Side stand switch

[Guest tsteele]

Does anyone have detailed instructions on bypassing the side stand switch-even temporarily? My bike is new (1 month, 1400 miles) and I'd like to have my dealer make the fix, but I can't get the thing in gear because the side stand switch isn't working and the bike stalls as soon as I put it in gear.

 

I'd like to just get the thing running long enough to get around a couple days 'til I get to the shop (it's my main form of transportation!)

 

Any help would be great!!

 

Thanks.

 

Thomas Steele

2003 V11 LeMans Grigio/Titanium

[twhitaker]

The connection is up under the gas tank. It might be worth checking your relay. There is a bank of 5 relays. The sidestand relay is the middle one. Pop it out and exchange it for the next one forward (lights) and see what happens. If you can get someone to help you hold the bike up raise the sidestand and operate the plunger in the switch with your finger to try to clear some debris from the contacts.

[Guest tsteele]

Thanks. I had the shop hard-wire the under-tank conncetions last week because of the loose bullet connector problem the LeMans seems to have. I thought this new problem was the plunger (I took a guided tour, thanks to a friendly motorist, through a grass and mud filled ditch) and I worked that in and out several times this morning, but it didn't seem to help. Helped last week, though. Is the switch up under the tank or is it in the plunger? Could I have mud up inside the plunger? Or is there even enough room for that?

[twhitaker]

The contacts are in the switch. The plunger pushes the contacts open and the spring pushes the contacts closed. Up under the tank is just a pair of bullet connecters that allow you to connect the switch to the wiring harness. I wonder if the guy who fixed the connecters did a good job.

 

Did you try swapping relays?

[Guest tsteele]

Here's what I ended up doing:

I put the bike on my mini lift and removed the 13mm nut holding the switch in position. I massaged the wires a little and the bike started in gear. I put the switch back into position and the bike failed to start. So...I took the switch back out and massaged the wires again, then I folded the switch and wires up and used electrical tape to keep it together and to keep it from flapping around against the oil pan and cross-over pipe. It runs like a charm, for now. It got me to the job site (67 miles in the rain). I'll get it into the shop tomorrow and have the crew at Moto International find a permanent solution. Dave Richardson is the owner there; he wrote the book Guzziology. I think they know what they're doing. By the way, you can tell if this solution will work or not if you put the bike in gear then turn on the ignition. If you hear the fuel pump start up, it's going to work. If not, you have to go back and reposition the wires.

 

Thanks for the help!

 

--ts

[twhitaker]

Sounds like you'll be getting a new switch. If you feel brave, have them eliminate the switch. I can't tell you how many times that switch reminded me the sidestand was down. This summer the screw that actuates the switch broke off when I went down. I did not bother to fix it until after the third time the sidestand itself reminded me it was down.

[Guest tsteele]

I'll probably have them replace it or find an alternative that will still remind me the stand is down. I've only needed it once or twice, but it's nice to know.

[twhitaker]

My dealer has a California 3. He's old (in his 70s) and can't get to the sidestand when he is astride the bike. He has a string attached to the sidestand at one end and the other is connected to his left handlebar. He raises the sidestand by pulling backwards on the string. I'll bet he puts better than 8,000 miles a year on the bike too.