Touratech Modulating Rear LED Brake Light

[lopaca]

I just installed an LED Modulating style brake light that I got from Touratech. http://www.touratech-usa.com/shop/show.lasso?sku=BK0115&-session=touratech:45E6A81C0c5b1335E7Tri4350347 7

 

Very easy install and they work great! Super bright and several different flashing sequences available.

 

I highly recommend them. Much better than the Kissan's and no fault indicator on the dash - totally CANBUS friendly and much brighter than the Kissans.

[black99S]

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[swilson]

http://www.touratech-usa.com/shop/show.lasso?sku=BK0115&-session=touratech:45130E290c5b13446FvJT43AB5FE

 

Thats cool. Took them long enough.

 

 

[markgoodrich]

This is the product of the same name produced by Road Rocketeer of Canada (same part number, even). A number of us had substantial difficulties getting orders filled...they weren't...with constantly changing stories, and with less-than-optimal performance if the order did arrive. I'm glad to see it appears they've resolved the production and shipping issues and have a national distributor to boot.

[lopaca]

This is the product of the same name produced by Road Rocketeer of Canada (same part number, even). A number of us had substantial difficulties getting orders filled...they weren't...with constantly changing stories, and with less-than-optimal performance if the order did arrive. I'm glad to see it appears they've resolved the production and shipping issues and have a national distributor to boot.

 

Interesting. That explains why it was on backorder for so long. I placed my order with Touratech about 3 months ago and just got it this past Monday. Definitely worth the wait though.

 

You are right about the name. The box is a Road Rocketeer box.

[markgoodrich]

Can you post some photos? How's visibility from the side?

 

Did you have to tap into the wiring? The original design required that, then they said they'd redesigned it, but since I never got a unit....

 

Thx.

[JayW]

Sounds interesting. Does it also function as an extra tail/running light? Where do you plug it in and how does it mount?

 

Jay

[lciamillo]

I just tried to install this unit today. It worked but caused a bulb out fault code. I tried calling the manufacturer using the phone number on the box and the phone has been disconnected. I called Touratech and they advised me that the manufacturer had been having some problems with these units but they assured the folks at Touratech that the problems were resolved. It looks like this is not the case. Part was sent back for refund.

[lopaca]

Can you post some photos? How's visibility from the side?

 

Did you have to tap into the wiring? The original design required that, then they said they'd redesigned it, but since I never got a unit....

 

Thx.

 

No. Totally plug and play.

[lopaca]

I did not get a fault display......yet.

 

Even if I do, they are brighter and more effective, so I think that I will keep them. According to Touratech they are CANBUS compatible.

[markgoodrich]

I just tried to install this unit today. It worked but caused a bulb out fault code. I tried calling the manufacturer using the phone number on the box and the phone has been disconnected. I called Touratech and they advised me that the manufacturer had been having some problems with these units but they assured the folks at Touratech that the problems were resolved. It looks like this is not the case. Part was sent back for refund.

 

Same story, different year, from Road Rocketeer.

[lciamillo]

Update! Just notified by Touratech that the manufacturer is aware of the problem with some bikes. Touratech provided me with a good phone number and I called Road Rocketeer. They said they would ship me a new circuit board and that should fix the problem. I really hope this works since I am very impressed with how bright this thing is. I'll get back with the results.

[fourteenfour]

Anyone have pictures? I cannot get any from the site...

 

a comparison would be best.

[markgoodrich]

This thread prompted me to email Kevin at Road Rocketeer, barking at him one last time. To my surprise I got a return email today, with a promise that the CANBUS issues have been resolved, they have some "units on the shelf" and one will be sent to me Monday, and I will get a UPS tracking number Monday.

 

I have two suggestions: wait until I get the unit and take some comparison photos before you order, and read THIS THREAD before ordering. If indeed all is finally well, the testimonials from owners of earlier units make it an enticing proposal.

 

As usual, I can't stop at two suggestions: Kriss Industries makes a product to fit CANBUS bikes, and is extremely responsive to questions. I was going to order a brake flasher in February, and simply became distracted. Even got a follow-up phone call a few weeks ago, but went riding instead of calling, and then this thread popped up. If Kevin doesn't follow through as promised, I'll be calling Kriss on Tuesday.

[tlc]

This thread prompted me to email Kevin at Road Rocketeer, barking at him one last time. To my surprise I got a return email today, with a promise that the CANBUS issues have been resolved, they have some "units on the shelf" and one will be sent to me Monday, and I will get a UPS tracking number Monday.

