.

I was planning on adding Yami grips until I found out that no one has them and no one has seen them in over a year. Plus, the local stealership checked Yami availability and even Yami has no stock listed anywhere or available date. To top it all off, nobody I talked to had the Honda heated grips in stock either. I don't like the ShowChrome unit. So I am going to be forced to finish my wiring and button everything up without heated grips in place.

 

[sprint_st]

Jeff,

One option would be to use Hot Grips and they also have a pulse modulator type of of controller, similar to Gerbing and Widder. Cost would be somewhere between $80 and $160 depending on component choice.

Rod

 

[rokonjim]

30 people read my other post so far. They must have all gone to sleep, because nobody answered the question I included on that post. Reposting here in hopes of gaining an answer.
The Yami grips are shown as two elements that are wired in series to the controller. Are all heated grips wired in series, or are some wired parallel?

It very definately matters if you wire them in series or in parallel. You want to follow the instructions for the particular heated grip kit you are installing. If you wire a set in parallel when they were intended by the manufacturer to wire in series, then the grips will attempt to draw far too much current (amps). If you are missing the instructions then generally you can check the resistance in ohms of the grips, and determine by the value you measure. Be sure you set the test meter on Rx1 (the most sensitive scale) and that when you touch the two test leads together the meter reads 0.0

Example: Grips in the 7-10 ohms per grip are generally wired in parallel, i.e. 12 volts goes to each grip, and each grip gets grounded. If the grips are in the 2 - 4 ohm range, then they generally are wired in series. If you wire a set of grips that are 2 ohm each WRONG, then the grips will attempt to put out 400% of the manufacturer's intended wattage. If you wire a set of grips that are 9 ohms each WRONG, then they will put out only 25% of what the manufacturer intended.

The important Ohm's Law formula to keep in mind is volts squared divided by ohms equals watts. If you take two grips that are 9 ohms each and wire them in series, you have a total resistance of 18 ohms. Volts squared (144) divided by 18 ohms equals 8 and that number divided by two equals the 4 watts you will get from each grip. You will hardly feel the heat in such a case.

Now take the 2 ohm grip, and wire them incorrectly in Parallel and see what happens: Two 2 ohm grips wired in parallel, the kit will be effectively 1 ohm in total (because they are wired in parallel ) and volts squared (144) divided by ohms (1) equals 144 watts (for the pair) or 72 watts per grip. 72 watts is enough to melt the grips, so don't ignore the manufacturer's specific instructions, it really does make a difference.

For those who report it doesn't make a difference, something else is going on that is more complicated. If a set intended by the manufacturer to be wired in series is incorrectly wired in parallel, this is what happens: If they do not blow a fuse, or melt a wire, and report similar heat as when wired in series, then probably the voltage source was overloaded for that circuit to a point where there is a large voltage reduction, thus the resulting heat output is similar. But don't mess with it, follow the instructions, don't experiment or you could melt wires, cause a fire, or create other expensive electrical damage. 400% of the manufacturer's intended heat is definately trouble.

rokonjim

 

[dtyo]

The warmnsafe site provides good information and wiring diagrams. As has been stated, you need to know what the original heaters were designed for. I wasn't able to identify/find the factory heated grip wiring harness and installed a Dual Star and Heat-troller system standalone, which I think is a better option since I know where the wires are and can change/fix/modify if necessary.

https://www.warmnsafe.com/motorcycle_handgr...2d4d473b72d861c

 

[mcatrophy]

QUOTE(JeffAshe @ Mar 1 2007, 07:10 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Are all heated grips wired in series, or are some wired parallel?

Depends on their design. I made some from scratch for my previous mount, they switched between series and parallel for cool and hot settings. Explanation and construction is shown here:

https://atrophy.lock.net/atrophy/do/hotgrips.html

Might give you some help on the whys and wherefores.