2002-2005 Honda VFR Recall Letter

[dravera]

Has anyone else received this letter from American Honda Motor Co.,Inc?
I received this letter in the mail yesterday from Honda. It says that their is a defect in the wiring harness of certain 2002-2005 Honda VFR motorcycles. According to the letter "Under certain conditions, the ground wire terminals inside the connector between the main wiring harness and faring sub-harness can overheat, resulting in melting of the connector and a loss of power to various circuits. As a result, a loss of critical lighting or engine power could occur without warning, which could result in a crash."
The letter goes on to say that Honda recommends that no one should ride the VFR until the problem is fixed by a Honda dealer.
I called two dealerships closest to where I live and asked about this. Both dealerships knew nothing about this recall or when parts would be avaible to fix them. I called Honda Motors Customer Service and spoke to a Customer Service agent named John who told me that Honda is in the process of getting the necessary parts together and sending them to the dealerships. John also told me that it could take between 2-4 weeks before the parts are in dealerships. In the meantime, John sugessted that I not ride my bike until then unless I had to and also said that Honda would not be providing any loaner replacemet bikes to their Customers. I don't know about anyone else but I ride my bike about 70% of the time. I use it mainly for transportation. I would suggest anyone else who feels that Honda should do something for their Customers while they are waiting for dealers to get the parts, should call the Customer Service number at (866) 784-1870 and ask for John and let him know your concerns.

[malcster]

Got the same letter,talked to my local Honda dealer,he knew nothing even after he looked up his computer links to Honda.I guess don't use your high beams @night or you you could be killed.Honda must be covering there ass.

[SilverSurferRWB]

I figured Honda would do better than this! Not ride my bike until they fix it??? I use my bike to commute to work 5 days a week so unless they have another suggestion I'm going to keep on riding it. If it blows up you better believe they will be supplying a new bike!

I think Honda is concerned that if you have a lot of accessories on the bike you might be overtaxing the electrical system. The letter talks about unplugging all your accessories and only using the low beam if you intend to keep riding your bike. I figured the dealerships wouldn't know anything yet. They are usually the last one's to get any info on recalls. It's better for them to say "I dont' know" then make something up and get sued.

[sschlosnagle]

Yea, I got my letter on Wednesday and was surprised no one had posted here about them.

The funny thing about this, for me, is my bike's front wiring harness just had failed in the exact way that the letter describes back in July!

I was two days into my week long tour of: the Skyline Drive, the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Tail of the Dragon, and the Cherohala Skyway.

The bike refused to start after I stopped for dinner in Front Royal, VA. It would turn over fine but as soon as I let off the starter the engine would die. I noticed the whine from the headlamp relay that they mention in the letter as well as "abnormal behavior of the indicators".

We tore down the front of the bike as well as the starter button but eventually gave up and prevailed upon the offer of a fellow rider in the area to trailer the bike to the closest Honda dealer.

I feel lucky that it broke down where it did, a few hours before I was up on top of Spruce Knob in WV! Dirt road, no cell signal, no nothing and with a rainstorm coming in. In hindsight the bike did take a few times to start then, definitely out of the ordinary but it didn't throw up any big red flags.

The dealer was able to get me back on the road in 28 hours so our tour was not ruined. They replaced the front wiring harness and the headlamps.

I called Honda Motorcycle Customer Service today and they said that when the send the letters out informing us that there is a fix ready that letter will include a form for reimbursing any of us that have already been bitten by this problem.

Personally, I think that Honda is doing a good job with this recall so far. I don't have any data on how widespread this type of failure has been, but I hadn't heard of it before.

[sspilotmi]

I got my letter yesterday too. Definate CYA letter drafted by lawyers. No way I am parking it, the riding season is too short here in Wisconsin. Hopefully the parts will be in over the winter and the dealer can repair it then.

[jeremy556]

This problem has been well known and documented on VFRD for years and is easy to fix.

Put a quick tap on the green ground wire on each side of the blue connector, and run a wire to a ring terminal to connect to the gas tank cable bolt on the frame.

I am sure Honda's fix will not address the R/R monitor wire problem, or the 30 amp fuse issue either.

[hondawolf]

Jeremy556, new to the vfr's and all. Was curious if you wouldn't mind saying what the R/R monitor wire problem, or the 30 amp fuse issue is?? I know what the r/r is, but not aware of issues with it. Thanks

[jeremy556]

The 30 amp fuse issue is the main 30 amp fuse next to the battery. After a while, it burns up, turns brittle, and melts. This can be fixed by replacing the fuse holder and wire to the battery with a larger gauge wire and aftermarket fuse holder.

The cause is thought to be Honda’s crappy crimped connections causing too much resistance->heat->burned up wire and fuse holder. A common symptom of this issue is the bike randomly stalling at idle.

The 6th gen’s (possibly the late 5th gens as well) R/Rs have a monitor wire that is supposed to supply battery voltage to the R/R so that the R/R can vary its output according to battery state and system load.

The problem is that this wire gets a voltage drop that gets worse over time causing the R/R to pump out way too much voltage. The fix is to bypass the main harness side of the monitor wire and run your own circuit.

