Hello from Canada...laid my bike down on a bad road.

[gcont]

Hello there, i just picked up a 2008 suzuki marauder and love the hell out of it. unfortunately i nailed a series of pot-holes a little too hard the other day and think i did some damage to the electrical (no aesthetic damage though). I when i key the engine, i get not lights or indicators and have only just recently discovered the battery location (first bike...give me a break). I was wondering if there is an emergency shut-off switch like those is some trucks and cars that would keep the bike from running after a severe bang. Any thoughts?

[alantf]

There's no shut off, but it's possible that a fuse has blown, or jumped out of its holder, or something's happened to a connector. Download the manual from this site, to show you where the fuses etc. are, then start checking. :2tup:

BTW, welcome to the madhouse. :roll:

[jonathan180iq]

I concur.

Something probably bumped itself out of sorts.
Check your main fuses.
Check the connections on your battery terminals while you're at it.
If you get lights and the bike still won't turn over, check your side stand kill switch.

[gcont]

nice, thanks folks. i just headed out to the bike right after posting and took a gander at the battery...guess what, blown fuse. one of the 20's went right beside the battery. what are these for? also wondering where the kick stand kill switch would be. she runs anyhow and i'm happy as a pig in poop about it.

[bpdchief]

Congrats on getting it running. Welcome to the craziness. Pull up a seat grab some :popcorn: , kick back and enjoy the show.

[northsidegz]

i'm happy as a pig in poop about it.

Welcome to you from MN! :cool:

And your phrase rocks! :2tup:

[PimpS]

Gcont! Well done! ;)
Bunch of happy geezers here!!!

[Water Warrior 2]

The side stand kill switch is somewhat hidden. The easy way to find it is look under the bike from the right hand side to see the side stand pivot bolt. With bike leaning on the side stand you can see how the little plunger on the switch is pushed in when the stand is down..............hmm, or is it up??

[jonathan180iq]

With the side stand down, it should be extended, right?

[mole2]

Welcome to the forum from South Carolina. Ride safe.


:)

[Water Warrior 2]

With the side stand down, it should be extended, right?
Sounds right to me.

[Rookie Rider]

Welcome, ride safe !!

[Rionna]

Welcome to the forum from Ohio. Glad you got your bike up and running. Ride safe

[gcont]

The darn fuse has blown again and again, i just started another post in "general" outlining it. what would cause this to happen? is the fuse on the back-end/leftside of the starter relay? any thoughts?

[alantf]

Most likely that the shock you gave the bike has done some minor damage to a component or damaged a cable. I'd start by checking the wiring inch by inch. Don't forget, you may have to remove the tank (an easy job), and also check inside the headlight shell. The shock may have trapped/cut one of the cables. Don't forget to check the connectors. Keep us informed. :2tup:

[gcont]

i am wondering if it may be in the headlight, there is a bit of a scuff on the head light and right turn indicator light--there was before i dropped it too by i know they took a bash when i did. popping off the tank was no big deal but i am somewhat reluctant to remove the wiring from their cases...lest i should bugger it up even more. i keen to find out that it is just some loose wires, but this is frustrating and i am unable to find a description of what loads this fuse takes in the service manual. should it even be a 20 (large yellow) fuse?

do you think there i could have damaged the armature in the starter? i did this to a chop-saw/miter-saw once and it kept tripping my breakers.

i could take a few photos if it would be of any help.

[alantf]

[attachment=0:28iukxq6]img082.jpg[/attachment:28iukxq6] i am unable to find a description of what loads this fuse takes in the service manual.

[Water Warrior 2]

My money is on the loose extra wire in the headlight bucket. Check in there first. Could be a wire has finally wore through the insulation due to vibration and the oops put it in a better position to cause grief.

[alantf]

My money is on the loose extra wire in the headlight bucket.

This extra wire (two actually), on the American bikes, is the one that feeds the parking light bulb on the European bikes. There's a small bulb that is on with the headlight, and also comes on with the tail light in the "park with lights on" position.

[gcont]

Hello all!

So I took another look during my lunch break and ID'd my real problem. Turns out my little bump shifted a bundle of cable in reach of the chain--if on temporarily. The chain took a nice swing at my wires and boom, problem apparent. Here is a photo (mind my grubby paws), I'll be splicing and shrink wrapping this evening. Thanks again for all the help. This forumn is a godsend! And special thanks to my new friend from Yorkshire!
GC
http://s12.postimage.org/4731cjkih/Lake_of_Bays_20120705_00404.jpg (http://postimage.org/image/4731cjkih/)

[Water Warrior 2]

Ouch!! That would certainly do the trick and cause grief. Have fun with the repairs etc.

[northsidegz]

Glad to see you found the culprit!

[gcont]

funny how this works. i spliced and shrink rapped everything, popped another fuse in, warmed it up but as soon as i pulled on the gravel--boom blown fuse. i took some advice found farther up on this topic. someone said check your headlight shell. the rubber covering on the malleable metal wire holders had rubber away and subsequently rubbing into some more wire. i taped up the wire holder, the wires, and put the headlight shell back together, now im back on it and happy as can be...again.
http://s17.postimage.org/x4bhw3mnv/wires.jpg (http://postimage.org/image/x4bhw3mnv/)

[jonathan180iq]

Electrical tape works wonders on things like that :)

You might as well do it right and solve this problem once and for all. It wouldn't take that much extra effort to slice the wire housing some more, expose more wire and simply redo the connections in the box. Then you'll have long term piece of mind.

[Water Warrior 2]

funny how this works. i spliced and shrink rapped everything, popped another fuse in, warmed it up but as soon as i pulled on the gravel--boom blown fuse. i took some advice found farther up on this topic. someone said check your headlight shell. the rubber covering on the malleable metal wire holders had rubber away and subsequently rubbing into some more wire. i taped up the wire holder, the wires, and put the headlight shell back together, now im back on it and happy as can be...again.
http://s17.postimage.org/x4bhw3mnv/wires.jpg (http://postimage.org/image/x4bhw3mnv/)
Glad the problem is fixed. A sense of accomplishment in getting your baby back on the road too no doubt. :2tup: :2tup:

[greatmaul]

Excellent work troubleshooting and repairing! Very impressive. I have a lot of trouble with electricals whenever they go wrong.

[mole2]

Excellent work troubleshooting and repairing! Very impressive. I have a lot of trouble with electricals whenever they go wrong.

Always remember KISS. Keep It Simple Stupid. Work from the simpliest to the complex. Check fuses first, then connections, then broken or pinched wire up to the complex such as components. Most problems are on the simple side.


:)