After riding the CRF300LA for one dirt outing, the bike had an issue with the ABS system. I had decided that the bike needed a different kickstand, since it made the bike sit so high that I always thought it would just fall over if a light wind hit it. I bought an adjustable replacement from T-Rex Racing and installed it. I used the youtube video from JaketheGardenSnake, which also showed how to disable the factory kickstand engine killer safety device. The device is designed to kill the motor if the rider tries to put the bike in gear with the bike running and the kickstand is still down. After I finished doing the kill switch bypass, I gave it a quick test by starting the bike and putting the bike into first gear with the stand still down. To verify that the bike was truly in gear, I slipped the clutch and let the rear wheel spin a few rotations at a slow speed. Well, after that, the bike was never the same. From then on, the ABS light would be constantly flashing no matter what.
I went online and tried to do combination button resets, riding the bike past a specific speed, etc. Nothing would reset the light. It was probably tripped because the computer thinks that there is an ABS deployment case, when the front and the rear wheel are turning at different speeds. I asked the forums and got radio silence. Some forum informations suggested that it was an OBD issue and that the stealership can just hook up their reader and reset the light. I realized I was over my head and that I should just take it to Honda and let them reset it.
After calling around, the only local Honda dealer that had immediate time slots to reset the light was in Berkeley, so I rode the bike there. After a couple of hours (I got there just in time for the techs to take their lunches), Carl, the service department rep, informed me that it wasn't as easy as a quick reset. and that the system was reading a speed sensor error code. They needed to order the part and they would call me when the part arrived. I rode back home with the problem unsolved. Two weeks later, I was back again to install the speed sensor part.
Again I waited a couple of hours. Apparently the new speed sensor did not fix the problem either, so the tech was on the phone getting advise from Honda, the mothership in Ohio. They finally told me that they needed to order a couple of more parts to try on and that again they'll call me when the parts arrive. Again, I rode home issue still in hand.
A couple of weeks later, I loaded the bike on my hitch rack and I was back at the dealership, but this time, I was advised that they would need to keep the bike, while they'll have to correspond with Honda to get the problem fixed. I called them every week hoping for progress. They swapped out more ABS parts including the rear ABS disable switch. Nothing seemed to work. They had to order another ECU, thinking that could be the problem.
Five weeks passed. FINALLY I got the call that the bike was ready for pickup!! When I picked up the bike, I asked Carl if they ever figured out what caused the problem. He told me that nothing that they replaced fixed the issue. They even tried a different (new) ECU and that didn't do the trick either. Then suddenly the blinking light went away! I could've been a loose/bad connection in the loom and that by messing around with it so much, the connection finally seated. Who really knows? He said that if the problem comes back, I can always have them check it out again. Well, that's just swell.
So if I never brought the bike back to Honda, there is no way that I would ever have intentionally fixed the blinking light. Maybe over time, it could've fixed itself. This also means that for anyone with this bike (or me in the future), this problem or something worse could happen to them/me, more than likely after the warranty has expired.
