Batt. charging prob. update

[lboos]

For those who have an interest,
The last few days I have not had a prob. with it charging, but today I went for a ride and was going 50 mph and the batt. red light came on followed by the check eng. light and the volt meter dropped to eleven volts, it stayed that way for about 15 min's, then it all went back to normal,.. 5-6 miles down the road the same thing happened again, batt. light on, check eng. light on, eleven volts on the volt meter, after 4-5 min everything back to normal, I put it in the garage and the dealer will pick it up tue ....this will be the 3rd. time in the shop for the same prob.
I know these elect. gremlins are hard some times to find, esp. when they come and go, but my thinking is being as the check eng. light came on twice that it will show a code of some kind.

[rae2012]

My 2012 did same thing . Took it to dealer and they could not find problem . Bought new battery and riding near dealer , when battery light came on and volt meter discharging . Pulled into dealer , service door open so went on in . This time I left it running and had service writer see it for hisself. They replaced voltage regulator and no more problems .

[lboos]

My 2012 did same thing . Took it to dealer and they could not find problem . Bought new battery and riding near dealer , when battery light came on and volt meter discharging . Pulled into dealer , service door open so went on in . This time I left it running and had service writer see it for hisself. They replaced voltage regulator and no more problems .

I wish my prob. was that simple, the 1st. time I took it in they replaced the stator, 2nd. time they replaced the voltage regulator and the stator for the 2nd time.
I'm thinking these parts are made in China, and go to the lowest bidder.

[Mr.Wizard]

Ouch

I wonder if the battery gets hot, expands and shorts a cell?

Which dealer?

[lboos]

Ouch

I wonder if the battery gets hot, expands and shorts a cell?

Which dealer?

A little north of Marietta,
I keep asking, why not change the battery ? they say the battery test good and they have to go by that. I started to buy a battery and put it in but I don't want to cause a prob. with the warranty [me working on it].
I'm thinking like you Wiz.

[Mr.Wizard]

IF you are talking about HB dealer then take it back and ask for Jason. He left another dealership and went to work for them at the first of the year. He's a PHD HD Tech and a downright great guy. Ask him his opinion. We all know a battery can do weird things.

The alternative is to go buy a spare battery ans swap it yourself. It doesn't have to be a Harley battery.

[dporto]

This is the classic linear voltage regulator failure, they can produce proper voltage but not enough current to supply the electrical load. This design of regulators fails the same way in all vehicles was a big issue with GM & Ford in the 80's. They need to use a clamp on amp meter to read the charging current at the battery to diagnose the problem, but I doubt most HD dealers have this device.

[Mr.Wizard]

This is the classic linear voltage regulator failure, they can produce proper voltage but not enough current to supply the electrical load. This design of regulators fails the same way in all vehicles was a big issue with GM & Ford in the 80's. They need to use a clamp on amp meter to read the charging current at the battery to diagnose the problem, but I doubt most HD dealers have this device.

Could you tell me more about this please?

OP said reg was changed twice and stator once yet the intermittent charging issue remains. I admit I'm stumped and would like to learn more about what your thoughts are.

[Sully]

Wonder if it has anything to do with a dead short in the wiring harness or just a loose wire ?

[Mr.Wizard]

One thing for sure...

The ECM will not toss a code until the problem shows up at least three times. Maybe then we can follow the yellow brick road.

[dporto]

Could you tell me more about this please?

OP said reg was changed twice and stator once yet the intermittent charging issue remains. I admit I'm stumped and would like to learn more about what your thoughts are.

In the past HD used switching regulators that when they failed would take out the stator with it. The new Linear regulators can fail as previously described without failing the stator. Just because they changed 1 regulator dose not mean that one would not of failed also, HD had a problem with regulators in 2011 & 2012 so the dealer could of had old inventory. In the world of electronics something can be working one second and fail the next, and intermittents are a major PIA. Shorting in the harness should result in fuses blowing and or burned wiring and codes being asserted in the bcm.

[Mr.Wizard]

In the past HD used switching regulators that when they failed would take out the stator with it. The new Linear regulators can fail as previously described without failing the stator. Just because they changed 1 regulator dose not mean that one would not of failed also, HD had a problem with regulators in 2011 & 2012 so the dealer could of had old inventory. In the world of electronics something can be working one second and fail the next, and intermittents are a major PIA. Shorting in the harness should result in fuses blowing and or burned wiring and codes being asserted in the bcm.

Yes, I follow your lead as my career industry it is the same. SS devices fail but normally fail right away or within the first 90 days of use. After 90 days of constant usage you can rest assured you have a good SS board. Electronics aren't like light bulbs anymore. They can fail in %'s.

I hope it is as easy as having a bad string of regs on the shelf. Lord knows I've had similar issues with vendor materials in the past.

[lboos]

Thanks for all the interest,
The 1st visit they changed the stator and put a load test on the battery, it checked good,.... 2nd time they changed the stator again plus the voltage reg. plus the battery cables and traced the wiring harness and load tested the battery again, it did ok for the next two or three days, then while riding it at aprox. 45-50 mph the battery red light came on plus the check eng. amber light came on and the voltmeter dropped to
11 volts and stayed that for about 15-20 min's. then everything went back to normal, after 4-5 min's it all happened again and lasted for aprox. 15 min's and went back to normal, I drove it yesterday for an hour, everything was normal.

They are going to come and get it tomorrow and check it out, my thinking is that they will go through the same trouble shooting [check list] and come out with the same results as the two times before, cant really find anything for sure because it is acting normal now, if I were paying for it I would have replaced the Battery [$180] on day one, the bill as of now is $1,043.00 but still under warranty.

[lboos]

One thing for sure...

The ECM will not toss a code until the problem shows up at least three times. Maybe then we can follow the yellow brick road.

Wiz,
The battery red light, and check eng. amber light, and voltmeter at 11 volts have only showed up two times, you say it will not toss a code until it shows up three times ?....should I drive it more today to see if it will show up for the third time ????

[Mr.Wizard]

It is a fact... the ECM will not toss a code unless an issue hits 3 times. If you want to ride it and hope you get lucky it is a nice day for it.