The Invaluable Resource of the Owner-User Forums

I own two 2020 model motorcycles: a Triumph Bonneville T120 Black and an MV Agusta Brutale RR SCS. They are very beautiful bikes and known for both design and engineering excellence. They are also still under their respective manufacturer warranties, the Triumph until July 2023 and the MV until early 2025. I like buying new vehicles because of the peace of mind that a manufacturer’s warranty grants.

Motorcycles, especially the non-domestic variety, limit the number of dealer service locations and the knowledge base that the technicians who work there have access to. Another complication is that as motorcycle owners we often do modifications at home that sometimes have unintended consequences that most dealer service centers are reluctant to try to resolve. You messed with it buddy, and unless you put it back to stock, we ain’t touching it!

This is the point where we motorcycle owners and would-be modders start scouring the owner forums for information and help. The last thing I want is a perpetual engine light or FI (Fault Indicator) on my display reminding me that there is something going on that the bike brain does not like! I must admit, though, I do like tearing into something, knowing that somehow, in the end, I’ll figure out where all these extra nuts and bolts need to go. Mm hm… we don’t need no stinkin’ instructions.

Um... YES we do.

Now on to the Bonneville story. After a year of riding, I decided it was time to begin some subtle modifications. I had already ditched the clunky stock mirrors for a bar end set and so I decided to tidy up the tail with an R&G kit which included an LED tail light. To complicate matters for myself I also opted to remove the stock turn indicators and replace with small bright LED signals. I started this when the odometer was at around 8,500 miles which meant I was 1,500 miles shy of my 10K dealer service appointment. Well, the process went relatively smoothly except that the tail-light in the R&G kit was defective in that the downward facing LED bulbs for license plate illumination did not work. I informed R&G of the issue, and they sent me a replacement light. Before they sent me the light, however, I did some riding and noticed that an engine light had come on after the bike warmed up. On the Triumph, there is a procedure in which you hold the information button down while starting the bike and it will display the FL code(s) in the computer memory. I was getting three codes, all of which related somehow to the brake/tail-light assembly. At the very least, this put my mind at ease knowing that it wasn’t a mechanical issue that would stop me from riding the bike, but it was still annoying. I installed the replacement tail-light R&G sent me and once everything was working exactly as it should I was anxious to see if the engine light would still come on, and of course, it did. But now it was only throwing one engine code, P-1576, which according to Triumph Service, was related somehow to how the bike brain senses the signals from the front and back brake switches to the tail light. R&G techs basically stopped responding to my requests for information and Triumph Service reset the ECU’s memory saying that the engine light could come back on, but they couldn’t fix it under warranty as I had done the mod that probably caused it.

So, onto the Triumph Rat Forums I went with a post about P-1576 and an explanation of the mod. Within a couple hours an owner from SoCal posted a link to a post where he described the same issue. He said that he solved it with the installation of a simple diode in the power supply wire to the tail-light! He went on to say if I couldn’t find one that he would gladly mail me one for free! I thanked him profusely and within three days I had the tiny diode installed and it did indeed solve the problem!

In both these examples, neither the manufacturers nor the Dealer Service techs could or would resolve these relatively simple issues and the Owner Forums came through in a stellar way. Many motorcyclists consider modding their ride an integral part of the fun of motorcycle ownership and take pride in making their bike stand out from stock models. The forums are filled with descriptions of how to do almost any mod possible. There is a camaraderie there that is refreshing and there is no charge for very valuable advice, a rare thing in today’s world!

What’s next? Well, the Bonnie is getting a cat delete and some new exhaust tips to amp up the British growl and the MV may go to a new owner if a Yamaha Tenere 700 ever shows up at my closest dealer! Good thing it no longer has an engine light on!

Happy Modding!