I GOT DUPED BY MYSELF!! --- H-D MOTORCYCLE REPAIR

[chief38]

I fancy myself as a pretty fair NON PRO Mechanic when it comes to mechanical devices and can do pretty much any type of repairs and maintenance required on my Harley Motorcycle and our cars.

I have been experiencing Speedometer drop out and fluctuation of the needle on my 2008 Ultra for months now. When ever the drop out occurs the cruise control cuts off (when cruising of course) and 6th gear green indicator lamp goes off. The most common cause of this is a dirty or worn out Speed Sensor. The engine and Tachometer did not cut out but the needle on the Speedo goes crazy. After thinking about and looking at the Technicians Shop Manual I concluded it was the Speed Sensor and so I went to Harley and bought a new one. Not too difficult to replace but unfortunately the Starter has to come out first for access. OK, I do the whole job, replace the Sensor and it made no difference at all.

So then I thought it might be a bad Speedometer and I also checked in with a Professional Harley "Wrench" and he agreed that it's probably a bad Speedo. OK, so I buy a new one, pull of the Faring and replace that - no change! So then I figure the only thing left would be a partially broken wire, a bad connector plug or defective fuse. I spent the better part of the afternoon Wednesday checking continuity, the fuse, the connector plugs etc and everything checks out OK. Now I am perplexed!

Then as I sat starring at the wiring harness under the seat, I realized that 8 years ago I installed a Vance & Heinz Performance Tuner and vaguely remember having difficulty hooking it up to the ECM main connector because of the limited amount of space under the seat. I also vaguely remembered having to really work the locking clamp into position to secure the main connection between the ECM and the V&H Tuner and so I decided to check it. BINGO! The clamp lock had popped ever so slightly opened allowing the pins to make intermittent contact on the left side of the multi pinned plug and was causing a poor connection. I reconnected the plug properly, and this time used a long Zip Tie to secure the clamp lock to prevent it from ever happening again.

I just got back from a 100 mile ride this morning and everything worked as it should with no hitches. The unfortunate part is that it cost me over $350 bucks for the parts and hours of my time to do the replacing of them. So there you go - I was humbled to say the least! Just a stupid little clamp lock was causing the problem and I'm REALLY pissed at myself for NOT checking the most simple thing first as I usually know better!

So the lesson here is before being duped as I was, always check the simple things FIRST!! And by the way, neither the Speedo or the Speed Sensor are returnable so I will make SURE NOT to make a mistake like that again.

Figured I'd pass this on to others who do their own repair work and maybe I can save someone both money and time.

 

[Fishinfool]

Thanks for the tip. Frustrating. Been there, done that. My experience is usually a bad electrical component or fuse either works, or it don't. Intermittent is usually a bad connection or wire. Always pays to start simple before you start throwing parts at it.

Knock on wood, my 01 Road King usually fires right up after I pat her on the tank, and talk nice....

Larry

 

[Ray1970]

I think the lesson is that if you jacked with it or modified it, check there first. Same applies to all those people that throw a bunch of aftermarket stuff on their handguns and then have issues and never even think it could be something to do with the stuff they added or modified.

Glad you got it figured out.

 

[walkin jack]

Well Chief, all is not lost. At least you can now be totally confident you are in great shape on the speedometer and all it's associated companion components. Good luck and may you never have a flat on the rear.

 

[chief38]

I think the lesson is that if you jacked with it or modified it, check there first. Same applies to all those people that throw a bunch of aftermarket stuff on their handguns and then have issues and never even think it could be something to do with the stuff they added or modified.

Glad you got it figured out.

Yes you are 100% correct. The hitch here was that I installed the Tuner so many years ago I sort of forgot about it, as it is "part of the bike" now and it never gave me any problems. It was not the Tuner itself, but the ECM connector clamp lock that opened just enough to cause the problem but not enough to be visible without very close inspection. Works EXCELLENT BTW!

BTW the REAL REASON I installed it in the first place was not really for the few additional horse power I gained, but in conjunction with the Harley Screamin' Eagle Air Intake and the Screamin' Eagle exhaust it did make the bike run cooler. 2008 Harley's did NOT have the water cooled Heads (as they do now) and stock they ran HOT HOT HOT to meet the EPA demands (they ran very lean)! The V&H Tuner helped alleviate that problem. Along with 100% Synthetic Oil (Amsoil) I managed to drop the temperature about 15ºF - 20ºF. I also removed the useless Factory Ambient Air temp Gauge and installed a H-D Oil Temp Gauge in its place, so I know the temp. drop is real.

But again..... I SHOULD HAVE checked that FIRST as you point out! Lesson learned!

 

[chief38]

Well Chief, all is not lost. At least you can now be totally confident you are in great shape on the speedometer and all it's associated companion components. Good luck and may you never have a flat on the rear.

I carry a Professional Tire Plug Kit and an electric air pump on board in hopes that a simple screw or nail can be pulled and plugged to get me to the next H-D Dealer for a new tire. I'm also a HOG member so worst case scenario it gets towed if I can not repair it on the Bike. Yes, the rear tire is a royal pain to deal with on the side of the road. Just had Harley put on two new Dunlop Elite tires last month - almost $800 bucks!

I've been lucky enough that in over 60,000 miles on a few different Bikes I have never gotten a flat (hope I'm not jinxing myself here). Can't say the same on my cars and I have successfully plugged and inflated flats roadside with the Kit & Pump that I have in my cars as well.

Bought a new SUV last October and got one flat 3 days after taking delivery and another one (in the very same tire) two weeks after that!

