Electrical Help please

[MyOutdoors]

I've had my battery on a tender while cleaning up my 2020 ltx se...its new to me and has only 300 miles on it. When i bought it the PO told me he put in a new battery due to something always drawing on it...obviously a "stink eye" moment. Fast forward to today and as I was hooking up the negative cable from the sled I saw a small spark...I haven't gotten into much yet but researching here shows a few known issues:

1. Worn wire under fuse box...already checked before and added thin foam to prevent an issue
2. Worn wire/harness on PTO side...checked and nothing noted
3. Reverse harness unplugged...this was apart but back together and OP had issue before
4. Gauge Cluster unplugged...its secure
5. Stuck Relays...have not checked
6. Bad Voltage Regulator from factory...have not started sled due clutches being off so I cant do a simple gauge check yet.

Any other things I missed or can cause an issue? your help is much appreciated!

 

[DMCTurbo]

Use a clamp on amp meter on the ground and pull fuses one at a time until you see a drop in amperage. That will narrow it down. Then you can t/s from there.

 

[sideshowBob]

This problem seems to randomly show up on some sleds but not all. Some have cured it with a new voltage regulator but a friend of mine had a 2020 TCat that had this problem and he never did track it down after numerous attempts and a few ruined batteries.. He used to disconnect the battery when parked for a period of time and it was never cured before he sold it.
Keep us posted if you find the problem,

 

[MyOutdoors]

This problem seems to randomly show up on some sleds but not all. Some have cured it with a new voltage regulator but a friend of mine had a 2020 TCat that had this problem and he never did track it down after numerous attempts and a few ruined batteries.. He used to disconnect the battery when parked for a period of time and it was never cured before he sold it.
Keep us posted if you find the problem,

I believe I read that here on one of the older post...not good for sure! Fingers crossed its a simple fix.

 

[MyOutdoors]

Are the 2020 on up relays upgraded to sealed?

 

[earthling]

Are the 2020 on up relays upgraded to sealed?

Short answer is they should be.

If you look at the relays, the last few characters should contain an S

Pre-2020 relays should be Song Chuan and end in C-R1

Relays could be from two different manufacturers

4 pin relays (Sealed)
Hongfa - HFV11/12-HS-R
Song Chuan 303-1AH-S-R1

5 pin relays (Sealed)
Hongfa HFV9-G-12-ZS-R
Song Chuan 301-1C-S-R1

You need to first establish how much parasitic draw you have. There is always some, typically in the sub .20 ma which would take a very long time to draw down the battery. Typical reported parasitic draw is much higher, around 30ma. That will draw the battery down in weeks. @DMCTurbo has given you correct instructions, get an voltage meter with amp function.

Either start by sticking a clamp on the ground wire or inserting the meter between ground and the battery. Unplug fuses, this will get you into the ballpark. Once you know the fuse involved, then you can move to either swapping relays or disconnecting harnesses. Disconnecting harnesses. This will narrow it down further.

Or start with the voltage regulator test, thread here

2018 Sidewinder MTX parasitic draw, new battery already dead

I can confirm that even if main harness for cluster is disconnected, still drain the battery. It’s something else that I can’t find out at the moment. I’ll keep you informed.

ty4stroke.com

 

[MyOutdoors]

Great information! Thank you guys, I'll be busy today checking things out.

 

[DMCTurbo]

Great information! Thank you guys, I'll be busy today checking things out.

Report back what you find.

 

[MyOutdoors]

Relays are sealed, Did get a volt reading last evening and again today...they were the same @ 12.7. I hooked up my multi-meter to the neg battery side and showed a draw of 16ma...which I believe is acceptable?

 

[earthling]

16ma isn't horrible but will still drain the battery over time. You have a PO who mentioned a parasitic draw problem. It could have been real, could have been just something they were doing (e.g. bad charger). If all you are worried about is the spark, and you have the battery on a smart charger, then you are probably okay. Personally, I would let it sit for more than overnight before re-checking voltage.

 

[MyOutdoors]

16ma isn't horrible but will still drain the battery over time. You have a PO who mentioned a parasitic draw problem. It could have been real, could have been just something they were doing (e.g. bad charger). If all you are worried about is the spark, and you have the battery on a smart charger, then you are probably okay. Personally, I would let it sit for more than overnight before re-checking voltage.

The PO was a complete tool so I had no idea what he may or may not have done. After going over this sled ski tip to snow flap, it just looks like it sat in a shed...how long, idk? I always run a pigtail off the battery for easy trickle charge so thats not an issue. I have yet to be able to get this thing out to do some riding and setup...we just had flooding rains and 40mph winds here in NH.

The only other thing I can think of is I just installed the heated shield harness to the right side connector but it also had a ground pigtail with loop up by the rca plug that comes through the dash. The loop was the perfect length/size to attach to the top of the cross tube supports. I did connect that which I will disconnect and recheck. Why would they add an additional grounding point if it plugs directly into the 2 pin accessory harness?

 

[earthling]

The PO was a complete tool so I had no idea what he may or may not have done. After going over this sled ski tip to snow flap, it just looks like it sat in a shed...how long, idk? I always run a pigtail off the battery for easy trickle charge so thats not an issue. I have yet to be able to get this thing out to do some riding and setup...we just had flooding rains and 40mph winds here in NH.

The only other thing I can think of is I just installed the heated shield harness to the right side connector but it also had a ground pigtail with loop up by the rca plug that comes through the dash. The loop was the perfect length/size to attach to the top of the cross tube supports. I did connect that which I will disconnect and recheck. Why would they add an additional grounding point if it plugs directly into the 2 pin accessory harness?

The loop could be for additional accessories which require a common ground and extra grounds are convenient. But who knows. Your 16ma is good for about 52 days of straight draw before the battery is drained. That feels a bit short so I would definitely poke around a bit more.

 

[sxr70001]

I believe that ground loop goes under the actual jack for the return. I did the same thing several years ago and the helmet shield didn't work until I moved the wire off the frame and screwed it in under the rca jack.

 

[MyOutdoors]

I believe that ground loop goes under the actual jack for the return. I did the same thing several years ago and the helmet shield didn't work until I moved the wire off the frame and screwed it in under the rca jack.

That would make sense!

 

[MyOutdoors]

pulled fuses and relays 1 at a time...nothing. Battery fuse obviously goes to 0. Pulled every connector I can reach...nada.

I can live with it. If I don't ride in season within 52 days before going dead, I doing as something wrong. Thank you for the help.