« previous next »
  Go Down

Author Topic: Tail Lights not working  (Read 3994 times)

Offline mlf73

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 117
  • Country: 00
Tail Lights not working
« on: October 11, 2011, 09:24:25 AM »
Sorry to post again so soon looking for help but I just realized that my tail lights aren't working.  Brake lights are working fine.  I think I read that the front running lights and and instrument cluster lights work off of the same fuse.  Both of those are working and the fuse looks good anyway.  License plate light and all turn signals are working also.  I checked my connections in the tail and everything is good and tight.  I pulled the J-box and pulled the back cover just to see if it looked OK and it does.  I know just looking doesn't do much good but I've had no other electrical issues.  I gave it a few good whacks just for grins...no results other than the headlamp flickering on and off (bike wasn't running at the time).

I did just finish installing an Audiovox cruise control.  I'm not sure how long the tail lights have been out though so not sure if it's related or not.  I disconnected the purple wire from the brake light switch just to see if that made any difference but it didn't.  Bulbs and filaments look OK also but I suppose they could have both blown/gone bad.  Any ideas/suggestions?  Thanks.

Marlan
Logged
02 Conc- Corbin seat, Cee Baileys shield, MCL fork brace, 4 pot calipers w/zrxmopar's adapters, 310mm rotors, SS brake lines, 1.1 Sonic springs, C14 rear shock, TCro's stick coils, SiSF's economy jet kit, front tip-over bars w/hwy pegs, KB bar risers, fender extender, block off plates, HVMP bar end weights, grip heaters, Murphs fuse block, 55W HID upgrade, relo'd coolant bottle & helmet locks

Offline mlf73

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 117
  • Country: 00
Re: Tail Lights not working
« Reply #1 on: October 11, 2011, 09:42:58 AM »
OK...I may have posted a little too quickly.  I just checked and I do have voltage at each contact for the tail lights and I verified that the other contacts get voltage when the brake lever is pressed which leads me to believe that I just have two blown bulbs.  I'm about blind lately and the filaments for the tail light portion of the bulb are so fine I can barely see them.   I'll grab a couple 1157 bulbs at lunch and see if that fixes the issue.
Logged
02 Conc- Corbin seat, Cee Baileys shield, MCL fork brace, 4 pot calipers w/zrxmopar's adapters, 310mm rotors, SS brake lines, 1.1 Sonic springs, C14 rear shock, TCro's stick coils, SiSF's economy jet kit, front tip-over bars w/hwy pegs, KB bar risers, fender extender, block off plates, HVMP bar end weights, grip heaters, Murphs fuse block, 55W HID upgrade, relo'd coolant bottle & helmet locks

Offline mlf73

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 117
  • Country: 00
Re: Tail Lights not working
« Reply #2 on: October 11, 2011, 10:59:00 AM »
Resolved the issue......both bulbs replaced.  I hope I don't have some other underlying issue causing these bulbs to blow.
Logged
02 Conc- Corbin seat, Cee Baileys shield, MCL fork brace, 4 pot calipers w/zrxmopar's adapters, 310mm rotors, SS brake lines, 1.1 Sonic springs, C14 rear shock, TCro's stick coils, SiSF's economy jet kit, front tip-over bars w/hwy pegs, KB bar risers, fender extender, block off plates, HVMP bar end weights, grip heaters, Murphs fuse block, 55W HID upgrade, relo'd coolant bottle & helmet locks

Offline SteveJ.

  • Arena
  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 806
  • Country: us
Re: Tail Lights not working
« Reply #3 on: October 11, 2011, 02:33:57 PM »
Just a note on the bulbs, a 2357 has a 25% brighter (40cp vs 32cp) brake light than an 1157 bulb. Same dimensions. I've been using them for about a 135k mi. They seem to last a long time. It's been a few years(maybe 50-60k mi) since I've had to replace one.
Logged
Perfection Is A Fantasy, Improvement Is Possible(Margie J)
America's Seaplane City
'99 Conk: 234k mi, '98 KLR650, both gone, '15 Versys 650LT: 74k mi
COG 5603, IBA 19921, CBMMA 50 (Cheap B@st@rds Motorcycle Maintenance Assoc, 18 year member)

Offline RFH87_Connie

  • Arena
  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 944
  • Country: us
Re: Tail Lights not working
« Reply #4 on: October 12, 2011, 10:40:31 AM »
I ran the 2357 bulbs for a short time because I wanted the extra brightness.  I have an '87 and they kept blowing the fuse within a day or two, so I had to switch back to the 1157 bulbs.  I did clean the sockets good and put dielectric grease on the bulbs and tried it again, but had the same results.  I even tried a differnt set of bulbs from a different store.  Just something to consider if you do switch.
Logged
“I can truly say I had rather be at home at Mount Vernon with a friend or two about me, than to be attended at the seat of government by the officers of State and the representatives of every power of Europe.” - George Washington

