Headlight switch

[Bokobob]

All of a sudden the headlight switch on the 87 K75 does not work..the bulb is always on bright....I am he world's worst at "herding electrons" and do not know a thing about checking things with a meter, etc...any idies of a potential fix are appreciated...

Thanks for help....apologize for being a klutz in this particular part of maintenance ,

[johnny]

greetings bokobob...

wanna make sure i understand...

switch on low beam = no light...

switch on low beam = low beam on...

switch on low beam = high beam on...

switch on high beam = no light...

switch on high beam = low beam on...

switch on high beam = high beam on...

switch on flash to pass = no light...

switch on flash to pass = low beam on...

switch on flash to pass = high beam on...

is the high beam indicator lit on the dash all the time...

what is it...

j o

[Bokobob]

Johnny thank you for your complete list of possibilities relating to the headlight switch.
The high beam comes on when the ignition switch is turned all the way on, whether the engine is running or not.
The high beam stays the same no matter to which functional position I move the switch:  high, low, passing.
There is  no wavering of the high  beam while moving the switch from one functional position to or from any other...The only difference is when I turn the key in the ignition to "halfway" between the off and start positions.....Then the high beam is off and a tiny sort of rather dim "parking" light comes on...it is a very little bulb less than a half inch in diameter..

 

[Inge K.]

You're shure it's the high beam, and not the low beam? K75S have the low beam always on, also together with
high beam via connectors in the relay box.

K75C also have these connectors, but they isn't connected together....but it could have been done by a PO.

[johnny]

greetings bokobob...

me thinks it could be that the low beam is always on and the high beam is not on at all...

i would swap my spare bulb in there just to see if its the bulb...

j o

[Bokobob]

Seems to me it is the high beam, plus the blue high beam light on instrument panel stays on.....I'll check into it further, though to see if one of the bulbs in burned out...

Thanks for replies..

[Inge K.]

As the high beam indicator in the instruments also is on it isn't any doubt about it.
I would guess that the problem is in the LHS switch assy....the movement of the button is like normal?
Done any work at the electrics/wires lately that could be related?

To verify, remove the tank...at the LHS you find a connector with 8 contacts...disconnect it.
Short the white/yellow wire and the yellow wire (ignition on) and the low beam should turn on.
Do the same with white/yellow and white wire....the high beam should turn on.

If your headlight functions as normal on this test...the problem is in the switch assy.
If still only the high beam turns on in this test...the problem is in the bulb connector or related wiring.

[Bokobob]

Thanks for additional tips...I'll write them down and give to my wrench guy..I am brain dead on how to understand electricity....I have had the bike about 3 months or so....I recently put on a larger windshield that covered the vents in the surround on top of the light for a few days........It was after that was done that I noticed the high beam was on...The switch physically feels the same as always....I now have gone back to a smaller windshield that does not block the air from entering the vents above the light...You can see the type of surround from the avatar on my posting..I believe it is a K100 standard surround or maybe it is called an K100 naked surround....whatever...that is what I have..

Thanks much..

[Uffda]

Sounds exactly what I found shortly after picking up my K75RT.  High beam (and Low) stayed on.  It was the switch, the solder fused between the two contacts.  Attached is my original photo asking for help back in 2010.  I was able to cut the solder fuse with a knife, buttoned it back up and it worked just fine.
The recommendation was to get a relay, which I did (Eastern Beaver - easy peazy).  No problems since.  You should be able to look at it yourself and possibly do the same fix I did.  Just be sure to add the headlight relay.

[Motorhobo]

I just put in the EB relay. It's not difficult but if you do the plug n play install like I did you need to run the positive and negative lead from the headlight fixture to the battery. There's no port on the headlight can for any extra wiring, so you either have to drill another hole or remove the rubber boot through which the original wiring runs and run the relay wiring thru that. That leaves the edges of the existing hole raw. I ziptied old and new wiring and electrical taped the crap out of them to protect from the metal edges of the hole and ran the relay wiring through the gap between the cockpit section and triple tree. Anybody have a better idea? This is the unfaired K75 with the round headlight can.

I will probably not do the permanent install on this bike because I'm not too sure how long the bike will last...there are some front end issues I'm not sure it's cost-effective to fix.

Bob, PM me if you want to talk through the relay install. Duck might have a spare combo switch if you just want to replace the whole,thing, which is what I did a few years ago.

[rbm]

I ziptied old and new wiring and electrical taped the crap out of them to protect from the metal edges of the hole and ran the relay wiring through the gap between the cockpit section and triple tree. Anybody have a better idea? This is the unfaired K75 with the round headlight can.

take some 1/8" windshield wiper rubber tubing the same length as the circumference as the hole, make a slit along its length through the wall of the tubing and fit it around the hole making sure that the ends meet cleanly and neatly.  This will protect the wiring from chafing on the sharp metal edge and give you the greatest opening size possible.  To ensure no moisture gets in through the opening, use a smear of silicone around the interface between the wire bundle and tubing.

[Motorhobo]

Thanks Robert, I will do exactly that.

Van