Headlight will not stay on
new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-06 10:34 PM (#155972)
Subject: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Sat night headlight went off. Tightened battery cables and it worked fine the rest of the way home. Rode to work last night and no problems. got on today for a ride this afternoon and head light not working again. Tightned battery cables again. Light came on thought it was all good. Went out to go to work head light not working again. The light will flicker but will not stay on. Any ideas what is causing this. Just got back thurs from a 3000 mile trip to florida and back and had no problems while gone. The bike is a 2013 Vision bought in August new. I would think the battery should still be good ?
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PCNova
Posted 2014-05-07 5:09 PM (#155995 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 72
I had this issue with my 2008 recently so I removed and inspected connection of all headlight related fuses, cleaned connections and reistalled. Seemed alright and have not had a problem since, yours could have just have a loose connection, good luck.
Peace,
Martin
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-07 5:37 PM (#155996 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Took it to dealer this morning. He called this afternoon. Said it was a relay. Of course not in stock. Will take 2 days to get it. Hopefully thats the problem.
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johnnyvision
Posted 2014-05-07 5:57 PM (#155997 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 4278
Tell them to pull one out of another bike. Add star washers to your battery bolts. You want 1/4" size



(StarWasher.jpg)



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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-08 11:53 PM (#156049 - in reply to #155997)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
johnnyvision - 2014-05-07 5:57 PM

Tell them to pull one out of another bike. Add star washers to your battery bolts. You want 1/4" size

I asked them to take the relay out of the new bike on the floor and he said no. I was not happy about having to wait 3 days and drive 65 miles to come back and get the bike. The star washer Idea I will do when I get the bike back. Thanks Vision Johnny for the idea.
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johnnyvision
Posted 2014-05-09 6:38 PM (#156076 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 4278
Go see the owner or GM and tell them how dispointed you are. Thats BS they can't help you
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-09 6:51 PM (#156077 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Update. They got the relay put on today. Did not fix the light. this could end up bring a disater. They have no idea how long it will be. 20000 dollar bike and I am bikeless.
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lennyb
Posted 2014-05-10 5:31 AM (#156081 - in reply to #156077)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Iron Butt

Posts: 804
Perry Hall, MD
I've been through the bad relay situation and the symptoms were very different. Really sounds like you have a loose connection. Good luck getting it sorted out fast.
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Arkainzeye
Posted 2014-05-10 1:35 PM (#156094 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 3773
Pittsburgh, PA
On day one of ownership of my 2011 vision I had a relay fail.. they DID take one out of another vision and put it in mine.
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cw1115
Posted 2014-05-10 1:54 PM (#156095 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 1290
Ruskin, Fl
I had a bad time with my battery vibrating the terminals loose on my 2013. My symptoms were the cruise woildn't work and I'd get a squeal that sounded like a fan belt on a car. I tried washers and lock tight to no avail. I put a piece of rubber between the battery and the bracket but I had already ruined the terminals by tightening every 250 miles. Jerks at first dealer told me I was crazy. Paid for a new battery.
Same problem. I took it to another shop and the somehow fixed it. 9000 trouble free miles.

Edited by cw1115 2014-05-10 1:55 PM
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-11 1:45 AM (#156117 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Well another update sat. Called at 230 pm aski if they had found anything out yet. Nopedid not work on it today. After yesterday when I talked to him he said they would tear into it and try to find out what was wrong at 8am. I wonder if kevinx would have any idea whats causing this or if he has ever seen this problem before. HELP!
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-12 10:20 PM (#156227 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Still not fixed today. 6 days and counting.. Lovin it lol.
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kris1956
Posted 2014-05-13 5:19 AM (#156237 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Iron Butt

Posts: 1109
I would say call Victory but when I had a problem with my 08 they weren't any help at all. You might try calling the owner.
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Monkeyman
Posted 2014-05-13 3:53 PM (#156262 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Iron Butt

Posts: 1066
Peru, IN
Most dealerships don't actually own the bikes on the sales floor. They belong to Victory (or another manufacturer). Even though it seems like a great idea to take parts off a bike that's just sitting to fix a customers bike, they can't do it. If they do, either they own the bike or they're taking a chance. I asked the same thing when the rear part of my front fender broke. They had (and still have) a '13 Vision sitting on their sales floor. They refused to take the fender off to put on mine. I was pissed then but once they explained that they don't actually own the bike, it was all good.
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johnnyvision
Posted 2014-05-13 5:44 PM (#156265 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 4278
They should start at the ing switch to see when turned on its sending power to lights. Even see if there is power on both sides of the rely when key is on.