 

[Bekeart]

INTERMITTENT - The WORST word for electronic problems.

INTERMITTENT - The WORST word for electronic problems.

From working MANY years repairing electronic equipment, an intermittent problem is usually the most difficult and most frustrating.

Bekeart

 

[walkin jack]

Sounds like you are well prepared. I can remember a time or two in my 45 years long love affair with scooters when I would have been glad to have been better prepared.

1. My first scoot I was 15 it was a Cushman Eagle
2. My second scoot. It was a 1962 Honda 125 Dream and I was stationed on the Island of Okinawa at Camp Schwab with the 3rd Marine Division
3. My 1971 Kawasaki 500 The day (August 8th 1971, The day we met
4. No pic but my first Motocross bike was a Yamaha Nouguchi 125cc It's the one I tore up my left knee on.
5. I was just off the crutches when I got this 125cc Hodaka 125 Thats me on the left astride the yellow bike
6. This was my last bike and it was great. 1985 Honda V-65. 1100cc., 6-speed, shaft driven, water cooled and it was the fastest production motorcycle in America that year.

Never did get around to a Harley but to this day every time I hear that throaty sound or see that flash of chrome and fancy paint it takes me back to my riding days.

Thank you for this post it let me spend a little time in one of the best periods of my life.

 

[bigwheelzip]

My husband's friend, who builds custom electric panels for a living after retiring from Grumman as an aircraft electrician, finishes our wiring connections. If we show up with those clamp connectors for a project, he makes a point of telling us not to ever use them while he throws them away.

It's a thing of beauty to watch the skill he employs stripping, soldering, shrink wrapping, and shielding the connections until they look like OEM.

Glad you got it straightened out. Keep the shiny side up.

 

[LVSteve]

I had a frustrating fault with the turn signals on a Firebird over 15 years ago. I had acquired a manual and was ready to trace it though with my multi-meter. First step was to remove the lower dash panel and steering column cover to access the multiway at the base of the column. I needed access to the pins in the connector.

Drum roll, please.....

As I pulled apart the connector, I removed the part label that the factory guy had trapped inside. Fixed.

 

[chief38]

My husband's friend, who builds custom electric panels for a living after retiring from Grumman as an aircraft electrician, finishes our wiring connections. If we show up with those clamp connectors for a project, he makes a point of telling us not to ever use them while he throws them away.

It's a thing of beauty to watch the skill he employs stripping, soldering, shrink wrapping, and shielding the connections until they look like OEM.

Glad you got it straightened out. Keep the shiny side up.

Thanks!! In my case what unlatched was the OEM plug's locking latch - part of the wiring harness and must be used (even without a Tuner). It then gets connected to the Tuner but it was the Bikes OEM part that unlocked.

In general, you're right. The more connectors you have the greater the risk of a failure. In my case I simply have no choice.

 

[codenamedave]

Don't feel too bad. I used to work in an auto parts warehouse, and we had a few will-call customers (shops) who would regularly buy a part, then return it shortly afterwards and buy a different related part. Didn't take Sherlock Holmes to figure out they were just replacing parts until they found the problem. These were thriving repair shops with plenty of return customers, too.

At least they usually cleaned up the returns.

 

[phantomcycle]

I've owned a motorcycle shop for 50 years anytime a customer brings his bike in for a problem first thing i ask is what has he done or had someone else worked on in the last year 70% of the time i find the problem with that work
I had a customer that every time he had a problem he tried to fix it first it got so bad that i told him if he fixes it or try's to I'm not going to work on his bike period

Sent from my LG-K371 using Tapatalk

 

[Qball]

Even the pro's some time ****up

My father got a visit by a friend, he had his car at a shop for hooking up
a tow to it.

He could not get the electrics to work when he hooked up the trailer.
Dad followed all the cables and found out that the shop had screwed the ground cable to the plastic cover for the tail light

 

[codenamedave]

I've owned a motorcycle shop for 50 years anytime a customer brings his bike in for a problem first thing i ask is what has he done or had someone else worked on in the last year 70% of the time i find the problem with that work
I had a customer that every time he had a problem he tried to fix it first it got so bad that i told him if he fixes it or try's to I'm not going to work on his bike period

Sent from my LG-K371 using Tapatalk

Y'all've probably seen these signs before:

 

[chief38]

Don't feel too bad. I used to work in an auto parts warehouse, and we had a few will-call customers (shops) who would regularly buy a part, then return it shortly afterwards and buy a different related part. Didn't take Sherlock Holmes to figure out they were just replacing parts until they found the problem. These were thriving repair shops with plenty of return customers, too.

At least they usually cleaned up the returns.

What bothers me is that I know better and dropped the ball on this one

 

[Kevin J.]

I also removed the useless Factory Ambient Air temp Gauge and installed a H-D Oil Temp Gauge in its place, so I know the temp. drop is real.

!

Great idea. I also ride an 08 Electraglide. Do you have any details you could share on this? I would love to do it to mine also. I have always thought the air temp gauge was stupid. I know when it's hot or cold out.

 

[LouisianaJoe]

As you have found out, the major part of knowledge is screwing up and having to figure out how to fix it. So now you know more than you did and you have some spare parts that you may need someday.

 

[wingriderz]

Glad you found the problem. Well think about this , if it was at the bike shop they would have charged far more and may have caused more problems. Ride Safe.

 

[gdnagle]

A lesson you never forget is one that cost you money. Look on the bright side you can never have too many spare HD parts.