Blinker relay gets stuck bike stalls ?

[TDodge7]

Ok , I've just pulled the xs out of hibernation and gotten her back up and going . I decided to go for a spin around the neighborhood when I remember a problem I've been having , the turn signal flasher is original and sometimes gets stuck , tap it and it will start working again , however if you're riding the bike and it gets stuck then when you turn the blinker on and pull to a stop the engine slows and stalls pretty quickly .....is this normal ? If I'm sitting there with the blinker on and the bike is starting to konk out as soon as I turn it off the rpm's kick right back up and she runs fine again . everything else works fine , and if the blinker isn't stuck the turn signals work fine too ...I've had a ton of bikes and this is the first one that's ever done this for me .

[Brad]

I'm no expert, I'm kinda new to this form. I have had a similar problem in my 78E this past fall, mine was caused when I turned on my head light. I had found a burnt wire in the wiring harness behind the headlight. A burnt wire is a cracked wire due to age and was slightly worn through. The short was caused sometimes when I would go over some rough road or sometimes when I turn my light on. My bike would slow down then stall. It didn't happen all the time. Perhaps you have a burnt or shorting wire in one of your signal light that only grounds out when you "apply power", causing this problem. Take a multi meter and check for a short once you have your signal light on. Hope this helps.

[Ken Talbot]

Sounds like a nasty short somewhere in the switch.

[TDodge7]

but it only does it when the flasher relay gets stuck , otherwise all the turn signals work and the bike doesn't stall . if it was a short wouldn't it do it all the time and not just when the flasher relay gets stuck ?

[CatatonicBug]

The flasher relay may be getting stuck BECAUSE of the short. Remember that the flasher is load-sensitive, and will only flash when the proper wattage is being pulled through the circuit. It may stop flashing when the short happens, and that leads to a cascading problem with other items too.

[Ivan]

ok, here's my best guess...

The TCI needs 10.5V to operate correctly. When your blinker gets stuck, I assume the lights are ON and you pull up to a stop. The extra couple amps from the blinkers being on continuously may have just enough draw to bring the XS's marginal charging system down to right around 10.5v and then falters causing the bike to stall.

My solution would be to turn your idle up. Book says 1100 rpm for idle, but I like to run mine up to about 1300-1400 for exactly the same reason. Headlight, brake light, turnsignal and GPS or Cell phone being charged is about all this charging system can take.

The test would be to use a voltmeter across your battery terminals and monitor the voltage as the bike idles. If it dwindles away, there's your problem. I semi-sorta disagree with the short, because you'd most likely have other issues (blown fuses for one) and the scoot would die quickly because the voltage would go down suddenly and not gradually. But it could be a draw somewhere, which is like a half way short.

[TDodge7]

I took apart the flasher unit today , the capacitor had cracked , and the relay would get stuck easily . I pulled the relay for the emergency flasher and plugged it in for the signal flasher , now everything works perfectly . I guess that's all it was . I'll pick up a new blinker to replace the one I took from the emergency flasher . I like when things are an easy fix .

[Yard Dogg]

I took apart the flasher unit today , the capacitor had cracked , and the relay would get stuck easily . I pulled the relay for the emergency flasher and plugged it in for the signal flasher , now everything works perfectly . I guess that's all it was . I'll pick up a new blinker to replace the one I took from the emergency flasher . I like when things are an easy fix .

It's best to buy an electronic 3 prong flasher to replace your oem flasher unit. They work better for our low voltage systems. When you do just make sure to bring your oem one with you. Look at the prongs and you should see numbers stamped into the plastic plate where the prongs stick through. Just makes sure the replacement unit has the same markings as those. The marks represent positive, negative, blinkers...etc. Other than that they are all pretty much the same.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Dogg and Dodge,

The 3 prong flasher is the WRONG type for the turn signals. The OEM has it because of the signal going to the reed switch. The emergency flasher is a 2 prong, and that's why it worked in place of the OEM.

Dodge, you could probably find a replacement capacitor from Radio Shack to solder in where the old one was, that way you could keep your OEM and all of it's functionality....auto cancel feature...IF you use it? If you turn your signals off manually, then using a 2 prong will be just fine, but an electronic one would be nicer than thermal.

T.C.

