Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

Bling12R has a small problem, the headlights on his 02 12R dont work. the globes, fuses, relays, switches and junction box have all been checked but i'm f@#ked if I can find out why they are coming on. I can make them come on after starting the bike by bridging a wire here or there, but thats no good to us.

Most of the older models have very sililar wiring by the looks of it, the wiring diagram for my 96 zx6 is almost identical. So maybe someone with an older bike has had a similar problem and can point me in the right direction. I know its just a case of tracing wires, but for those who havent seen a 12R without all the plastics they are a real

Any help will be much appreciated as he want to sell it soon

Wiring to the engine start circuit?

jl4049 wrote:Wiring to the engine start circuit?

Checked all good

Get yourself a multimeter. Doesn't have to be anything flash. Put it on Voltage(DC) and start somewhere easy to get to. (Sorry, don't mean to sound insulting, as I'm not sure how much you know about electricity) Whack 1 probe onto the bare wire at a connection point, and the other probe to the frame earth (Anywhere on the frame where there's bare metal will do). As long as you have voltage, follow the circuit along till you don't have any. If you start in the middle of the circ, then you can figure out which way your problem is, and work backwards or forwards towards it. I know it sounds easy in theory, but these things have a habit of breaking a connection in a nice and difficult place to get to.

Did you make sure the globes are making good contact with the connections as well? Heat can be the primary source of the wiring failing, as it can make the wiring become brittle. All it would take is a sharp bump to do the damage. Headlights are an excellent example of where the most heat in this circuit is.

I know you said you checked the fuses. Did you check the master light fuse behind the battery?

Benno wrote:Get yourself a multimeter. Doesn't have to be anything flash. Put it on Voltage(DC) and start somewhere easy to get to. (Sorry, don't mean to sound insulting, as I'm not sure how much you know about electricity) Whack 1 probe onto the bare wire at a connection point, and the other probe to the frame earth (Anywhere on the frame where there's bare metal will do). As long as you have voltage, follow the circuit along till you don't have any. If you start in the middle of the circ, then you can figure out which way your problem is, and work backwards or forwards towards it. I know it sounds easy in theory, but these things have a habit of breaking a connection in a nice and difficult place to get to.

Did you make sure the globes are making good contact with the connections as well? Heat can be the primary source of the wiring failing, as it can make the wiring become brittle. All it would take is a sharp bump to do the damage. Headlights are an excellent example of where the most heat in this circuit is.

Mechanic by trade, so I know what a multimeter is No insult taken.

The prob keeps coming and going. We're pulling all the fairings off the bike this weekend so i can get good access to the front of the bike and all the harness. This weekend was working on were the voltage disappears. Although I'm leaning towards a relay because if I earth the "pass" switch out it all comes on, so makes me think something isnt earthing properly and not switching, But i'll definately give your suggestion a try

Hi all, been coming here for a few months, thought I'd finally register so I could add my 2 cents to this discussion.

I have a problem on my `93 ZXR750 where the lights don't always come on after the starter is pressed. I found out that by turning the key slowly back towards off it hits a point where lights come on and stay on, before the ignition is actually switched off obviously. Has worked every time for me so far, the 12R probably has a similar ignition so could be the problem.

That's a really good point. If the contacts in your ignition barrel are on the worn side, the symtoms you describe could be happening. Turning your key is a pretty regular occurance, so I'm guessing they'd have a fair bit of wear

Mmmm never thought of that, the bike is used for commuting and touring, plus he lost one of the little bolts that hold the switch in so it was floating around for a few weeks, might suggest he try this before going into the electicans