2017 RT Electronics acting weird when low on fuel

I was riding today and noticed that I was low on fuel - 49 miles to empty. I rode a little further, stopped for about 30 minutes and then started riding again. Now I was about 40 miles to empty. The following things stopped working: directionals, four way flasher, cruise control, electric windshield adjustment, and the horn. Also, the Nav VI acted weird, like changing screens by itself.

I filled up with gas when it was 12 miles to empty. After I filled up, everything worked properly.

Any ideas as to what this was all about??

I think the electrical symptoms were unrelated to the fuel level. If you had simply stopped, turned off the engine and restarted, the electrical problems likely would have disappeared.

There have been reports of similar electrical glitches, but usually they do not recur. I'd still report it to the dealer so they can check it out and record the problem in case it persists.

I will definitely report it to the dealer. No directional, no horn is definitely a safety issue.

I’d have a peek at the battery connections.
OM

follow up on problem

I had it checked out by the dealer and they found nothing wrong. I tried to reproduce the problem by riding on reserve again (down to 8 miles to empty) and the problem did not recur. (Yet). That's kind of disturbing, but what can I do?

Did they remove the battery and load test it? Did they check all of the ground and CANBUS connections? I would be surprised if they did, as that would take some time to do properly.

DONPRICE said:

... I tried to reproduce the problem by riding on reserve again (down to 8 miles to empty) and the problem did not recur. (Yet). That's kind of disturbing, but what can I do?

Click to expand...

The two things are "almost absolutely" unrelated, coincidental things that occurred. (hows that for poor grammar)

For so many unrelated systems to be affected at the same time, the most likely culprit is an ECU glitch that self-corrected. Low battery and/or faulty grounds can do some weird and amazing things but they typically reoccur, albeit often without a readily repeatable frequency, but they do reoccur usually witnin a 1-to-x day interval.

Follow up on problem

Here’s the follow up: Everything continued to work well for about 3 weeks and 900 miles, then the problem recurred. This time the fuel tank was full, so it seems that the fuel level was not related. I took it back to the dealer and they replaced the left handlebar switch under warranty. Let’s hope that cures the problem permanently.