Electrical help...please!

[latony007]

So i have a long story i will try and make short. I bought a Corbin seat off another member here and it has the heated front seat. I went to follow instructions on installing it and when i got to the hook up the heat part it called for some type of fuse adapter which was not included and that i could not really see in the picture but got the idea. At first i was going to forget the instructions and just hook it up straight to the battery via an SAE adapter to plug into my batter tender cable. But my dads voice came through to me from when i was a kid saying "if your gonna do it...do it right" and i was afraid id leave the seat on one day and come back to a dead battery. So i went to pep boys and bought an "add a circuit" pictured below. This basically turns one fuse hole into 2. Corbin Ins. said to put it in 5amp cluster slot but this would not fit because it would have stopped me from putting the fuse box cover back on so i put it in the 10amp slot up top next to the Main relay 1 (the big square relay) i put the 10amp fuse in the lower part of the add a circuit which controls the original device and a 5amp in the upper part which controls the device you are adding. connected the positive wire of the seat to the add a circuit wire, attached the ground to a piece of metal, the metal tab where you attach the tuperware about under the front of the seat. Turned the key, turned on the seat and the light for it came on and all looked well (didnt seem to get very hot though). Flash forward to the next day. I went to actually ride it and when i tried to start the engine there was a loud click and everything went dead. I checked all the fuses i had touched and they were all good. I tried turning the key off and on and the gauges come on and flicker for a second then go dead. I tried switching the main relay things from the fan to main relay 2 to see if it was one of those and same thing. i tried taking the add a circuit thing out and put the fuse back but that didnt work either. Thought it might be the ground or something so took that off too and same thing. Only think i can think of is i blew the main relay 1 somehow? Anyone have any ideas or know the part # from napa or something to replace that main relay 1? This sucks now i cant even ride or start it. seat seems comfy if i ever get to try it!

Funny thing is i plugged the add a circuit back in and the seat light still comes on but nothing else, and it works without the key on so apparently i did all this and fried something for no reason. This is why i am always hesitant to work on stuff but this seemed so easy. Any help anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Tony

[Allensr]

you may of used a fuse that does not go off with the key and just drained the battery. check voltage at battery. if below 12v keep meter on battery and try and start it. if voltage drops below 10 volts battery is discharged.

[Chupaca]

you drained the battery. Some power lines are switched and some are not. If you hooked up direct to the battery with an inline fuse you need to be able to switch it off. I have our heated gear on a direct connection but onlt works when plugged in. Charge up the battery and reckeck your hookup...

[latony007]

you may of used a fuse that does not go off with the key and just drained the battery. check voltage at battery. if below 12v keep meter on battery and try and start it. if voltage drops below 10 volts battery is discharged.

Was not aware there was fuses that did not go off with the key, good to know, guess thats why the seat is still coming on however it was the only fuse where this adapter thing would fit. I put the bike on my tender for a while and it went green (Charged) and when i tried it again same thing happened. i replaced the cluster fuse for the third time even though none were blown and now it appears the gauges are coming on ok but not sure it had anything to do with replacing the cluster fuse. Then i try and start it i get the same loud click and they go dead (engine doesnt start) then come back on slightly dimmer. I switched to my other battery tender and will let it run overnight and try it again in the morning. the label on the fuse i used was kind of torn, again the 10 amp one on top next to the big main relay 1. I tried to see what the label says that fuse is and it looks like it says controls main relays and some other stuff? i put a new fuse in it as well and still same thing.

[latony007]

you drained the battery. Some power lines are switched and some are not. If you hooked up direct to the battery with an inline fuse you need to be able to switch it off. I have our heated gear on a direct connection but onlt works when plugged in. Charge up the battery and reckeck your hookup...

so are you saying it was drawing power even if the switch on the seat was off? its behaving like it has a dead battery but my tender went green. I am trying another tender, letting it sit overnight and will try again. My wife yanked the tender cable out earlier but it just came apart at the quick disconnect. Couldnt have pulled from the battery i dont think, im pretty sure it had circle connectors that went over the post so no way it could pull loose but its been a while since i put it on.

[Chupaca]

A tender will not charge the battery unless it's a charger model. If you have jumper cables try to jump start. If it starts it means the battery is low. If you have a volt meter check to see if you have 12.7 v or more. If the seat has a switch it cuts power to the seat and the drain must be going back on the connections.

[latony007]

A tender will not charge the battery unless it's a charger model. If you have jumper cables try to jump start. If it starts it means the battery is low. If you have a volt meter check to see if you have 12.7 v or more. If the seat has a switch it cuts power to the seat and the drain must be going back on the connections.