I was just getting ready to order the Road Rocketeer unit, until I saw this. I will wait for your evaluation. Please let us know how it works out.

[rickmoen]

I saw this thread and emailed Road Rocketeer with a question. I got a response in about 2 hours. Impressive - so I ordered one. I've already gotten a UPS tracking number. It hasn't shipped yet, but I'm optimistic. I'll post when it ships, arrives, and installed.

[racer7]

+1 for a Canbus fault code. My bike has Hyperlites and while the Brake! works well, it causes a Canbus fault. Whether this can be eliminated by wiring rearrangment or noeeds something to trick the Canbus system don't know yet - didn't have any "fiddle" time left last night and may not get to it for a week or so. I do know that the wiring color code info on the package does not match my 08 RT and is proof that this is not a fully researched product. (the 08 RT does not have an orange tail lamp positive lead as the install instructions indicate).

 

Anyway, this may be going back for a refund from Touratech. I would advise

potential buyers to be aware of this issue.

[JMR]

This thread prompted me to email Kevin at Road Rocketeer, barking at him one last time. To my surprise I got a return email today, with a promise that the CANBUS issues have been resolved, they have some "units on the shelf" and one will be sent to me Monday, and I will get a UPS tracking number Monday.

 

I have two suggestions: wait until I get the unit and take some comparison photos before you order, and read THIS THREAD before ordering. If indeed all is finally well, the testimonials from owners of earlier units make it an enticing proposal.

 

As usual, I can't stop at two suggestions: Kriss Industries makes a product to fit CANBUS bikes, and is extremely responsive to questions. I was going to order a brake flasher in February, and simply became distracted. Even got a follow-up phone call a few weeks ago, but went riding instead of calling, and then this thread popped up. If Kevin doesn't follow through as promised, I'll be calling Kriss on Tuesday.

I am one of the posters of the mentioned previous thread regarding Road Rocketeer... I am still looking for a plug-and-play product to enhance my brake lighting. I'm very interested in the outcome of this thread on a few fronts, (please keep the posts coming):

...very interested how Road Rocketeer is following up these days on promises made

...very interested how well Touratec is backing up and supporting Road Rocketeer products and issues (if any)

...VERY interested how the Kriss Industries products work with the 1200RT CANBUS system

 

Thanks to all for sharing your experiences and useful information!

[Indy Dave]

it'll be nice to see pics of the product. I'd ordered the BMW LED flashing brake light/tail light and harness, along with other odds and ends. Some of the items were not in stock, so everything should arrive this week and will post pictures.

[wbrissette]

This thread prompted me to email Kevin at Road Rocketeer, barking at him one last time. To my surprise I got a return email today, with a promise that the CANBUS issues have been resolved, they have some "units on the shelf" and one will be sent to me Monday, and I will get a UPS tracking number Monday.

 

Mark:

 

I want to see it when you get it installed. I have been wanting to install one of these on my '09 RT, depending on what I think of yours, I might order it. Heck, if you need help installing it (doubtful), I'll be happy to help do that too.

 

Wayne

[JMR]

This thread prompted me to email Kevin at Road Rocketeer, barking at him one last time. To my surprise I got a return email today, with a promise that the CANBUS issues have been resolved, they have some "units on the shelf" and one will be sent to me Monday, and I will get a UPS tracking number Monday.

 

I have two suggestions: wait until I get the unit and take some comparison photos before you order, and read THIS THREAD before ordering. If indeed all is finally well, the testimonials from owners of earlier units make it an enticing proposal.

 

As usual, I can't stop at two suggestions: Kriss Industries makes a product to fit CANBUS bikes, and is extremely responsive to questions. I was going to order a brake flasher in February, and simply became distracted. Even got a follow-up phone call a few weeks ago, but went riding instead of calling, and then this thread popped up. If Kevin doesn't follow through as promised, I'll be calling Kriss on Tuesday.

I looked into the Kriss Industries products....ordered a unit today, I'll post how things go with it.

 

[racer7]

Well, I got a chance to test my defective Brake! light tonight by removing the Hyperlites (they're on a Centech and don't cause any Canbus issues anyway), swapping pos/neg pair L to R and that was about as far as I'm willing to go. The thing still throws the bulb out Canbus fault when installed by itself in all possible "correct as close as instructions allow" manners. Too bad because its light color and intensity is right on target for what I want in a tail lamp. And its got pretty good "beam width" for an LED design also, not the narrow focus of the Hyperlite add on.