This has been found on nearly every bike it has been checked for with more than 10K miles, and in every case the fix has worked flawlessly. There is even a member of VFRD producing a plug and play wire harness to fix the issue.

My readings before fixing the R/R monitor wire:
Idle: 14.8 volts
Idle with brights: 15.7 volts
5500rpm with brights: 16.4 volts
5500rpm brights and cooling fan: 17+ volts

Readings afterward:
Idle: 14.4 volts
Idle with brights: 14.35
5500rpm with brights: 14.4
5500rpm brights and cooling fan: 14.3

Those were taken with 2 different R/Rs and I had also replaced the stator before figuring out the monitor wire problem. My voltages were higher than most others' who have fixed theirs, but I had a lot more miles on my bike, and generally, the more miles, the worse the problem, and higher the voltages have been.

[hondawolf]

Wow, good to know, thanks for the information. I've only had the bike about 2 months. I bought it with 24,000 miles and have since added another 3,000 to it. Seems to run fine. The pervious owner said he never had any issues with the bike and never had to do anything other than the regular maintence. I just got the workshop manual for it. So looks like this weekend I have a few things to check out.

[MrJoelieC]

Received my Letter yesterday.... Pfft Yeah like I'm not riding it...... And I got a bridge in brooklyn to sell as well.......

Guess I'll call up the dealer schedule in Novemebr or something when it's colder....

[OneSided]

First my Explorer and now my VFR, I'll take my chances until the parts come in..........

[Marcosdm]

Jeremy, some people has found that's wrong to use the gas tank ring as a ground,(in some cases it can get's really hot), instead use the frame.

[jeremy556]

Jeremy, some people has found that's wrong to use the gas tank ring as a ground,(in some cases it can get's really hot), instead use the frame.

I'm talking about the screw that holds the wire that keeps you from overextending the gas tank when it is hinged up, that is screwed into the frame.

[goinphaster]

Thanks to Jeremy556 for the info

[dripa]

Hi I was wondering if any one knows where the fault is located at? I have 2003 abs model. I have been running heated clothing for three years now without a problem would like to check and see if I can notice anything wrong. Don Ripa

[hondawolf]

I've found this thread very interesting and mainly due to I just picked up a used 04 about 2 months ago. I drive it every day and trips on the weekends. I purchased the bike with 24,000 miles, and now has 27,500 miles. Has been running great, and the previous owner said he never had any problems with the bike. So, was curious what kind of miles people had on their bikes, when they had these problems? Thanks

[jeremy556]

Hi I was wondering if any one knows where the fault is located at? I have 2003 abs model. I have been running heated clothing for three years now without a problem would like to check and see if I can notice anything wrong. Don Ripa

Read my posts above.

The specific problem the recall is addressing is the green ground wire in the blue main harness connector on the left side of the bike. To fix this and not wait for Honda, bypass the connector with some wire and even better, ground that to the frame.

[sspilotmi]

My 04 has 6,500 miles. Nothing has ever gone wrong, just oil changes.

I read about the R/R issue, this comes under the "if it isnt broke, don't fix it" category. I will get my bike in on the recall though. I'll look into the R/R thing after I go past 10,000 miles. I rarely get more than 200 miles from home so I am not too worried about getting stranded somewhere.

[jeremy556]

I've found this thread very interesting and mainly due to I just picked up a used 04 about 2 months ago. I drive it every day and trips on the weekends. I purchased the bike with 24,000 miles, and now has 27,500 miles. Has been running great, and the previous owner said he never had any problems with the bike. So, was curious what kind of miles people had on their bikes, when they had these problems? Thanks

Mine started to show symptoms around 16K miles. Initially is was random engine dying. The 30 amp fuse fix mentioned above fixed that problem.

Later I figured out the monitor wire problem which fixed all the wiring in the bike starting to burn up, light bulbs blowing, and batteries getting fried from 16+ volts coming from the R/R.

I never had the ground wire problem, I found out about the fix and did it preemptively a long time ago.

[jeremy556]

My 04 has 6,500 miles. Nothing has ever gone wrong, just oil changes.

I read about the R/R issue, this comes under the "if it isnt broke, don't fix it" category. I will get my bike in on the recall though. I'll look into the R/R thing after I go past 10,000 miles. I rarely get more than 200 miles from home so I am not too worried about getting stranded somewhere.

Why not check? All it takes is about 30 seconds and a multimeter.

[superfastwannabe]

+1 on the 30 amp fuse problem for my 2002. Melted my fuse holder and connector. That, was a bad day.

I haven't had the problem with the blue connector and the forward hardness yet. I'm interested to see how Honda will address it. Going to keep riding it. Actually, I had just gotten back from a 2 week trip on my VFR when I got the notice. Oh well. ;-)

[keeena]

I also had the problem w/ the Fuse-B pigtail (30A fuse holder & short wire) problem on my 2002 VFR w/ 4k miles. The fuse, holder and short connector were completely fried. Fixed it by making my own pigtail.

