Easy Charging Latch Mod

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sling

Active member
Joined
Dec 22, 2012
Messages
26
Location
Middle GA
Wanted to be able to open the charging cover from outside the car, used a bicycle brake cable for this. It's about 5 ft long, total cost was under $10.

The end can come out wherever you want, I considered the front grill but decided against it, I didnt want to have to bend over or search for the release.
I also considered putting a plastic t-handle on the end, but the end as is turned out to be easy enough to pull and won't bounce into the windshield as is.

Cable Sleeve, I bought 6.5ft - plenty more than i needed
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Tandem Brake Cable, its about 9ft long. I cut it to length and used one end at the grip.
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Aircraft clippers and curved clippers for the cable, some 'normal' clippers crush the end of the sleeve so you need curved clippers.
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Measure several times before putting the ends on
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I looped the end over the latch mechanism but there are plenty of way you can attach the end of the cable to the latch, like coupling the end of the new cable into the existing one. While the loop looks like it might slip off it was just hard enough to get on that i'm not worried about it - i pushed it under the head on the existing cable.
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Ran the new cable parallel to the existing one
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using zip-ties to secure the cable, they're quick, easy, and don't damage anything... and i have 100's of em sitting around. I started with it tight on the metal ends but the release spring could not return to rest after being pulled. I think the position and tightness made the cable contact the mounting brace and increased the resistance enough to cause problems. I left it loose and a short way back to solve the problem, I was afraid the metal end wouldn't stay resting against the mounting brace but so far I haven't seen it move.
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New cable above, existing latch cables below
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zip-tied new and old cables...
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zip-tied it to random convenient plug.
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hidden but accessible, no problems with wipers interfering
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Short Demo Vid:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk8SftB7Ot4[/youtube]

No permanent changes made and no damage to car, so that's good. Also not the cleanest install, but its good enough for me.



Edit: (Sort-of) Per Duncan's comment I tweaked it a bit so the sleeve doesn't move when the end is pulled. I found this 'clamp' in the throttle accessories drawer at the local Ace and figured this would work...


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I had to drill out the 2 holes a little so the bolt would fit, but now the sleeve doesn't move at all.
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That is awesome! I cannot tell you how many times I've been out of the car already in just 2 weeks of ownership and forgotten to open the hatch. I saw in a video (on these forums) that they added a button to the keyless remote to pop that open for 2013 models which is awesome. I may have to make this same mod tho... thanks for sharing!

PS: Is that a gold Honda CB50 that I saw for a moment in the video?! :twisted:
 
Shaka said:
That is awesome! I cannot tell you how many times I've been out of the car already in just 2 weeks of ownership and forgotten to open the hatch. I saw in a video (on these forums) that they added a button to the keyless remote to pop that open for 2013 models which is awesome. I may have to make this same mod tho... thanks for sharing!

PS: Is that a gold Honda CB50 that I saw for a moment in the video?! :twisted:


Thanks, and yes thats a 72 CB350. Just did a complete rebuild last summer, and i spend almost as much time riding it as i do fixing it, but i rly do enjoy that thing. I'll post some pics of it when i get home.
 
sling said:
Thanks, and yes thats a 72 CB350. Just did a complete rebuild last summer, and i spend almost as much time riding it as i do fixing it, but i rly do enjoy that thing. I'll post some pics of it when i get home.

Nice. One of my co-workers had one for a few years (he sold it to a friend and upgraded to a new bike, forget what the model is on his new one). I've always adored the 350 for its cafe-racer style. Very sweet bike ... and yours looked to be super clean!
 
Shaka said:
Nice. One of my co-workers had one for a few years (he sold it to a friend and upgraded to a new bike, forget what the model is on his new one). I've always adored the 350 for its cafe-racer style. Very sweet bike ... and yours looked to be super clean!

Well, it started something like this after 20 or so years of garage sitting...

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It just looks 'clean' if you dont look too close... It has a never ending oil leak somewhere near the points. In the recent rebuild i replaced all the seals and gaskets up there with no luck. I did see on some other forum that a guy with the same problem solved it by attaching a hose to the points cover and running it to the front drive sprocket - auto chain oiler. brilliant!

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Ready for Batteries? I seriously considered it.

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Duncan said:
Excellent mod, well done.

How much force is required on the cable, particularly without an end to hold properly

Not all that much but it depends on how temperamental the car is. As you saw in the vid one hand was good enough, but sometimes the cable sleeve just wants to come too. When i was initially planning this I intended to fix the upper end to something but never bothered doing so/decided it didnt need it/didnt spend any time finding a good mount point. My guess is about 5-10 lbs but that could be way off, bad judge of force. I had also considered putting a washer between the sleeve end and the cable end. That would give your finders something to push against as you pinch the cable end. Obviously didnt happen, instead I stuck on a random spacer i had sitting around. Not sure i want to take the cable apart at this point, but it it needs to be mounted i'll figure something out. Maybe a tightened hose clamp somewhere instead of a zip tie...



Edit: Found it, looks like it runs to the back sprocket...
http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=38686.0
 
this is cool and thinking about putting one for the charging port and the hood latch. thanks for showing how easy it can be done!
 
sling said:
It just looks 'clean' if you dont look too close...

I've had my share of project cars/etc and I can tell you that most others would probably drool over it... but that is how it works as you know. It is your own to nit-pick and so forth. While others would just enjoy the sight of the bike, you're more aware of the little things that drive you nuts on a daily basis. That is what makes it the labor of love ... right? Hahah....

Enjoy the bike -- really cool. I haven't had a motorcycle since just before I met my wife. And she gives me the "once your daughter is 18" line whenever I bring up a bike these days. Which I sort of get, but not entirely. But that is fine... I'd love a CanAm Spyder someday to cruise around and maybe do a big road trip up to Montana or something... midlife crisis... ;)
 
I have a 2013, I guess I should install this as well?,

If both my batteries die then my latch won't open up since it's electrical?
 
Would love to put one of those sensors under the front bumper, where you wave your foot underneath, and it opens the panel, similar to the sensor which can be found on some of the Ford SUVs which allows you to open the trunk, as seen in the video below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etvJN8aulLQ" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 
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