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[LaddMan]

Periodically the cruse/spot switch on my 2007 flhtcuse2 simply goes dead. this always starts and stops when the main ignition switch is turned on and off. I cant seam to find any correlation to heat, cold, rain, or any common factor. when it occurs the indicator lights in the switch, the cruse and the spots are all dead. when it comes back they all work perfectly. I have never been able to get it to happen and stay happening and get the bike to my dealer and when I have had it out and can get to a dealer I have always been on the road , no one stocks the switch and they don't want to dig into it and have me down without parts. My conversations with Harley factory people simply refer me back to my dealer who continues to say with out if in failure mode they don't have a clue what to do. Has anyone else encountered this type of issue and if so what was your outcome? any help would be appreciated.

[Pete7539]

I just changed out my handle bars on my 08 and while doing so had to remove the dash cap as part of install. When I went to unplug the larger weather pack connecting cap to harness it was really difficult to pull it apart. I got it apart and noticed there was corrosion on two of the pins so when finishing up I removed and cleaned them. In haste, I put them back in wrong order. Luckily I took pictures of every connection I took apart. I realized the two corroded wires were for cruise/spot because it wasn't working correct. I switched them back and all is good. Before I reassembled that connector I put a dab of dialectric grease in all the pin sockets to hopefully prevent any future corrosion. Long-winded, but that's where I'd check first. I don't know why that connector was the only one to show corrosion, but maybe it was a design flaw and seeing your bike is only a year older than mine, maybe yours is corroded as well. Perhaps a little more 

[HD Jim]

I had the cruise/spot switch replaced under warranty on my 12SEUC.  Switch was bad.  Worked right ever since the new switch was installed.  I believe there are issues with the latching operation (one press it latches on second press it unlatches or turns off of the switch. 

[grc]

Periodically the cruse/spot switch on my 2007 flhtcuse2 simply goes dead. this always starts and stops when the main ignition switch is turned on and off. I cant seam to find any correlation to heat, cold, rain, or any common factor. when it occurs the indicator lights in the switch, the cruse and the spots are all dead. when it comes back they all work perfectly. I have never been able to get it to happen and stay happening and get the bike to my dealer and when I have had it out and can get to a dealer I have always been on the road , no one stocks the switch and they don't want to dig into it and have me down without parts. My conversations with Harley factory people simply refer me back to my dealer who continues to say with out it in failure mode they don't have a clue what to do. Has anyone else encountered this type of issue and if so what was your outcome? any help would be appreciated.

I always love that excuse.  I guess you shouldn't expect your cardiologist to do any testing because you aren't in cardiac arrest at the moment, but be sure to come back if your heart quits working.   

Since the switch is fairly pricey (71765-07, $115), and dealerships won't let you return electrical parts, you probably don't want to just buy a new one and hope it works.  I think if I were you I'd do as Pete mentioned, remove the fairing cap and check the connections for the switch.  It kind of sounds like an intermittent connection from your description, as opposed to a complete failure of the switch.  If you're not the mechanical/electrical type, find a qualified mechanic (not the moron at that dealership who fed you that BS) to do it for you.  If it turns out to be a simple electrical connection problem, then you can decide if you want to enlighten the "professional" technician at your dealership or just let him continue to be lazy and ignorant.

Let me make a guess here.  You wouldn't happen to have the ESP would you?  I've found that warranty or ESP customers are much more likely to get that BS response than folks who come in expecting to pay the bill themselves.  It's funny how some places are more than happy to take a customer's money to swap out parts until they accidently fix the problem, but they won't even attempt to diagnose an intermittent problem if it's covered by warranty or ESP because they know the manufacturer or ESP company won't pay them for a treasure hunt sort of repair attempt.

Jerry

[hep0950]

Of course a dealer will not hunt for a intermittent problem because they know the time it would take and they may not find it. Meanwhile they have the bike tied up and the customer cannot ride, not to mention tying up the shop for others that need their bike worked on. Of course they will work on your bike if you are going to pay for it and want them to, but  good dealership will advise against it. I'm an electrician, and it is very hard to find an intermittent problem. You may find a problem and think it is it only to find there were multiple problems. That is why they tell you they they don't have a clue unless it is in failure mode. Not giving dealers an excuse, but I know the problems when there is an intermittent problem. They will drive you nuts at times.