I have the battery tender Jr. that has always charged the battery with a red light and then switches to a green light when the battery is charged, at that point it just sends a trickle charge to maintain the battery at full charge, i keep both my bikes hooked to them pretty much at all times. I have used them for a while on several bikes and on bad batteries it would take all night or more to hit green but its hitting green on this one right away. Yes the seat has a switch on it. I guess its possible the battery is telling the tenders its charged when its not? not sure how that works. i will try and jump it when i get home today see if that works.

[bruiser]

How old is the battery? If the battery is dead, as we suspect, it will take a proper battery charger to bring it back up. If that doesn't work, or jump starting, battery has a dead cell. As Gene said, you probably used a non switched circuit.

[Chupaca]

I have the battery tender Jr. that has always charged the battery with a red light and then switches to a green light when the battery is charged, at that point it just sends a trickle charge to maintain the battery at full charge, i keep both my bikes hooked to them pretty much at all times. I have used them for a while on several bikes and on bad batteries it would take all night or more to hit green but its hitting green on this one right away. Yes the seat has a switch on it. I guess its possible the battery is telling the tenders its charged when its not? not sure how that works. i will try and jump it when i get home today see if that works.

Surface charge and close counts with tenders but these machines need it all to start....good luck with the jump. Also check all battery connections especially ground. All need to be solid connections. The other is disconnect it all and start over checking loads. Hopefully the seat doesn't have a short....

[latony007]

Now i am more confused than ever. Here is the report,came home and light was green on the tender. Tried starting it got the big click which sounds like its coming from the mid right side of the bike. Gauges reset and it asks you to push the mode button again and of course no start. I hooked up jumper cables and let it sit for a few minutes with my car running and tried to start it. It would not start but the gauges did NOT dim and did not reset, instead i heard several clicks while i was holding down the ignition button instead of one. So i figured it was better. I let the car run for another 20 minutes had my wife rev it up while i tried to start it and again no start and it keeps clicking. all the gauges are bright. I go to eat dinner. I plugged it back in the charger and came back half hour later after dinner. Attached the cables again, got a spark when attaching and then all the lights and fan came on the bike, except the gauges and i did not even have the key in, never mind turned on. Of course no start. I tried starting the car and then turning the key but no gauges and all the lights still on. What the hell is going on? i feel like i destroyed my spyder trying to put a fricken seat on. If the battery were dead it should have started with a jump correct? its hard to see the positive connection but i have to assume it was connected the first time because the gauges didnt dim and i got constant clicks vs. one but when i hooked them up again all teh lights and fans came on?? is there a solenoid that could have blown over on that right side, thats what the click sound reminds me of. Calling all people with a brain that i obviously dont have to figure this out.

[Chupaca]

don't run your your car when jumping. It would seem that the starter motor may not be working. There have been a few where they have come unglued internally. We had a member glue the coils back to the body and things were fine but may be just trying a new starter would be better. It may be time to check with the dealer. If you are able to pull the starter and check it you would know for sure. It may not be the seat at all this may be a coencidence. If you disconnect all you did and set in the old seat and seat sensor andremove the key from the machine for say 45min go back and follow the start up steps and you still get only a click even with a jumper...I would look at the starter...

[latony007]

don't run your your car when jumping. It would seem that the starter motor may not be working. There have been a few where they have come unglued internally. We had a member glue the coils back to the body and things were fine but may be just trying a new starter would be better. It may be time to check with the dealer. If you are able to pull the starter and check it you would know for sure. It may not be the seat at all this may be a coencidence. If you disconnect all you did and set in the old seat and seat sensor andremove the key from the machine for say 45min go back and follow the start up steps and you still get only a click even with a jumper...I would look at the starter...

Thanks for your continued help. I already disconnected the seat from the fusebox last night before i tried everything today, except doing the seat sensor but the abs sensor doesnt really plug into the seat right it just attaches to it and plugs into the harness? I used the existing sensor that was on the old seat nothing different. Are all the lights and fan supposed to come on when you try to jump it? Even without the car engine running as soon as i attach the jumper cables it sparks and then all the lights and fan come on. That along with checking every fuse im guessing its not the relays. That leaves the battery or as you saying the starter, however wouldnt the gauges still come on if it was the starter when i turn the key on? right now its dead dead, nothing comes on at all unless i attach the jumper cables in which case again the headlights and fans come on but not the gauges. Its not the connection to the battery either i pulled off the panel and all the wires are tight. tried hooking cables straight to the battery terminals and same thing, spark and lights but no gauges. If i have to tow it to the dealer by the time those crooks get through i might as well sell it instead. For putting in a new seat. unbelievable.