 

Called Cyco/Touratech and got a return number- good service from them. I'm too busy to be a product developer for someone else but might try a replacement some time if an explanation for the issue is posted that makes sense. Figure about 3 hrs wasted between the install, test, remove, return, post and read stuff plus the return cost

 

I'm thinking this item was never developed or tested on an 08 RT. Its instructions have an incorrect wire color code, for example. Who's got an RT with an orange tail lamp lead? Is that the color on an 05? What years have had successes and failures so far?

 

The boards on mine are marked BKO115L Rev 1.0 in case anyone wants to compare board IDs - but there could be component variants assembled on boards with the same ID so I wouldn't take a match as meaning anything one way or the other. A different board number makes differences likely.

Boards had no visibly bad cold solder joints, etc though that's certainly no proof they don't have a manufacturing defect of some type.

[SageRider]

I just tried to install this unit today. It worked but caused a bulb out fault code....

I just received a unit for my '06 today and am seeing the same thing...

[lopaca]

I just tried to install this unit today. It worked but caused a bulb out fault code. I tried calling the manufacturer using the phone number on the box and the phone has been disconnected. I called Touratech and they advised me that the manufacturer had been having some problems with these units but they assured the folks at Touratech that the problems were resolved. It looks like this is not the case. Part was sent back for refund.

 

Well I got the fault code as well. I just called Touratech and they told me to call the Manufacturer. They picked up right away. Evidently, the unit is not drawing enough and the canbus is seeing it. They are expedite shipping a unit that plugs into free floating portion of the board that in essence will create the proper draw amount. They said that they have been getting alot of calls. They added that it worked on the bike they tested it on so they are surprised at the issue.

 

Have to give it to them for being so upfront and quick about the cure but have to wonder why they did not think to try it on a couple of different bikes - probably will in the future.

 

In any event, once I get the add on unit installed I will report back.

[lopaca]

Don't bother calling Touratech they are just going to give you this number to call:

250-412-7524

 

Save yourself some time (I was on hold for about 5 minutes before someone picked up at Touratech), just call them direct. All they need is your shipping address. You don't need a Touratech order or confirmation number or anything else.

[SageRider]

As lopaca above did, I contacted via email both Road Rocketeer and Touratech. I added that my issue was time critical (I'm heading to Torrey on Thursday).

I received an immediate response at the start of business this morning from both RR & Touratech. My replacement part is on the way overnight.

 

I will post again once the part is received and installed, but I must say now that I am very pleased with the response received so far from both RR & Touratech!

[racer7]

There are already 3 boards in this device- the main board with the leds and connected to it by a ribbon cable the board with the dip switches for selecting the flasher rate, if you care about that. (I don't- only wanted the steady default setting). The third board isn't wired electrically to the other two but only to the bike electrical system (didn't check to see if it had a connection thru the mount screw but IIRC it didn't) and appears to be a load simulator for the Canbus- which sort of begs the question about what the load is on the other (led and dip switch) side by comparison and how they hope to fool the Canbus system. I presume the Canbus can detect a single dead bulb so both sides would need to be dealt with and that implies adding a load to the LED side of the circuit that would take an extra board (making a total of 4) because otherwise the ribbon cable/dip switch board has to be unsoldered and replaced.

 

I could imagine a fix as being a Kriss-like load simulator plugging into the bike harness in between the the bike and the dip switch board but that would be a bit of a kludge. (I actually thought about trying something like that but rejected it for the kludge reason and the time it would take - this thing needs correct boards, not kludges..)

 

Please describe fully any board they send you- how it installs, what it connects to electrically and what its function is. For example, a replacement for the simulator board that carries a different ID or parts than the original (the original simulator board is numbered BK115 Rev 1.0 and is also labeled for which bike lead goes to which connector).

 

Unless a real parts or design change is occuring this may not be any sort of "real" fix. Remember that the instructions provided make pretty clear this was not developed on a recent RT. There are Canbus variants on RTs even if we don't know exactly how many variations exist for the tail lamp circuits in the various software/hardware combos and it seems these guys already use their customers for development. Note that they have the same chance to post an explanation here as any of us does to discuss flaws- credibility can be gained by verifiable explanations.

 

 

 

 

[markgoodrich]

Well, as has been the case for more than seven months, all I've gotten from RR is promises, and all I've seen here, recently, is failed product. Last Friday I was promised Monday shipment with UPS tracking number (I've gotten tracking numbers from them before, but nothing ever actually shipped), but got exactly what I expected: nothing.

