No power on 2004 volusia 800

[erea]

Hi all,

I had new blinkers installed and my battery replaced last month. The bike has been working fine, until yesterday.

I was warming the bike up, but then had to go into the house so I turned the bike completely off. When I came back a few minutes later, I turned the key to on, the sials and everything lit up like normal for a couple of seconds, then everything went out. Since then I haven't been able to get the power on.

I checked the battery and the two fuses under the seat and both are fine.

Anyone know what else could possibly be the culprit? Are there other fuses I need to check?

Thanks,

Eric

[sanford]

does this model have a immobiliser check you are using correct key and it has been programed?? Is the kill switch in good condition? is the kickstand on/off switch ok? You have to check the battery cables for corrosion and loose contacts, maybe tap the starter motor may have loose carbon brushes??


Sounds like a loose connection if you never had problems before, simply light tap a few parts often this gets it back on and identfies suspect parts ?? just guessing

[erea]

Thanks for the advice. I'm from Calgary originally!

The key worked fine two minutes earlier so I doubt its that. I've checked all of the fuses now and they are all good. I unscrewed the battery cables and they look fine.

What do you mean by tap the starter motor?

How would I go about checking the kill switch or kickstand on/off switch?

Originally Posted by sanford

does this model have a immobiliser check you are using correct key and it has been programed?? Is the kill switch in good condition? is the kickstand on/off switch ok? You have to check the battery cables for corrosion and loose contacts, maybe tap the starter motor may have loose carbon brushes??


Sounds like a loose connection if you never had problems before, simply light tap a few parts often this gets it back on and identfies suspect parts ?? just guessing

[sanford]

Originally Posted by erea

Thanks for the advice. I'm from Calgary originally!

The key worked fine two minutes earlier so I doubt its that. I've checked all of the fuses now and they are all good. I unscrewed the battery cables and they look fine.

What do you mean by tap the starter motor?

How would I go about checking the kill switch or kickstand on/off switch?

Well generally speaking if you got a wooden mallet and tapped the starter it could put the carbon brushes closer to the armature and start.. for the switches basically need a ohm meter to check if any switch has a open circuit, sometime's a wire can be visually seen burnt off or loose.

Another quick way to check a simple two wire switch is to bypass the two leads and try.. just general info

[erea]

UPDATE: I just tried to push start it, and when I popped the clutch the back wheel just seized up and skidded instead of turning.

Is that some kind of anti-theft thing???

Originally Posted by sanford

Well generally speaking if you got a wooden mallet and tapped the starter it could put the carbon brushes closer to the armature and start.. for the switches basically need a ohm meter to check if any switch has a open circuit, sometime's a wire can be visually seen burnt off or loose.

Another quick way to check a simple two wire switch is to bypass the two leads and try.. just general info

[sanford]

Originally Posted by erea

UPDATE: I just tried to push start it, and when I popped the clutch the back wheel just seized up and skidded instead of turning.

Is that some kind of anti-theft thing???

that could be the safety switch on the kickstand? if this switch is faulty sounds like it would do what you posted..at least have a look at that area? if wire's are visible bypass and try to start.. that is if your model has a safety switch on kickstand if in down position?

[Dodsfall]

Originally Posted by erea

UPDATE: I just tried to push start it, and when I popped the clutch the back wheel just seized up and skidded instead of turning.

Is that some kind of anti-theft thing???

No, you just didn't get the wheel going fast enough to overcome the engine compression. It helps to jump onto the seat as you release the clutch to add your body weight for traction. (Or better yet find a really big hill or a couple of strong friends to help)

[Eye_m_no_angel]

Originally Posted by Dodsfall

No, you just didn't get the wheel going fast enough to overcome the engine compression. It helps to jump onto the seat as you release the clutch to add your body weight for traction. (Or better yet find a really big hill or a couple of strong friends to help)

Yeap, and make sure you're in first gear.

[Bede5man]

No, a higher gear than 1st usually or the engine mechanical advantage over the tranny/final drive will keep it from turning against compression.