Offline mlf73

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 117
  • Country: 00
Re: Tail Lights not working
« Reply #5 on: October 12, 2011, 02:18:22 PM »
I just went with a new pair of 1157's for now.  I'm not sure what caused them to both burn out or how long they've been out.  I may have caused it somehow during the cruise control install when I was working on wiring.  Both sockets looked perfectly clean with no corrosion, moisture or anything else.  I'll try to remember and upgrade to the 2357's next time I need to replace one.  Thanks for the info guys.
Logged
02 Conc- Corbin seat, Cee Baileys shield, MCL fork brace, 4 pot calipers w/zrxmopar's adapters, 310mm rotors, SS brake lines, 1.1 Sonic springs, C14 rear shock, TCro's stick coils, SiSF's economy jet kit, front tip-over bars w/hwy pegs, KB bar risers, fender extender, block off plates, HVMP bar end weights, grip heaters, Murphs fuse block, 55W HID upgrade, relo'd coolant bottle & helmet locks

Offline bbroj

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 357
  • Country: us
  • To be determined...
Re: Tail Lights not working
« Reply #6 on: October 12, 2011, 05:10:43 PM »
I run the 2357's in my modified rear turn signals. I installed 1157 scokets and run them as marker/turn signals. It's been about a year or so, no issues so for.
Logged
'12 C-14, Vance and Hines CS One muffler, lowered pegs, tank bra, bar risers, Phil's Farkles rack with Givi V46 top box, fender extender, Bucks tail brights, Canyon Cages and much more to come!
COG 9331
http://www.zggtr.org/index.php?action=dlattach;attach=1302;type=avatar&time=1422479190

Offline Dan in Grand Rapids

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Posts: 77
  • Country: us
Re: Tail Lights not working
« Reply #7 on: October 13, 2011, 03:04:30 PM »
Quote from: mlf73 on October 11, 2011, 10:59:00 AM
Resolved the issue......both bulbs replaced.  I hope I don't have some other underlying issue causing these bulbs to blow.

Are you sure that the bulbs were blown? I had this same problem about 3 years ago and no matter how many bulbs I tried the running lights did not work. In the process of messing with the bulbs and stuff over a few days they all the sudden started to work. I had driven through a rainstorm a few days before and apparently my tail lights but not my brake lights stopped working. It just took some time to dry out and I have not had a problem since.
Logged
1997 Concours
1999 KLR 650

Offline mlf73

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 117
  • Country: 00
Re: Tail Lights not working
« Reply #8 on: October 13, 2011, 06:15:23 PM »
Quote
Are you sure that the bulbs were blown?

I'm pretty sure they were blown.  I'm about blind as a bat even with my reading glasses on when trying to see things as tiny as those tail light filaments but I'm confident that I saw that they were burnt out after looking very closely in good lighting.  The new bulbs came right on when installed.  As I said in an earlier post, I must have done something to cause them to blow while messing with the wiring and disconnecting/connecting the battery.

Marlan
Logged
02 Conc- Corbin seat, Cee Baileys shield, MCL fork brace, 4 pot calipers w/zrxmopar's adapters, 310mm rotors, SS brake lines, 1.1 Sonic springs, C14 rear shock, TCro's stick coils, SiSF's economy jet kit, front tip-over bars w/hwy pegs, KB bar risers, fender extender, block off plates, HVMP bar end weights, grip heaters, Murphs fuse block, 55W HID upgrade, relo'd coolant bottle & helmet locks

Offline Pfloydgad

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 356
  • Country: us
  • When I was a child, I caught a fleeting glimpse
Re: Tail Lights not working
« Reply #9 on: October 15, 2011, 07:45:26 AM »
I noticed no tail lites after an evening ride the other night. Brake lights were just fine, so now what.  They were fine at the gas station, it was getting dark so I hit the swith fro my driving lites. nothing.
Got home, parked on center stand. Popped left side cover and pulled the "fuse" cover off the J-box side. The dust was heavy under the cover.
I grabed my can of compressed air I use for electronics, gave it a spray, pulled the fuses, and hit the whole section with Radio Shack Tuner cleaner. It bubbles up and then evaporates, and it left the fuse slides looking new.
A little more air to make sure they are dry, replace the fuses, and Wulla, lights.
Just my $.02, hope this helps.
RSA, and ATGATT please.
Greg
Logged
Why did we have to run for cover with the promise of a brave new world unfold beneath the clear blue sky ?
  Go Up
« previous next »