 

I emailed Touratech last night mentioning the numerous failures which seem to be occurring with products ordered through them and got a reply today, confirming same. They referred me to RR, thinking I had a faulty unit.

 

I try to keep comments about companies to factual statements, especially when I've had a problem, as many times the problem is specific to my particular order, but Road Rocketeer has earned a strong negative rating in my book. Even if the product design is great, even if the old company had a great reputation for reliable, useful products, the current ownership has, for me at least, no credibility at all. No delivery, numerous promises of shipped items which weren't shipped, faulty units, no responsibility taken for any problems...I'll spend my money elsewhere. I'm willing to bet that you can't order the flasher from Touratech for much longer; they'll realize their customers are unhappy.

[JMR]

Mark, having been down the exact same road as you with RR, I have the same sentiments and doubts about all this as you....too bad too, I understand the RR products for non-canbus systems are really nice.

Anywho, I checked out Kriss Industries' stuff after your mentioning them earlier in this thread (thanks) and have one of their brake light/turn signal units on the way. I'll post up how it turns out. I want to use a LED product with the existing rear light housings and not add externals, but at this point I'm willing to go with something that arrives and works (hopefully), LED or no LED .

[markgoodrich]

Mark, having been down the exact same road as you with RR, I have the same sentiments and doubts about all this as you....too bad too, I understand the RR products for non-canbus systems are really nice.

Anywho, I checked out Kriss Industries' stuff after your mentioning them earlier in this thread (thanks) and have one of their brake light/turn signal units on the way. I'll post up how it turns out. I want to use a LED product with the existing rear light housings and not add externals, but at this point I'm willing to go with something that arrives and works (hopefully), LED or no LED .

 

Yeah, I ordered the Kriss unit this evening, along with the CANBUS widget that's needed. I saw an older BMW the other night with some brand of flasher using just the factory brake light and it was really attention-getting. With the dual bulbs in the RT, assuming I can wire it correctly, it should do the trick of getting drivers' attention.

[bobbybob]

Mark, been following this--what are the chief differences between the Kriss unit and the RR ?

[SageRider]

I received the fix from Road Rocketeer today. The fix was a resistor that connected to the existing tabs on the unit.

Unfortunately, at least ON MY BIKE, the total parallel resistance needed to be about much lower than the value provided. This then led to Wattage dissipation concerns.

Road Rocketeer responded very well, and I thank them for it.

However, at least for now, I will be returning the unit.

[markgoodrich]

Mark, been following this--what are the chief differences between the Kriss unit and the RR ?

 

1. Kriss has been in business for years, with many positive testimonials.

 

2. Kriss answers their phone on the first or second ring, and offers advice instead of excuses.

 

3. Kriss ships next day (at least in my case), whereas Road Rocketeer sends only tracking numbers and/or promises (at least in my case, over a period of seven months).

 

4. The Kriss unit will make your EXISTING bulbs flash and then go steady; you'll not get brighter light, just the attention-getting flashes. The RR unit, according to the responses in this thread, will cause CANBUS faults. It is advertised as a super-bright LED taillight/brakelight replacement, but I can't prove that, since I've never received the merchandise.

 

HTH....

[JMR]

Yeah, I ordered the Kriss unit this evening, along with the CANBUS widget that's needed.

Mark,

What "CANBUS widget" are you referring to? I ordered the BM6000 unit and nothing else... just wondering if I missed something that I'll need.

Thanks.

[markgoodrich]

Yeah, I ordered the Kriss unit this evening, along with the CANBUS widget that's needed.

Mark,

What "CANBUS widget" are you referring to? I ordered the BM6000 unit and nothing else... just wondering if I missed something that I'll need.

Thanks.

 

I ordered just the brake flasher, not the multi-function brake/signal unit you ordered. Part number I ordered is BL3012. If you go to THIS PAGE and scroll down to the bottom, on the right side you'll see an orange "Add to Cart" button and under it "Can-Bus brake isolator." You need that, at least for the Freedom Flasher I ordered. Add it to your cart, and it shows up as $7.95.

 

I strongly suggest you call them (George) and have him tell you whether you need it for the part you ordered...I feel certain you do...and then try to wheedle him into shipping it for free. If it turns out you can't use the Panther unit (the one you ordered) try telling him about this active discussion thread and see about a quick exchange. He's a very nice guy. Of course, Kevin at RR also comes across as a very nice guy....

 

One of the electric whizzes in this thread called the widget a "kludge;" not sure what kludge is, but perhaps the poster will explain.