[Chupaca]

there may be more going on here than meets the eye..hooking up a jumper to the battery should power the system after ignition. The fan should not come on till it reaches a certain temp unless on a seperate switch. The lights (headlights) should not come on till the engine starts (on RS anyway) so it could be there is a harness problem. Was there any part of the harness that could have been crimpt or pinched in the process. If you have no juice left there must be a short somewhere...the starter click would still indicate lack of power or locked up. Not knowing much about the seat or its installation had to say if some added screw may have gone into the harness or some reassembly screw did..

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Make sure the kill switch is not in the kill position. Easy to overlook. Is it in gear? Then push the brake to start.

[latony007]

Make sure the kill switch is not in the kill position. Easy to overlook. Is it in gear? Then push the brake to start.

Kill switch was not. Would not affect the gauges coming on anyway. No its not in gear, also would not affect the gauges. The more i think about it i think i may have just toasted the battery when i was testing the seat. i think i left it on for maybe 2 segments about 15-20 minutes a piece to see how hot the seat would get. Maybe that drained the battery to the point of killing it. i know with an older battery if it hits the bottom sometimes there is no bringing it back. I put it on the tender again last night since i had no other options and it was flashing green, which usually means it would go solid green shortly and the gauges gave a slight blip of life which is more than i got last night. However if it was the battery it should have jump started though, thats what i dont get, and the whole lights and fan coming on when i attached cables also concerns me. Other than having it towed to a stealer i think trying a new battery is my only option?

[jerpinoy]

Start all over again , good luck.

[trikermutha]

Start by removing the battery cable and let the power dissipate. Then rehook back up. Let us know if the bike goes back to normal?

[latony007]

Start by removing the battery cable and let the power dissipate. Then rehook back up. Let us know if the bike goes back to normal?

i will try anything at this point. Looks like there is no one around that has a new battery, other than the stealer which i havent tried because they are like 20 miles away and i just dont like the way they do business. I will have to order one online apparently if i need a new one.

[oldgoat]

Disconnect both cables from the Spyder battery terminals. Without your car/truck running, hook up the jumper cables to the car/truck battery & to the 2 cables you just removed from the Spyder battery.

Try starting the Spyder. This way the Existing Spyder battery is totally out of the system & the car/truck battery is now your Spyder battery..

[JayBros]

With the time and effort you've invested thus far I caution against purchasing an el cheapo battery. Buy a good Yuasa that will give you long service. Good luck.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I'm thinking that the low voltage of the battery may have caused the cluster and/or ECM to get confused as evidenced by the screen acting oddly. Disconnecting the battery and letting the bike sit for a minute or two should give the computers a chance to reboot cleanly when you connect a good battery as recommended above.

There is quite a bit of discussion on here about batteries but generally speaking you will be well advised to go with a Yuasa like the OEM unless you're inclined to spend extra for something like an Optima, which I'm not sure gives a return worth the investment. In any case don't waste your money on a cheapie from Wally World, or the like.

[oldgoat]

I you follow WasWinger's suggestion & mine & the lights & dash come on without the ignition being turned on, I'm thinking that maybe you have fried a relay or two in the front fuse box & power is going to some circuits all the time.

[latony007]

I'm thinking that the low voltage of the battery may have caused the cluster and/or ECM to get confused as evidenced by the screen acting oddly. Disconnecting the battery and letting the bike sit for a minute or two should give the computers a chance to reboot cleanly when you connect a good battery as recommended above.

There is quite a bit of discussion on here about batteries but generally speaking you will be well advised to go with a Yuasa like the OEM unless you're inclined to spend extra for something like an Optima, which I'm not sure gives a return worth the investment. In any case don't waste your money on a cheapie from Wally World, or the like.

Going to try this and if i get a new battery, which seems to be my only choice at this point if this doesnt work, or the jumping without the battery as suggested above, it will be the yuasa from amazon.

[latony007]

I you follow WasWinger's suggestion & mine & the lights & dash come on without the ignition being turned on, I'm thinking that maybe you have fried a relay or two in the front fuse box & power is going to some circuits all the time.

i thought about this too, i have checked all fuses and they are good. Since the lights and fan were coming on i assumed they were good too. is there any way to test a relay see if its bad?

[oldgoat]

i thought about this too, i have checked all fuses and they are good. Since the lights and fan were coming on i assumed they were good too. is there any way to test a relay see if its bad?

I've never tested a Spyder relay but I have tested many 12V relays for operating powerful horns.

On the ones I have tested you put 12V across terminals 86 & 85 of the relay while having an ohmmeter across terminals 87 & 30.

Without the 12V you will have an open circuit. When you apply the 12V the contacts inside the relay will close & you will see 0 (zero) ohms.

Now I don't know about the relays in the Spyder front fuse box. You are on your own there but I'm sure they must work on the same principles.