Monkeyman it didn't matter who owned the bikes on the floor they could have answered the question that day if they would of tried one. But no they had to wait 3 days for nothing
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-13 6:51 PM (#156270 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Update for tuesday. Still not fixed. Talked to service manager for 20 min on the phone today. Basically they have no idea whats wrong with the bike. The light will work 1 time when the bike is started and the next time they start the bike it wont work. I have no clue and i would guess they do not either. If anyone has a clue what is going on please chime in. There is only so much time in Illinois to enjoy a motorcycle and as of now that time is being ate up by a bike I can not ride !
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rdbudd
Posted 2014-05-13 7:18 PM (#156271 - in reply to #156270)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 1632
Jasper, MO
Not Vision specific, but on motorcycles that have a circuit that keeps the headlight off until the bike is running, there are usually two relays. One is the normal headlight relay that you would expect, but there is another circuit, or relay, that activates the headlight relay and is only activated after the charging system kicks in. There will be no power until the bike starts.

Your situation sounds to me like the other circuit, not the headlight relay circuit itself.

I do not know how the Vision is setup. The other circuit may very well be a logic circuit and not a mechanical relay.


Ronnie
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Oldman47
Posted 2014-05-13 7:28 PM (#156272 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Tourer

Posts: 573
Central Illinois
Owen in Charleston and Wherle in Vandalia are not places I would take a bike with issues. Have you tried Sportland yet? My bet is that you will do better there.
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-13 7:32 PM (#156273 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
oldman47 is sportland where yo have your service work done? I took it to owen cuz thats where I bought the bike. I will wait till Friday and see if they get it fixed. If not I wll go get it and check with Sportland I guess. I am at my witts end pretty much.
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diamonbird
Posted 2014-05-13 7:45 PM (#156275 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 251
Mechanicsville, VA United States
rdbudd, no Victory is like what you're saying...Victory "Key On/ Lights On"
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-13 7:47 PM (#156276 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Uh well my vision the light has never came on till the bike has been started. Maybe it was messed up from day 1 ?
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cw1115
Posted 2014-05-13 8:18 PM (#156277 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 1290
Ruskin, Fl
Not sure what year they upgraded the headlight system with a relay. Older ones the light comes on as soon as key is in run position. Newer models light comes on when you hit the start button.
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rdbudd
Posted 2014-05-13 11:28 PM (#156286 - in reply to #156277)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 1632
Jasper, MO
cw1115 - 2014-05-13 8:18 PM

Not sure what year they upgraded the headlight system with a relay. Older ones the light comes on as soon as key is in run position. Newer models light comes on when you hit the start button.


Exactly. On my 2008, the light comes on as soon as the ignition is turned on. That was changed on the later Visions, and the light comes on after the bike starts.

On those systems, there are typically two circuits powering the headlight. The main headlight relay will not activate until the start/run circuit kicks in. It is possible that circuit is not an electro-mechanical relay like the headlight relay, but a solid state logic circuit---AKA a computer problem.

In that case, either the computer is not getting the message that the bike is running (bad connection) or the computer has a fault.

