RH indicator issues

[Onetap]

Hey guys

So my RH indicators are flashing faster than my left..

heres what i did.

* Replaced both front Indicators altogether - RH side still Blinking faster
* Intermittently when I use the Hazard lights it shorts and i have to restart my bike before my indicators work (been working fine for the last 2 weeks however).
* If the Hazards are on and don't short out both blink at the correct speed.

Any ideas???

[imdying]

The circuit is very simple:

Indicator fuse =>
Flasher relay =>
Switch gear =>
Indicators =>
Earth


The flasher relay has a little thing inside it that charges up when the light is on, then cuts the power, then does that over again. So, anything after that flasher relay is an off/on signal, when a direction is selected.

How long it flashes for depends on how long it takes to charge it up... and that is based on how much power is flowing through it. Dirty connections will increase the resistance in the circuit, which means less power flows, which means a change in the time. It's also the reason why it flashes faster when a bulb blows, and it's also why LED indicators (which flow fuck all power) need a different style (electronic rather than pseudo mechanical) flasher relay.

If the two directions are flashing at a different rate, then it's likely that somewhere between the switch gear and the earths for the indicators on that side, are dirty connections. It is also possible the contacts inside the switch itself are dirty.

My advice would be to remove every bulb (both sides), check the bulb connector is not dirty (scrub it with a scotch brite pad), and then remove the two wires for each indicator from their connectors, and ensure they are clean (something like CRC CO contact cleaner and a tooth brush should be sufficient). Then ensure the earthing points for the loom (any 'black with white tracer' wires that bolt to the chassis or battery negative terminal) are clean, shiny, and tight.

If that fails to fix it, you'll need to remove the left hand switch gear (typically only two screws) and then spray the crap out of it with CRC contact cleaner (or similar)

If all that fails, or is just gibberish, report back and we'll see what we can figure out.



If you're electrically inclined, you can also use a multimeter to diagnose the low voltage/high resistance in the circuit pretty easily.

[imdying]

Oh, one other thing... the flash rate dictated by the bulbs power consumption... bulbs of different wattages will obviously affect that too, so make sure all the bulbs are matching wattage values! (it should be engraved on each bulb).

[Asher]

Im hijacking this thread a bit but on my bike the indicators take a long time to turn on (~2+ seconds). Once they are on they flash fine and there is no delay when flicking from right to left just a delay when i turn them on.
Any ideas? It gets annoying when the indicators finally turn on when your already halfway past overtaking someone.

[imdying]

Very simple system, just follow the same diagnosis path. Having said that, I don't know if indicator relays get old and sick, but it's very easy to swap another one in to check it out.

[Onetap]

The circuit is very simple:

Indicator fuse =>
Flasher relay =>
Switch gear =>
Indicators =>
Earth


The flasher relay has a little thing inside it that charges up when the light is on, then cuts the power, then does that over again. So, anything after that flasher relay is an off/on signal, when a direction is selected.

How long it flashes for depends on how long it takes to charge it up... and that is based on how much power is flowing through it. Dirty connections will increase the resistance in the circuit, which means less power flows, which means a change in the time. It's also the reason why it flashes faster when a bulb blows, and it's also why LED indicators (which flow fuck all power) need a different style (electronic rather than pseudo mechanical) flasher relay.

If the two directions are flashing at a different rate, then it's likely that somewhere between the switch gear and the earths for the indicators on that side, are dirty connections. It is also possible the contacts inside the switch itself are dirty.

My advice would be to remove every bulb (both sides), check the bulb connector is not dirty (scrub it with a scotch brite pad), and then remove the two wires for each indicator from their connectors, and ensure they are clean (something like CRC CO contact cleaner and a tooth brush should be sufficient). Then ensure the earthing points for the loom (any 'black with white tracer' wires that bolt to the chassis or battery negative terminal) are clean, shiny, and tight.

If that fails to fix it, you'll need to remove the left hand switch gear (typically only two screws) and then spray the crap out of it with CRC contact cleaner (or similar)

If all that fails, or is just gibberish, report back and we'll see what we can figure out.



If you're electrically inclined, you can also use a multimeter to diagnose the low voltage/high resistance in the circuit pretty easily.


Thank you for your reply, I was losing hope.

Ok...

as of a month ago when i purchased the R6, it had an integrated tail light(using LED's) and stock indicators on front

I immediately thought "yes it must be a dying bulb" and replaced the bulb on the RH front indicator, no luck!

by that time I had already purchased some new front flush mount LED indicators anyway, which are currently installed with no improvement

When installing them i had to splice some wires so i think its fair to say the bad/dirty connection isn't at the indicators end.

I wont be able to remove the bulbs because they're LED's, where could i find the loom? any knowledge on that?

[imdying]

Confirm it has an electronic relay.

Double check your connections / splices. Motorcycles are notorious for vibrations destroying inadequate joins. OEM style crimp or soldering only should be used. The red/blue/yellow crimps you see are only ok if you have crimpers that are up to the job, most are not. If you think you could bludgeon somebody to death with the weight of your crimpers, they're probably of sufficient quality.

You can skip cleaning the bulb socket and terminals with LED indicators. You can still check their internal resistance against each other with a multimeter on the OHMS setting. Just measure across the two input wires, and compare that reading to the other indicator. They should match within a few percent, although having said that an electronic indicator relay won't care anyway as it uses an internal timer.

Without exception, all of the integrated tail light assemblies I have had the pleasure of seeing have been of what I would call 'dubious quality'. Had to diagnose much more than that over the net. I think there's a guy up your way called ClassicZed or something similar who is reputedly a talented automotive electrician, although I could be wrong but somebody else will be along to confirm.

[Onetap]

Confirm it has an electronic relay.

Double check your connections / splices. Motorcycles are notorious for vibrations destroying inadequate joins. OEM style crimp or soldering only should be used. The red/blue/yellow crimps you see are only ok if you have crimpers that are up to the job, most are not. If you think you could bludgeon somebody to death with the weight of your crimpers, they're probably of sufficient quality.

You can skip cleaning the bulb socket and terminals with LED indicators. You can still check their internal resistance against each other with a multimeter on the OHMS setting. Just measure across the two input wires, and compare that reading to the other indicator. They should match within a few percent, although having said that an electronic indicator relay won't care anyway as it uses an internal timer.

Without exception, all of the integrated tail light assemblies I have had the pleasure of seeing have been of what I would call 'dubious quality'. Had to diagnose much more than that over the net. I think there's a guy up your way called ClassicZed or something similar who is reputedly a talented automotive electrician, although I could be wrong but somebody else will be along to confirm.


AS it turns out, I pulled the back end off to find the gremlin. The previous owner had installed Resistors, i bought some bloody nice ones, replaced them and WAH LAH! working great!