1980 yics Seca?

I'm considering buying a seca 750 that is listed as a 1980 model but from what I've read here there is no such thing because they didn't start until '81. So my question is, what should I look for to identify this bike? Any and all help is greatly appreciated. I haven't been to look at the bike yet but am hoping to go see it this week. The guy says it needs the headlight and key switch hooked up and has a broken bolt where the exhaust hooks in. I'm kinda weary of it because if it is just the wiring to the switch which make it unable to crank I should be able to splice them for long enough to make sure it WILL start. :roll: He says it has 25k miles as well.

 

It appears to be a 1981-83 XJ750 Seca model, we'd have to know the VIN number to positively identify it further............

 

Is the vin number coded to identify the year? If so could you link to it or post how to tell please. I'd like to at least know what I'm looking at buying

Thank you chacal.

Kevin

 

Hey Kevin, try this thread:

http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic ... t=vin.html

and if that doesn't provide you with answer, then try some of these:

http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/search/mode=results.html

 

check the VIN number at this link to find out what it is for sure.

Yamaha VIN Decoder page

 

Thanks again yall! I'm going to go look at the bike this evening if the guy is gonna be home and I'll write down the vin# to check it.

Thanks,
Kevin

 

OK, I went to look at the bike. The wiring is messed up. Probably salvageable , and one of the threaded studs from the header is broken off into the motor.

The guy doesn't have a title which is not required here for an older bike but he had the vin# written down so I brought it home and put it into the link provided but it was not recognizable so it is probably not right. He actually gave me two numbers. One says ID:xxxxx the other just has a number and I believe it is what he had said was the vin but neither are long enough. I tried adding them to each other several ways (swapping Z's and N's) but had no luck. There is very little rust on the frame. It has been in his garage unstarted for a year or so but was running then when the switch messed up and burnt a wire somehow. I'm not really concerned about the wiring (should I be?) but am wondering how I will get the info that I need without knowing the year model. Is there much difference in them? Any other identifying differences?

The bike fits me perfectly so I'd really like to get it even if I have to do a little fixing up on it. Still kinda hesitant though. :roll:

Thanks yall,
Kevin

 

I would seriously not jump on it until you can ascertain that it isn't stolen first. Turn the steering head to the left (you sitting on the bike left) and bring a flashlight to see the numbers. Copy them down or take a rubbing (ancient but efficient for copying things) and then run the numbers again. If you can't make out the numbers, perhaps a picture would work.
I wouldn't worry too much about the other issues until you have a clear shot at the bike. Wiring harnesses are no longer made but do show up on flea-bay on a regular basis, typically under $50. Go get a good VIN.

 

If you post the numbers that you do have we may be able to reverse-enginner it and get you the true VIN of the bike. By the way, the numbers cast into the small flat pad, on the top of the crackcase, just beside the clutch cover (RH side of the bike) also identify the bike (oir, at least, the bike that the engine originally came in, if it's not the original engine).

 

The numbers I have are 5G2-00788 and ID: 3/2-015973 (not sure if it was a dash or if his pen just skipped, and maybe the / is a 1?) I can call him and ask him to take another look. I had no idea of where to look and he already had it written down. This fella is a vietnam vet in a wheel chair so I hate to put him out too much, but I want no part of anything stolen.

 

Okay, I don't know where you got the 5G2-000788 number from (frame or engine, but that number belongs to this bike:

JYA5G200?BA000788
1981 XJ750RH Seca

The ? in the above VINM represents a calculated check-digit.....you can go here:

www.kerrywilson.com/vin.htm

and use their formula to calculate that check digit. With the calculated check-digit in place of the ?, you now have a real, correct VIN for that bike.


The "3/2-015973" sorta looks like a VIN (the -015973 part does) but the 3/2 makes no sense. Also, note that maybe the 3/2 is a mis-reading of some other numbers that might actually represent a real model number, and if so, then if one of the numbers is on the frame (for instance, the 5G2-000788 set of numbers) and the other is on the engine (the "3/2-015973" set of numbers, corrected or not), then because the last 6-digits do not match (-000788 vs -015973), then that means that the engine in there currently did not come with that bike.

 

Thank you. I a little too far away to just run out and see them for myself so I'll call the guy and ask about the numbers. He thinks it is an '80 model so may not want to talk to me again if I tell him what I've found out lol.

Other than all the number stuff. How bad of a project is redoing the wiring? It didn't look bad at all to me but I didn't dig into it. I've wired houses and traced/fixed shorts in cars so should this be much worse?

