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Fuel Gauge not reading correctly


Treefox

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Hey everyone! I have a 98 VFR that runs beautifully, only issue is that the fuel gauge doesn’t display correctly. It will flash empty after a refill sometimes. 
 

Sometimes it reads accurately (I think), so I’m a bit confused as to what’s wrong. 
 

Is this due to the float in the gas tank being stuck somehow? Is there a quick fix to it? 
 

thanks!

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I had similar in my new to me '00 but it seems to be sorting itself out. I suspect "something" is stuck from sitting. 

 

Looking forward to some details from more knowlegeable listers. 

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The fuel gauge sender is a resistance unit, more resistance = lower reading. If it flashes empty when full then you may have a dirty connector or broken wire causing the resistance to jump. I doubt the float arm would stick down when full but I suppose it's possible. I'd start by unplugging/plugging the blue connector wire under the tank. When empty you can also reach into the tank with a hook and move the sender arm to full and check the display changes as it should. 

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Hi Treefox.

Further to Terry's suggestions.

Do you have the Service Manual for your bike? If not you can download it from this forum. Section 19 will give you test information regards the sender unit.

 

Do you have a multimeter and know how to use it?

 

You need to check good continuity from the sender unit Gray/Black wire up to the instrument panel and make absolutely sure the Green/Black Ground wire has good continuity back to the battery Negative terminal. Check the 2P Blue connector near the sender is clean and connections through the connector are good.

 

Also the instrument panel itself can cause problems. The LCD is connected to the printed circuit copper tracks of the panel via 6 phillips head screws which can cause poor connections and the copper tracks can crack requiring a solder bridge or bypass wire to repair the faulty track.

 

Lets know how you get on with at least confirming the continuity of the two wires of the sender unit.

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6 hours ago, Grum said:

Hi Treefox.

Further to Terry's suggestions.

Do you have the Service Manual for your bike? If not you can download it from this forum. Section 19 will give you test information regards the sender unit.

 

Do you have a multimeter and know how to use it?

 

You need to check good continuity from the sender unit Gray/Black wire up to the instrument panel and make absolutely sure the Green/Black Ground wire has good continuity back to the battery Negative terminal. Check the 2P Blue connector near the sender is clean and connections through the connector are good.

 

Also the instrument panel itself can cause problems. The LCD is connected to the printed circuit copper tracks of the panel via 6 phillips head screws which can cause poor connections and the copper tracks can crack requiring a solder bridge or bypass wire to repair the faulty track.

 

Lets know how you get on with at least confirming the continuity of the two wires of the sender unit.

Yes I bought the Clymer service manual for it, but I wasn’t sure what I was looking for. 
 

“No” to both those. I just bought a basic tool kit to work on it. I don’t have any higher end tools or specialized stuff. 
 

will a multimeter tell me if it has good connectivity?

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