Should the engine oil be maintained at the high level mark? on some bikes I see it's advised to stay below the halfway mark for smoother running.
also my bike is blowing headlight bulbs,this last set lasted a bit longer than the last though,she has blown the high beam elements again now,I run on dipped lights all the time. any advice? Thanks
I run the full mark , don't think you have to worry about over filling if stay within the high low mark .
Only because you call yourself a newbie - Make sure the bike is on the centerstand. From a cold start, let the bike run and warm up. Turn it off and wait at least 5 minutes. I like to keep my oil about 3/4 between the low and high mark.
I think that is straight from the service manual. If you don't have it yet, grab it from the Downloads section:
http://www.vfrdiscus...zed-bookmarked/
If you like it, rate it and leave a comment please!
I replaced the battery a few months ago,it died blowing both bulbs completely in the process, a mechanic checked the battery output and said it was fine,he said if the reg/rectifier was on the way out the battery would be boiling,he checked it with a voltage meter.
I can't find that posting, 'The Drill' ?
Oil level is checked with the bike on centre stand,cold engine,thanks MM.
I put together "the drill" to make up a straight forward step by step way to test VFR electrics.
Here's the stuff...
Sorry for your electrical troubles. Well, looks like you gotta do…. “The Drill.”
Go through all your connectors for burnt leads, dig deep. Crispy wires? Not good. Your gonna have to fix that!
Then---Go through this starting point quick list. You will need a multimeter too.
Steps:
- Recharge battery overnite - then to take it to Autozone, Batterys Plus or similar to load test. -- Good? Bad? – An iffy battery can fake you out and act like a bad R/R. Buy new if needed.
- With good battery fire it up, warm up for a minute or two.
These are R/R quick checks---
--- With voltmeter at battery get voltages -- idle volts? 5000 rpm volts? What’s the numbers? Should be in 13ish min idle and in 14s at revs. If in the 12s at idle, try at 1900/2100 rpm. (It’s not unusual for the system to be in discharge or no charge at idle.)
- Check stator
- 1. Pull connector apart. Set meter to resistance. Check pin to pin stator side, 3 yellow wires, A to B, B to C, C to A. What’s the numbers? 3 separate readings --Should be less than 1.0 ohms. (Engine off)
- 2. Check continuity from each A,B,C pin stator side to ground, -- -should be infinity - nada nothing. no continuity. -- 3 separate checks. (Engine off, again connector is apart)
- 3. Crank it back up. Do another pin to pin thing, but set meter on AC volts. idle and 5000 rpms. What's da numbers? Should start 15 -20ish and climb 50ish and more. Again – 3 readings stator side connector and still apart.
- Repeat hot.
This quick list will catch the obvious stuff, but if you need to dig deeper check this chart. (Some guys like this chart, my taste, I don’t care for it.)
http://www.electrosp...ing-diagram.pdf
GL
:cool:
Thanks for that, I'll post up what I find out,I'll need the help of a mate,I'm ok at basic maintainance,learning new stuff all the time though.
Just brought a 5th gen with 31,000 kms on it, that's about 20,000 miles for US$5650 and was wondering the exact same thing ;)
So just do the regulator and that's it?
Check the charging system voltage as posted above. If the voltage is good then the problem could be a loose connection in the charging system that momentarily disconnect power to the battery and causes a voltage spike when it reconnects.
Well I had the reg/rectifier checked,it's ok so just fitted a new bulb,see how she goes now.