Brake light stays on. Electric problems.

I got on my bike to ride home tonight. The headlight wouldn't turn on. The head lamp fuse was blown. So I switched the turn signal fuse.. To the headlamp to get home. I got pulled over on the way home because he said I wasn't using my brakes. I hit the brakes to show him he was wrong. The brake light just stays on no matter what. The RPM gauge also quit working. All worked fine during the day. The headlamp fuse gets super hot. Front turn signals stay solid. Yes i replaced the fuse that I switched. Rear signals do not work. Neutral light also doesnt work.

 

Seth, sounds like multiple electrical problems , Check all Grounds black wires that complete circuits. Get a manual or a wiring diagram. Brake signals operate via switch connected to levers, front is green and brown wires and connected to bullet connectors in headlamp shell. Rear is visible connected to spring on rear lever.
Signals if standard need good bulbs on each side as current draw activates flasher relay. As you have so many problems best idea is to open headlight shell and check all connections and check that nothing is shorting out, look for any bare wires as cables pass through..

 

Where are the grounds located?

 

Do you have the original fuse box? If so, it needs to be replaced as they deteriorate with age. Here is a good link to replace it:

http://www.xjbikes.com/forums/index.php?threads/how-to-install-an-aftermarket-fuse-box.6350/

Either the front or rear brake switch normally open contacts are closed. During braking, front or rear, a set of normally closed contacts will route 12V Signal to the brake light, the other side of the bulb is tied to ground through the harness. You can check the switches by following the wires from the switches and unplug them to see which one is causing the brake light to stay on. As mentioned above, the rear brake has a spring tied to the rear brake switch that when the brake lever is depressed will pull on the rear brake switch plunger. There is a large nut on the switch that allows adjustment of the switch so it is possible it just needs an adjustment.

Is this all the time or when you try to enable them? Is the bike running at the time? The turn signal typically will not function just off the battery if the brake light is on, just not enough voltage available to operate the flasher relay correctly. Also, as mentioned above, you need correct wattage to operate the flasher relay, so each signal needs a functional 27 watt bulb for proper flasher function.

The neutral light and tachometer receive power from the signal circuit as well as the flashers. You removed this fuse temporarily to get the headlight working, if it is an old style fuse box it could contribute to this.

Not certain about the 650, but my 82 Seca has one common ground point where signal grounds are tied to chassis. Two Eyelet terminals at the ignition coil mounting hardware provide the ground for the harness to the frame, and then the frame to engine connection tie the grounds back to the battery through the large negative cable that ties from the battery to the engine case. Some 650's have a redundant wire tying the engine to the frame, and that wire is located under the left side cover.

 

Thank you all for your help! Really! I put a new fuse box on it... It seems to work fine. Fuses arent getting hot. Brake light ... All is well. I did remove the turn signals because the rear signals were mounted to the license plate braket, and it was very flemsy. Are they a closed circuit if they are not turned on?

 

This makes sense, as excessive resistance in the fuse holder can cause overheating and many other weird symptoms.

Replacing the fuse box should not solve brake light "on" all the time. You may have a gremlin still lurking in there so keep an eye on it

The stock turn signals have two wires, one for high and one for ground. If you had aftermarket turn signals installed with only 1 wire, then they would depend on chassis ground for the return path. If that was the case, the flimsy mount may not be making a good electrical connection to chassis ground.

The front and rear turn signals form a parallel circuit, so technically removing the rear would create an open circuit in that half. The signals will not function with the stock flasher assembly because of insufficient load on the flasher assembly, which requires two 27 watt bulbs to function. Hopefully, for safety reasons, you get those up and running.

 

I have a question for you electrical genius i have an 81 xj650 maxim. Put in a new wire harness everything is connected to the best of my knowledge and from what I can see. I did not disconnect anything that wasn't the main wire harness. Anyways it turns over it runs BUT on the cluster it does not read that it is in neutral no light at all high beam or turn signal either but the oil sensor light does come on. I did check the bulbs they are all fine at help here would be fantastic thank you

 

Sounds like in doing the fusebox work, a short somewhere was moved so that there's no more short......as least for now. If there's that many things wrong, I'd be looking at the regulator as it may be failing and is over-charging the system which will burn things up and overheat fuses, blow bulbs, etc........

FWIW, just because a fuse box is old, doesn't mean it's automatically the problem. ALL of the bikes that I run on the road still have their original fuseboxes. Just sayin'.................

dave

 

bubba650 added to an old post, he should start his own thread concerning the replacement of the harness and the faults that he now has.

 

True.. Hadn't noticed that. Yes, the old topic was from back in October---- I hope that one was resolved