Windshield goes up but not down?
- Thread starter Gug
- Start date
Most likely the gear and/or cables are worn. Both are hard to impossible to find. The full assly is about $500. I just refurbed one and IMO, as a 30+ year practicing mechanical engineer in R&D, it's an overly complex poor design, made worse with the wrong material choices on the gear and cables.
If it's moving down and on both sides evenly that's not a bad thing. You may want to disassemble the switch on the handlebar and give the contacts a cleaning. You may be lucky and find that's all it is. The other way to tell would be if you hear the motor whirring when you push "up" but it doesn't move as then obviously the switch works but there's an issue with the gearing or cables. I'd think though that if it moves one way then it's not a gear issue as these often look like this and won't work up or down. Most major issues are gear failure or one of the cables breaks and it only moves on one side. My money is on a bad switch or a loose connector.
Another thing that hasn't been said in this old thread... I had power issues on my screen (my case was that it would go up but not down).
Turned out that the problem was the LH headlight connector (ground wire had melted). New pig tailed H4 connectors on both sides, extra ground wiring to the front subframe, and a new ground link from there to just under the seat... and it hasn't reared it's head again.
So, despite the new issue (post 22) being that it'll go down, but not up... have a look at the H4 connectors (and the other earth connections). Though, while the screen is fully down, you might have "fun" getting to the plastic plugs to remove the front tupperware...
Turned out that the problem was the LH headlight connector (ground wire had melted). New pig tailed H4 connectors on both sides, extra ground wiring to the front subframe, and a new ground link from there to just under the seat... and it hasn't reared it's head again.
So, despite the new issue (post 22) being that it'll go down, but not up... have a look at the H4 connectors (and the other earth connections). Though, while the screen is fully down, you might have "fun" getting to the plastic plugs to remove the front tupperware...
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I am inclined to think it is worth looking at the switch or power first. You might need to remove the screen to gain access. 4 screws for the plastic shrouds. 4 bolts and spacers for the screen. Do not lose any washers when taking out the bolts and note how they fit when you take out the first one. The spacer prevents the tightening of the bolt from cracking the screen.
But if it turns out not to be electrical, then @warofman9 produced an excellent documentation of his service of the mechanism. It was a while ago now, so I suspect his stock of replacement gears will have dried up by now. Nevertheless, having the excellent sequence of pictures of the process is always worth a look.
(1) Article [13] - ST1300 - Electric Windshield Assembly - Remove / Clean / Reinstall | ST1300 Articles | ST-Owners.com (st-owners.com)
But if it turns out not to be electrical, then @warofman9 produced an excellent documentation of his service of the mechanism. It was a while ago now, so I suspect his stock of replacement gears will have dried up by now. Nevertheless, having the excellent sequence of pictures of the process is always worth a look.
(1) Article [13] - ST1300 - Electric Windshield Assembly - Remove / Clean / Reinstall | ST1300 Articles | ST-Owners.com (st-owners.com)
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RobbieAG
Robert
I had the same problem where it would go up but not down at times. I tried the clean/lube procedure and it helped for a while, but the problem returned. I didn't want to constantly deal with taking it apart and putting it back together again. so I ended up replacing the adjuster unit. I haven't had a problem since. Per the OEM service manual, it's not a serviceable item. I would try cleaning the contacts on the handlebar switch, but if that doesn't fix it, replace the unit (while they're still available). I got mine for around $450 which is about the price of 1 1/2 sets of tires for me, so it was worth it.
Hello There;
I have the same problem, could you please tell me how to clean the contacts on the handle bar ? WD 40 ?......thanks my mechanicsal asked for $1,200 to fix it......crazy
Contact cleaner or other electrical cleaner type spray
ChucksKLRST
Team Colorado
If your shield goes up normally but not down it is the lower limit (Micro) switch that has gone bad.
The harness probably isn't required ... keep in mind, it's a component of the complete assembly, so can't be purchased itself - you'll have to find an ST being parted.
The micro-switch can be aftermarket, but you'll need to match it, size-wise.
A first attempt at a fix, would be to clean the switch. Should then check if the switch is electrically doing it's job.
The micro-switch can be aftermarket, but you'll need to match it, size-wise.
A first attempt at a fix, would be to clean the switch. Should then check if the switch is electrically doing it's job.
Cont
Contact me here, through a message. I have what you need.
Thank you so much. very interesting even though, it doesn't help me a lot, I won't dare doing myself. Cheers
doing it myself..
This started happening to my bike a few weeks ago. Its the 2005. I took the windshield off and the front cover, and tried to spray some CRC 223 in the micro switches, and while it did help a bit, what I discovered is that if I didn't go all the way up or all the way down, the window would work just fine. So that told me that one of the micro switches was the issue. So a work around was to raise the windshield up to the second position (I didn't realize there were two different spots) this was a good option for me since I'm pretty tall and so now I just run the window up to just a hair above eye level and it doesn't get stuck anymore. Yes I realize its not a fix but rather a work around, but hey it works for me .....for now.
Bmacleod
Site Supporter
The limit switches only control the screen at the absolute limits of its travel. If you are having issues before the limits, im inclined to think that you are having issues with the drive assembly itself. I would consider servicing and cleaning/lubing the mechanism. This assembly is very pricey and if you can save yours with some service, it would be time well spent. If it is binding/struggling, it is just a matter of time before it cant be salvaged
You may have already resolved this, if not, here was my solution and it cost just $20.00. It was on the DOWN SWITCH RELAY. There are two relays which are under the fairing, one for up and one for down. If you're bike is in good repair, they are housed in rubber waterproof gadgets of sorts that hang from a hook behind the up/down mechanism. In my case, the bike I purchased was not in create repair and the relays were simply hanging and one of them still had the rubber casing around it positioned in such a way that it collected water and rusted the relay. It was very clear upon initial removal. I pulled both relays, went to AutoZone and purchased a new one (different brand, but same electrical characteristics), replaced and and Voilà, everything worked.
While I had the fairing off, I used some lithium grease to make sure everything could move freely and reassembled everything. The previous owner must have grabbed screws and bolts from his kitchen 'empty your pockets' drawer, because nothing matched, so I did make a few trips to Ace to try to buy nice high end fasteners that all matched.
Did you have any pictures of this by chance? I just got back from a 3500 mile trip down the cali coast and up to Yosemite and the windshield got stuck up 75% of the time.