I fiqure I get some riding in and hopefully any serious rain holds up. 40 miles out my radar detector goes Wild with alert, something not heard before. I hit the brakes , but dont see anything, I look at the radar and it says low voltage, replug it and same thing. I then know something is wrong and immediately flip a huey and head for the house. I see my abs light is flashing ,Oh chit!About ten mile later my instrument panel goes blank (oh chit!) THen I know whats coming next. Once I lose power to the EMC and fuel pump we are dead in the water, I can already feel the bike losing power.
It finally started dieing an I pulled over on side of a Rurual driveway of abandoned house. I got no phone with me , and heavy rain headed my way. I started trying to flag people down but nobody would stop, hoping for a cop to come by. Finally i got a guy to stop and he called the sherrif, which came out. They called a towing service for me. $110 for the 15 mile tow.
As to the VFR, I fiqured the Stator had failed, i tested it after getting home and its shorted, maybe i use my extended warranty i've been crying about paying for.
But I had good charge voltage leaving the house, but the radar unit gave me warning of what was coming. Not because I was watching the voltage readout , but the alarm of low voltage. Failed at 64,000 mile
With 2 headlights on and RD, that will drain a battery very quickly, on vfr I guess thats about 10 miles or so. I thought of disconnecting the headlights, but by the time i did fiqured bike would be out of juice, so I just bee lined it for the house.
Sukks Big time, somethings in the air, cause people are crashing like flys and now my VFR breaks down.
That sucks...seems no matter how much care you take to clean the connections, the Stator or R/R get you anyway! Disconnecting the Light would probably have gotten you home.
I have towing on my bike for just this sort of thing...the $20 or so a year it costs is well worth it if ever used.
[image: View Post]Tightwad, on Oct 4 2009, 04:11 PM, said:
That sucks...seems no matter how much care you take to clean the connections, the Stator or R/R get you anyway! Disconnecting the Light would probably have gotten you home.
I have towing on my bike for just this sort of thing...the $20 or so a year it costs is well worth it if ever used.
$20 anything less than $100 I consider a steal (like AAA), whos that with?
Yeh first thing I did was pull the seat and look at the charge wire and fuse, great shape, fiqured stator. Got home wires are good shape, but stator is shorted.
Heres a tip too for those in the future, have your meter using mega ohms for short to ground test and thats the engine not the frame, to show the short. at 450 K ohm setting I still couldt get the short to show.
It looked like $220 for stator and gasket, but I have an extended warranty that I paid alot of money for never used.
So I charge the battery, unplug the headlight and was an easy 30 mile trip. $600 is the cost if thats all thats wrong, I didnt spend any time testing the RR, but stator is shorted to ground.
Also if you buy any of these extended warranties, make sure its a Manufactuer extended and not aftermarket. Not everywhere will accept cause these companies dont like to pay the claims.
I wanted to go to a Honda dealer closer to me, but they wouldnt accept the extended warranty, had to go to original dealer of purchase.
Still waiting to see if they pay the claim plus my tow bill
[image: View Post]spud786, on Oct 6 2009, 04:58 PM, said:
To Follow up,
It looked like $220 for stator and gasket, but I have an extended warranty that I paid alot of money for never used.
So I charge the battery, unplug the headlight and was an easy 30 mile trip. $600 is the cost if thats all thats wrong, I didnt spend any time testing the RR, but stator is shorted to ground.
Also if you buy any of these extended warranties, make sure its a Manufactuer extended and not aftermarket. Not everywhere will accept cause these companies dont like to pay the claims.
I wanted to go to a Honda dealer closer to me, but they wouldnt accept the extended warranty, had to go to original dealer of purchase.
Still waiting to see if they pay the claim plus my tow bill
Someone please cure my ignorance. It seems to me like a stator would be a rare thing to go out but apparently not from what I hear. What goes bad on them?
So I bought a 2006 VFR (used) thinking that the electrical gremlins had been sorted out starting with that MY but the OP has a 2006 and had a failure. Granted, with 60k+ miles things are sometimes just going to fail.
