Wing has blacked out, won't start

[Mammoth]

Hello all,

Hoping somebody could shed some light on my problem or direct me to another path....

I have a GL1500 Aspencade. I jumped on it and rode her to work... no problems, in the dark, lights all good, everything works great. Get to work and ride into the garage, notice the tyre is a little low on pressure, use the onboard pump to inflate. All is going well, until all stopped. Bike lost power, went cold. Has not come back to life since. There was no pop, no surge of power, no weird sounds or misbehaving anything, just stopped and that is it.

I have tested the battery, ran a multimeter about everything and everything seems to be complete and operable. I have swapped relays about, hoping to find a broken one.... I have even changed the starter solenoid today and popped a new wishbone fuse in. I have come to the end of my knowledge and therefore hope somebody can help.

Just to be clear. You put the key in the ignition, turn it, nothing happens. No lights. No sounds. No beautiful whiiiiiiiiiiiiiine as it comes alive. Just everything remains blacked out.

Many thanks,

A hopeless owner.

[DenverWinger]

The 55 amp dogbone "Main Fuse B" in the 1500 is primarily for the Alternator.

Did you check the 30 amp "Main Fuse A" that's in the Start Relay "A" (solenoid) next to the battery? Almost all of the bike systems get power thru that fuse....

[4given]

What Denver said. Plus, check all connections, especially grounds, and make sure they are clean and tight.

[Mammoth]

Changed the 30amp fuse, was my first move. Checked the battery connections, went around and ensured all plugs are nice and tight.

Can somebody just confirm to me the location of all the ground points. (In case I missed any... it is entirely possible)

My gut feeling is it is either a fuse/relay or ground issue.

Many thanks again guys, appreciate it.

[DenverWinger]

A quick test for your battery negative cable - with key "On" measure volts from battery Negative post to a good ground on the engine or frame. Should read 0. If you see 12v your battery ground is faulty.

[4given]

Search”Location of Ground Lugs” on this site and others associated with it.

[DenverWinger]

I was going to edit my previous post by saying I don't think the system ground lugs are causing this.... I think there's four of them. If one of them was bad SOMETHING should still light up thru the other three, bike wouldn't be completely dead.

[terryt]

Have you got 12v across + - on the battery and 12v from the + battery terminal and engine or frame. you ignition may be faulty not sure how to bypass that but im sure some one on here dose.

[Solo So Long]

Disconnect the battery, and run a set of jumper cables to a known-good battery (your car, for instance) and try it. EVERYTHING is common to those two cables that connect to your battery, and it is possible for a collapsed battery to show 12V on a meter but not have power to run everything that comes on when you switch on the ignition.

If still no worky, check for a short or open (including corrosion) in the primary Positive cable from the battery to the fuses. Work from the + battery terminal and you will find the fault.

[WingAdmin]

Give the battery cables a wiggle. They can corrode internally and not show external evidence that they have failed. If you wiggle one and get intermittent power, that's your culprit.

[newday777]

What are the actual volts at the battery, key off? And when you switch key on?
Did you test the volts at the 55 amp dogbone fuse? On both sides of it? They have been known to get a hairline crack in them. Yes you do need it to complete the circuit. There should be a spare in the fuse cover.

[Mammoth]

So today I drove in to see if I could find this faulty wire... popped the key in and turned it. Everything lit up, all the right noises. I laughed very loudly in disbelief... Then tried starting it. 2 cranks, just as it was firing up went black again. Ignition wouldn't turn back on again immediately, a few attempts later and it randomly came on for a second or 5 then went off, then eventually managed to get it to come back again by only turning the key back and forth and again went black when I was starting it (infact it started on the final attempt then stopped dead). I am going with faulty ignition switch now guys, but please if you have another opinion stop me in my tracks because I don't like playing parts darts.

I have obviously been all along the wiring looking for loose bits etc and can find no culprit. Battery putting out 12.56 standing cold. All the wiring seems to be passing currents etc.

[newday777]

Wiggle your key with the ignition switch on to see if you get and loose connection. There have been posts of ignition switches going south, especially if there are lots of keys on the keyring. The weight of keys jiggling as the bike hits bumps over the years loosens the contacts in the switch.
If you get and loose power wiggling the key, disconnect neg battery cable, spray in electrical contact cleaner in the ignition switch and work the key lots, spray in more and continue working key, then blow in clean compressed air to blow out dirt and gunk(put rag over switch to capture the contact cleaner). This might help to free up the switch to get contact before looking at buying another switch.