 

For what it's worth, I've resisted the Hyper-lites sorts of things because they just don't seem to be very visible in daylight. I ride behind a couple of guys who have them, and I think the idea of a flashing brake light, rather than two little strips of LEDs, is a more visible idea. I realize I may be in the minority on this.

[SageRider]

Kludge

[markgoodrich]

Kludge

 

Ah, thanks, Michael. I guess. Is one allowed to have a Kludge on der motorrad from der Fadderland? I hope so, as I have several inelegant solutions to farkling problems I've encountered, and I certainly want my Freedom Flasher to work.

[eej1]

I installed the Brake! LED taillights purchased from Touratech/Road Rocketeer (BK0115) and so far after a few rides no fault codes on my 2005 R1200RT. I like them – it’s nice to be able to program them for various modes, and they look brighter. Here are some pictures.

 

running light, original bulbs

 

running light w/Brake!

 

brake light, original bulbs

 

brake light w/Brake!

 

running light, original bulbs

 

running light w/Brake!

 

brake light, original bulbs

 

brake light w/Brake!

 

Eric

 

[lciamillo]

Well I too received the RR fix today and installed it. No luck...still get the darn fault code. I was sure hoping this would work. Looks like the unit goes back for refund and will be ordering the Kriss industries unit. I think that the later model RT's must have something different in the canbus system because I had a similar unit installed in my 2005 RT from GizmoMill (same company I think) and it worked great. My 2009 RT however doesn't seem to like this setup. Too bad RR can't get it right.

[markgoodrich]

Received the Kriss flasher unit and Canbus "kludge" today, not expecting it to arrive until Monday. So far so good.

 

Wandered down to the garage after dinner, and began trying to trace the two brake bulb wires back to where they split off from a single wire. Found it, moved further towards the ZFE so I could get at the wiring more easily without taking the entire back end of the bike apart, and wired the thing up, very inelegantly, just to see if it works. It does, immediately, first time.

 

HOWEVER: The kludgey Canbus adapater gizmo buzzes like crazy when the ignition is turned on, making me think I had made a horrible error. When I press the brake pedal, the noise stops and the brake light flashes and then goes steady. I bet it's a relay, but why it's opening and closing at buzz speed when the brake isn't engaged is a mystery...as are all things electrical...to me. Naturally, it's the weekend, I'll call George on Monday and report back here. I've also taken some photos and will post them, too, so others can find the correct wire easily.

 

The thing really is simple to hook up, and although it's not brighter (it's not dimmer), the flashing should help. I'm encouraged.

[rwbloch]

I purchased the Road Rocketeer LED Tailight from Touratech, installed it, seemed to work great. Went for a ride earlier this evening. The "rear light isn't working" idiot light came on. Checked the rear lights several times during the ride, they seemed to be fine, but the idiot light still burns.

 

Should I be worried given some of the comments in this post?

 

If I go to the dealer, is he likely to say "no warranty (asshole) it's not BMW equipment.??

 

RB

[markgoodrich]

I purchased the Road Rocketeer LED Tailight from Touratech, installed it, seemed to work great. Went for a ride earlier this evening. The "rear light isn't working" idiot light came on. Checked the rear lights several times during the ride, they seemed to be fine, but the idiot light still burns.

 

Should I be worried given some of the comments in this post?

 

Call Touratech, they'll take it back.

If I go to the dealer, is he likely to say "no warranty (asshole) it's not BMW equipment.??

 

RB

[Indy Dave]

Touratech is top notch - just let them know what the problem is.

[lopaca]

Don't bother calling Touratech they are just going to give you this number to call:

250-412-7524

 

Save yourself some time (I was on hold for about 5 minutes before someone picked up at Touratech), just call them direct. All they need is your shipping address. You don't need a Touratech order or confirmation number or anything else.

 

6 days later and I have not received the add on "fix". I just left message asking for an update but this is not going the way I was hoping. More to follow....

[markgoodrich]

Don't bother calling Touratech they are just going to give you this number to call:

250-412-7524

 

Save yourself some time (I was on hold for about 5 minutes before someone picked up at Touratech), just call them direct. All they need is your shipping address. You don't need a Touratech order or confirmation number or anything else.

 

6 days later and I have not received the add on "fix". I just left message asking for an update but this is not going the way I was hoping. More to follow....

 

lopaca, six days is nothing. Try seven months. Good luck with it.

[markgoodrich]

Received the Kriss flasher unit and Canbus "kludge" today, not expecting it to arrive until Monday. So far so good.