[Yard Dogg]

Hey Dogg and Dodge,

The 3 prong flasher is the WRONG type for the turn signals. The OEM has it because of the signal going to the reed switch. The emergency flasher is a 2 prong, and that's why it worked in place of the OEM.

Dodge, you could probably find a replacement capacitor from Radio Shack to solder in where the old one was, that way you could keep your OEM and all of it's functionality....auto cancel feature...IF you use it? If you turn your signals off manually, then using a 2 prong will be just fine, but an electronic one would be nicer than thermal.

T.C.

I was having trouble with my blinkers the other day, I was going to replace my flasher with an electronic one but I ended up being able to fix it. I only said what I said cause I read in other posts to replace the oem unit with a 3 prong electronic flasher, but if you did you would loose the self cancelling feature. I also thought because the turn signal switch is a dual contact switch built to cancel the turn signals in event of the hazards being flipped on, the 3 prong replacement was somehow needed because the turn signal circuit runs through the hazard circuit.

With over 8,000 posts I believe you, I'm just trying to understand. Could you tell me what the difference is so I know. I'm having plenty of wiring difficulties myself so I'm just trying to learn.

[TDodge7]

I've never owned a bike with signals that self canceled , so I have no problem turning it off manually . The bike is coming along nicely , I think i just about have it tuned , once I finish sorting out the brakes , rebuild the petcocks that I noticed today were leaking and install the new seat cover I should be done .

[Yard Dogg]

I've never owned a bike with signals that self canceled , so I have no problem turning it off manually . The bike is coming along nicely , I think i just about have it tuned , once I finish sorting out the brakes , rebuild the petcocks that I noticed today were leaking and install the new seat cover I should be done .

My signals self cancel but they are a little bit weird. They work though. I was putting them to the test today. They shut off every time. Sometimes it was 100 feet up the road, sometimes it was 15 feet. They're strange. Like you though I will not come to depend on them.

[TopCatGr58]

I only said what I said cause I read in other posts to replace the oem unit with a 3 prong electronic flasher, but if you did you would loose the self cancelling feature. I also thought because the turn signal switch is a dual contact switch built to cancel the turn signals in event of the hazards being flipped on, the 3 prong replacement was somehow needed because the turn signal circuit runs through the hazard circuit.

With over 8,000 posts I believe you, I'm just trying to understand. Could you tell me what the difference is so I know.

Hey again Dogg,

As I've stated before, I'm no Electrical GURU, or anykind of GURU really..., just like to talk and type and can touch type, and have NO LIFE, so I'm here often!! Hence the 8K+ posts over 7 years.

Well, I don't know which posts you read, but we've tried to ensure that IF a post stated to use a 3 prong, that it was corrected/informed to use a 2 prong because the 3 won't work. As I stated earlier, the OEM flasher has special circuitry for working with the self canceller relay and the bike sends signals via a reed switch in the speedo, so that it shuts the signals off after you've travelled a certain distance, depending on your speed will determine the time for that. Also, if you hit your signal EARLY like I like to do to give cagers ample time to see/react, then they might actually go off BEFORE you make your turn. That's why I also don't miss the self cancelling feature.

The aftermarket flashers just need 2 prongs to actually send the power to the turn signal switch which then sends it to the correct side, the 3rd prong isn't used/needed in the non-oem flasher. The emergency relay is just on a separate power circuit, the switch then sends power to all 4 signals at once again via the handlebar switch, it doesn't go thru the regular turn signal circuit at all. HTH.
T.C.

[Jerry]

I use a replacment 2-prong flasher when I am towing my trailer, knowing it will handle the extra load. A 2-prong unit will only go in two ways, and plugging it in the "wrong" way won't hurt anything, just that it will not work. IIRC you need to use the center and right connection when the bike-side connector is held like an upside-down "U". Could be wrong, its been a while. A 3-prong will work, but you have to bend one of the tabs out of the way; there used to be a tech note on this and I don't remember all the details. Using a 2-prong is simpler.

Also, if you happen to be at a bone yard, Yamaha used the same flasher on a couple other bikes in the mid to late '80s. I pulled my spare off one of those, it carries the same numbers as the XJ's OEM flasher. Bike was one of Yamhas's early V-twin models. New OEM flashers are in the $70.00 range, so a $5 boneyard unit can be a good alternative.