[Eye_m_no_angel]

You are correct. I was typing fast and missed adding the "not."

[sanford]

How would a jump start help? the op said electrics were out??

A dead battery would not likely blackout the gauges?? jump start would not do anything in this instance..just guessing


read the op post"everything went out" sounds like a main type of connector, fuse,relay etc

[Dodsfall]

Originally Posted by sanford

read the op post"everything went out" sounds like a main type of connector, fuse,relay etc

Going from having power to absolutely none usually means a fuse popped. It could also be that a battery terminal is loose or that the main ground or positive wire has become disconnected from it's attachment point.

If the fuses and terminals all check out, it's time to start tracing for voltage out from the battery.

There may be a main fuse somewhere on the motorcycle close to the battery. That would be the first suspect.

[erea]

That's what I thought too. The fuses are all good, and the battery terminal is clean and tight. I haven't checked the main ground or positive wire yet.

I think I'll do that. Thanks

Originally Posted by Dodsfall

Going from having power to absolutely none usually means a fuse popped. It could also be that a battery terminal is loose or that the main ground or positive wire has become disconnected from it's attachment point.

If the fuses and terminals all check out, it's time to start tracing for voltage out from the battery.

There may be a main fuse somewhere on the motorcycle close to the battery. That would be the first suspect.

[LWRider]

I am working on a bike that acts similarly. Turn the key on and I get nothing--no lights, no starter, no nothing. On this bike (Shadow VLX600) there is a main fuse block, but there is also a separate main fuse in a different location. The main is on the starter solenoid. Check to make sure you found all the fuses, there should be a main one of probably 30 amps or so. They're not always in the same place.

Cheers,

Mike

[Bede5man]

Yeah, mine has a main on the starter solenoid too...30 amps. Then a fuse block for other stuff and 1 seperate one for the radiator fan.

[erea]

As far as I can tell from the owners manual, there is the main 30 amp fuse under the seat and then the fuses for everything else are under the crank case. I've checked them all and they're all fine.

How would I go about checking to see if the ground wire is all good?

[sanford]

I never worked on a bike..but a ground wire of course has to be connected to frame(not positive no pun intended)

Look if you can see any "green" the usual colour of ground wire"s not attached to bare metal.

Most other wires are red for positive maybe black for negative...keep lookin we want you to be riding soon

maybe a silly question have you tried a new battery maybe you have a defective battery? just get some 12 volt testlamp and put across the 2 battery posts..see if lights up no light need battery...Could be ignition switch not sure how they work..

Before you do any testing make sure you have a fully charged battery, if there is a battery, in the bike you intend to test. Just because it will start and run without the battery DOESN'T mean it will run right. Time after time guys will bring a bike in and say "It runs good and then it don't. Misses on one side then the miss changes to the other side." Some of them just will not believe it's a bad battery or the wrong size battery. "But it runs." they say, "It just can't be the battery." But it can be the battery. If it needs a battery, and you take the battery out of the system, things can overcharge, overheat and burn out. If the system calls for a battery, make sure a good one, fully charged, is in there. The only time this would not be true, is when the Ignition System is a magneto and the battey is only used to run the horn and tail light. Now when I say "The right size of battery" I mean the battery must have enough amps to run all the things you want to test. If you don't have the right battery, you can use a big, fully charged battery, say from a car, BUT it MUST have the right voltage (6 or 12) and you MUST use big, thick jumper cables. DO NOT connect the jumpers to the old dead battery. Take the old, dead battery completely out of the bike. Connect the positive jumper cable to the positive cable on the bike. Connect the negative to a good ground on the bike. Now you can run your electrical tests. The fact that the battery is a lot bigger then the stock bike battery will not hurt anything. The electrical components on the bike will only draw the powerr they need from the battery. The battery will not "Over Power" the components as long as the it is of the correct voltage. If you leave the old, dead battery in the system, it will try to pull power from the bigger battery. At best this will throw your electrical tests off. At worst the battery can BLOW UP ! Usually, small bike batteries don't blow up... but, why take the chance ? source Dan's repair

[erea]

I'm pretty sure that the battery is fully charged. I hooked it up to my battery charger and it says its full. I wish it was just the battery. I just stripped a bolt trying to get under the battery to check the ground wire so now I think I'll probably just take it into the shop.