 

Wandered down to the garage after dinner, and began trying to trace the two brake bulb wires back to where they split off from a single wire. Found it, moved further towards the ZFE so I could get at the wiring more easily without taking the entire back end of the bike apart, and wired the thing up, very inelegantly, just to see if it works. It does, immediately, first time.

 

HOWEVER: The kludgey Canbus adapater gizmo buzzes like crazy when the ignition is turned on, making me think I had made a horrible error. When I press the brake pedal, the noise stops and the brake light flashes and then goes steady. I bet it's a relay, but why it's opening and closing at buzz speed when the brake isn't engaged is a mystery...as are all things electrical...to me. Naturally, it's the weekend, I'll call George on Monday and report back here. I've also taken some photos and will post them, too, so others can find the correct wire easily.

 

The thing really is simple to hook up, and although it's not brighter (it's not dimmer), the flashing should help. I'm encouraged.

 

UPDATE: Called George at Kriss awhile ago, explained the problem to him, and he told me they'd designed the canbus isolator based on another customer's comment that the "baseline" voltage going to the tail lights is 2 volts. On my '06 RT it's 3.2 volts. He said that's why the relay is buzzing...being triggered constantly, I guess. Anyway, he is going to work out a new workaround and give me a status update within the next couple of days. Although I'm disappointed the unit didn't work the first try, I'm very pleased and encouraged with his response and his reaction.

 

I'll report here when I hear from him.

 

If any experts out there have voltage comments, I'd like to hear them, so I can pass them on to Kriss.

[bobbybob]

You know Mark...what we really need, instead of a bunch of kludgey work-arounds to circumvent the Canbus system, is a simple Canbus programmer that can tell the blasted thing "what to expect" in a given circuit--so an average Joe can install farkles without fear. "Farkles Without Fear"...hey, I like the sound of that.

[Jon_M]

UPDATE: Called George at Kriss awhile ago, explained the problem to him, and he told me they'd designed the canbus isolator based on another customer's comment that the "baseline" voltage going to the tail lights is 2 volts. On my '06 RT it's 3.2 volts. He said that's why the relay is buzzing...being triggered constantly, I guess. Anyway, he is going to work out a new workaround and give me a status update within the next couple of days. Although I'm disappointed the unit didn't work the first try, I'm very pleased and encouraged with his response and his reaction.

 

What am I missing here? Why do these vendors all seem to be selling incorrectly designed and inadequately tested systems? Why are you willing to cut them so much slack?

[SageRider]

Don't bother calling Touratech they are just going to give you this number to call:

250-412-7524

 

Save yourself some time (I was on hold for about 5 minutes before someone picked up at Touratech), just call them direct. All they need is your shipping address. You don't need a Touratech order or confirmation number or anything else.

 

6 days later and I have not received the add on "fix". I just left message asking for an update but this is not going the way I was hoping. More to follow....

 

Considering that there have been multiple units for which the "fix" has not worked, I would suspect/hope that Road Rocketeer is doing some more research before shipping more "fixes". My '06 RT needed much lower total resistance (7 Ohm) than what was provided by the unit (50 Ohm) or the "fix" (Unit 50 Ohm reduced to 30 Ohm) to clear the open tail light fault indication.

[markgoodrich]

UPDATE: Called George at Kriss awhile ago, explained the problem to him, and he told me they'd designed the canbus isolator based on another customer's comment that the "baseline" voltage going to the tail lights is 2 volts. On my '06 RT it's 3.2 volts. He said that's why the relay is buzzing...being triggered constantly, I guess. Anyway, he is going to work out a new workaround and give me a status update within the next couple of days. Although I'm disappointed the unit didn't work the first try, I'm very pleased and encouraged with his response and his reaction.

 

What am I missing here? Why do these vendors all seem to be selling incorrectly designed and inadequately tested systems? Why are you willing to cut them so much slack?

 

I cut Road Rocketeer a lot of slack last fall and January because of the sound of sincerity in the owner's voice. I eventually realized I was not being told the entire truth, and lost patience.

 

With Kriss, the unit's CANBUS isolator didn't work upon installation, but with one phone call I was able to speak directly to the guy who said the isolator was set up for another BMW customer who gave him a reading of two volts; he's promised a fix and an update right away. I don't think waiting two days is cutting much slack. His company has been in business for many years, with a good reputation. Road Rocketeer has not been in business for long and has yet to prove they can provide a reliable product, so you're right, I cut them too much slack.