[newday777]

At this point in time the ignition switch is still available from Honda.
#1 is the complete lock set with all new locks so you'll have 1 key fitting all the locks.
#2 is just the ignition switch so you'll have separate key to ignition switch requiring you to carry a second key for the other locks on the bike.

https://www.hondaparts-direct.com/oempa ... 427548d1/y

[Mammoth]

Just an update for those who may have similar problems in the future and for you guys who have helped me out.

I went armed with a can of WD40 for morale support and pure anger, ready to wiggle and tighten anything that sat still long enough to get this silly thing home and out of the garage at work.

Started from ignition down. Eventually gave up with the idea that it was the ignition switch itself. Started wiggling down the harness... Got to the wiring plugs behind the left fairing side light (I think this is a known weakpoint and problem area) gave that a wiggle and yeah, intermittent flashing on and off of power... I am close. Was fixated on the idea that it was this point.

Got upset and was going to go home, decided to go full cave man mode on it and pulled the wiring out of the gap in the fairing, and it all came alive... turns out it is the wire that runs back from the wiring plugs down the left side of the bike behind the reverse handle. I gave the reverse handle a good slap and it went off again. Bingo, the reverse handle is the issue/wiring into that handle.

Risked it for a biscuit and fired it up (after wiggling the cables again) and rode it home 9 miles. No issues on the way home.... MOT tomorrow so fingers crossed it'll behave quietly then I will take her apart and delve deeper.

I have bought this bike as a bit of a project and rescued it from somebody who had neglected it. It has some very interesting wiring going on behind the fairings and some of it is very much bodged. Perils of owning a Goldwing I guess! Live and learn don't we. 27 years old though, is nearly as old as me! Can't fault the Honda engineering.

[newday777]

I'm glad you got it fired up and home.
You can get a MOT on a Sunday?
So this is a new bike to you I take it?(you have no introduction of yourself and the bike since joining the forum!!!)

Take pictures of the buggered wiring you have mentioned.
As a FYI, wrapped in the tape of the original harness, near the reverse handle, on the main frame, there is an orange ground distribution block that you need to inspect for burnt pins and wiring. I have found these to have burnt pins in cases of someone adding accessories improperly by just tapping into the bike harness(hacked into the wires) and also using the 'plug and play adapters' that were sold to fit accessories.... These practices, have overloaded the original bike harnesses over the years, which was spec'd to the bare minimum loads of the bike needs, as built, not adding extra lights and accessories. This includes the ground wires. The correct way is to add a relay powered accessory fuse panel and added ground lines to handle the added loads of the accessories.

There are 2 of these orange ground distribution blocks, 1 on each side of the bike, at knee level area as you sit, again, they are wrapped in the harness tape. Carefully cut the tape back and inspect them.

Also, carefully inspect each of the bike harness wire connectors for burnt pins. If you find some burnt, you'll need to repair them or jumper around.

Are you getting any relays clicking when you get power back on when it happens? Locate which relay it happens on if you can. I have also found burnt pins in the relay panel(behind the left saddlebag) so check those pins and wires behind the relay and fuse panels.

[newday777]

This is a good accessory fuse panel to use, with ground distribution lugs to power your accessories. Be sure to use a relay and a fuse between the battery and the accessory fuse panel.

https://www.bing.com/aclick?ld=e8p3hasE ... 16d50d65f5

[newday777]

This is a How to wire in an accessory fuse panel video(from the web) for the gl1500. This shows putting the panel in under the left pocket.
Note! He says to get the ground off the bike ground....not a good plan. Rather, run a new wire directly to the battery ground lug to bypass the bike harness.



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There are newer, smaller fuse panels to get that have built in relays to fit in the smaller compartments of the wings.

https://www.amazon.com/Fuzeblocks-FZ-1- ... B00L3OJW4C

I have put a fuse panel at the battery, that fits under the side cover. I attached the fuse panel to a piece of flat ABS, that extends beyond the panel and slips under the battery retainer rubber to hold it in place, and it moves out of the way when you need to remove the battery.