Jeremy556 - Your post got me thinking a bit...

When i fixed my bike, i noticed that the R/R Output ties into the Fuse-B wire (thus system charging is done over this line). I'm thinking that its possible that the monitor wire issue may be the underlying cause for the Fuse-B pigtail burning up. Meaning too much current from R/R will begin to toast the weakest link. The Fuse-B pigtail issue may just be a side-effect, not a problem source. Anyone who made a beefed up Fuse-B pigtail may just be diverting the problem elsewhere.

FWIW I'll be doing my monitor wire ASAP.

[edit] Which wire is the monitor wire? A search for "monitor wire" only returns 3 threads, none of which discuss the issue.

[jeremy556]

I also had the problem w/ the Fuse-B pigtail (30A fuse holder & short wire) problem on my 2002 VFR w/ 4k miles. The fuse, holder and short connector were completely fried. Fixed it by making my own pigtail.

Jeremy556 - Your post got me thinking a bit...

When i fixed my bike, i noticed that the R/R Output ties into the Fuse-B wire (thus system charging is done over this line). I'm thinking that its possible that the monitor wire issue may be the underlying cause for the Fuse-B pigtail burning up. Meaning too much current from R/R will begin to toast the weakest link. The Fuse-B pigtail issue may just be a side-effect, not a problem source. Anyone who made a beefed up Fuse-B pigtail may just be diverting the problem elsewhere.

FWIW I'll be doing my monitor wire ASAP.

[edit] Which wire is the monitor wire? A search for "monitor wire" only returns 3 threads, none of which discuss the issue.

I also think the burned up 30 amp fuse may be a side effect of over charging caused by the monitor wire.

This is the monitor wire. It is white/black or black/white. Be sure you get the connector coming from the R/R, there are connectors for the switchgear in the same area.

You can use a jeweler's screw driver to remove it from the connector and use a female disconnect to attach to your wire to the battery (or relay) to do the fix without any harness modifications.

[keeena]

Cool, thanks for pointing out the wire. Looking at the schematic, I see the W/BL wire from the R/R connects to the following components:
-TOS
-Engine Stop Switch
-Fuse Box (6-gang)

If this is the wire you're talking about, I'm not sure how it is a monitor wire (expected just a line to ECM). I haven't looked at your pic yet due to work blocking the hosting site. I'll check it out later and update/post.

Unless this just happens to be a random 12v circuit that the R/R ties into to check batt voltage? Meaning just route a new wire directly from battery will at least provide R/R with batt voltage. The rest of the circuit is left to fend for itself. I'm getting ahead of myself...let me look at the pic first.

I've definitely pulled my share of metal connectors from the plugs...fun, isn't it? Lifting the retaining clips can be a royal pain in the ass.

[GR8TSCT]

I figured Honda would do better than this! Not ride my bike until they fix it??? I use my bike to commute to work 5 days a week so unless they have another suggestion I'm going to keep on riding it. If it blows up you better believe they will be supplying a new bike!

I think Honda is concerned that if you have a lot of accessories on the bike you might be overtaxing the electrical system. The letter talks about unplugging all your accessories and only using the low beam if you intend to keep riding your bike. I figured the dealerships wouldn't know anything yet. They are usually the last one's to get any info on recalls. It's better for them to say "I dont' know" then make something up and get sued.

I to use the bike to work 6 days a week. I have no other way to work. So like you I say if it blows up they will be supplying a new bike!!! Does anyone have a word on how long it is going to take honda?

[dravera]

I called Honda last week. John at Honda told me that they are planning on having the parts in dealerships towards the end of October.

[troy]

HELP!! I have an '05 bought as a left over last oct. it now has 9000 miles and it suffered the the recall issues out at lake george this summer. The dealer repaired it and its been fine. last weekend when turning the key on the lights wouldnt come on and and the dash chattered like before the repair. If you cycle the key it would eventually come out of it.

I found this thread and inspected for the "new" ground and it wasnt there!

I guess I dont know what the dealer did, so I did the repair myself (without the extra ground to the frame) but it still acts up. WTF mate!?!?

Could this still be a grounding issue?

[PorscheBob]

This problem has been well known and documented on VFRD for years and is easy to fix.

Put a quick tap on the green ground wire on each side of the blue connector, and run a wire to a ring terminal to connect to the gas tank cable bolt on the frame.

I am sure Honda's fix will not address the R/R monitor wire problem, or the 30 amp fuse issue either.

Jeremy, does this issue include the '98 or other 5th generation bikes?

I've already been through the R/R issue and added a fan.

Honda must have assigned the electrical harness design to a newbie engineer!

[jeremy556]

Jeremy, does this issue include the '98 or other 5th generation bikes?

I've already been through the R/R issue and added a fan.

Honda must have assigned the electrical harness design to a newbie engineer!

No, this only affects the 6th gen bikes for the ground wire issue.

[dravera]

Here is an update on the recall from Honda. I called the factory last week and asked when the parts would be avaible. The factory told me the parts won't be avaible until the end of November. So, in the meantime my bike is down until then. What do you think of that?