konrad

Based on your prior description, I assumed you had the 2019 model year. That is the first year EM used the siliXcon controller. The wiring diagram will be very similar to the Epure bikes: https://www.electricmotiontech.com/home/em-epure-race/wiring-diagram No startup tones would seem to indicate the controller is not being enabled. Did you bypass your "Security Magnet" (kill switch) as I describe here: https://www.electricmotiontech.com/home/em-epure-race/wiring-diagram#h.fogcawtque8h

I'm going to agree with lemur on this. @JBROWN asked about the "POWER BOX" in a different thread. I found a Vertigo service manual on-line. It's probably similar to what you have. The mechanical descriptions are very good. The electrical descriptions are the exact opposed. The part labeled POWER BOX has a 12-wire connector. It is separate from the ECU. I'm thinking the ECU may be a fairly standard design for 4-strokes. If so, the POWER BOX may add a Capacitive Discharge Ignition and DC-DC boost converter. A CDI is de rigueur for any modern 2-stroke. Twelve wires is a lot for that type of functionality, so the POWER BOX may be doing other things as well. I suggest figuring out where the ignition coil primary wire connects. The lack of a wiring diagram is a huge impediment to understanding the system. You'd be doing the Vertigo community a great service by drawing as much of it as you can and putting it in the public domain.

The electrical system on an EFI bike has very little in common with even a modern carbureted bike. Even though my website is specifically about OSSAs, there is a lot you can generalize about EFI 2-strokes from it: https://www.ossa-efi.com/home/electrics At the very least, it will give you an idea of the complexity involved.

A capacitor is a 2-terminal device. The third terminal is likely connected to one of the others to simplify the bike's wiring. For reference, the OSSA's capacitor is approximately 22000 uF. Most multimeters will not read a capacitor value that large. 10000 uF is a typical limit. If you connect the capacitor to your multimeter on the ohms setting, the resistance will appear small initially, and gradually increase as the capacitor charges. You can then short the capacitor leads together (discharging it) and repeat the observation. The multimeter will charge the capacitor to something on the order of 350 millivolts. Once the capacitor is charged, switch the multimeter to read volts (or better yet, millivolts). The capacitor should hold that charge for a long time (perhaps hours) but you will be able it see it slowly discharge due to the drain imposed by the multimeter. Passing these tests does not guarantee a good capacitor, but it's better than nothing and about all the DIY mechanic can do. P.S. An electrolytic capacitor is a polarized device. Operating one at its rated voltage backwards will destroy it. But when testing will a multimeter, polarity is not a concern. This is because the voltage is so low, no damage will occur.

There's a line for Country on the inquiry form, so it would seem they sell outside the US too. https://www.rebelgears.com/ordercustomsprockets.html

I find it hard to believe 10W40 oil could cause that malady.

Gauss Gauss, brilliant! Wish I had thought of that! PM system says you cannot accept mail. Intentional, or full mailbox?

I had a nice conversation with Clay at Jotagas of America this morning. Unfortunately, Jotagas was killed off by COVID-19 which resulted in the factory's inability to source parts. Although the brand's owner is still enthusiastic, the likelihood of a resurrection is small in Clay's estimation. The Jotagas of America website remains mostly due to inertia.

Yes. Generic controllers are available, but lack some of EM's features. https://www.electricmotiontech.com/home/em-5-7/sx-controller-experiments

Maybe, maybe not. EM uses custom siliXcon firmware, and the speed loop routine may have been removed to make space for other code. https://docs.silixcon.com/docs/fw/modules/esc/driver/command/driver_pid_modes

All of EM's siliXcon controllers are password locked, so only torque mode is possible. Back when we first got the 5.7, I experimented with the Kelly controller's "balanced mode" (somehow incorporates both torque and speed modes). I found it most unintuitive compared with ICE trials bikes, so I did not bother to try speed mode. See: https://www.electricmotiontech.com/home/em-5-7/5-7-controller

