[pshailis]

Hi, I own a 2011 CRF250X and I recently found out that the battery is not charging.
So I did the test exactly as the manual says to test and find out where is the problem:

Leakage test

disconnect -ve battery lead
set meter to mA black tester prong to battery -ve and red tester prong to disconnected lead

my reading 0.00 = TEST PASSED

Stator coil resistance test

disconnect black 4-pin connector and:-

test 'continuity' between YELLOW and ground (BEEP) TEST PASSED

test 'continuity' between BLUE and ground (BEEP) TEST PASSED

reg/rec test

disconnect 'natural' coloured connector and:

Red/white & ground: battery voltage should register = TEST PASSED
Yellow & ground = TEST PASSED
Blue & ground = TEST FAILED - NO CONTINUITY
Green & ground = TEST PASSED

So after this I am not sure what to do. I have 2 questions though:

1. The fuse that I checked based on the manual comes from the harness so I guess that this may not be a reg/rec problem? right?
2. All info I found in Youtube or forums for the alternator test, they all say that the wires SHOULD NOT have continuity to the ground. The manual says the opposite though.. Why? Is this bike different from all others?

[JimDirt]

Blue wire goes to Stator , any wire in the plug should have continuity , if it does not then follow the wire to the component , in this case the stator , if the tests check out for the Stator , then the only other option is the Regulator , the Fuse is the Main Fuse from what I can see in the wiring diagram (was it blown ?? , if so I would look for a short) also (I only have a Owners Manual for the 250X and its for a 05 , but I think they did not change anything thru the years) , but looking at my 450X Service Manual , to me it is looking like the Regulator is failing , if the Stator test shows it is good , then there is only 2 other options , Regulator/Rec , or Battery to make the system charge

And usually if the Factory Honda Service Manual says to do something or gives specs , I would trust that over anything else .... , if it is a Clymer or Chilton Manual , I would not trust it as much as the Honda Service Manual ...

[Aussiecrf230]

Don't have a wiring diagram with me but doesn't the blue wire at rectifier go to the blue wire going to the alternator. Isn't that blue wire also going to the headlight. If you don't see the earth at the rectifier plug must be open circuit before headlight take off point.
Assuming it didn't change at some point from mid 2000s

[pshailis]

I didn't check the main fuse to be honest. The bike starts and runs fine though. If it was blown it would cause several other problems, right?

Yes, based on the diagram the blue wire also goes to the headlight. Headlight is working so I guess this means that the alternator blue is charging, right?

How can I check and find out if the regulator is faulty? is there any accurate test?

Thanks.

[pshailis]

Blue wire goes to Stator , any wire in the plug should have continuity , if it does not then follow the wire to the component , in this case the stator , if the tests check out for the Stator , then the only other option is the Regulator , the Fuse is the Main Fuse from what I can see in the wiring diagram (was it blown ?? , if so I would look for a short) also (I only have a Owners Manual for the 250X and its for a 05 , but I think they did not change anything thru the years) , but looking at my 450X Service Manual , to me it is looking like the Regulator is failing , if the Stator test shows it is good , then there is only 2 other options , Regulator/Rec , or Battery to make the system charge

And usually if the Factory Honda Service Manual says to do something or gives specs , I would trust that over anything else .... , if it is a Clymer or Chilton Manual , I would not trust it as much as the Honda Service Manual ...

CORRECTION: I didn't mean fuse, I meant plug! (See image) The fuse is fine! What my question is: Is it possible to have a bad plug?

[JimDirt]

It is possible that the plug is bad , but more than likely you would see a sign of it ,like either corrosion or heavy discoloration , like a dark/burnt section where the connection was bad , and looking down into the actual connection itself it would be dark/burnt , or even a different size from the others indicating possibly having a loose wire/connector , you would also have continuity issues on one side of the connector where 1 side of the plug has continuity or power and the other side did not ...

So unless those obvious signs are present , especially getting a connection from each side equally , then I would not suspect the connection itself .... with a Ohms meter you could put the probes on each side , making sure they are not coming loose , then wiggle the connector and pull on it , if the connection breaks by means of the Ohmmeter reading or sound , or lack thereof , then you have something , but those connections are pretty durable and if it is compromised I would look at/for the cause of the condition rather than the condition itself , if the connection got hot and it is a tight connection , then something got the wire hot enough to compromise the connection point , as any connection junction would be the place of most resistance , so the most likely spot to fail ... but if that passes , then you have to look back at the component in question like the Regulator/Rectifier ....

One other thing , look at the ground plug just behind the clutch actuator , there is a connector coming from the battery grounding to the engine , if you have lifted the subframe at any time , it would have pulled on the connection where the wire goes into the connector (this is a common issue with the X model , both 250 and 450) , give a tug on the wire , if it moves in the connector or even pulls up/out a bit on the wire itself from the connector , that might be the cause .... a bad ground will suck the juice right out of a battery when running as it is a high resistance place and it will draw more than the system can replenish what it looses there ...

[Aussiecrf230]

If you are happy that wiring is all good and earths all measure 0 ohms to each other, then what voltage do you get on the red/white wire at the fuse with bike not running compared to running at say 5000rpm?

With the battery disconnected measure voltage from -ve to anywhere on top of case. Try a few places and on side of case. Had battery before that case was conductive. Sounds crazy I know but does happen. Sometimes a good clean will fix it sometimes not.

[pshailis]

One other thing , look at the ground plug just behind the clutch actuator , there is a connector coming from the battery grounding to the engine , if you have lifted the subframe at any time , it would have pulled on the connection where the wire goes into the connector (this is a common issue with the X model , both 250 and 450) , give a tug on the wire , if it moves in the connector or even pulls up/out a bit on the wire itself from the connector , that might be the cause .... a bad ground will suck the juice right out of a battery when running as it is a high resistance place and it will draw more than the system can replenish what it looses there ...

Hey I actually lifted the subframe recently to clean the carb. Sounds like a possibility. I will check for sure, thanks.

One last question and I'm done.
On Honda manual alternator test it says the following:
Check for continuity between the terminal of the alternator side connector and ground.
Yellow tenninal - Body ground
Blue terminal - Body ground
If any wire has no continuity to ground, replace the alternator stator.

Every single test I found in youtube including for the latest Honda CRF250RX model, IF these wires HAVE CONTINUITY, it means the stator is bad and needs replacement.. Why on earth the CRF250X is the only bike to be the opposite??

[JimDirt]

This is from my 450X Service Manual , read what is highlighted , it says the same thing as your manual , trust this as correct

[pshailis]

So after some tests I concluded that the stator is fine, and the problem is possibly a leakage, coming from the fan.
I installed an aftermarket fan and I connected it to the battery directly. I Checked the cables and see to be fine though.

I guess I have to connect the fan properly.
Do you know the location on the bike of the "option" connection as specified by the wiring diagram?

[JimDirt]

I connected mine directly to the battery with a inline fuse .....