switch in reserve lighting relay

[Varnae]

My mechanic just called me and says that there is a switch in the reserve lighting that is bad on my bike. Does anyone know what he might be talking about and where I might be able to acquire said switch?

Thanks in advance.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Varnae,

The RLU is sealed control module, and not serviceable. They have been known to go bad on occasion. You can either try to find a used one on Ebay, contact Andreas Weiss regarding one, OR...you can have your mechanic bypass it. There's a tech tip about it.

All it does is turn on the high beam with less wattage when the low beam goes out, and lights the dash light to let you know your low beam filament is burned out. It's just a nicety, not really essential. True you might not realize that your low beam has gone out when riding during the day, but at night, you can tell, and then switch on your highbeams to get home and then replace the bulb. Not sure how much your mechanic will charge you to BYPASS the RLU vs. just plugging in a new/used one!?
T.C.

[The Lorax]

just a thought, the hi - lo switch on mine, if it for lack of a better term overshoots the lo setting will activate the rlu as the lo beam will go out. jiggle the switch a bit and it comes back on and he rlu shuts off. the mechanic might find that there is something else in the circuit that is causing the trouble. just a thought, have a nice day and ride safe

[bikerphil]

If you want to bypass the rlu, if for sure thats the problem, this should work...

Unplug and connect the blu/blk to the blu/yel. Connect the yel to the blu/grn.
It should function normally, although without the reserve.

[Crazcnuk]

i would tell him to leave it. Then get a used RLU from someone here, and try changing it yourself.

Only takes about 5 minutes.

If you can get him to explain to you what he thinks is wrong, we may be able to be more help. there are a few modules that can cause issues with the headlight.

[Varnae]

He said that due to this particular switch being bad he can either give me a headlight or turn signals but both would not function at the same time. I'll just buy a whole new unit from Andreas and that should take care of the issue.

[DiverRay]

He said that due to this particular switch being bad he can either give me a headlight or turn signals but both would not function at the same time. I'll just buy a whole new unit from Andreas and that should take care of the issue.

TAKE THE BIKE AWAY FROM THAT MAN!!!!! He may be a mechanic, but he DOES NOT KNOW ELECTRICAL!!
There is NO ITEM I KNOW OF on the XS that will prevent the headlight or turn signals from both working. If you have a 1981 or newer bike I could be wrong, but somehow, I doubt it. If you have elecrical problems, and you DO NOT want to try and trace them down by yourself, take the bike, with the electrical diagram, to an AUTOMOTIVE ELECTRICAL shop. At least they know how to read the diagram, and understand how things work.
JMHO

[Tdog]

diy

Hello, I'm with DiverRay on this. Bypass the RLU to see if the problem still exists. Electrical is charged by the hour so if the guy can't trace it out quickly your bill will be jacked due to his lack of experience or skill and as I am a mechanic too I hate to hear stories like that. This forum can and will help you avoid a ripoff.
Regards,
Tdog

[Crazcnuk]

As Diver pointed out the RLU has nothing to do with the signal lights.

In fact the signal light and headlight circuits are not connected in any way, so if this guy thinks they are, then he really is out to lunch.

The RLU unit can simply be removed and not replaced. There is also the headlight relay in there that may be the problem.