Anyway, was this just a case of the stator failing or was there a wiring related issue? If not installed, would the VFRness have helped? Were there any measures that could have been taken to reduce further the chances of having this problem?
The vfr made it 64,000 mile , my last bike made it 20,000 mile on the stator which was average, traded it at 40,000 mile
its definitely a failure item on a bike, only thing you can do on particular model is get a nationwide average of stator failure life.
Bad thing about VFR, its so heavily electrical, if stator goes the battery drains really quick, especially with 2 headlights. I was also running a radar detector. I unplugged after discovering low voltage
My radar detector saved me from being further out, do most fuel stations have ouside electrical? I passed a fuel station, if I had my charger I could have plugged it in and disconnected the head lights.
Instead i rode 2 mile further and died in the middle of the road
I think heat and vibration break down the epoxy on the wiring over time, its always seems to be one of the top coils
[image: View Post]Tightwad, on Oct 6 2009, 10:24 PM, said:
I am confused how you measured a shorted stator if it didn't show shorted until 450K ohms. When it is running, do you get any AC voltage?
Aftermarket Stators are $145, plus $12 or so for a gasket.
you have to use a higher ohms scale, cause there is some resistance from shorted coil to ground . Had identical ground failure on last bike, all three yellow wires shorted to ground. But on that ground test there can be Zero continuity. May also be the way the meter feeds, but on 450 ohm scale I get pure contunuity. There has to be zero continuity on any scale on that check.
This test tends to get over looked
Watch when the shop gets through with their diagnosys
Do not buy anything other than OEM Honda parts for this. It will save you ALOT of time and grief. It's a VFR thing with the stator and RR. It woulnd't be an issue but most VFR owners like having the heated grips, gps, radar, etc.
oh ya, get a voltmeter! This will give you the warning you need to get home in time.
I just went through this process for three weeks over the summer. not fun. I feel your pain!
MY RD is a Voltmeter, I saw good voltage out of the driveway and within 45 minutes enjoying the ride I stopped charging and not watching the voltage readout. But the warning alrm of the RD screamed at 10.5 volt.
I agree with you , some warning is really needed , my RD gave me 10 mile of trvel warning , had I noticed the display I would have seen the degrading voltage, but I only look at it occasionally. THe alarm was very functional and did its thing.
[image: View Post]spud786, on Oct 6 2009, 11:45 PM, said:
,
MY RD is a Voltmeter, I saw good voltage out of the driveway and within 45 minutes enjoying the ride I stopped charging and not watching the voltage readout. But the warning alrm of the RD screamed at 10.5 volt.
I agree with you , some warning is really needed , my RD gave me 10 mile of trvel warning , had I noticed the display I would have seen the degrading voltage, but I only look at it occasionally. THe alarm was very functional and did its thing.
You might look at the Voltage warning lights, you can set them to any voltage range you want, and if it goes outside that range (up or down), the light turns from Green to Red. I think I still have one on the shelf, but since I have my Datel installed I didn't go with the light.
I called the shop, they've completed the diagnostic, and stator the is shorted to ground. Reg checks out good, but they need a good stator to ensure everything is correct.
So just waiting to get approval from extended warranty people to order parts.
Looks like all is proceeding well at this point
Tightwad, I wish the RD's voltage alert could be raise alittle to like 11.5 volt
I never bothered checking voltage on the stator cause the ground checks werent right, whether it had showed voltage or not really wouldnt really have mattered . There's been a few on this board, who got some voltage reads even though they had a particially intermittant shorted stator. and they go back and forth cause they have some voltage thinking stator is okay. IMO start at the ground checks, no need to go further until thats fixed.
im going to research on a warning light , but i didnt even notice my ABS light was in constant flash till the RD went wild, then I started paying attention.
