Ben’s CBR loses headlights on Eildon Ride, Sunday 11^th July

The mighty CBR954 lost all headlights (three off) on Cliff’s last ride to Highlands, first noticed at Marysville.  Checked the globes and fuses with nothing obviously amiss. Completed the ride arriving home a little after dark with eyes as big as saucepans. Working to midnight Sunday I was none the wiser after checking the headlight relay, previously damaged high beam cabling, fuses and globes. All good.

Monday 12^th : Julie and I rode the bike to work in peak hour traffic, ever the optimist. With the temperature gauge rising fast, I turned the ignition off due to stationery traffic on Flemington Road outside the Royal Melbourne Hospital caused by car crash and attending emergency services blocking all lanes. On attempting to restart, nothing. No lights, no ignition. But wobbling the starter button made the lights work!  And then it started and we were able to complete the trip to work. The problem had degenerated into either spontaneous ignition – key on, bike starts – without starter button. Very exciting if in gear. Or nothing at all. The latter held sway come home time and so Julie and I caught the train home, hopefully the first and last time this century. Waiting for peak hour traffic to subside, we returned with the trailer to pick up the bike and give the security guards some excitement at 10 pm.

Up till midnight was spent pulling the right hand switch block apart and swapping with the spare one – I have a complete wrecked bike, well what’s left of it, including the wiring loom. The switch block plug is buried in behind the frame up near the headstock. Access to the plug requires removal of the tank and air box, a minimum of 30 minutes just to get to the plug. The headlights now strangely started working. But now the engine won’t start despite the fuel pump coming up to pressure, or not with the kill switch off – so all correct. Clutch cut-out switch shorted. Bike on trailer ready to take to doctor. Run out of ideas.

Tuesday sick leave – medical emergency. Child ill. Had brain wave in middle of night. Spontaneous ignition – must be faulty ignition switch I thought, like on old Kawasakis where they used to oxidise up.  Subconscious is a marvellous thing.

Bike back off trailer. Removed ignition switch (top triple clamp, handlebars loosened, tank, air box, myriad of hoses and sensors, plug behind headstock again). The ignition switch (where the key goes) is bolted to top triple clamp from the underside with two 8 mm hardened steel bolts with circular holes – not hex heads. Use once and snap off tightening mechanism to make theft proof.  Off to C&C Engineering to drill off bolt heads (blunted pilot and 7 mm drill bits, flattened drill battery, then use heavy duty air operated drill). Miniature Torx screws to negotiate next, then two miniature Phillips head screws. Two and half hours later, with a very thorough knowledge of the Honda CBR954 ignition key/switch (4 separate springs, 2 balls), none the wiser. All perfect. Replaced mongrel bolts with new. No charge for time, tools or materials.  Sincere thanks to Clyde at C&C Engineering.

Everything working. Just won’t start. Check side stand engine lockout switch. What an engineering marvel. A shame to cut it off and short the wires together. For sure this was the fix. Nope.

Put bike completely back together again and back on trailer by 4 pm. Off to Melbourne Auto Electric in North Coburg – used to be in A’Becket St. Left Jack the spare wiring loom complete with all relays.

Wednesday – rest day – went to work in the car with grease ingrained hands and sore fingers. What a nightmare peak hour traffic is on 4 wheels – three to four times longer than the bike. If they ever ban lane splitting ... And parking is an expensive pain.

Wednesday night and a call from Peter Hill sparks the subconscious into action again. Click! Light bulb moment. A sticking starter motor thumb switch would explain why the headlights were not working – the lights cut-out to supply another 50W to the starter circuit. Very clever, probably necessitated by the modern day small battery. And a sticking starter switch would explain why the motor spontaneously started when the ignition key was turned on! And it would explain why the starter circuit was now dead as the starter motor was probably running the whole time I was riding, frying itself. The puzzle is solved. Either the starter motor relay or the starter motor itself is now faulty.

Thursday – put gloves on and work in freezing garage and remove starter motor from spare 172,000 km motor. This is going to be ugly if I have to do it on the real thing with access difficult even with the motor sitting on the ground, water thermostat housing in the way, etc.

Call Jack at Auto Elec. “I’m just fixing your bike – can you hear it running in the background?” “Let me guess, the starter motor relay?” Yep. Phew! He had already swapped over the spare relay, and apart from some wiring oxidation cleaned up and connectors replaced, the bike was ready to go.

Back at work by 11.30 am, crisis averted. Lead Sunday’s Poker Run. Hasn’t missed a beat since.

Ben Warden