Use of the clutch is not *required* to change gear. You can test the gearbox separately from the clutch. If you have no experience doing this, here is a method: Put the bike on a stand. Although not mandatory, it's probably best to remove the chain. (But you will have the extra inertia of the rear wheel to overcome.) Remove the spark plug and flywheel cover. Turn the engine by hand using the flywheel. Attempt to change gears while rotating the flywheel back and forth. It will only take a small fraction of a complete engine revolution to select the next gear. If you have not removed the chain, you may find it easier to rotate the rear wheel instead.

https://www.motionpro.com/product/08-0380

Every brake banjo bolt I've ever seen has been M10. A thread pitch of 1.0mm is more likely for a trials bike, but 1.25mm is possible.

Short answer: probably Tech. The left side has the wire spring, so a lower fluid level tends to compensate and gives a similar air chamber volume as a higher level without a spring. But ultimately, those numbers are just a starting point. The fluid level affects the bottoming behavior. Different riders may require/prefer different settings. It's easier to add oil (using a syringe) than to remove it. More info here: https://www.electricmotiontech.com/home/em-epure-race/mechanicals/tech-39mm-forks

Thanks for reporting back! Just FYI, that condition is really hard on the rod bearings.

If you can determine who manufactured the controller, perhaps they would sell you the tool? If the encoder is Hall-effect, there are a limited number of positions at which the rotor can "cog". I would not recommend it, but trial and error is a possibility. If the encoder is sin-cos, then there may be 256 to 4096 possible positions (depending on the resolution of the A/D converter). Obviously not amenable to a trial and error solution. If you have not already removed the encoder, it may be possible to replace just the temperature sensor (thermistor). In which case you would need a known good thermistor to measure its value or cannibalize a complete new encoder to get a thermistor.

Request to new members... Would you mind putting your query into the dedicated sub-forum for the bike in question?

I find this counterintuitive, but if you blip the throttle, the clutch will release better. I've only ever noticed this on trials bikes. If anyone has an explanation or theory, I'd love to hear it. I've also found that dimpling the clutch steel plates has a very positive effect on clutch release. But this is a well-know trick, that I probably first saw on circa 1970s Suzuki OE plates.

May I ask where you got that design? Was it done by an A.I. chatbot?

Yes, but I would advise caution. Pin 22 is driven by a component (Rohm SP8K22 dual N-channel MOSFET) known to have failed on at least 3 Explorers. This renders the ECU useless. I don't know of any trials model to which this has happened. I assume there is something about the Explorer wiring harness/easy start that's causing the failure, but I don't have one to investigate.

From my notes... There is a symbol on the initial 2011 wiring diagram called "Testigo Averia". That translates as “Fault Witness”. I called it the CEL (Check Engine Light) in my notebook. Another name is the MIL (Malfunction Indicator Lamp). Looks like OSSA made it part of an instrument panel in the 2014 wiring diagram. Reverse engineered it a bit. It sources 5 volts at only 5 mA, so not too useful to drive a lamp. Even an LED is pretty dim. But, you could easily read it with a voltmeter. If your bike does not start, see if ECU pin 22 is at 5 volts (with the bike powered by a battery). This would indicate the ECU thinks there is a problem, versus the bike just being recalcitrant. Wiring diagrams are here: https://www.ossa-efi.com/home/electrics/wiring-diagrams

The write-ups are quite technical, but maybe some here will be interested. This link is the actual retrofit process: https://www.electricmotiontech.com/home/em-5-7/sx-controller-retrofit This link describes some preliminary work to familiarize myself with the SX controller: https://www.electricmotiontech.com/home/em-5-7/sx-controller-experiments

The trials model definitely had superior suspension to the Explorer. But I think going forward, the Explorer will be a very desirable bike. I expect some trials models will get sacrificed to keep Explorers running. I'd suggest buying a ratty trials model to use as a donor.

Here's my analysis of that dyno comparison: https://www.electricmotiontech.com/home/what-makes-a-good-trials-motor/zero-loss-gearbox-anlaysis