Thanks Sarah, but that still doesn't help. As I wrote above, I removed the turn signal indicator bulb from the dash display. This helped somewhat in that the REAR signals will flash independently, but I get nothing from the front signals. Still looking for answers as to why I get no response/light from the front signals?
Unless you're also using your signals as marker lights, converting them to LED won't save you much wattage. Your biggest savings will be from the LED tail/brake bulb, converting the license bulb to LED, converting to a 35W HID headlight, and converting your dash bulbs to LED. If you want to also make your DR more visible, you can convert your signals to dual-circuit LED signals. I found some on Ebay that look like stock DR signals. Front signals from many Yamahas are dual-filament. Wire the 2nd (dim) circuit into the tail circuit, and they become marker lights. Red markers are used in the rear, and amber markers are used on the front. Clear lenses with colored LEDs can accomplish this. I used stock-looking amber signals all-around, but wired in some red LED marker strips on each side of my rear fender. My front signals are dual-filament models that look stock, with BRIGHT LED reflector bulbs in them. My rear signals are bone-stock, but I still replaced my stock flasher unit with an LED-friendly unit. The signal indicator in my dash is a stock bulb, so I didn't have to wire in a diode, but the highbeam and neutral indicators are LEDs. My DR looks pretty much stock until I light it up. It still uses less wattage than stock, and I haven't converted to an HID headlight yet. My lights all work as designed. A 3-position headlight switch is planned too.
I'll tell you what folks,...gettting older really sucks. Normally I consider myself a somewhat smart guy; but it didn't even don on me that, (inner voice speaking)..."hey dumbass, when riding the bike, from a time standpoint, you used the turn signals sparingly at best." Kommando is absolutely right! Really, how much wattage am I saving by using LEDs in the turn signals considering I rarely use them? Sometimes logic, when applied correctly sure does end up making sense. I'm just going to switch back to the normal, filament bulbs. I'm not using them as marker lights, so yes the watt usage would be minimal at best. Sometimes instead of using my motorcycle(s) for transportation, I should just ride the short bus!
Glad you're getting it sorted. Let us know how it goes together once you get the proper bulb. Thanks for the pictures, too. Sarah
Good move! Unless you're one of those riders that cruises down the road with signals blinking away ... oblivious ! ... then should not be a prob. My routine for managing my elec. output/battery life is this: When super cold I'll be running everything up at 100%, the Gerbing draws 77 watts at 100%. Heated grips on HIGH (about 30 watts). That about expends ALL of the DR's extra Watts. My 35W HID light saves 20 Watts. Daylight riding in super cold on a longer ride I switch off my headlight. (this is optional, as on certain roads running your headlight can be a safety issue) At night, no choice, head light must be ON. But if you can turn off headlight in daylight ... that's another 35W to 55W free saving. (depending which bulb type you're using) Any time I come into a town or area with speed reduction I switch OFF all accessories. I try to minimize brake light & turn signal use. At low RPM engine is charging LESS ... so going slow? Accessories OFF. Remember: Your battery may discharge some if you are over taxing it and discharging .... BUT ... once accessories are switched OFF ... you battery will recover! (providing it's reasonably healthy) I've gone from a dead batt that would not turn over the motor to one that cranks ... in just 20 minutes of riding with accessories OFF. So, even if your Batt gets low or goes dead ... it will come back in most cases. Just manage your accessories.
Sorry to sound like a complete idiot - but how would I go about connecting into the unused switched power outlet behind the headlight? I bought a 3m auxiliary power outlet adapter at Walmart the other day for this purpose, and it just has 2 wires, the positive and the ground wire. Do I need to connect this to a male plug that fits into what looks like the female switched power outlet? I have absolutely zero electrical experience, and thought this would be better/easier than connecting directly to the battery. Thanks in advance! For reference, this is basically what I have: http://www.amazon.com/Bell-22-1-390...23057&sr=1-14&keywords=auxiliary+power+outlet and I'm trying to connect it to:
Simply cut the female end off the lead in the picture, solder the power wire from your accessory outlet you bought to the black/white wire in your picture, and then solder in the ground wire from the accessory outlet to the brown/ground wire. Easy, peazy, Japanezzy.
I finally got the correct headlight bulb from DDM Tuning, and just to make things easier on myself in the future, I had them send me a spare bulb for $12 extra. What I think is extremely nice about the 35watt setup, is I can turn the headlight off by simply engaging the "bright" switch on the left handlebar. Yes, technically I no longer have a "bright" option, but the low-beam HID setting from the DDM kit is far brighter and cleaner than the original "bright" setting anyway. I had been wanting to install some type of switch that would allow me to turn the headlight off, and the DDM kit kills two birds with one stone. Simple installation (when you order the correct bulb)...
Exactly! I had already wired in an ON/OFF switch before installing my HID. The HID made my switch redundant. Just switch to HI beam to switch off headlight. Good to have for starting ... or when running accessories in daylight. Amazing thing about the HID is no one flashes me ... yet I can see three times further on a dark road. Win Win Win.
They could also cut that female plug off and attach those wires to a power distribution block's input ports. Then they could attach their accessory-plug wires to one of the sets of output ports. Any other low-amperage switched items they want to power could be wired from this distribution block. I'd check the amperage rating for that plug's circuit before wiring in a bunch of stuff though.
Start squeal noise and fixes http://www.fy-yff.com/2011/08/squeaky-stater-motor-easy-fix.html http://webpages.charter.net/jrandall/starterfix/DR650_starter_fix.htm http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=832297
I installed LED turn signals front and rear. Also installed an electronic turn signal flasher from CustomeLED, Lights come on fine no issues, however all four light up at once when you select one side or the other..... with out going overboard on technical mumbo jumbo can someone give me some troubleshooting ideas please?
and I'm trying to connect it to: [/QUOTE] ah ha......that's whats that's for.....cig lighter....worked good for power for GPS RAM mount........
^^^^^ That might be the most famous DR650 photo on the internet. Photo credit to jon_l Try unplugging the turn signal indicator light (up by the key). If that works, you probably need to do the diode kit. (I'm happy with incandescent flashers, they aren't on long enough to matter.)