Has anyone here had a 'drive-mode' switch AND front brake light switch go bad?

[sigeye]

I have a 2014 Super Tenere ES that I bought new and now has about 23k miles and I've had some sucky luck with electrical switches as of late. Have any of you experienced this?

At 22k miles, I had to replace my front brake light switch because the internal contactor for the brake light would stick and therefore leave the brake light 'on' all the time...therefore folks couldn't see the difference between me braking or not. I bypassed it by wiring the two wires N/C with a wire nut until the new switch arrived this past week. I installed the new switch and bingo...works like a charm again. But I'm still disappointed it went bad in the first place (it also was intermittently not allowing cruise as a result due to the safety sequence).

Now that I replaced my front brake light switch last week, I am now plagued with a drive mode switch that just broke or is loose or something. Two days this week when heading out to work I found my bike in 'T-mode' which I NEVER use. My bike has spent basically all 23k miles in 'S' mode. I was messing with it at a red light this morning and found that the toggle switch for selecting drive mode was loose and it would make my bike go from T to S and back and forth over and over just by tapping it. Now that I'm at work, I looked into it some more and clearly feel that the toggle switch is very loose if not just broken inside. WTF??? My only guess is corrosion caused this because that switch has never taken any kind of hit nor has it encountered anything out of the norm.

And to make matters worse, it is now stuck in 'T' mode which means my bike is a dawg until I fix or replace this switch.

Has anyone had the same issues and specifically an issue with the drive mode toggle switch? I'm hoping that I can simply pull it apart and tighten something...but my gut tells me I have to replace it. At just 23k miles...???

Thanks in advance for any advice and feedback.

 

[Checkswrecks]

How close in Texas are you to the ocean or where the bike is seeing lots of pollution?

 

[sigeye]

Near Austin. I think that it may simply stem from 'under' use and therefore corrosion from lack of movement. I ride the bike cross country and do quite a bit of off road so it has seen a lot of various weather and dusty conditions. I also ride it to work and it sits underneath a shade tree quite a bit too. Maybe mother nature just wanted to slide a jab in

 

[HeliMark]

My turn signal switch on my '13 has some issue's. Feels fine when just sitting, but when riding, when you cancel a left turn, you do not feel that click like it does on the right cancellation or just sitting. Still works, but I have mine at the dealers for a valve check and hoping that Yamaha will buy off on a warranty replacement on it. I figure it is going to stop working at some point in the future, and hope to head it off. The bike has 26K miles on it.

But I think it is pretty rare for these switches to go bad.

Mark

 

[iClint]

My drive mode switch failed a few weeks ago, and was replaced under warranty.

Its funny as I rarely use the switch.

Before that a few months ago my Cruise control buttons started sticking, after a day riding in very dusty conditions off road with a group. I cleaned it and it has been fine since.

 

[Don in Lodi]

Did they have that housing apart when the brake switch got fixed? Maybe something dropped out of place...

 

[sigeye]

Well, I found the root cause of the issue with my drive mode toggle switch and I also found a way to rig it to get it back into 'S' mode and carry-on.

I took the switch assembly apart and found that the toggle is simply a slider that makes/breaks connection with a piece on the backside of the switch. On the toggle there are (2) contacts and on the other side there is a plastic plate with (2) flat contacts. When the toggle is just sitting in place both contacts are touching, but when you slide the toggle it breaks connection which triggers the mode selection change. The issue with my switch was that the flat plate on the inside (with the flat contacts) had a tab break off somehow that meant it slid backwards into the switch housing and therefore no longer was up against the (2) contacts attached to the toggle switch. This plate issue cannot be repaired or replaced solely, so I have order another switch which conveniently is on back order with Yamaha.

Given that a new switch assembly is on back order with Yamaha (and I dislike 'T' mode with a passion) I had to find a way to rig it back into 'S' mode for my sanity. So I left the switch and contacts apart as shown below in the pictures, cranked up the bike and then held the two contact points together and rubbed them across one another...bingo..back in 'S' mode. I then let go and turned the bike back off and now it is permanently in 'S' mode until I replace the entire switch assembly again. I figured I should share this info in case anyone else has the same problem. (BTW, I'm out of warranty and do not have extended warranty - so that's why I was OK with rigging this).

 

[stutrump]

Great pics and advice. I have a problem with mine too so Im sure this will help me to sort it out. Thank you!

 

[rider_marc]

Nice posting of the problem sigeye. Just did a check for updated part numbers and the 2014-16 are the same. Of the two websites I check only one listed as back-order. Anyway, can tell if a new switch would benefit from having some parts of the switch being potted with a good silicon sealer? My suspicion is vibrations are at work on the switch internals.

I am wondering if this might be a widespread problem. $80 every 1-2 years to replace a switch really isn't ideal for anyone.

Well, I found the root cause of the issue with my drive mode toggle switch and I also found a way to rig it to get it back into 'S' mode and carry-on.

I took the switch assembly apart and found that the toggle is simply a slider that makes/breaks connection with a piece on the backside of the switch. On the toggle there are (2) contacts and on the other side there is a plastic plate with (2) flat contacts. When the toggle is just sitting in place both contacts are touching, but when you slide the toggle it breaks connection which triggers the mode selection change. The issue with my switch was that the flat plate on the inside (with the flat contacts) had a tab break off somehow that meant it slid backwards into the switch housing and therefore no longer was up against the (2) contacts attached to the toggle switch. This plate issue cannot be repaired or replaced solely, so I have order another switch which conveniently is on back order with Yamaha.

 

[Stoned]

Mine (2013) has been acting up some. Occasionally it will not want to switch modes. I end up having to shut it off and restart, at which time it will work. I sprayed some Radio Shack electrical cleaner in and it seems to have cured my problem, temporarily. If it gets worse, I guess I will order a new switch. Thanks for posting.

 

[Brick]

Hmmm... I'm wondering why you didn't just super glue the plastic plate with the two contacts in place and ride on? Put the $80 in your pocket?

 

[WJBertrand]

Very useful post. Seems Yamaha may not have anticipated the switch sustaining a force pushing it inward as opposed to sliding it. Don't know if a thumb is strong enough to push inward and break that tab, but maybe in a drop or get off somehow?

 

[Brick]

Very useful post. Seems Yamaha may not have anticipated the switch sustaining a force pushing it inward as opposed to sliding it. Don't know if a thumb is strong enough to push inward and break that tab, but maybe in a drop or get off somehow?

Just don't start another "Yamaha is gonna do a recall" thread.

I am such a troublemaker.