I'm back and wanting to replace my Interstate Radio

[ezgoin721]

Hello All!  I've been off the site ever since I sold my 2001 Standard several years ago and bought a Suzuki M109R.  I've recently gotten the urge for a good touring bike for riding two up, and not being ready to accept that I;m old enough for a Goldwing, I naturally opted for a Valk Interstate with a Bushtec trailer!  I flew from my home in Washington State to Fresno CA and bought a 2000 Blue & Silver with trailer sight unseen!  Well, that was both exciting and disappointing since the 32,000 mile Interstate had a few more issues than I had expected.  Anyway, that a topic for another time.

My real question is that since the factory radio controller doesn't work as it should, I'm thinking about scrapping the whole factory audio system and going after market.  Who's done it and how did it work out.  Any help you can offer would be much appreciated!  I've yet to be able to figure out the factory controls anyway!   

All that aside, I'm leaving in the morning for a 10 day tour through Wyoming and Montana!   

[sugerbear]

if it's just the keys are intermittant, use an electrical contact cleaner(spray)
with the bike off spray and move the keys a lot. worked on my 2k I/S.
what are the symptoms? maybe someone has a fix.
let us know

took me a while to get it also.

[ezgoin721]

I've tried the contact cleaner fix, and it worked on the fussy headlight switch which when switched form bright to dim, would frequently go dark until wiggled etc.  The radio volume and channel adjust worked intermittently, both were corrected with the contact cleaner, however, now the function button that toggles between AM, FM, AUX, and CB, will only toggle between AM and AUX.  No more FM!  Any ideas?

[PAVALKER]

Or get another control unit off of Ebay.  

What other issues are you faced with at 32k miles on that bike?

[Steve K (IA)]

You need to take the radio controller apart to use the contact cleaner successfully. It is very easy.

[MP]

You need to take the radio controller apart to use the contact cleaner successfully. It is very easy.

Try this first, then, if needed, buy a used controller.  They sell for about $75 on ebay or pinwall.

MP

[Jess Tolbirt]

if it switches between aux and am then i say the control is working as it should, i think the problem lies elsewhere like in the radio itself...

[ezgoin721]

Prior to using the contact cleaner, I could get it to toggle through all of the functions, but after using the contact cleaner it would only do AM and AUX for some reason.  I hadn't pulled the controller off yet, but perhaps wrongfully assumed it was sealed and could not be opened.  If your telling me that it can be opened, that's good news!  I'll try that as soon as I get home....in about 11 days! 

Other issues are the wobbly front end at slow speeds, especially when pulling the trailer, an intermittent starter button issue, rusted bolts, pitted chrome, and a few things like that which I didn't expect from an inland CA bike that had always been garaged.  I think it may have spent more time outside than was disclosed, or it spent time on the coast with the salt air.  I know when I sold my Standard with 27,000 miles, it looked just like it cam off the showroom floor, only shinier!

 Still a beautiful bike, and runs like a dream!  It doesn't seem to have the power that I remember my Standard having, but that could just be the result of spending the last three years on the 109!  Having said that, I had also forgotten how liquid smooth the Valk really is!

I'm heading out in a few minutes to do about 2500 miles on her!  Hopefully I'll return with a whole new respect for the Valkyrie!

[Super Santa]

Check your tire pressures.