 

How bad is it? If it is a wire or two, no problems. Mutiple wires means more work. Melted wires means starting over again. It is all relative. For the uninitiated, it can be a daunting task. For old hats like myself, an enjoyable evening well spent. It all depends upon ability and knowledge, the right tools help too. Worst case is simply swapping in a donor harness or shipping your existing harness out (I don't make house calls greater than 150 miles away) to someone who can rebuild it for you.
If you have done house wiring, you have some experience but you also need to know how to extract connector pins out of the connector housings and so on. Know how to solder? You should learn. Splices can be either mechanical (wire nuts and butt splices, neither of which has any business on a vehicle in my opinion) or soldered. When done correctly, the solder connection will last as long as the bike. This means that the connection is clean and properly sealed (heat shrink is a good start, environmental heat shrink is perfect). I've used hot glue guns to seal connections with good results using a heat gun for the shrink recovery.
I ought to let you get around to buying the thing first before I write a book for you. Best of luck and sing out if you need help, we'll all pitch in.

 

Thanks, Robert. Yes, I'll be soldering them. The harnesses are in good shape from what I saw, as are all the connectors THAT I SAW, no telling if it is how it should be or if it has already been redone because I don't know what it SHOULD look like If it were a newer bike or had never had anything done I wouldn't worry about it at all and am still not worried about the wiring really. Can't be any worse than tracing down a dead short in my dad's dodge dually was. (I hope anyway) I'm gonna get my dad to go with me because he knows more than me and if he thinks it will be a small project I'll bring it home. I may have to get one of yall to take a pic or two for me of the wiring if that is possible. If not I'll do my best! :lol:

Do the repair manuals for xj's have wiring diagrams in them? I got one for my wife's car and it didn't.

Kevin

 

The Haynes manual does. So does the XJCD. I don't know about the Clymer. Of course, the factory manual would have it and, to my experience, very nice schematics make a job easier.
Best of luck and hollar if you find problems.

 

Just be aware that MOST (if not all) of the factory wiring diagrams in both the original Yamaha service manuals, and the clymer/haynes reprints of such diagrams, are FULL of errors.....mis-labeled termination points, incorrect wire colors, missing items, phantom connectors, connectors that in real life incorporate what in the printed diagram is actually two or three individual connectors, etc.

And I hate to be the bearer of such bad news, but.............the 750 Seca wiring diagram is one of the worst of the bunch. We just finished dissecting a couple of 750 Seca harnesses here, and trust me, the fusebox wiring and the alternator wiring parts of the schematic are probably right, and everything else is mostly wrong, incomplete, incorrect.....almost like it was from a "similar but different" bike.

 

I've been blessed then, I haven't seen any errors in my Haynes for either of my models. Wonder if I'm just glossing over it because of familiarity or I see it differently than the rest of the world. Anyone cook up a definitive print yet or should we start from scratch?

 

I gave up on this bike when I couldn't find out for sure what model it was. Just couldn't gamble on it.

On to the next issue. I'm really partial to yammys so now I'm going to see an 82 maxim 750. The guy will take $700 for it and says it needs a solenoid switch, battery, and kickstand switch. The solenoid and battery are no problem, but what in the world is a "kickstand switch" and are they expensive? If it is just a safely which I assume it is, can I just splice some wires if it needs to be closed to work, or separate them if it needs to be open? I really don't like dummy proofing junk anyway. I even fixed my lawn mower to mow in reverse aint' I a dare devil! I'm hoping someone can answer me quick before I go down there and get it only to find that it IS a big deal.

Thanks for your help,
Kevin

 

Safety Switches and Relays:


srs2) OEM kickstand or sidestand SAFETY SWITCH,[b/] with plunger, bellows, and wire harness and connector. Prevents the engine from running if the sidestand is down AND the bike is in gear. An important part of the entire complicated but very useful and effective safety system on these bikes. NOTE: used on all XJ-series bikes except for 1980-81 XJ650 Maxim and Midnight Maxim models.


Used ones run about $ 15-20 for that model.

 

I can swap-out a sidestand switch in about 10-minutes ... working left-handed and using a Swiss Army Knife.

I haven't seen what I'd call a decent wiring diagram for any model Yamaha not appearing in a Factory Manual.

Any complete wiring schematic appearing on one page in black and white is useless.

Useless!

 

Welp, this one fell through as well. :?

Hunting an affordable and decent ride is getting very frustrating. I keep 'just missing' on the good ones. I would have bought a cb900 this morning if I had arrived just twenty minutes sooner. UUUUUGGGGGHHHHHH


Glad I'm not the impatient type :lol:


Thanks for the replies yall. I'm sure I'll be back with more questions later. Found another maxim within driving distance but they aren't answering the phone so far.