[sanford]

Originally Posted by erea

I'm pretty sure that the battery is fully charged. I hooked it up to my battery charger and it says its full. I wish it was just the battery. I just stripped a bolt trying to get under the battery to check the ground wire so now I think I'll probably just take it into the shop.

Well you gave it a shot, the good part is..most likely may be a wire or switch and
not likely a large bill...I'm impressed you stuck with it.

[Bede5man]

Some grounds are "grounding straps" like from the engine to the frame...they look like flat, braided cords of metal with no insulation. Cars have them too.

[Jeff10236]

My C50 Boulevard did something similar. It started then died. When it died nothing worked. I thought maybe it was the battery but the charger said the battery was fully charged. When the dealer checked it out, the only thing they could figure to do was put in a new battery, that worked. How the charger said the battery was fully charged yet the battery was the issue I don't know, but you may have a similar issue and simply need a new battery (fingers crossed anyway).

[LWRider]

You can check the ignition swith easily if you have a continuity meter (built into most multimeters). Just unplug the ignition switch from the wiring harness. With it disconnected, before you proceed to the switch set the meter set on DC volts, check to see which wire on the harness side has power (if none do then it is something other than the switch). Now on the matching terminal on the switch side (the one the power would connect to) and the meter set on continuity, touch that lead with one probe and one of the others with the other probe with the switch turned "on". You should get no resistance between the "hot" terminal and the others. Check both "on" and "accessory" if your bike has both.

Cheers,

Mike

[sanford]

I recall reading a post here recently that it was the gas tank breather tube clogged on gas cap loose and bike shut down on highway??

I likely would try a new battery or ignition before paying for repair maybe??

[Bede5man]

Yeah, sanford, it was the guy with the CL175, whose previous owner had Kreem'ed the tank, including the underside of the cap where it vented...

I'd be picking up the Fluke meter and doing like LWRider says...just run it down. Even if the battery was dead, use the continuity function.

[erea]

I think I might. Can I get a one fo those meters at an auto parts store?

[Bede5man]

Yeah, ask for a multimeter aka VOM (volt-ohm-meter). The digital ones are called DVOMs.

All of them come with instructions.

[sanford]

Originally Posted by Bede5man

Yeah, ask for a multimeter aka VOM (volt-ohm-meter). The digital ones are called DVOMs.

All of them come with instructions.

I would probably get a basic anolog if never used a meter before...very common mistake is to trip the glass fuse because of testing voltage in the r resistor mode..

no harm and often a spare fuse inside meter battery compartment.. I kind of like this mystery post

[erea]

You guys are awesome! Thank you for the help.

LWRider, I am going to try what you said. Hopefully I can get this figured out.

[erea]

Would this work? (I can't post links yet so you'll have to paste it into your browser)

autozone.com/autozone/accessories/Actron-Analog-pocket-electrical-tester-measures-AC-DC-voltage-DC-current-Ohms-and-decibels-also-tests-1-5-and-9-Volts-batteries/_/N-26lr?itemIdentifier=449322_0_0_

[sanford]

Originally Posted by erea

Would this work? (I can't post links yet so you'll have to paste it into your browser)

autozone.com/autozone/accessories/Actron-Analog-pocket-electrical-tester-measures-AC-DC-voltage-DC-current-Ohms-and-decibels-also-tests-1-5-and-9-Volts-batteries/_/N-26lr?itemIdentifier=449322_0_0_

yes will work, when testing best to put on a higher rating so will not bend the meter pointer

looks like 50volt dc is the close number to use

Some times you don't even need a meter simply join a few leads and see if starts but be carefull not in gear etc..but probably safer to use a meter.