[image: View Post]spud786, on Oct 6 2009, 08:21 PM, said:
Swimmer, all my electrical is clean and brandnew looking, stator just shorted out
Sound like it was just time for the stator to die. I wanted to get a fused relay panel for added some accessories so at the same time I bought the VFRness to get the whole thing as a kit. Maybe the VFRness is not needed- I don�t know but I figured it couldn�t hurt. I should get it soon. I think I�ll be adding a voltage readout as well
Bike was put in shop on Tuesday , here it is friday and aftermarket warranty company has not authorised payment to order parts yet. I think the shop didnt submit paper work until thursday, I asked for that date and they said the 8th.
4 days to get parts once ordered, I'll be lucky to get it back by end of next week, which is looking doubtful now.
The top coils on stators always tend to be the hottest Burn areas, not sure why that is, Heat rises, baybe thats some of it, or oil flow is better on the bottom half?
The average failure for OEM stators on vfr is higher than average milege wise, around 50,000 or above, thats really not bad I guess.
Question is what can be done?
Does anyone have longterm use in the VFR with Redline Oil?
Redline oil is very unique, I've never seen an oil that can dissipate heat as quickly. I mean all oils I've ever tested, all retain alot of heat, but redline cools instaneously.
I thought this would be good for a stator situation when my last bike fried its stator, but after a couple oil changes on redline, I started having mild clutch slippage, and had to revert back to Known good clutch oil. Redline oil doesnt meet MA oil catagory on clutch friction.
[image: View Post]spud786, on Oct 9 2009, 11:30 PM, said:
The top coils on stators always tend to be the hottest Burn areas, not sure why that is, Heat rises, baybe thats some of it, or oil flow is better on the bottom half?
The average failure for OEM stators on vfr is higher than average milege wise, around 50,000 or above, thats really not bad I guess.
Question is what can be done?
Does anyone have longterm use in the VFR with Redline Oil?
Redline oil is very unique, I've never seen an oil that can dissipate heat as quickly. I mean all oils I've ever tested, all retain alot of heat, but redline cools instaneously.
I thought this would be good for a stator situation when my last bike fried its stator, but after a couple oil changes on redline, I started having mild clutch slippage, and had to revert back to Known good clutch oil. Redline oil doesnt meet MA oil catagory on clutch friction.
I don't think the whole stator is covered in oil, just as the whole right side isn't (look at the view window).
I wonder if different oils affects stators differently...maybe you have an issue if your oil becomes conductive to electricity (oil isn't normally)....additives, or non-normal oil use? Who knows?
I heard one time, that some synthetics weaken the epoxy on stator wiring. I've never found any thruth to that, since my last stator failed on pure PAO, and This one on regular crude oil.
The spinning of the flywheel ought to throroughly scatter oil all over that stator, but every time I've seen a stator which was cooked the top coils are the worst in color.
[image: View Post]spud786, on Oct 10 2009, 12:32 AM, said:
I heard one time, that some synthetics weaken the epoxy on stator wiring. I've never found any thruth to that, since my last stator failed on pure PAO, and This one on regular crude oil.
The spinning of the flywheel ought to throroughly scatter oil all over that stator, but every time I've seen a stator which was cooked the top coils are the worst in color.
Sounds like a design defect, pure and simple. If we can put men on the moon in 1969....... :rolleyes:
I own my last Honda until they get their act together. The new "VFR" turns me completely off and it seems they have the attitude "we will build what WE want and they will buy because we're Honda". I'm not drinking their cool aid and I hope my VFR lasts a long time. There are too many better bikes available from other brands for me. Rant over and out.... :biggrin:
There is some sort of "breather" hole that lets oil into the stator housing from the engine cavity... I don't think that oil is really meant to get in there... the stator is not bathed in oil as the clutch is... I believe this hot oil fries the stator's wiring insulation.... the part that stays whitish is on the opposite side to the "breather" hole... I'm not sure of the function of the "breather" hole...supposedly the nw stator referencie number addresses this issue by using a better insulation material... �Are there many 2006+ models with stator failure?
All modern street bikes have wet stators, they are cooled via oil bath.
I'm still waiting on my bike, they order the part after waiting on authorization from warrnty, I should get the bike back monday or tuesday, a full 2 weeks.
