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HID, R/R


SLyFoXX

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I have noticed the past month or so that when I start the bike up the HID flicker for a few seconds then stay on.

Question is this normal or could this be an indication the R/R may be going out. Also last spring the fuse to the dash blew, could this also be a indication?

Bike is an 02 with 65K miles.

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Usually its a sign of low voltage, although your HID set could be wearing out. If its the first, any part of your electrical/charging system could be suspect, from stator to battery. My suggestion is first use a battery charger to top up your battery, then see if the lights function properly. This is to see if your charging system is creeping toward marginal and not fully charging the battery, and that includes the battery. Next, check and clean your battery ground. Then check the connections to the HID. If like most people you have simply plugged the spad connectors into the OEM headlight sockets, that simply won't do. They loosen and corrode, and a friction fit is not a good connection. Regardless of how its connected, clean up your contacts there and see what happens. After that, its a crap shoot.

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Mine does this quite frequently, and it's due to several things. When you first start an HID, it pulls more power than when it is "hot", so that combined with the lower voltage from the RR and the fact that the battery just dumped a ton of power starting the bike, and you end up with the flicker. I use my throttle lock to put the RPM's around 1500 for 30 seconds or so then unlock it and it doesn't do it anymore.

On my cruiser, I don't have a high beam at all, so I used the high beam switch to leave the headlight off altogether until I get moving. The blatantly obvious blue high beam indicator tells me I forgot to switch the headlight on if that happens, which isn't very often.

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I had the same problem... untill I replaced my battery.

but I also take it as part of the "sensitive" HID unit... the older it gets, the more sensitive it gets, well that's my belief anyhow.

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  • 1 month later...

attachicon.gifimage.jpg

Well guess I need to replace the rectifier

Your connectors don't look that bad. The OEM connections are shit and lend to charring (what was Honda thinking). If you have enough miles, you might want to just replace the stator AND R/R as a precaution, but some charring on the connectors doesn't prove anything conclusive. Mine had charring LONG before anything failed.

I replaced my R/R (as a precaution) then had the stator go out...forcing me to replace BOTH. I think the stator was the larger culprit, but if it's not failing enough to be obvious, you might not catch it by testing. By best 2 cents is that if the voltage is near the upper range of what it should be at max output, maybe the R/R is failing. Since putting in the new R/R and stator, my volts don't go over 14.2.

Both my stator and R/R came from Ricks. The R/R is MOFSET (sp?), which is an improvement.

I don't know if you can really find better connections for the stator. I went ahead and hard-wired/solder/shrinkwrap the wiring so there wouldn't be the "open air" nonsense of the OEM connection.

Don't know if there's anything wrong with your HID. Battery being low is possible, but it could be nothing at this point. Mine was doing it earlier this year (coming out of winter). Now that the bike's being ridden regularly, it's not doing it at all.

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It is not that a better connection is needed it is a clean connection that is needed.

Clean it up really well with steel wool and pack the connector front to back with dielectric grease. This has worked great for me with my bikes.

My F4i RR connector was in a bad place above the chain. I cleaned it up. Packed it with di grease and wrapped it in roll of vinyl I stole from an old bike seat. Then zip tied it in place so any moisture would run out and not stay inside. Worked great.

I tried to mimic the clear vinyl covers that come stock on many of the connector harnesses.

Edited by TuffguyF4i
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dielectric grease isn't conductive, don't pack it into connection points. It can withstand the high electrical temps and help seal connections that in the elements. That little pack of grease they sell for use on me sparkplug wires is dielectric grease. Will keep the plug from sitting directly in contact with the boot to prevent it from sticking.

I use it often, but doing so I ensure that I have good connections. The grease helps to keep things from corroding

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attachicon.gifimage.jpg

Well guess I need to replace the rectifier

I dont' think a charred connector means you need a new R/R, just need to repair the connection which would need to be done if you replace the R/R anyway. Three properly crimped butt connectors should do the job better than a new push together plug.

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I'm a big fan of dielectric grease but packing an ill fitting slip fit connector carrying a lot of amperage may do more harm than good. Even tho spark plug terminals are slip fit they carry very little amperage so it works well. I use it on battery terminals where lots of amperage is drawn, but the connection is solidly bolted down so no issue. Dielectric grease is an insulator so if it can be in the way of the connection it can be a problem. If I want to protect a slip fit connector i use electronics contact cleaner/lubricant CRC 2-26 or my new favorite product CorrosionX. On my boats & PWCs I sprayed 2-26 into the switches and all the connectors and fuses and never had connection issues. I used CorrosionX on my last boat but didn't keep it long enough to say it worked as well or better for electrical applications. I used it on all the trailer hardware and joints (mixed metals with high electromotive forces) and after several months and salt dunkings & washings I could still see a layer of lube on everything I sprayed and no corrosion.

Edited by superhawk996
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When testing the battery and RPMs up to 3500 the battery indicated up to 14.5 and would not drop indicating the voltage regulated / rectifier would not switch the charge off - at least that's how I understand it.

Edited by SLyFoXX
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