Front blinkers blink alternately

[zookey]

So the problem started way back in May of 08 when we got the bike and has just gotten worse.

Originally the lights didn't blink under a certain RPM... they would just come on steady. Well blinkers that don't blink really bother me, especially living on a highway with highway traffic. Talked to a Yamaha mechanic and he told us that the bike had to keep a certain RPM for the generator to make enough current to flash the blinkers.

Since then the problem has progressed to the point where you have to have the bike running over 6 grand to flash the rear blinkers.... and the front have gone from single side flashing to a dimmer alternating flash. So regardless if you have the right or left blinker on the fronts will dimly alternate on and off.... right, left, right, left.....

I searched and read quite a few threads here regarding the auto 2 prong flasher unit to get the blinkers to flash. We installed one this morning and I have to say I feel much better knowing that the cars behind him now will be able to see that he is intending to turn. The bulb appears to flash much brighter than they did before also. But this is when we noticed the front flash alternately, we put in the old unit and he reved the bike up well and the front lights were still alternating. We put the new flasher unit back in knowing it would still be safer than the old one was.

So any ideas as to what is wrong with the front blinkers?

[cywelchjr]

Sounds like a combination of wires possibly missconnected and/or bad/dirty grounds or connections. These problems usually happen when the connections get dirty and too much voltage gets lost before it gets through the system and back to the battery, a good cleaning of ALL the connections in the wiring system (yes it's a LOT of work) will often fix that, and may even fix the front blinker problem.

[crazy steve]

+1 to what Cy said. Bad connections, probably in multiple places including internally in the switch. I would pay particular attention to the grounds, as that's likely at least part of the cause of the problem with the front ones...

[CatatonicBug]

I agree with the other guys. Plus, I'll add that the flashers should flash at idle without a problem. Also be sure that your battery is strong. They usually last about 3-4 years, so if it's older than that, you might want to look at replacing it.