Recent voltage drop on my 2011 Venture

[megamile]

Last week during a long ride, voltage on my voltmeter dropped from steady 13.9 volts while running (13.4 at idle after starting) to 13.3 at speed and 12.5-12.7 at idle. I noticed change happened when I restarted after a fuel stop. Last fall I replaced ignition, fuses, SCCR, cleaned and dielectric greased all the connectors I could find, only to discover that the battery was bad (Auto Zone and Advance no longer load test batteries, or this you have been much easier). At present trike starts, runs and charges as long as I keep RPMs up. Doesn't seem like enough voltage drain to indicate a short anywhere; if something were grounded out there would be way bigger indications. At present trying to organize troubleshooting; things that come to mind are faulty connector somewhere, bad regulator/rectifier, or bad stator. Have article that tells me how to check stator; all I need to do is find the plug (or maybe last owner cut the plug out and soldered the wires??) but I don't know where to look for that. Ordered a new regulator/rectifier; I have been told that to replace it I need to remove radiator to get at it. I always thought that if the regulator goes bad, it overcharges the system and fries the battery... Last regulator/rectifier I changed came with wires and a plug; this one only came with a socket for one. Does it just unplug, or do I have to get creative? I could really use some advice and maybe a couple of pictures, so I can trace this down before it becomes more serious.

TIA...

[M61A1MECH]

My experience with my Venture was that the regulator went bad and over charged the battery. The regulator should be inside the chin fairing, I did not have to remove the radiator on the Venture, The stock system is plug and play should not require any soldering, just unplug the harness and remove the rectifier, replace and plug back in.

I would inspect the contacts in the plug to be sure they are not corroded or burnt.

Here is a link on the forum for the tech section that should apply to your bike, https://www.venturerider.org/forum/forums/forum/16-royal-star-venture-and-royal-star-technical-library-99-13-read-only/

I never got into the charging system much on the Venture, but my first suspicion for low voltage word be a failing stator/generator, I think with the rectifier/regulator disconnected you can check for voltage coming direct from the stator/generator, the service manual should tell you how to do that, I do know it puts out 3 phase AC voltage, so make sure your meter is on the correct settings.

 

Hope this helps a little bit.

[megamile]

Thank you. I'll be careful. What I read was how to check for shorts and continuity; pretty sure I use ohmmeter settings for that. Do stator wires go direct from stator to regulator/rectifier? If so maybe I can check stator direct from regulator plug...

[M61A1MECH]

Attached is a snipet I took from Dingy's wire diagram in the tech section, this should answer your question.

generator wiring.pdfgenerator wiring.pdf

[megamile]

I'll still have to check the plug but if it passes the checks at the regulator they will gonna long way...

Thank you.

[M61A1MECH]

Dion and I were talking yesterday, two other things that can cause a low voltage condition are how much extra load do you have on the electrical system such as powered accessories, additional lights and so forth, as well as low idle RPMs. Increasing the idle speed slightly may help with the drop in voltage at idle.

Just thinking out loud.

[megamile]

I thought of that first. Nothing has been added recently to increase load and it wouldn't happen right in the middle of a fuel stop. Increasing the idle a bit won't get back to a charging voltage; to get above 13 right now I'd have to add 1000 rpm. Before this happened upon starting I had 13.5 volts, any throttle brought it to 13.9-14.0 volts. Road lights dropped voltage to 13.5; high beam pulls .1 volt, as do dash lights. Voltage drops are the same now, but I no longer have the margin for the accessories. I don't use the electronics (radio, CB, tape) any more, but I have noticed that lately the system turns on randomly and pulls .2 volts when it's on. I think rain got into the control head; one of these days I'm going to strip that stuff and add a Bluetooth amp and Bluetooth CB that works straight to my helmet. I wish there was a separate fuse for that system because I would pull it; it has become a PITA to keep trying to turn it off when it's acting up. That issue has been going on much longer than the current voltage drop issue; I don't think they're related... Hmmmmmm....

[vzuden]

Maybe I missed it but I don’t see where you said you checked the grounds (beyond cleaning connections last fall). It’s easy to overlook the simple things sometimes.   

[megamile]

OK; here's the update. Finally got it up and apart. Found stator plug (I hope that's it-see pic), unplugged it; cleaned it and ran stator checks.  Passed all tests; resistance was within specs and no continuity. Dielectriced it and plugged it back in. Replaced SCCR again (had a new spare lying around); also greased that plug. Pulled lowers; found other fuse box (!!!) and regulator. A bitch to get at behind and below radiator, but swapped it out (also greased plug). Changed oil (as long as I had it up); filter can wait till next change. Unplugged fuse for audio (everything goes to my helmet by Bluetooth) because handlebar unit was being wonky every once in a while. Reassembled trike; only 1 extra screw... (I know where that  and from; left lower rear bushing wore out. I need to order a couple of new ones.) Current current (I couldn't resist...) reads 13.1 at idle and 14.4 while running at road speed.  Oe wondering if that's too high? Doesn't get above 14.5; wonder if all the wobbly charging currents recently have weakened or fried the battery. I still have 12.3v when I turn the key...

Thank you all for the help; further advice is always appreciated. 

[Woody]

sounds right to me, not to high.