You probably could go cheaper in repairs by trying a 12 volt neon test lamp at fraction of meter costs

[erea]

Will I be able to do all of these tests with a test lamp?

You can check the ignition swith easily if you have a continuity meter (built into most multimeters). Just unplug the ignition switch from the wiring harness. With it disconnected, before you proceed to the switch set the meter set on DC volts, check to see which wire on the harness side has power (if none do then it is something other than the switch). Now on the matching terminal on the switch side (the one the power would connect to) and the meter set on continuity, touch that lead with one probe and one of the others with the other probe with the switch turned "on". You should get no resistance between the "hot" terminal and the others. Check both "on" and "accessory" if your bike has both.

Is this what you're referring to?

autozone.com/autozone/accessories/Motormite-Conduct-Tite-6-and-12-Volt-DIY-circuit-tester-with-power-on/_/N-26lp?itemIdentifier=6509_0_0_

[LWRider]

Originally Posted by erea

Would this work? (I can't post links yet so you'll have to paste it into your browser)

autozone.com/autozone/accessories/Actron-Analog-pocket-electrical-tester-measures-AC-DC-voltage-DC-current-Ohms-and-decibels-also-tests-1-5-and-9-Volts-batteries/_/N-26lr?itemIdentifier=449322_0_0_

No continuity tester on that one. I bought a Greenlee digital at Home Depot. It works for 12 volt DC and all the home wiring, too. Very handy device; don't know what I would do without it.

This is very similar to what I have: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...&storeId=10051

Cheers,

Mike

[sanford]

Originally Posted by erea

Will I be able to do all of these tests with a test lamp?

You can check the ignition swith easily if you have a continuity meter (built into most multimeters). Just unplug the ignition switch from the wiring harness. With it disconnected, before you proceed to the switch set the meter set on DC volts, check to see which wire on the harness side has power (if none do then it is something other than the switch). Now on the matching terminal on the switch side (the one the power would connect to) and the meter set on continuity, touch that lead with one probe and one of the others with the other probe with the switch turned "on". You should get no resistance between the "hot" terminal and the others. Check both "on" and "accessory" if your bike has both.

Is this what you're referring to?

autozone.com/autozone/accessories/Motormite-Conduct-Tite-6-and-12-Volt-DIY-circuit-tester-with-power-on/_/N-26lp?itemIdentifier=6509_0_0_

Pretty sure you can,,a meter shows the meter moving to give a readout, a simple neon test lamp will glow on one side of the bulb same thing.

Obviously when glows power on and so simply change part that it connect too..

btw don't worry if test lamp is DC OR AC.. The only change is when activated by AC (alternating current) both electrodes in small neon bulb glow.. in DC only one of the electrode glows..kind of a simple test for curren also

[sanford]

Originally Posted by LWRider

No continuity tester on that one. I bought a Greenlee digital at Home Depot. It works for 12 volt DC and all the home wiring, too. Very handy device; don't know what I would do without it.

This is very similar to what I have: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...&storeId=10051

Cheers,

Mike

or you referring to meter posted above sure it has continuity look at the r setting?
Testing resistors is a continuity test..but I think we may have our wire's crossed ??

[LWRider]

Sorry; that looked like mine but when I zoomed in it was a bit different. Here is more like the one I have, except a different brand. The continuity meter simply sounds a tone when continuity is present, which makes it easy to use, you don't even have to look at it to know. http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...&storeId=10051

[sanford]

Originally Posted by LWRider

Sorry; that looked like mine but when I zoomed in it was a bit different. Here is more like the one I have, except a different brand. The continuity meter simply sounds a tone when continuity is present, which makes it easy to use, you don't even have to look at it to know. http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...&storeId=10051

ok may as well stir the pot..simply get any aa size or any small battery join two wire's in serie's(loop) to it with a small speaker/buzzer(radio shack),,touch two leads and you have a continuity tester for a few dollars or less

for some one never used a meter I suggest the first anolog the op had a link, digitals are more complex if never bought one before , opinion only