Total darkness after pushing starter button

Went to start my '85 MaximX yesterday, turned the key on, had lights, led voltage gauge was scrolling, etc.....pushed the starter button and instantly all power disappeared. The battery has over 12v. I'm suspecting the main fuse (glass fuse located behind the battery on the rt. side..right?) but I removed and studied it and it looks fine.
Not sure where to go from here....any help is appreciated.

 

replace it do not look at it .
Where is the fuse box on this thing?! yamaha 700...
There is one main fuse by the batterry under the seat and the rest are actually under you indicator lights cover.Hope this helps.

you should replace that old glass fuse block set up with a fuse box sometimes the clips fail.
http://www.xjbikes.com/forums/threads/how-to-install-an-aftermarket-fuse-box.6350/

i use this to test. clip across the crimps on the fuse clips also put in proper fuse for circuit you are testing.

 

if you start a conversation with member chacal he can supply you with box and wire set up.
he is www.xj4ever.com
go to this link and click on his avatar to start conversation also good reading in that forum

XJ4Ever - Supporting Vendor

 

That's a good idea....NAPA has a nice 30A set up I've used before....it'd be a good replacement for OEM and I like the fuse box you referenced, that's slick. Thanks

 

Yup, familiar with chacal, we've done business in the past....good guy!

 

i edited my post what kind of X do you have you may want to put it in your signiture line

 

if you are replacing a single fuse set up you could use an inline fuse holder, but a better one than I have posted a photo of.
by the discription of fuse location it sounds like just one fuse

 

Does the battery still have over 12V while you're pressing the starter button? The fuse is one likely culprit, but it also could be high resistance in the battery... reads 12V with low load, but can't maintain it at high load.

Bad connections at the battery or where the main ground connects to the chassis/engine could also be the cause.

 

-I have an '85 XJ 700x 5 Valve

-Haven't gotten to any single fuses yet as everything is now dead....as if the key is off (even tho it's not)

-I don't think there's any draw anywhere as there are no lights, horn....nothing.

 

Got more info....turn the key on....no power, same as before. Battery is showing about 12.2v (which I know is low but enough to light the lights) pushing the starter button and the battery drops to 1.8v or so. I need to jump from a good battery and see if the lights work.....could be a shorted out battery. What d'ya think?

 

more likely dirty connections ,
clean up the battery terminals and the ones on the solenoid and starter motor
also the earth connections on the frame and engine strap.
apply some dielectric grease to all terminals

stu

 

Looks like the battery....I have a VMax test engine stand for testing carb rebuilds, wheeled it over and jumped to the XJ battery, turned on the key and all is normal, lights, horn, whips over like she did new in '85....well, almost as good.
Pulled out the defunct batt and got some measurements, wonder if there is an Odyssey, or similar, that will fit ?

 

I'm with Stu and thinking it's a dirty connection. A bad connection right where the wire attaches to the battery.

When you measured those voltages (12.2 until you pressed the starter button and 1.8 while pressing), where were you measuring them? Were you measuring those voltages with the probes actually stuck into the lead of the battery POSTS themselves, or were you measuring those voltages on the battery terminal wires or screw heads?

The reason I ask is because if you've got a bad connection between the battery and the lead wire going to it, it will behave exactly as you described.

And as for jumping it... Same thing. Where did you connect the jumper source? I suspect you clipped the jump source onto the battery wires or screw heads, and if that's the case, you bypassed the bad connection.

Wiggle the battery wires around and see what happens. Better yet, take them off and clean them up real good and see what happens.

 

I removed the battery and noticed it was down on electrolyte....it's an old battery and the bike doesn't get much use so I just ordered another one.

I will try what you suggested to see if it was a connection issue....battery is sitting right beside the bike I'll just hook the jumpers to the lead terminals and then to the + - wires and see what happens.

Keep you posted....thanks for all the helpful posts on this.

 

Hi Danny, nice to see you again!

Hey, it's been cold here lately, my bet is simply a dead battery. Try a different one, or jump it. Go for the easy fix first, then work your way up the ladder if needed.

Dave Fox

 

He's in NY..... Therefore, most likely a USA-delivered Maxim X.... Which would be a 700X. But, the only other X was the 750X....which is the same bike anyway, except its a 750 rather than 700, and the speedo is in kph rather than mph

 

Hey Dave! Ever get your VMax on the road?

After all the power disappeared I hooked the charger on the battery and it went to 'float' mode just a couple minutes later....as you said it's been chilly here and the bike hasn't been started for quite a while so the float thing didn't make any sense. The poor connectivity suggestion makes sense even tho everything 'appears' clean and there is plenty of di-grease. Should be able to determine that quite easily with the jumper cables....IF it gets above freezing this morning!

Sorry, I misinterpreted the question about which X I had....as Dave said it is the 48 states model 700X.

The forum has a new 'face'....when did this happen?

 

Hi Dan, vmaxes are both in stand-by mode--- too many other things going on at the moment to be able to play with them yet..... But I'm looking forward to getting the ready

New forum platform happened, oh, close to a year ago now +\-

Good to see you back! Can you send a conversation to me with your phone again? If you don't know how on the new platform, click my screen name and then click "start a conversation".

Ttys
Dave F

 

Well, couldn't stand not knowing so I bundled up and went out in the shop and hooked up jumpers. Other than tiny sparking when attaching the + clamp there was nothing. Verified my connections with the VMax battery and full power to everything....the XJ battery is still showing 12.16v too. Not going to mess with it any more, the replacement cheap-o was only $41 to my door....couldn't find any Odyssey with dimensions even close to the battery box btw.

Dave, I'll see if I can hook up with you.....