Emergency Cut off Switch usage

[Conzar]

Hello.

I'm using ECOS so I don't have to type so much.
ECOS = Emergency Cut Off switch

So I took the beginning MTC through a technical school.  As part of the proper bike turn-off routine, the first thing the rider should do is use the ECOS to turn the engine off
Then use the ignition switch, then turn the gas line off (if you have it).
After all that do you normal dismount routine. (Thats what they tought us).

I have been following this procedure on my new GS500F.  

Yesturday my friend purchased a new Honda 599.  After he read the manual he told me that it read only to use the ECOS in emergency conditions.  It even mentioned that using it under normal conditions  frequently could cause damage.

Does that make sense?  Why would the ECOS cause damage?  Do you think this is a bike specific issue?  Will using the ECOS on the GS500 risk damaging the electrical system or anything else?


Oh yea, the reason for using the ECOS when you are ready to stop is so that you don't have to remove your hand from the handle bar.  And also b/c its there and easily accessable.

[Ed_in_Az]

I have never used the emergency switch on any bike or quad I had that was equipped with an ignition key. I look at the word "emergency" as a clue to it's not being needed in "normal" circumstances.

[goat]

When I took my MSF class, we were taught to ht the kill switch and then turn the key off.

I am no motorcycle expert, but I can't think of a way that a cutoff switch could damage the bike unless some sort of brake exists (not the brakes on the wheels). As far as I know, it just inturrrupts the electricity going to the ignition system (to the coil or plugs, i would imagine) and the engine stops spinning when it runs out of energy. While there are some technicalities (where the switch is etc.) the kill switch does the same thing to the engine that the keyed switch does.

[Conzar]

Oh yea, the course I took was through the MSF.

[stephan]

Common sense tells me also that there is really no difference between using the key to shut off the engine, or using the kill switch.

Both turn off the engine buy stopping electricity from flowing to it so what's the difference?   :dunno:

I use the kill switch because it's handy, it's what was taught in the MSF, and it keeps the location of the kill switch fresh in your mind for those real emergency situations.

[Kerry]

I've used the ECOS on every ride for 30,000 miles now with no ill effects.

I also look at it as an even "poorer" poor man's theft prevention device than unhooking one of the clutch switch wires.  Since most people don't use the ECOS, there's a good chance that a thief won't think to turn that switch back on.  :lol:

[hehehemann]

I turn off my bike by leaving it in first gear and popping down the side stand which then shuts off the engine. On my bike you can't get her in neutral unless the key is back in the ignition thus preventing anyone from just rolling the bike away. Is this method of turning off the engine and then leaving the bike in gear damaging ?

Thanks.

[Conzar]

Is this method of turning off the engine and then leaving the bike in gear damaging ?

Well I think it could be a potential hazard b/c as you are lowering the side stand, you bike still has the potential to buck say if your hand slips off the clutch, which could cause you to lose control of the bike.  This is probably highly unlikely but its better to be safe.  Thats the reason for using the ECOS.

I'm not sure about hurting the bike.  I think that if the ECOS doesn't do any damage then the side stand would work the same way.

[dgyver]

I turn off my bike by leaving it in first gear and popping down the side stand which then shuts off the engine. On my bike you can't get her in neutral unless the key is back in the ignition thus preventing anyone from just rolling the bike away. Is this method of turning off the engine and then leaving the bike in gear damaging ?

Thanks.

That is a very bad & dangerous habit to have. Also, the transmission has nothing to do with the ignition switch, so I do not understand why the key has to be in the switch to put it in neutral.

[Kerry]

I turn off my bike by leaving it in first gear and popping down the side stand which then shuts off the engine. [...] Is this method of turning off the engine and then leaving the bike in gear damaging?

It doesn't damage anything.

Well I think it could be a potential hazard b/c as you are lowering the side stand, you bike still has the potential to buck say if your hand slips off the clutch, which could cause you to lose control of the bike.

This is true, but the same potential exists no matter which method you use to turn off the bike.  If you release the clutch lever before the engine is stopped ... off you go!  I think the extra risk exists because to manipulate the sidestand you must shift your weight, left your left foot off the ground, and find the sidestand "knob" (which can be fairly tricky, especially if you're ever distracted while doing it).  Any of these movements can increase the chance of losing balance & control - which is Conzar's point!

On my bike you can't get her in neutral unless the key is back in the ignition thus preventing anyone from just rolling the bike away.

I shift my '99 into neutral fairly often while the key is not in the ignition switch.  The only benefit to having the key in (and ON) is that the bike can inform you whether you have "found" neutral (via the neutral indicator light).  What year is your bike again?

As for rolling the bike away in gear, couldn't a thief just pull in the clutch and push?  It may take a good shove at the beginning, but eventually I think it gets easier to push.

=================================

Here's how I do it, on the final few feet of my coast into a parking stall / driveway / whatever:

1) Make sure I'm in 1st gear.  (Personal choice, so the bike won't roll

on its own.)
2) Turn off the ECOS.
3) Come to a stop with both hands pullng the levers and both feet off the pegs.
4) With both hands still on the bars, lower the sidestand.
5) In one connected movement, turn the key to OFF and then LOCK with the right hand as the left hand turns the handlebar to the left.[/list:u]

[Rema1000]

I've heard tell that contacts in the kill switch are not rated for as many duty cycles as ignition... but they seem sturdy enough to me, and are easily replaceable.  About the only reason I can think of NOT to use the kill switch, is that you might forget to shut-off the ignition, and drain the battery.  

The main reason TO use the kill switch, is so that you learn using the switch by rote.  I've heard other riders mention how silly someone looks crawling over their dropped bike, paniced and trying to reach the ignition switch to turn it off.  If you use the ignition several times each day for years, guess what you're going to do when you're paniced?

[Turkina]

I always use the engine cutoff... it keeps both hands on the grips until the engine is off, and so the bike isn't going to go anywhere.  On the GS, with its older design electrical system, using the engine cutoff is the best route.

I don't know why Honda says using the cutoff switch is a bad thing.  It's definitely used in normal situations as well as emergencies. (it's not the emergency cutoff switch, it's the engine cutoff switch!)  Yeah, if you dump the bike or have some catastrophic failure, you use the switch instead of the ignition to turn it off.  One reason Honda could be warning against this, is if Honda has tweaked the ignition and electronics systems so under normal operations, the key turns on all digital readouts (none really on the 599, right?) and readies the bike for startup, same when you shut it off.  If the engine cutoff switch is off, it'll interupt the engine related igniton switch functions, but not the rest of the electronics.  

Heh, I hope you're not turning off the fuel flow on your GS  :mrgreen:  MSF had us reach for the petcock on the first day, just to memorize the location, but vacuum operated fuel lines won't flood your carbs unless you leave it in PRI

[Pam G]

If the bikes have an ECU for engine management or fuel injection, the rider SHOULD NOT use the kill switch to turn off the engine, unless it is an emergency.  The rider should turn the key in the ignition to "off".  It gives the ECU time to save any critical information.
The GS500 has no ECU, so it's not a big deal to use the kill switch when turning it off. I do that most of the time.
However, on my TT600, I turn the ignition to "off" because the bike has an ECU.  Two or 3 times I've accidentally used the kill switch, once while in the middle of a run on the drag strip when the kill switch tether somehow got pulled.  luckily each time it seemed not to do anything harm.  There may be a trouble code saved in the ECU that a mechanic can view with a special Triumph tool.

The new Honda 599 may have an ECU, even though it is not fuel injected.