Fuses

[Joho]

Hey guys, I have an 02 GZ with 7500 miles. Lately I've had problems with fuses blowing. Any advice?

1. Stock fuse blew on interstate at 65 mph. Engine shut off, pulled over, and after cussing and swearing i located the spare fuse (the GZ only has ONE fuse underneath the right side cover, the second is a spare!!). Replaced it, and rode home.
2. Two days later, the spare blew while I was going through an intersection at 15mph. I went to a gas station, picked up a grossly-overpriced fuse set, and popped it in.
3. The gas station fuse blew about 5 mins later as I pulled into a Bank parking lot. ARGHH!!


Now I have a fuse in there from a grocery store. (5.99..UGH!) I haven't had any problems for a day or so, but I was wondering if I should look for anything specifically on the bikes wiring.

I'm theorizing that the two fuses that were on the bike (original + spare) had "worn out", and I simply got a bad fuse from the gas station. Is my luck really this bad? Or could recurring blown fuses signal a problem?


Thanks guys, I appreciate the help, because I am planning a 500 mile ride next week!!

[Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by Joho

I'm theorizing that the two fuses that were on the bike (original + spare) had "worn out", and I simply got a bad fuse from the gas station. Is my luck really this bad? Or could recurring blown fuses signal a problem?

BAD theory. Fuses don't "wear out" in a matter of years; decades maybe but not likely even then.

SO.....you have a short developing somewhere. The first clue to where the short is (a live wire touching ground) is to pay attention to which fuse is blowing.

Could be a pinched wire, some electronic component going bad or a light bulb shorting out.

Assuming that it is the main fuse or the headlight fuse, I'd get a new headlight bulb first.......for 2 reasons: They do occasionally fail in a manner that blows a fuse AND others have had pinched wires develop inside the headlight housing.....which you can inspect while you have the headlight apart. If you do find a pinched wire, then you have a spare headlight bulb.

The other alternative is to keep replacing the fuses until something starts to smoke. If you chose that avenue, I suggest carrying a fire extinguisher with you.

Seriously, you should not ride until you find and fix the problem. It really CAN catch fire. :skull:

[Joho]

Where is the headlight fuse? Is it in the headlight housing?

[Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by Joho

Where is the headlight fuse? Is it in the headlight housing?

No. It is in the tiny little fuse box, along with the one that you replaced.

Inside the plastic fusebox cover should be a diagram showing what the fuses feed.
There are actually 2; headlight hi and headlight lo.

Which one have you been changing (by name or function)?

Wires for things other than the headlight actually go through the headlight housing........so that is a good place to look regardless of which fuse is blowing. Also trace and inspect the bundle of wires that is near the fusebox. On mine, I had to move it to get the cover open.

[Joho]

Alright, there are actually two "fuse boxes".

There is one fuse and one spare underneath the white plastic cover directly above the battery. Then there is the actual box of fuses underneath the seat storage.

The fuse I replaced was the slot-style fuse next to the battery. It was yellow-20.

This is the one that has been blowing, however I haven't experienced it in quite a while of riding.

I'll check the headlight housing today.

[Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by Joho

The fuse I replaced was the slot-style fuse next to the battery. It was yellow-20.

That would be the main fuse so the problem could be almost anywhere.
Good luck; you'll probably need it.

[Sarris]

Please check your battery terminal screws. Mine get loose every 3 or 4k and the headlight gets dim and it has blown the main fuse on one previous occasion. The battery mfgr doesn't recommend locktite on the bolts (screws). Just remove the connections, clean and re-tighten. It MAY do the trick.

:bang:

[Joho]

Ouch... Looks like I'll be doing lots of "hunt & search"

Thanks for your help, I'll let ya know how it goes.

[5th_bike]

I once had the 'lights' fuse blow on me repeatedly, it appeared that a wire touched the head of the cylinder and the plastic had melted just enough for the copper inside the wire to touch the head occasionally, and blow the fuse.

Remove the tank (loosen BOTH rubber tubes at the petcock), then you will have a good view of all wiring near your engine, which is where I suspect the short. It could be anywhere though... good luck.

[thedum]

Man....I've had the SAME PROBLEMS....except, I've taken it to the dealership three times. They keep occuring so I haven't rode the motorcycle in four months. The first time I thought it was coincidence....but, it's happened to me over nine times (with 3 shop visits). The sad thing is the dearlship fixed it three times under warranty (but, the problem was never fixed) and I tried taking it back less than a month after my warranty expired and they want to charge $75/hr to repair a problem that was never fixed in the first place.

I don't know if the problem has bad mechanics or if this is a deffect from Suzuki. My greatest complaint is....The first time it happened to me I was riding at night going 55-60MPH and the fuse blew...resulting in me going down the highway at that speed (at night) with NO HEADLIGHT, couldn't see a thing....and that highway is full of barbedwire fences since there are a lot of farms around.

P.S. My bike started doing this around 1,000 miles and it has 3,000 total now (9+ fuses blew), (3 Visits to the dealership mechanics). 2008 GZ 250 purchased with "0" miles on it. Missouri dealership