System Fault v58 VCU +12v Out of Spec

[Virtually Yours]

Got the Service Required V58 on my way to work this morning. This is the second time in 6 months. I had the part replaced at the end of Sept.'14... The problem now is I have no place to take the bike. I called my dealership a couple of weeks ago to see about the latest recall and they said that because of the Polaris buy out they would be dropping Brammo and would no longer service the Empulse. To be continued...

[Virtually Yours]

So a few days ago I spoke to Adam @ Brammo and he was able to call the dealership to clear up any confusion... It seems that they will continue to service the bike for now. Come to find out I'm two updates behind as well. Adam also asked me if I was running any aftermarket turn signals or LED lights. I have Rizoma turn signals and extra LED lights. Adam said he wasn't sure what's caused the system fault but someone out west (maybe Shiny?) had the same thing happen and was operating extra lights... So I'm riding down to Miami and leaving the bike there all week so they can take their time and go over the bike with a fine tooth comb. I'm asking them to do a battery diagonistic check to make sure that isn't part of the problem... It can't hurt...

[Shinysideup]

Yep, that'd probably be me. Rizoma turn signals, 35W LED replacement H4 "bulb",  two 10W LED driving lights, LED running light strips front and LED brake light and 2 strips in the rear.

I've always figured that since the total wattage is less than stock, I'd be OK. But maybe there's something occult going on in the LED's electronics' interacting with the 12V converter electronics??

I say this  because just yesterday, I replaced a 80W fluorescent fixture in my garage with two 20W LED flood lights and discovered that the wall-mounted motion detector switch's timer is not turning them off reliably.

Any EE types want to proffer an educated guess as to why the Sevcon DC/DC converter doesn't seem like it wants to play well with LED lighting? Or am I grasping at straws?

[Virtually Yours]

Well I dropped the bike off today and it'll get the full work over. Andres @ Unique Superbikes said he will try to see what the draw is with the lights on and then without to determine if that is the problem. I told him I just cut into the running lights wire and I apologized in advance for all the electrical tape if he had to disconnect them. I then hinted that the way I really wanted them wired was to the fuse box but it was to much work for me if that would indeed be better to go ahead and do it...?
I have 9 or 10 LED strips and Hyperlites front and rear... I never changed the headlight (yet).
I would hate to lose my LEDs when riding at night for obvious reasons...

Yep, that'd probably be me. Rizoma turn signals, 35W LED replacement H4 "bulb",  two 10W LED driving lights, LED running light strips front and LED brake light and 2 strips in the rear.
Sevcon DC/DC converter doesn't seem like it wants to play well with LED lighting? Or am I grasping at straws?

Good question! My understanding is you had the part replaced? More then once? If so, when and how many miles have you ridden? Do you run all the lights all the time?

[Shinysideup]

Yes, they replaced the converter 2 times. The LED driving lights come on only with high beam and the rear Hyperlites come on only when braking. I'm not sure about mileage, but the first replacement was after about a year, so maybe 10K miles; the second one was after another few months and has been working OK since then.

[Virtually Yours]

Ok good to know. Thanks! My first replacement was a year and a half after I got the bike (+/-8k miles) and 1 year after I put on the extra LEDs. Then again now 6 months...
So I spoke to Andres today. He said they just received the part today and will start working on the bike tomorrow. He is also going to test the difference in draw with the LEDs on and off to try to determine if this is the problem. I also gave him a laundry list of things to do being the bike was there including testing the batteries.. I may or may not get it back on Saturday.
So I did my best (please be kind b/c I'm no E engineer) to calculate the amount of amps all my extra lights may be pulling. I found something that said an LED chip is 0.08 amps. 99 chips x .08 = .66 amps. The Hyperlites web site said the draw of a set of 2 lights were little more then .25 amps, I have two sets so .5 amps + .66 amps = 1.16, call it 1.2 amps or <1.5 amps.
Would that be enough to throw off the DC/DC converter? Or say if I upgraded my headlight to a LED and all the lights together draws less amps then the stock headlight, would that also throw off the DC/DC converter?
Could a bad battery cell(s) damage the converter?

[Virtually Yours]

Well the bike is ready. Repairs, updates, general maintance all done and the conclusion is GOOD BYE LEDs! Or at least don't tie them in to the running lights. So I'll leave them in place for now but turn them off. Maybe the best and only way is to wire them straight to the fuse box and have their own dedicated circuit. Andres @ Unique Suber Bikes didn't seem to want to try to tackle the job because of the uncertainties that even a dedicated circuit may damage the converter. I couldn't hear most of the conversation because of a bad phone connection. Of course when ever he said something important the phone would cut out and make weird noises. I'll be able to talk with him at length in person tomorrow. Maybe with a little help from Brammo we could figure it out. To be continued...

[Shinysideup]

Thanks for pursuing this mystery. I sure wish I understood electronics! I'm very interested in finding out the final answers...

[Virtually Yours]

So I got the bike back with a good bill of health. After talking to Andres in person we've come to the conclusion that the best way to power the LEDs is through a separate rechargeable battery pack that will fit under my seat. One friend said his LEDs kept draining the battery on his R1 so he wired them up to a seperate 9v battery and it worked great. So this week I'll be doing some research to see what is the best system I can use... One video I found on YouTube suggested using the 11.1v for LED applications.

With a brief search I found these Sky LiPo Batteries for RC applications might do the trick.
http://www.hobbypartz.com/sky.html
Maybe a little inconvenient to recharge that battery but not as inconvenient as replacing that DC/DC converter.
Maybe I can put this together next weekend.
To be continued...

[Virtually Yours]

Long overdue Update! Since I got the bike fix I was determined to keep my LEDs. After doing some more reading and with the help from my friend who is heavy into a RC hobby, I found a great solution.  My friend came over and help solder my connections, use rubber heat shrink wrap, and use the best connector for the battery...
I decided to go with this MaxAmps battery for several reasons but the main one was it is waterproof.
http://www.maxamps.com/proddetail.php?prod=Lipo-3250-111-Pack
The LEDs work great and I even added a red one for the rear under the tail which helps with rear visibilty. I get a little more then two hours of useable time out of it. Once the LEDs start to dim you don't have long before you should turn them off as not to overdraw the battery. I only turn on my LEDs for my commute home from work when it's dark. It only takes me 15 minutes to get home SO it will last me all week on one charge.  For extra measure I bought some static free foam and shaped it into a tray of sorts so it would not be moving around, not come into contact with anything or heating up from the Brammo Battery or on board charger.  This also works out perfectly.

[madmaxatx]

Just saw this error - what part did you end up having to replace previously? I'm assuming it's the 12v converter for lights, horn, etc?

[Virtually Yours]

Ok I need some help.

I got System Fault V58 this morning. I guess I need to replace the VCU again.
 
1.)The question is would the VCU for the 2016 TT work for the 2013 Empulse R?
 
2.)Do I need to access the bike's computer to simply change the part?

3.)What are the problems if I keep riding the bike with the fault code? Would that lead to other problems?