[Tim 1956]

I have had problems with my 1500 interstate a few months after I bought it. Turning on the key would blow the fuse for the fuel gauge, temp gauge and kickstand shut down. After a few times I decided to spray wd40 into the ignition switch with the battery disconnected... I think... and then after spraying it full I started to twist back and forth full rotation of the key to clean the contacts deep inside the switch. That was about 4 or 5 months ago and have never had a problem since. It's worth a try. Just turn the key full rotation about 6-10 times, that should clean all the contacts inside. Hope this helps.
Tim

[GBKid]

I also added an accessory fuse block to my 2000 GL1500 a couple of years ago to power my Garmin Zumo GPS and iPod. I tapped into the power point on the bike’s fuse block to power the accessory fuse block. I mounted the accessory fuse block on the battery making it easily accessible. Works like a champ and I still have additional terminals available if I ever decide to add accessories in the future.

[Rednaxs60]

I used the Fuzeblock on my 1500 because it has an integral relay and real estate on a 1500 is at a premium, otherwise would have used a different fuse block. You can have switched or unswitched circuits.

[Wildwilly018]

This is a How to wire in an accessory fuse panel video(from the web) for the gl1500. This shows putting the panel in under the left pocket.
Note! He says to get the ground off the bike ground....not a good plan. Rather, run a new wire directly to the battery ground lug to bypass the bike harness.



   Never miss a video: Subscribe to the GoldwingDocs YouTube channel today!


There are newer, smaller fuse panels to get that have built in relays to fit in the smaller compartments of the wings.

https://www.amazon.com/Fuzeblocks-FZ-1- ... B00L3OJW4C

I have put a fuse panel at the battery, that fits under the side cover. I attached the fuse panel to a piece of flat ABS, that extends beyond the panel and slips under the battery retainer rubber to hold it in place, and it moves out of the way when you need to remove the battery.

Hi newday777. Did the relay come with it or you have to get that separately. I have done a lot of wiring on my GL1500 and do a pretty neat job, but one of these extra panels might have limited a lot of stringing of wires. i have stripped a few old cords and ext cords to salvage the wire so I don't have to keep buying spools. I keep the outer plastic or rubber cover from cord and use it to cover wires going thru bike. Can fit 3 wires inside. Then as in your idea, it protects wires from rubbing on anything.

[newday777]

This is a How to wire in an accessory fuse panel video(from the web) for the gl1500. This shows putting the panel in under the left pocket.
Note! He says to get the ground off the bike ground....not a good plan. Rather, run a new wire directly to the battery ground lug to bypass the bike harness.



   Never miss a video: Subscribe to the GoldwingDocs YouTube channel today!


There are newer, smaller fuse panels to get that have built in relays to fit in the smaller compartments of the wings.

https://www.amazon.com/Fuzeblocks-FZ-1- ... B00L3OJW4C

I have put a fuse panel at the battery, that fits under the side cover. I attached the fuse panel to a piece of flat ABS, that extends beyond the panel and slips under the battery retainer rubber to hold it in place, and it moves out of the way when you need to remove the battery.

Hi newday777. Did the relay come with it or you have to get that separately. I have done a lot of wiring on my GL1500 and do a pretty neat job, but one of these extra panels might have limited a lot of stringing of wires. i have stripped a few old cords and ext cords to salvage the wire so I don't have to keep buying spools. I keep the outer plastic or rubber cover from cord and use it to cover wires going thru bike. Can fit 3 wires inside. Then as in your idea, it protects wires from rubbing on anything.

It's just a link...not my video

[Wildwilly018]

This is a How to wire in an accessory fuse panel video(from the web) for the gl1500. This shows putting the panel in under the left pocket.
Note! He says to get the ground off the bike ground....not a good plan. Rather, run a new wire directly to the battery ground lug to bypass the bike harness.



   Never miss a video: Subscribe to the GoldwingDocs YouTube channel today!


There are newer, smaller fuse panels to get that have built in relays to fit in the smaller compartments of the wings.

https://www.amazon.com/Fuzeblocks-FZ-1- ... B00L3OJW4C

I have put a fuse panel at the battery, that fits under the side cover. I attached the fuse panel to a piece of flat ABS, that extends beyond the panel and slips under the battery retainer rubber to hold it in place, and it moves out of the way when you need to remove the battery.

Hi newday777. Did the relay come with it or you have to get that separately. I have done a lot of wiring on my GL1500 and do a pretty neat job, but one of these extra panels might have limited a lot of stringing of wires. i have stripped a few old cords and ext cords to salvage the wire so I don't have to keep buying spools. I keep the outer plastic or rubber cover from cord and use it to cover wires going thru bike. Can fit 3 wires inside. Then as in your idea, it protects wires from rubbing on anything.

It's just a link...not my video

Oh ok. So I guess you just pick up a relay to go with it.

[newday777]

Yes you'll need a relay and an inline fuse holder