Modern Vespa

Hi,

I'm having problems with the tilt lock on my 500 - this problem seems to have appeared after a very slow speed slide on diesel (don't worry, bike and rider fine, not even a scratch on the 500's as I kept the majority of the bike off the deck)

It keeps coming up with the red warning indicator on the dash, its the same icon that appears when you aren't sitting on the seat with tilt lock engaged.

When I am riding along, sometimes the red icon appears, effectively removing the ability to flick on tilt lock when coming to a stop. Even if the tilt lock indicator is flashing amber, tilt lock will not engage. Sometimes, when I come to a total stop and tilt the bike from left to right, the red icon goes away, and I can engage tilt lock.

This also happens the other way - when tilt lock has engaged, sometimes the red icon comes on. I'm seated properly (so as to keep contact with the seat switch) but when applying throttle, the revs just bounce on the 2k rpm limiter. I have to disengage tilt lock manually, or sometimes have to physically 'wiggle' the bike to get the red icon to go away in order to remove tilt lock.

For my money, it could be one of 2 things:

#1 - I could have dislodged the seat contact switch. Does anyone know what this switch looks like, and whether it is firmly fixed?

#2 - I've somehow damaged the tilting mechanism, preventing tilt lock from engaging.

Any idea's what other circumstances (other than lifting your bum off the seat) cause the red tilt lock warning to appear?

Thanks,
Steve

Steveo_II,

For diagnostic purposes, you could temporarily disable the seat sensor to eliminate that possibility. Disconnect the sensor connector and put a resistor (about 3K Ω) across the computer side of the connector. The connector is under the seat, at the front, under a plastic cover.

Excellent - thanks for the info - I was worried that the seat sensor would be buried in the actual seat... +1

The actual sensor is right under the seat cover, it is a long rectangle flat...whatever you call it thing. You can sometimes see the outline of it in the right lighting.I also have had some issues with my tilt lock. Once in a while I'll have an issue where after unlocking the mechanism and then driving away, i'll look down and see that the light is on even though everything else would seem normal.. It usually takes me re-adjusting my skin cushion (butt) and wiggling the switch slightly then the light goes off. I am not sure which helps the re-adjustment, or the switch wiggle. I have also wondered if my seat sensor has slid forward, as I have a tendency to sit way back on the seat half way up the ridge. which causes a forward pressure on the seat which could cause the sensor to scoot forward with that forward pressure. I don't know if that makes sense or not. Anyways, your not alone, and I have dropped, slid, or anything my bike.

I've had a similar issue, usually after starting the beast and rolling away for the first time... I've found that pressing the tilt-lock switch as if it were the turn-signal switch - ie. straight in... lightly with a bit of a wiggle makes that red light go-away.

Give it a try. I'm going to ask my dealer to take a look at the switch and contacts at my next service.

Doesn't seem to be a serious issue, just annoying.

Wiggling the switch is indeed the answer! How very strange...

As I recall, when I slid the bike, I whacked the tilt lock switch and the lock engaged with one wheel at the upper maximum position. As the engine also cut out, I can only assume something has got a bit confused on the ECU.

Maybe an ECU reset might work, but for now, switch wiggling it is...

Thanks for the help

Happy it worked for you. I figured it out by accident, as my bike has been doing it on and off since it was new.

Yep it happened to me again today. It was the slight wiggle that took care of it. Slightly annoying, but glad that the light goes off.

My 400 is at the dealer right now waiting for parts to come in from Atlanta. At least in my case, it had nothing to do with the "butt on the seat sensor". The red warning light will come on and stay on until you sit back down. If the light flashes while driving and does other squirrely things it is either the voltage regulator (the part that the dealer is waiting on or the ignition. Problem is that they can't check out anything in the electrical system until they fix the faulty voltage regulator.

I repeat, if the warning light is blinking, it has nothing to do with the seat.

Keep up the info please - I think mine is just a bad sensor. Occasionally it will work for a couple of days, but then it just craps out again for weeks at a stretch. I'm waiting for my service guy to get back from vacation to fix it for me.

Steve - it maybe a warranty seat replacement. See dealer.