Anyhow, my PCX, now up to 28k miles from new in March 2015 (doing over 200 a week 46 weeks a year on the commute, plus the odd longer run for nights out, will do that), has been plagued for over a year by electrical problems that have caused much head scratching and annoyance for me and the local garages of choice. Touch wood, and umpteen other lucky items, sorted now....
Up till last June (if memory serves), the bike ran absolutely OK. Zero issues. Then, the gremlins struck, and for the first time since I had the bike, the PGM-FI warning light came on..it's spent rather too much time on since. First time, the orange light came on, the idle stop light went off, and the bike wouldn't idle at all, it would just cut out at a stop unless I gave the throttle a little tickle. One of the local garages had a look, plugged the diagnostic computer in, reset the ECU…issues back again the next day. Same guys kept the bike for a few days, were unable to diagnose the fault...
Ever since, it's been a case of putting up with the problems, in between all-too-frequent garage visits- combined with services where possible, those come around quickly- as the mechanics tried to get the issues diagnosed and sorted. I even ended up commuting by cycle for a week in July...There was no rhyme or reason as to how and why it had problems. Sometimes it would be perfectly OK for a ride or two, idle stop on and off as normal, sometimes the warning light would come on mid ride, sometimes it would have problems from the turn of the key...Sometimes, I could get it to clear by using the traditional IT helpdesk solution (turning it off and on again), sometimes not. Mostly not, unfortunately.
And it didn't always do the same things either...
Worst case: Immediate issues from the turn of the key, orange light on immediately. Bike wouldn't start without a little throttle. No idling, at all. No idle stop function, naturally.
Better case: Orange light on, no idle stop, engine would however idle. Sometimes the idle was rough, otherwise as smooth as it can be.
Middling case: Startup as normal, then idle stop would disengage and sometimes it would still idle, sometimes not.
Random weirdness: Idle stop light would come on, but at a standstill it would kick in immediately, no three second delay. A few times, the temperature warning light briefly came on, always on the same stretch of road (a 10% climb) but always off again not long after on that same stretch.
A few months back, the idle air control valve got replaced, as the (clear to someone) diagnostic flashes indicated that was the issue. It lasted four days (160 or so miles) of trouble free running, before Mr Orange was back on. At the time, the parts wholesaler suggested if the valve was OK, it must be the wiring loom that needed replacing. But that's expensive, and a big job, so put that to one side. Next visit, Roger the garage owner (who'd really like less of my business!) said 'I think I've sorted it, tried something new'. Two days....
By this point, Roger was of the opinion I might be better cutting my losses. Having seen what even high-mileage PCXs go for (admittedly, not this high!) I wasn't ready to agree. Anyhow, eventual, hopefully final solution: a new(er) wiring harness. Bike's been off the road for three weeks, fortunately I now have a YBR 125 as well (in prep for doing a full licence course), so intensive training for riding with gears (put 600 miles on it since mid-May!) and no need to use the (as slow door to door as a cycle, I kid you not) rail service....Got a wiring loom from a 2016 model from a local breakers for £40- they couldn't find it when Roger went there, so I ended up buying it from their eBay listing. Then the courier did the knocking-the-door-and-running-away thing, and it would have gone through the door...git. Eventually, got the thing last Friday, and they had the bike rebuilt and done Wednesday. Fingers crossed, sorted for good. Even with the labour, less than a new Honda loom alone (£300). It behaved perfectly yesterday, I'm doing a 100 or so miles today…nice to have her back, the YBR is a great little bike but runs out of steam at 55 mph, the PCX just has a bit more poke (she'll still do 65 mph, with a belt and rollers in decent nick at least), and with a screen you don't have to clear your visor of bugs every day....
Reason I post this: Roger has said a few times that he's seen a few PCXs with similar issues, but I couldn't find any reports on here or elsewhere on the 'net, and this was the first place I looked some months ago. Anyone else had a similar problem? And if you have, do yourself a favour and find a wiring harness from a breaker
