Modern Buddy

Hey MB,

Can anyone help me with a battery/power issue?

Here's the story. I bought a Vespa and put my buddy away for the winter. The buddy was under a bridge along with many others who park there for the winter season. I would go once a week to start it up so it doesn't sit untouched for a few months (get the gears running). Anyway, before I put it away, I went to get a tune up, oil change etc so I can potentially sell it. Right before I took it into the shop, the battery started to act up. I replaced it early 2011. The hazards and turn signals would work BUT they would just stay on and not blink. The electric starter does not work and it only worked through the kickstarter.

So when I took it in for service, my mechanic said it "started to work on its own" and he didn't look into it.

Basically, the same issue occurred. Has anyone had this problem? I assume it's battery related but I kinda rule it out due to it being only a year old AND it "fixing itself". Can it be wire?

Dis,

Two things to look at: battery charge and fuse.

FIrst thing is to ensure that you have a fully-charged battery. Since the stator/alternator is so lame in the PGO design, it can take a long time to recharge a compromised battery by just running it a bit. Think hours here. If the battery isn't delivering a good voltage, the blinker module that runs the signals and hazard won't do its thing. So the quick first step is to make sure you have a good charge, preferably with an external charger just to be sure.

Second - look at the main fuse in the battery compartment. There are anecdotes around here that some components (engine and such) can run in the absence of this fuse, but it makes other components (lighting, horn, etc.) go a little wonky. You'd _expect_ that nothing would work, but some things seem to, depending on whether their grounds are floating, etc. Double-check this fuse, first visually, then if possible with an ohmmeter to make sure it's good.

Let us know what you find out!

Even a brand new battery could have a problem if not charged enough to
drive the electric starter. I put in a new charged battery and even after
a short time use the battery was low. Check with a volt meter and may have to recharge for the electrical componets to work especially the starter.
My battery was charged up to 12.8V and dropped to 12.5V after the second charging staying up there.