removing heated left hand grip, broke tiny blue wire

[obiwanbill]

i was trying to install a set of foam sleeves over the headed grips. All the youtube videos suggested taking off the end caps. While doing that, something slipped, and this tiny blue wire was cut. not enough exposed to solder back together.

I'm assuming i have to get the standard heated handgrip off to get to this wire. I'm assuming it's a "hot" wire and I don't want to just shove it back in to short out the bike.

Need advice.

 

[BertRemington]

That ain't good

The heater wires are 20AWG. Blue is High, Brown is Low, and at the other end Black is Ground.

The only fixes I'm aware of are (1) replace the grip, and (2) add supplemental heat pads under the Grip Puppies.

You really have to lube the Grip Puppies (I use detergent with a little water) to put them on.

 

[fatboy]

generous amounts of hand sanitizer works very well no need to remove end caps

 

[Rider Steve]

generous amounts of hand sanitizer works very well no need to remove end caps

That's what I did, worked like a charm.

 

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I'm assuming i have to get the standard heated handgrip off to get to this wire. I'm assuming it's a "hot" wire and I don't want to just shove it back in to short out the bike.

Need advice.

Maybe you can get to the wire after you pull the grip off, but that's a chore. The grip and the tube it is mounted on is an assembly along with the wiring harness.

 

[FrogmanDave]

Compressed air with a thin nozzle works best. To put on or remove. That doesn't really help your problem now but an fyi for those who read this in the future.

 

[Pirate]

That's what I did, worked like a charm.

Ditto.

 

[Piratezz]

The Airpressure solution is the best for doing grips, the soap solution can make the grippuppy's a loose fit, that can eventually lead to a hazardous situation, It takes a long long time for the soap to deterioate.
I had a crossbike, and grips just came off, after putting them on with soap, so be aware

 

[obiwanbill]

The heater wires are 20AWG. Blue is High, Brown is Low, and at the other end Black is Ground.

The only fixes I'm aware of are (1) replace the grip, and (2) add supplemental heat pads under the Grip Puppies.

You really have to lube the Grip Puppies (I use detergent with a little water) to put them on.

Thanks for addressing the issue. blue is high heat. Ok I got to get the OE grip off to fix the blue wire. Can't get to it to strip off blue insulation to solder fix. I think I have to remove the grip to fix the wire. The basic question is HOW do I remove the grip without fouling up the bike even more? #2, if I do get the grip off, are these wires exposed so I can solder my way back to happiness? i can't leave it alone as the bare wire might cause electrical shorts rubbing other metal.

# 3 please don't tell me to take it to dealer; his one Spyder mechanic (all the others work on Japanese & Indian machines) has his hands full with Skidoo repairs for the winter season.

Thanks for any help

 

[BertRemington]

Your best option is heated gloves

As IdahoMtnSpyder said, removing the grip is a chore. It's also high risk since your picture seems to show the left grip which is where both grips CANbus interface is located. And if your Spyder is like mine the heater wires are routed through a thin groove in the round stub portion of the handlebar assembly. In other words, you must disassemble most of the handlebar assembly to remove the grip.

It's even nastier on the right grip which has the throttle-by-wire control. I took one look and decided to repair (the previous owner damaged the wires in the handlebar assembly) and improve my heated grips performance (by adding a variable temperature control) rather than adding my favorite Koso heated grips like I've done for my motorcycles.

A member in Australia said a friend tried several aftermarket options to replace BRP's heated grips and none were successful.

I have the Milwaukee Leather heated gloves https://milwaukeeleather.com/product/mens-waterproof-heated-gantlet-glove-w-i-touch/ I only use the internal battery not the motorcycle for power so they keep my hands from getting cold rather than keeping my hands warm. And the aniline leather isn't waterproof but isn't uncomfortable when riding. Plus I have sweaty hands so even on dry days the gloves get moist (when is really hard on my regular leather gloves). YMMV

 

[safecracker]

OP has 2020 Spyder. Don't they use a standard handle bar. Not like previous models. Just asking...

 

[Peteoz]

OP has 2020 Spyder. Don't they use a standard handle bar. Not like previous models. Just asking...

Yes, you are correct, Safecracker. There is no wiring running through the handlebars on the ‘20+ RT models. You just unbolt the left grip assembly and slide it off the end of the bars.:thumbup:

Pete

 

[BertRemington]

PeterOz -- no wires in stubs -- that's a great improvement. Are the bars standard diameters to match aftermarket heated grips? The Koso grips have great ergonomics and performance.

obiwanbill -- your level of difficulty and risk just went down tremendously.

 

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Obi,

For some reason I had it in my head your grip was the same as the 2014, but obviously not. The 2020 parts diagram does not show the wire connection between the grip and the switch module but the 2022 one does. I see a couple of small screws similar to the 2014 grip. See if you can slide the rubber back away from the switch module and undo the screws. That may free up the grip.

As far as repairing the wire you may be out of luck. It's probably nichrome heating wire and I don't think you can solder that. Even if you could the heat of the wire may destroy the solder joint. Your best bet would be a crimp on butt connector, but getting to the wire to crimp a connector will most likely be problematic. Your easiest fix would be to simply cut the wire so there is no bare exposed element and then learn to live with low heat only. Otherwise, you may not have any other choice but to buy a new grip for about $170.

Maybe this image from the 2022 parts catalog will help.

 

[obiwanbill]

As IdahoMtnSpyder said, removing the grip is a chore. It's also high risk since your picture seems to show the left grip which is where both grips CANbus interface is located. And if your Spyder is like mine the heater wires are routed through a thin groove in the round stub portion of the handlebar assembly. In other words, you must disassemble most of the handlebar assembly to remove the grip.

It's even nastier on the right grip which has the throttle-by-wire control. I took one look and decided to repair (the previous owner damaged the wires in the handlebar assembly) and improve my heated grips performance (by adding a variable temperature control) rather than adding my favorite Koso heated grips like I've done for my motorcycles.

A member in Australia said a friend tried several aftermarket options to replace BRP's heated grips and none were successful.

I have the Milwaukee Leather heated gloves https://milwaukeeleather.com/product/mens-waterproof-heated-gantlet-glove-w-i-touch/ I only use the internal battery not the motorcycle for power so they keep my hands from getting cold rather than keeping my hands warm. And the aniline leather isn't waterproof but isn't uncomfortable when riding. Plus I have sweaty hands so even on dry days the gloves get moist (when is really hard on my regular leather gloves). YMMV

I also have $40 battery heated gloves from Amazon. They have worked great, now for 3 seasons. I don't really need the heated grips, but the broken wire is my real worry, don't want sparks and fuses popping from a short. I understand from previous posts that the broken blue wire controls the hi heat so if I don't turn it on, I'm safe.

Thanks to everyone that replied.

 

[FrogmanDave]

but the broken wire is my real worry, don't want sparks and fuses popping from a short.

Just get a small diameter piece of shrink wrap and put it over the end of the wire. A little heat and that wire will be protected without removing anything at all. It will stay in place forever.