Flasher Replacement

Flasher Information
Older thermal flashers are designed around the current draw of incandescent bulbs. They are designed so that when a bulb goes out (and thus the current draw drops), they flash faster to alert the driver to the bad bulb.

LEDs are much more efficient than incandescent bulbs (they convert very little of the electricity to waste heat), so older flashers do not operate properly with LEDs. The very small current draw of a typical LED light is closer to a bad incandescent bulb than a working one, so the flasher will usually fast-blink as if there were a dead bulb.

There are two ways to fix this issue:


 * 1) Load resistors can be added in parallel to the LED turn signal.
 * 2) The flasher can be replaced with an electronic unit.
 * Load resistors work by increasing the current draw so that the LED light has properties similar to the old incandescent bulb. This will result in the normal flash rate, but it accomplishes this by wasting the extra power (in the form of heat) that the LED saves over an incandescent bulb.  In essence, you are converting the power-saving LED to act like the inefficient bulb.
 * An electronic flasher is the proper way to handle LED turn signals. These newer flashers are designed for the low current draw of LEDs and are not dependent upon the current draw of the turn signal lights to determine the flash rate.  A new flasher will allow you to save power with LEDs while retaining your standard flash rate.

Bike Differences
For the 1999 model year, the flasher was switched from a 3-wire model to a 2-wire model. Both versions operate the same way, but they will have different plugs. This means that you will have to choose the proper replacement flasher based on what year your bike is. If you do not choose the proper flasher, it will not be a direct-plug replacement. Check your own bike to see what type of flasher it has before you purchase the replacement electronic flasher.

Flasher Replacement
Flasher Location

The flasher is mounted on the outside of the frame on the right side. You may be able to get to it by simply removing the seat. You can remove the right side plastic for easier access. The flasher hangs on a tab with a small piece of rubber.

Older Models
First-generation and early second-generation bikes use a 3-wire flasher. The Tridon EP34 is a direct replacement for the stock flasher. EP34 "equivalents" (such as the Blazer FL34) have been known to not work properly. Try an actual Tridon EP34 if you have problems with an alternative brand.

3-prong EP34 Flasher

Newer Models
Later second-generation bikes use a 2-wire flasher. Several online retailers sell electronic flashers which are a direct-plug replacement. Custom LED's ELFR-1 and SuperBrightLEDs's LF1-S-FLAT are two examples. Standard 2-wire electronic flashers will work also, but require modification to connect to the bike's wiring. You will most likely need to cut off the factory plug and install female terminals on the wires, which will then plug directly into the generic 2-wire flasher. The Tridon EL12 and Blazer FL32 have both been reported to work properly with LEDs.

2-prong EL12 Flasher

Other Notes

 * These issues apply to both complete turn signal assemblies with LEDs as well as LED replacement "bulbs" installed in the stock turn signals.
 * Some LED "bulbs" are now sold as being compatible with CANBUS. These LEDs have load resistors built-in so as to avoid issues with bulb-monitoring systems in newer cars (similar to the "dead bulb" fast-blink issue).  Just as adding external load resistors results in higher power draw and more heat, the built-in resistors in CANBUS LEDs will also be less efficient than "regular" LEDs.
 * Even with an electronic flasher, LED turn signals with a very low current draw may not provide enough load for the flasher to work properly. In this case, you will need to install a small load resistor (or some other form of additional load) to slightly increase the current draw.  This will add a bit of inefficiency, but should still draw much less power than incandescent bulbs.  This is not necessary with most turn signals.
 * Many replacement front turn signals are 2-wire and do not include the running light feature found in the stock front signals. There are several ways to connect 2-wire signals to achieve different results, but that is completely unrelated to the issue of LED fast-blink.