Author Topic: 30 amp fuse keeps blowing (Read 1235 times)

pwvstrom1000 · « **on:** July 06, 2022, 01:59:09 »

I was recently on a long trip with my 2018 Vstrom 1000 XA and the power just went completely out on the highway. No dash lights nothing. After we got it off the highway we figured out it was a 30 amp fuse on just one side of a box that was blown. The red lead from the battery comes into it and that's where the fuse was blown. The other fuse remained fine. I got home the 700 kms until it blew again. The only thing I can think of is that it seems to happen when I open the throttle. In the picture you can see the fuse right near the arrow. The battery tests 13.7 volts and has never gave me any issues. Is the box shown in the picture, the voltage regulator? Thanks

kwackboy · « **Reply #1 on:** July 06, 2022, 06:20:20 »

No ... that's your starter solenoid, its the main ignition curcuit that's blowing, The other fuse, I think, is a spare.

There's a broken/worn wire/wires that's either touching each other or the frame
It's hard to tell where the issue might be but my bet would be to check the loom where it comes around by the steering/bottom fork clamps.

Other than that , I'm afraid it's a strip down to check all connections and the entire loom.

pwvstrom1000 · « **Reply #2 on:** July 06, 2022, 13:11:18 »

Thanks for the info. I'll try taking that other fuse out to see if it is a spare or an active fuse. I am going to a friend's tomorrow night to troubleshoot as he is an electrician and also has worked on bikes all of his life. The only thing that has changed with the bike is that I added a Sargent seat and an Air Flow cover on it. The seat takes a lot of twisting to get it to click in place so maybe that has something to do with the wires there as everything is close to the bottom of the seat. Funny thing is like I said the fuse lasted about 10 hours before it blew again and the time before that it only took about 30 minutes to blow.

Upt North · « **Reply #3 on:** July 06, 2022, 13:37:01 »

I've read that you've added nothing electrical but I can see what appear to be aftermarket connectors.
I think the auto electrician call is a good one. Better sort it sooner rather than later.
Upt'North.

pwvstrom1000 · « **Reply #4 on:** July 06, 2022, 14:13:01 »

There are a few after market things yes. An air horn and just a blinking brake light. Those have been all added last year. I don't have a shop manual so I was wondering if there is a wiring diagram somewhere I can print off? Thanks.

Barbel Mick · « **Reply #5 on:** July 06, 2022, 14:51:36 »

Is there anything in the 'downloads' section here that might help?
https://www.v-strom.co.uk/downloads.htm

Rusty Nuts · « **Reply #6 on:** July 06, 2022, 18:20:19 »

Air horns pull a lot of juice. Is it wired in with a relay?

pwvstrom1000 · « **Reply #7 on:** July 06, 2022, 19:10:01 »

Quote removed

Yes it is.

kwackboy · « **Reply #8 on:** July 06, 2022, 19:40:31 »

Quote from: pwvstrom1000 on July 06, 2022, 13:11:18

Funny thing is like I said the fuse lasted about 10 hours

This is an intermittent fault , sometimes it's as good as gold for days then suddenly it's back.

Keep a handful of spare 30amp fuses handy and try to make the fault appear by manipulating the loom, while doing so, Listen for the crack of a blowing 30amp fuse to show you the way ...

Other than that, put a large safety pin across the fuse connection then look for smoke signals ....

... ONLY JOKING .!!

Gert · « **Reply #9 on:** July 07, 2022, 07:29:46 »

For the period that you are moving / pulling the loom / harness to determine whether the harness wiring may be shorting to metal, I would suggest using a bulb instead of a fuse.
Any short to earth should allow the bulb to light up. Save a bit on fuses for this type of testing

pwvstrom1000 · « **Reply #10 on:** July 15, 2022, 14:45:31 »

Update to this issue. I took the bike to my electrician friend's place last week and we had a good look around. We took the battery out, tested, had a look at the connections there. We checked all the wiring under the seat and around the battery up to the fuel tank and could find no frayed wires. Had a look around the steering head and made sure all the while the bike was powered up we could not get the fuse to blow. Kwackboy was right that the picture I posted has 2 fuses on that solenoid and the one closest to the outside of the bike is a spare. I wish I had known that on the highway when it broke down. I have been on that same fuse now for about 500 kms. I took it on a 220 km ride and rode the bike hard in every gear and no issues. I still think the added pressure to get the Sargent seat in place with the Air Flow cover on it had something to do with the wiring under the seat. The luggage bag I had on the back seat for our initial trip weight about 50 lbs but it's odd why it only blows at odd intervals. My friend was wondering if it could be a bad voltage regulator but we could not locate it. From what we saw with the wiring it looks like multiple yellow wires go under the fuel tank area and wondered if that's where the regulator could be located? What are the symptoms of a bad voltage regulator?

kwackboy · « **Reply #11 on:** July 15, 2022, 17:22:55 »

A regulator can blow the main 30amp fuse if the electronics inside go wrong and you'd get an electrical burning smell, if this happend your 30amp fuse would blow the second you connect it.

Also, the main DC live coming from the regulator can also blow the main 30amp fuse if it was touching the frame somewhere

The 3 yellow wires coming from the stator into the regulator would not blow the main fuse, even if they were to touch anywhere like the frame or each other.
If the above did happen you'd have a charging issue and your battery would go flat because the regulator isn't receiving enough AC current.

pwvstrom1000 · « **Reply #12 on:** July 15, 2022, 19:10:24 »

Is the voltage regulator under the gas tank?

Youngman · « **Reply #13 on:** July 15, 2022, 20:33:09 »

Its the sucker with fins on the rhs under the tank at the front.

Whiterose · « **Reply #14 on:** July 16, 2022, 14:51:38 »

Loads of youtube vids on where it is, how to check it with a voltmeter and how to remove it from the bike. Good Luck.

pwvstrom1000 · « **Reply #15 on:** August 24, 2022, 13:33:08 »

SOLVED, I think!
After spending a fair bit of time moving every wire I could get to and grabbing to see if they were grounding out, I think I may have figured it out. After looking under the seat for a long time I could see that the area where the fuse was blowing was about 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 inches from the metal plate that locks the seat in place. What could possibly be in that area? Then I remembered that I clipped in the aluminum flash light that came with my Sargent seat, just before this big trip. Low and behold it is only clipped to the seat by a single clip and I did notice at least once that it had jiggled sideways when I was swapping the fuse out on the road. At some point I got tired of it and took it off and threw it in one of the side cases. This had to be after the last fuse blew over 7 weeks ago.

In the picture below you can see when it twists sideways, it might just have enough force to get under that plastic cover and ground across those terminals which blows the fuse. I have rode well over 2000 kms now and have not had the problem occur.

That's the only thing that I can think of. I'm glad it's not a fault of the bike as far as I can tell. Just wanted to update this thread in case anyone else might have a similar problem.

porter · « **Reply #16 on:** August 24, 2022, 17:30:22 »

Good find! Mine would also fall out everytime I removed the seat so it don't live there no more.

Robotstar5 · « **Reply #17 on:** August 24, 2022, 17:50:39 »

If the torch is the cause there may be witness/burn marks on the body from the arc, at least it would confirm your theory.

pwvstrom1000 · « **Reply #18 on:** August 24, 2022, 18:43:22 »

I could not find any burn marks or arcing so that's why I said, I think it's solved!

Keith60 · « **Reply #19 on:** August 24, 2022, 22:26:02 »

Glad you finally shone the light on the problem