[grc]

Of course a dealer will not hunt for a intermittent problem because they know the time it would take and they may not find it. Meanwhile they have the bike tied up and the customer cannot ride, not to mention tying up the shop for others that need their bike worked on. Of course they will work on your bike if you are going to pay for it and want them to, but good dealership will advise against it. I'm an electrician, and it is very hard to find an intermittent problem. You may find a problem and think it is it only to find there were multiple problems. That is why they tell you they they don't have a clue unless it is in failure mode. Not giving dealers an excuse, but I know the problems when there is an intermittent problem. They will drive you nuts at times.

So if I understand your reasoning no one should ever expect a technician (or an electrician it seems) to perform basic diagnostics in an effort to prevent a total failure, but instead just wait for that total failure?  Sorry, but I guess I come from a different mold and mindset.  I spent many years of my professional life using the grey matter between my ears to diagnose and fix "intermittent" issues or issues other folks didn't want to take on.  Now all we seem to have are part changers and those who have to wait for a part to fail and start smoking I guess.  And then if we were to take your method to it's conclusion, I suppose once the part starts smoking and self destructs, we would just replace the burned up part and ASSUME it wasn't caused by something else.  That's a good way to burn stuff down, but what the hey, it's not your stuff.  And for the guy with a Harley with an intermittent problem, I guess it's OK to blow him off until the warranty expires or he's on a long trip somewhere and that intermittent becomes a major failure in the middle of nowhere.  Sorry, I wasn't brought up or trained that way, and I don't buy the theory.  I find it very disheartening that things have become so bad that some people accept this sort of stuff as normal and acceptable.   

Jerry

[hep0950]

So if I understand your reasoning no one should ever expect a technician (or an electrician it seems) to perform basic diagnostics in an effort to prevent a total failure, but instead just wait for that total failure?  Sorry, but I guess I come from a different mold and mindset.  I spent many years of my professional life using the grey matter between my ears to diagnose and fix "intermittent" issues or issues other folks didn't want to take on.  Now all we seem to have are part changers and those who have to wait for a part to fail and start smoking I guess.  And then if we were to take your method to it's conclusion, I suppose once the part starts smoking and self destructs, we would just replace the burned up part and ASSUME it wasn't caused by something else.  That's a good way to burn stuff down, but what the hey, it's not your stuff.  And for the guy with a Harley with an intermittent problem, I guess it's OK to blow him off until the warranty expires or he's on a long trip somewhere and that intermittent becomes a major failure in the middle of nowhere.  Sorry, I wasn't brought up or trained that way, and I don't buy the theory.  I find it very disheartening that things have become so bad that some people accept this sort of stuff as normal and acceptable.    

Jerry

Not on all items, there are those that have been found before and they can check those out, but on an intermittent problem you can be chasing it for quite a long time and still not narrow it down. Is your method to keep changing parts out until you think you found it? At any rate, be expecting some time spent. Would you want them spending a lot of time finding an intermittent problem if the bike wasn't under warranty at $85 an hour? So If the Harley can be ridden, do you think he is going to be happy with his bike in the shop for maybe weeks? The best thing to do is to them them exactly how it was acting and check the codes on the odometer to see what shows up there. And if a part you replace does happen to burn, you then trace back the circuit to find the problem. Unless you know what failed, you are just taking guesses. Of course this is the problem with any warranty, whether on a motorcycle or car, the dealers do not like doing them. It takes away time they can be spending on customers that are paying for service. You would think they could do better, but unfortunately they don't. I have to wonder if you have worked on any intermittent problems. My point, don't be too hard on the service dept., they screw up enough as it is without screwing up an intermittent problem. That is the good thing about forums like this where someone may have had the same experience and know what the problem is already.

[tweeter13]

One thing I do is what I call the wiggle test.  I would remove the dash cap and wiggle the wires at the switch and see if it shuts off.   Since you are losing both the cruise and the spots.  I looked in my book for a se6.  Not sure if they are the same but both sides share the same ground and connect at 105 connector.


This may also sound funny as well has anything been done to the front turn signals since this started? 

Todd