• Welcome, Guest! We hope you enjoy the excellent technical knowledge, event information and discussions that the BMW MOA forum provides. Some forum content will be hidden from you if you remain logged out. If you want to view all content, please click the 'Log in' button above and enter your BMW MOA username and password.

    If you are not an MOA member, why not take the time to join the club, so you can enjoy posting on the forum, the BMW Owners News magazine, and all of the discounts and benefits the BMW MOA offers?

2003 K1200RS Electrical Mystery

VIEJO

Member
Full Disclosure- It doesn't take all that much to go over my bow on electrical issues, but this one's really got me puzzled.

Returning to Central Texas from Hot Springs AR recently on my '03 K1200RS I developed a weep on the supply hose to the oil cooler.... discovered the weep about thirty miles from home, topped up the oil, and made it home alright. The next day I removed the Tupperware from the bike with the aim of wiping down the underside of the bike in order to locate the weep when I restarted the engine. After cleaning the underside (nasty, as the ride home from AR was mostly rainy) I attempted to start the bike and that's when things got interesting. When I cycled the ignition key to the on position the only two dash lights that illuminated were the battery light and the oil pressure light. And then, when I cycled the ignition key to the off position the battery light and the oil pressure light stayed illuminated. I cycled the ignition key on and off several times with no change. The two dash lights only extinguished when I lifted the ground cable from the battery. I then reconnected the ground cable, cycled the ignition key to the on position and got the same results- two dash lights and no start..... no starter turnover at all, no headlight/taillight, no "whizzy brakes" run-up. On the trailer and off to the shop.

My mechanic replaced the oil line and told me that he cleared the electrical gremlin by replacing the battery (which was four years old). I brought the bike home, replaced the Tupperware and started riding again...... no problems for about four hundred miles (and about six on/off ignition cycles) and then yesterday morning- back to the "two lights dash" and no start. I noticed also that the clock had stopped and the battery tender indicated no current flow.

One of my initial thoughts before I took the bike to the shop was that I might have disturbed the side stand safety switch or the neutral light switch when I was wiping down the underside of the engine, but when the new battery seemingly cleared the fault I quit worrying about that; now I'm not so sure.

The part that really mystifies me is the two dash lights staying on even after the ignition key has been cycled off. Possible problem with the ignition switch?

Help, SOS, Ayudame por favor,

Dave



Dave
 
So really, the technician cleared the problem the same way you did—disconnect the battery.

The switch is a possible problem, but so are bad grounds that may have been made worse by the leaking oil and/or wipe down. Also, double-check all connectors in the areas you were working on, on the chance one might have been partially dislodged. Do the cheap checks first, before jumping into replacing parts.

Best,
DeVern
 
Thanks, DeVern. Once the temperature warms up a bit in the bike shed (wife objects to my working on the bike inside the house:dunno I'll start troubleshooting one connector at a time beginning under the engine. Viejo
 
So really, the technician cleared the problem the same way you did—disconnect the battery.

The switch is a possible problem, but so are bad grounds that may have been made worse by the leaking oil and/or wipe down. Also, double-check all connectors in the areas you were working on, on the chance one might have been partially dislodged. Do the cheap checks first, before jumping into replacing parts.

Best,
DeVern


Cleaned al grounds and reattached with dielectric grease and the bike started right up..... and died :scratch.

Wallowed in despair 'til I remembered that I hadn't reset the TPS after disconnecting/reconnecting the battery.

You have to be smarter than the machine.
 
A likely suspect is the ignition key switch (someone mentioned it earlier). The electrical part of the switch with all the contacts and rotator can be worn, broken, or caked in old stiff grease and not making good contacts internally. It's a pain to get at if you haven't been there before. You could check it with an ohm meter or voltage meter and wiring diagram.

Did you do a load test on the new battery??

Is your alternator/voltage reg functioning properly (13.5v above 2k rpm)??

What about the starter relay??
 
Back
Top