Brake Relay?...

[SgtSlag]

I ignored my own advice... I bought a replacement rear brake switch, for a sticking brake light, and the new switch made it worse: now the brakes are stuck on all the time! I suspect my next troubleshooting adventure is to test the brake relay switch, above the headlight, behind the fairing. The part is $121, from BikeBandit, only they do not have it in stock. Kawasaki Parts Nation has them for $138...


Any alternatives? Can I substitute the Headlight Relay Replacement from Toyota, per the Dollar for Dollar section? If it is just a relay switch, it can't be too difficult to put in a non-stock switch... After I test the existing relay, of course, to verify that it is, indeed, the problem.

Appreciate any help. Thanks! Cheers!

[Nails]

The rear is two separate switches, one for cruise cancel, and the other for the lights. As I recall, the light is the inboard one. (One normally open and other normally closed.)
As for the relay, yes, that Toyota cross is identical, and I mean IDENTICAL. For $10, either it fixes it (and you can throw the bad one away) or not (and you got a spare).

[SgtSlag]

Thanks, Nails. I just finished looking at the color electrical schematic. All of the Relays appear virtually identical. The headlight relay, per the Toyota substitution, is rated at 22 Amps DC. The brake lights will total less than 3 Amps, so the Toyota Relay will handle the current for the brake lights, without issue.

It makes sense that the relay is stuck. But... Having thrown away a $50 bill on the new rear brake switch, already, I need to pull the fairing off, and test that Brake Relay, before I put a burning match to any more hard-earned cash in my wallet. I did, however, disconnect the new Rear Brake Switch, to verify that it was not the culprit: made no difference, so it was not stuck on, either. Turning the bike on/off made no difference -- it is stuck on hard. Thanks for the confirmation on the Toyota Relay being an exact replacement! Cheers!

[Nails]

Apologies for editing my post mid-stream. I'm trying to type after too much wine.

Yes, I think all 7 relays are identical. That's why I carry one spare.

[SgtSlag]

Nice! Great to know that. I will do the same -- carry one spare with me at all times. Fantastic information. Thanks for sharing! Cheers!

[Nails]

I suspect those nuts-o prices you quoted were for the bank of three relays. (What you don't get from Toyota is the rubber "bracket".) But the Toyoto relay is still a smoking deal.

[VoyKimmer]

Actually you already have 2 spares . The aux relay and the cruise control relay on the same bank under the headlight.

[Nails]

For my first relay that went bad, that's what I did, basically as a diagnostic. For the second one, I sprang for OEM. For the third, I got two Toyota relays. The $10 spare is worth it just to avoid taking the fairing apart again. Plus, I swear they're a good luck charm: no fourth time ... yet.

Electrical components are going to hell on these old bikes. You have been warned.

"Good judgement comes from experience; and most of that comes from bad judgement."

[VoyKimmer]

If you are blowing relays chances are there is trouble with your 10 pin connector. I had the same problem until I cut the 10 pin connector out and soldered and heat shrink all of the 10 wires. No electrical problems since.

[Nails]

Thanks. I really just replaced two -- the "first" was swapping in another non-essential relay to diagnose. These weren't related to the cruise, if you mean that 10-pin connector. I really think they just died. The PO(s) didn't store the bike very well; so I might be more prone to corrosion than others -- connectors, relays, switches, and all the rest. Dunno. But all seems happy now, as I'm making final preps for my first long ride on it.

[SgtSlag]

You've got me thinking... My cruise stopped working last year, don't know why. There are like five different safety lockouts on the cruise system. While I have the fairing off, I will check the remaining relays, to make certain one of them is not the source of my failed cruise control. If one relay went, it is possible another has failed, as well. Thanks for that idea. Cheers, Gentlemen!

[Nails]

I doubt the relays would matter, being downstream. You want to run down the diagnostics on about page 338 of the manual. This is the electronics section of the appendix -- the cruise et al came along after the "main" manual.
Basically, you unplug the 10-pin plug to the cruise module and check (on the harness side) about 5 each of whether it switches 0 - 12 V or open/closed. Pretty straightforward, but the test for the cruise "cancel" circuit implies that something should switch when you close the throttle. This test doesn't really work -- but the two brake tests in this section do work like that. ("Cancel" in quotes because other circuits also cancel the cruise.)

[SgtSlag]

Thanks for the troubleshooting rundown. Much appreciated! Cheers!

[Sparky-29]

A tip on relays when they stop working you can take and tap them hard for a couple minutes with a screwdriver and it will remagnitize the coil. They go dead over time.