VFR 800FI dies whilst om motorway. Won't start now.

Hi all,

Just changed my air filter, oil and oil filter.

Went out for ride, did 10 miles and Oil Light / FI light came on solid whilst on motorway and bike ground to a halt.

Won't start now. FI and Oil light stay on when turning the key.

No fuel pump sound when pressing ignition, however bike engine turns and engine splutters when ignition pressed. No fuel pump sounds so guess no fuel so doesn't start.

Any ideas? (oil light and FI light staying on and no fuel pump sound may be a clue?

Cheers

Chris

 

The service manual has a FI light trouble shooting section that seems to be full featured.
There is a two wire service plug tucked next to the frame, above the regulator / rectifier, that is used to retrieve the trouble codes from the computer.
Theplug is yellow, if I remember correctly.
When you touch the two with a short wire, the FI light will begin to blink telling you what is wrong.

I hope this points you in the right direction.

 

The oil light should only be on when the oil pressure is low and the circuit to ground through the switch is completed. So for the light to be on you either have low oil pressure (e.g. the engine is not running so no oil pumping action, or no/low oil level), or there is a new ground path for the blue/red wire e.g. broken insulation allowing conductor to contact frame. So first question, is all the oil still in the engine/at the right level?

The FI light should only be activated via the ECU. It should be on for a few seconds when the ignition is switched on and the engine stop switch is On, then go out. The fuel pump should also run at the same time, then stop. Given your light is solidly on, there is a fault.



According to Mr Honda, you need to check all of the fuses, and then move to the relays.

 

Thanks for the responses. Turned out to be the Main fuse B (30 amps). Working ok so far. Going to do a run out with spare fuses to hand. Not sure what made it pop.

Cheers

Chris

 

Check the wiring and the crimp on terminal ends where they enter the bottom of the fuse holder. I had the same issues on mine due to burnt wiring and charred connector pins.

I cut out the holder and stripped the wires back to good copper. Soldered in one of these:

 

Hmmm still blowing Main fuse B 30A every 10 miles or so.

Noticed the regulator hot enough to fry eggs on.

Regulator Yellow cable connector removed and 50 miles no problem till battery went flat. Had to reconnect and bump start to get home. Pocket full of spare fuses.

Noticed that using an AVO volt meter that the rectifier isn't giving any more out than the battery voltage.

If my electrical theory is right the lower the volts from the R/R the higher the current the battery will pull to try and charge hence blowing fuses. Previous owner kept battery on trickle when not in use so gremlin didn't show.

Any thoughts regarding my theory? I think the R/R is gone....

Don't think it is an original though???



http://electrexworld.co.uk/acatalog/RR53.html

Anything else I should check?

Cheers

Chris

 

I'm going with a short somewhere

 

Well just been out again. Charged battery to full. Had R/R connected and after 6 miles pop went the fuse.

Replaced fuse and removed yellow wiring plug from R/R to get home on battery only. No fuse pop with yellow R/R plug detached.

If this is a short it is a random one.

Going to test the stator tomorrow. Also getting a R/R from a scrappers to try.

Hope it's not a short - If it is intermittent I will never find it. Loom and insulators look ok.

Cheers

Chris

 

how's the condition of the wires/connectors in the main fuse holder?

 

seem ok. But then red tape is around them. The connector with yellow wires on rectifier are a bit browned so sign of high current draw there. Pretty sure the yellow wires are from the stator.

 

It sounds like your VFR is just the latest to suffer the usual electrical gremlins.

The following immensely long thread (aka the drill) explains the main issues and post #9 explains how to fault find what is wrong. If you find one fault, do NOT assume its the only one - as all 4 elements (Loom, RR, Stator and Battery) of the charging system need to be in good order and a fault in any one can damage one or more of the others.

http://vfrworld.com/forums/showthread.php/39277-How-to-fix-common-regulator-Stator-failures

OEM RRs and stators fitted to your bike can suffer from heat related failures - so work fine for a short time when cold, but as things warm up, electrical insulation can begin to fail and instead of charging the battery it can act as a dead short. That is why your experience of the bike running OK and then failing after x miles is not unusual!

The RR-stator connector is a known weak spot on 5th gen bikes so probably worth checking to see if its has melted!

It is important to ensure that any "the drill" tests, start with a healthy battery, or you can get misleading results. You also need to do the checks twice - once cold and again after a 20 minute plus ride which will usually be enough to reveal any heat related defects.

If you do find defective components in your case I would consider upgrading to decent shindengen RR, stick with the OEM stator, and possibly replace the RR-Stator connector with a directly soldered connection.

Your comments about keeping the bike on charge suggests the previous owner knew there was some sort of issue but failed to fix it.

Do the drill and let us know what you find.

Good luck




SkiMad

 

Voltage from stator on tick over is around 18V ac between pins. resistance between phases is fine. So I think the stator is fine However:

It turns out one of the yellow lead pins on the rectifier shows a path to ground. Where as the other two of the three doesn't show a path to ground. This path is around 245K ohm in resistance. Sounds like one of the diodes is gone inside the rectifier.

Trying to find a SHINDENGEN FH020AA in the UK is proving to be difficult.

Anyone from the UK have any recommendations that don't break the bank?

Cheers

Chris

 

Chris

If you are struggling to find a FH020AA you could try searching for the underlying Yamaha part number used on their R1 model 1D7-81960-00-00. If you buy a new one from a Yamaha dealer they are not going to be cheap! But in addition to 2009-2014 R1 models they were fitted on a number of their larger cc recent Yamaha models including snowmobiles... As R1 riders are somewhat prone to visiting the wrong side of a hedge, you might be able to get a used RR from a wreckers yard.

Alternatively a quick search for FH020AA on ebay.de shows a few used RRs and adapter kits for sale. However shipping may mean the final cost is not much less than new.


SkiMad

 

What about one of these?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Regulator-Rectifier-Honda-VFR800-1998-1999-SH689DA-SH579A-11-/322423071151

 

Delivered today and all fixed. Only get's slightly warm!!!

 

Not been on long and now this



Had to cut out and strip back burnt tempered wire which would not solder even with flux and add this:



Now working again. However wire gets hot. Is this normal (the stator wires getting hot)?
Thanks in advance.

 

Yes it is normal for these wires to get warm, I also soldered mine before my connector did what your did and they've gone from too hot to hold to pleasantly warm.

 

gonna try this:http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mini-LED-Pa...f5cd34b&pid=100005&rk=1&rkt=6&sd=131984270789

 

Know what you mean. Needs keeping an eye on. This arrived today: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B013G7OLHQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Don't want it on all the time draining the battery. Need to connect it to the lights on I guess???

 

LEDs that size draw almost no power, so it could stay on and look cool at night.