Ever wondered why your heated grips stopped working...?

[Pete]

Well I did too until today! My grips wouldn't turn off a while back and when I went to the bike at the end of the day it wouldn't start up. I needed a new controller unit (thanks to Dan for providing me with one ).

So I had my replacement unit but the wire came out of the wrong side, so I took the circuit board out of the new controller and dropped it into the casing from the old one. See the images below and see if you can guess which is which!

http://i976.photobucket.com/albums/ae248/peteblakemore/photo2.jpg?t=1288135076

http://i976.photobucket.com/albums/ae248/peteblakemore/photo1-1.jpg?t=1288135511

So in case you hadn't already realised the first one is the replacement part, the second image shows the old one. On closer inspection it turned out that the crappy plastic button interface of the Oxford Heated Grips controller had a small crack in it (probably from continual use and frequent temperature changes), hardly even noticeable. I guess water had just gotten inside and corroded the internals.

So, now you know why your heated grips don't work! Simple fix is replace the internals (if you can find a spare controller and are good with a soldering iron...only 3 wires but VERY fiddly!). Just remember to reseal any cracks that might have let the water in in the first place!...or just buy a new set (Dr Bike ones seem more solidly built with a rotating dial rather than a crappy plastic cover)

[Guest]

Even if you can't get a new controller, I'd bet that the fault is with the two pushbutton switches, and they're a pretty standard item you can get from any number of electronics suppliers. You will need a bit of skill with a soldering iron to change them, though.

Pete: I don't suppose you still have either controller anywhere easily accessible, do you? I'd be interested to know what the number on the chip is... (I'm in the electronics business, call me a nerd if you like!)