1995 GL1500 Electrical Issue

[JPochron]

We had a hard freeze here in Texas that caused extensive damage to our home and had to move in with our son till repairs are done. I needed to make room in the garage so I brought my trike to my sons house so we could put furniture in the garage. It started up and ran fine here and since it's been so cold I haven't ridden it. I attempted to start it today and the battery was dead so I put the charger on it. After it charged I turned on the key and the only light that came on was the oil light, the neutral light would not come on. Hit the start button and nothing but the turn signal, horn, and headlights all work. I replaced all the relays a few months from the thread about relays. Can anyone give me an idea where to look for the issue? Another thing is if I don't keep a battery tender on it (which I didn't this time) the battery drains. The battery is less than 2 years old and it's a GEL Battery. I haven't done anything to it since I parked it so I'm at a loss as to what it could be. Any suggsetions would be appreciated

Thanks

Joe

[ct1500]

Get to the relay box and with key ON jiggle the #3 tail/main relay if everything lights back up you have a bad/burned connection there. For the battery going dead check charging voltages with a good test meter at idle and 2000RPM with no fans or brake lights on. Then check standby current draw on battery which should be no more than 3mA.

[JPochron]

Thanks I'll give that a try. I let the battery charge all night and when I checked it this morning it was only at 9.4 volts so I think I need to replace the battery. I turned the ignition switch on and the dash lights came on like they should initially except for the neutral light. I pressed the starter button and it did dim everything except it wouldn't crank. I'm going to check the relays as you recommended and check for a drain on the battery. Let you know what I find out

Thanks

Joe

[JPochron]

I checked the relays that doesn’t appear to be the problem. I messaged my mechanic and he’s going to check it out but not until next weekend which is fine because it’s still pretty cold. I’ll let you know what it is when I find out

Thanks

Joe

[thebruce]

If the battery was completely dead in freezing weather, it's probably pooched.

Probably not something that comes up very often in Texas, but in the great white north it happens more often than I would like.

Good luck with the bike and home repairs. That cold snap was pretty crazy.

[JPochron]

Yeah it was. We had several pipes break in the attic had to pretty much gut the house. All the flooring and most of the sheetrock is tore out. I'm from Buffalo NY but this was something else for the South. It could be worse. I did get the battery charged up but the odd thing is the neutral light not coming on. And earlier today when I pressed the start button you could tell there was a battery draw but it doesn't do it now. I'm going to buy a new battery