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Kawi KE175 Bubbling Battery on Discharge

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  • Kawi KE175 Bubbling Battery on Discharge

    Finally got sick of my KE175 turn signals being anemic. i.e. only working when revs are up and even then, not very bright. So I started poking around.

    • With engine off, I measured the battery voltage. 6.2 volts (it's a 6-volt system)
    • Turned key on...drops to ~5.8 volts.
    • Other lights come on as they're supposed to, albeit kinda dim (headlight, brake light, pilot light)
    • Put the turn signal on...it is not flashing.


    Poke around a little to see if there is anything obvious (warm wires, change in voltage when wires are wiggled, inspect a few electrical connectors) and scratch my head. Probably 1-2 minutes later, I look at the battery voltage..3.x volts! And I hear the battery sort of bubbling. I've heard a similar sound when charging batteries, but never when they're DISCHARGING! Seems to me that it almost acts like there's a short somewhere! I was going to put my meter inline on the current setting, but was afraid that the current was >10 amps.

    For reference, the battery is a regular wet cell lead acid battery. Acid levels are good, and as far as age, I believe I put it in at the beginning of last season.

    I figured I'd try checking for shorts. Here's what I did. There is one ground location for the electrical system, and another for the battery. The battery one is near the battery box, and the one for the electrical harness is located under the gas tank on one of the mounting screws for the coil. I disconnected the ground under the tank and measured the resistance from the ground strap to the frame to determine if it was shorted out anywhere else, or if this is the ONLY path to ground. With key ON, meter reads "OL". With key "off" it reads something like 3 M-Ohm. Pretty good so far. But when I put the turn signal on, it drops to 20-30 Ohms! Hmm!!! Not supposed to do that I don't think. Maybe it doesn't matter since the key was in the "off" position...no such change in resistance with turn signal switch movement when key was in the "on" position. Here's what the turn signal should be like...

    (battery + terminal) <--W/Bk wire--> (ignition switch) <--Brown wire--> (turn signal flasher) <--Orange wire--> (turn signal switch) <--Green=left OR gray=right--> (signal bulb) <--Bk/y wire--> (ground eyelet at coil mount on frame below tank)

    So my point there is that the ignition switch should isolate it the turn signal circuit in the off position, so turn signal or not, the resistance should be the same. In the off position, the only thing the ignition key does is ground the CDI unit, just like the kill switch on the bars does.

    Any thoughts? Short circuit? Battery cooked? Electrical connectors? (plugged and unplugged most of them already...no apparent corrosion) Poorly designed electrical system? I'll try to post up the electrical schematic also.
    Last edited by CRXSi90; 07-10-2014, 09:02 PM.
    '81 XS11H Venturer - holed up in storage while life happened since 07/08/04
    '81 Kawasaki KE175 enduro - 63 mph of smokey fun, now with collector plates!

  • #2
    Originally posted by CRXSi90 View Post
    Finally got sick of my KE175 turn signals being anemic. i.e. only working when revs are up and even then, not very bright. So I started poking around.

    • With engine off, I measured the battery voltage. 6.2 volts (it's a 6-volt system)
    • Turned key on...drops to ~5.8 volts.
    • Other lights come on as they're supposed to, albeit kinda dim (headlight, brake light, pilot light)
    • Put the turn signal on...it is not flashing.


    Poke around a little to see if there is anything obvious (warm wires, change in voltage when wires are wiggled, inspect a few electrical connectors) and scratch my head. Probably 1-2 minutes later, I look at the battery voltage..3.x volts! And I hear the battery sort of bubbling. I've heard a similar sound when charging batteries, but never when they're DISCHARGING! Seems to me that it almost acts like there's a short somewhere! I was going to put my meter inline on the current setting, but was afraid that the current was >10 amps.

    For reference, the battery is a regular wet cell lead acid battery. Acid levels are good, and as far as age, I believe I put it in at the beginning of last season.

    I figured I'd try checking for shorts. Here's what I did. There is one ground location for the electrical system, and another for the battery. The battery one is near the battery box, and the one for the electrical harness is located under the gas tank on one of the mounting screws for the coil. I disconnected the ground under the tank and measured the resistance from the ground strap to the frame to determine if it was shorted out anywhere else, or if this is the ONLY path to ground. With key ON, meter reads "OL". With key "off" it reads something like 3 M-Ohm. Pretty good so far. But when I put the turn signal on, it drops to 20-30 Ohms! Hmm!!! Not supposed to do that I don't think. Maybe it doesn't matter since the key was in the "off" position...no such change in resistance with turn signal switch movement when key was in the "on" position. Here's what the turn signal should be like...

    (battery + terminal) <--W/Bk wire--> (ignition switch) <--Brown wire--> (turn signal flasher) <--Orange wire--> (turn signal switch) <--Green=left OR gray=right--> (signal bulb) <--Bk/y wire--> (ground eyelet at coil mount on frame below tank)

    So my point there is that the ignition switch should isolate it the turn signal circuit in the off position, so turn signal or not, the resistance should be the same. In the off position, the only thing the ignition key does is ground the CDI unit, just like the kill switch on the bars does.

    Any thoughts? Short circuit? Battery cooked? Electrical connectors? (plugged and unplugged most of them already...no apparent corrosion) Poorly designed electrical system? I'll try to post up the electrical schematic also.
    Afraid of blowing your meter, huhh?
    Take a six volt bulb, solder some leads to it, take the fuses out, connect the two leads across one of the fuse connections, and see if the bulb lights. (Make sure the battery is charged, and let it sit for a few hours, disconnected from everything, to make sure that there isn't an internal short.)
    Now , if the light lights, you know in what part of the wiring to start looking. If it lights, but dim, you know that there is just a small draw. If it lights up, you have a short or a big draw.
    Oh, and disconnect the wire to the regulator while testing. If you light the bulb when it is connected in that circuit, you need a new regulator.
    CZ
    Last edited by CaptonZap; 07-10-2014, 09:47 PM.

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    • #3
      Thanks CZ! Yup, don't want to blow the meter. Don't want to blow the regulator either! Which wire should I disconnect..magneto wires, the one to the battery, the one to the lighting circuit, the ground, or all of them?
      '81 XS11H Venturer - holed up in storage while life happened since 07/08/04
      '81 Kawasaki KE175 enduro - 63 mph of smokey fun, now with collector plates!

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by CRXSi90 View Post
        Thanks CZ! Yup, don't want to blow the meter. Don't want to blow the regulator either! Which wire should I disconnect..magneto wires, the one to the battery, the one to the lighting circuit, the ground, or all of them?
        Consult your wiring diagram. The two fuses protect two circuits. One or both may have a short, the light bulb will light if it replaces a fuse and there is a short. If the light bulb lights when it is placed in series with the wire that goes to the regulator from the battery, you need a new regulator. The diagram is so small, I can't make out the colors, so you are going to have to fend for yourself in that regard.

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        • #5
          Thanks! Sorry about the schematic quality...scan was good but photo bucket compressed it.

          I topped the battery charge up and tightened a few of the electrical connections. Flashed a little better after all that.

          I will try the light bulb in various places, but I got side tracked by ripping it apart for some cleaning and degreasing. :P
          '81 XS11H Venturer - holed up in storage while life happened since 07/08/04
          '81 Kawasaki KE175 enduro - 63 mph of smokey fun, now with collector plates!

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