This is not my first stator failure, but is on the vfr. What alarms me most is how quickly the vfr drains. Other bikes you can ride many hours. Course I was running an rd, and I know it eats as much as a headlight, but the vfr has 2 that are on all the time.
In trying to find a cure, and the typical failure out side of bad connections, is the top the top coils on the stator over time break down via Heat. My last bike was not a hot running bike at all, vfr is much hotter. But that bikes stator failed and the bike had only been on pure PAO oil, 20,000 mile failure. The vfr failed at 64,000, but its mostly been on dino in the last 40,000 mile.
Still though I was thinking an oil that disapates heat really quick, might aide stator life, that oil is Redline it cools exceptionally quick in my prior lab testing. But when I tried that with by old bike clutch started slipping on redline, so I couldnt run it.
Please excusse me guys.. but im new to all this.. and just picked up an 05 vfr800 and want to know what the hell a "stator" is. Ive been reading this and for the longest time i thought you guys were just mis-spelling "starter".. LOL>. i guess not. Anyway.. what is the stator and what should i do considering i just got a used bike and what should i look out for, for future concerns??.. any help of things to be cautious aout would be great.. and what was this R/R thing and VFRness you were talkin about too.. should i get any of this stuff?? Thanks for the help guys!
[image: View Post]spud786, on Oct 10 2009, 12:30 AM, said:
The average failure for OEM stators on vfr is higher than average milege wise, around 50,000 or above, thats really not bad I guess.
Blackbirds unfortunately fail at similar mileage (regardless of the # of electric farkles), proally share the same components with the VFR for that matter... I recently replaced the R/R on my 2000 Bird and now @ 50K I've noticed my voltmeter gradually not getting full 14.3 output with Rev's... I'd believe it won't be long now and have an OEM on order as we speak. It is a 9 year old bike though so I don't think much about it, still though I wouldn't expect parts like this to fail, especially from Honda. IMO.
Most in the know BB riders will travel with a spare R/R, some with a spare Stator, depending on their mileage... and have pretty good knowledge of the Electrosport Diagnostic flowchart to frequently check the Stator/R/R condition. Like you all we will also periodically go through all electrical connections, clean, lube them, etc...
All things pointed to getting my bike back today, I drove my truck down there and they had the parts and were working on the bike. I went back home, around 3pm I call and they say its just ready, so the wife gets home within 30 miuntes and will drop me off down there. I wanted to get it done before heavy interstate traffic began. Naturally things never go your way.
So, they have trouble locating my paper work and not quite complete, so I'm waiting while they work on that. Finally the guy comes to the counter with my paper work and guy says, warrnty covered this much and you owe $210.
I was not surprised there would be issue, but holy chit!
So , I say, I have zero deductable warranty, plus you owe me $50 for the tow.
My paper work is now taken over by another guy, and he spends 15 minutes away and comes back. Says the warranty company didn cover the whole amount so now you owe $118 . I say, then you need to go back through the warranty company if they arent giving you enough money, cause I bought it through you guys. I have a zero deductable warranty on a covered item, plus you owe me $50 for tow.
I was getting tired at that point, Take me to the person thats dealing with the warranty people, cause I've already talked to the warranty people and all I should pay is the oil, cause its a consumable.
That person is called over and they work the numbers again.
So in the end I pay zero, they installed 1 quart castrol 20w50 for $6.99 and they owe me 50 doolar for the tow. So im due a check for $43 sent to my house.
So I went from $210 to them owing me $43
Naturally, by all said and done, traffic is thick and heavy on the instate, but it was good to atleast ride. My bike has now begun the process of me going back through it. My charge is at 14.7v never varies at any rpm range which is very odd.
That still looks like what I was seeing 2 weeks before failure, I'm getting suspect of the RR , if this doenst change.
Even the headlights do not dip at all from idle to throttle , alot of charge coming though.
Bike looks like its be outside for 2 weeks, I got work to do before I put the fairings back on.
End of thread · 28 posts recoveredWayback Machine snapshot 12 Apr 2010