Ronnie
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-13 11:57 PM (#156287 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
This problem seems to be rare. The mechanic said Victory has never herd of a problem like this before. Thats not a good thing. It might take forever to fix it.
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varyder
Posted 2014-05-14 4:32 AM (#156289 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA
Are they hooking the electro-wrench to it to catch codes?
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-14 4:49 AM (#156290 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
I am not sure about checking it for codes. I would hope he would no that is an option.
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varyder
Posted 2014-05-14 5:54 AM (#156291 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA
That should have been the first thing he should have checked. Not saying that the headlight circuit is tied into the diagnostic cable, but you may have something else going that is relevant to it. I got stuck with paying for about 2-hours worth of guessing, that it took 2-minutes for the digital wrench to help pinpoint the problem. They didn't do the reset on the digital-wrench either, so they guessed some more at ghost codes. Once they reset the codes, they ran it up and the bike had no error codes. That's when they said, "it must be the fuel pump." I know, that was my issue, but I'm just telling you what the "experts" will do to find your problem. Some things are difficult, but troubleshooting should always be methodically before you start guessing. You may have a jacked up wire on your bulb, have they even pulled the light and looked at it?
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-14 6:05 AM (#156292 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
The bike is a 2013. I am not paying chit for there guessing . I am not sure they have even worked on it since they tried the relay. Who knows weather they are telling me the truth ?
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varyder
Posted 2014-05-14 8:36 AM (#156293 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA
The thing is you won't know it's "guessing". They are still on the clock for troubleshooting. I had to think through that one when they gave me the bill and had to relent without arguing. But they lost a lot more because after that, I never took my bike back for any servicing except for changing tires, off the bike. About a year later we got a short-fused notice on a "going out of business" sale. I'm not saying they went out of business because of me, but if that is the way the other customers were treated, it was not a surprise. Overall, great people.

So, we are given two choices, considering the circumstances. If under warrentee, let the "certified" techs have a crack at it. If not, your call. There is only so much that can be wrong with it. I've not considered the wiring diagram, but if it goes through the ECM (I think that's what it's called, the brain box to me) it may be causing the issue. Just throwing things out there to consider.
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BrandonM7
Posted 2014-05-14 9:59 AM (#156294 - in reply to #156287)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 178
LaGrange, GA
new vic rider - 2014-05-14 12:57 AM

This problem seems to be rare. The mechanic said Victory has never herd of a problem like this before. Thats not a good thing. It might take forever to fix it.



They say that a lot, unfortunately. They claimed nobody had reported a broken front fender before when we KNOW several forum members had reported it.
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-14 10:09 PM (#156313 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Day 8 no fix and no bike.
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varyder
Posted 2014-05-14 11:30 PM (#156314 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA

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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-14 11:58 PM (#156315 - in reply to #156314)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
varyder - 2014-05-14 11:30 PM

exactly !
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Street Eagle
Posted 2014-05-15 8:57 AM (#156334 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Iron Butt

Posts: 691
Manchester, CT
Have you checked to see if IL has a lemon law? Sure sounds like your bike would qualify.
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Street Eagle
Posted 2014-05-15 8:59 AM (#156335 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Iron Butt

Posts: 691
Manchester, CT
Just checked IL's lemon law. It doesn't cover motorcycles...bummer
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Arkainzeye
Posted 2014-05-15 12:02 PM (#156347 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 3773
Pittsburgh, PA
I remember when I had my 08 vision. The dealer called victory up directly and got support and what and where to look. It got things taken care of way faster!
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-15 5:59 PM (#156368 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Update day 9. They found a wire rubbed through on a bracket between the frame and fairing. Took pics and sent it to Victory to make sure that the wires are routed right or they were routed wrong from the factory. told me they would have it fixed tomorrow afternoon. Glad they got it fixed just wish itwould not of taken 10 days.
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johnnyvision
Posted 2014-05-15 6:15 PM (#156369 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Visionary

Posts: 4278
I would talk to the GM and tell how disappointed in there service. Be nice but firm. If they started working on the bike and the day was over they should of went back to work on it the next day
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lennyb
Posted 2014-05-15 7:26 PM (#156374 - in reply to #156368)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Iron Butt

Posts: 804
Perry Hall, MD
new vic rider - 2014-05-15 6:59 PM

Glad they got it fixed just wish it would not of taken 10 days.


+1
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-15 10:32 PM (#156387 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: RE: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Pretty sure I am done with them. I will get work done else wear from now on. There is no reason for it to take 10 days to fix a bike that was purchased from them.
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new vic rider
Posted 2014-05-19 6:18 PM (#156505 - in reply to #155972)
Subject: Re: Headlight will not stay on


Cruiser

Posts: 53
Shelbyville, IL United States
Got my bike back Friday. Had a wire rubbing a bracket on the frame and shorted the headlight out. It only took 10 days to fix it lol.
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