Zumo 390 mounting + wiring

adventurelounger

Active Member
Joined
Apr 15, 2014
Messages
220
Location
New England
So Farkle #1 will be to add a GPS, and after much reading and deliberating, went with the dedicated (and spendy, but hopefully worth it) Zumo 390.

I had an aging Zumo 450 which served me well (sold with my old bike). And I do think there's something to be said for a waterproof, hi-viz, glove-friendly unit. I really liked that about the 450. As for all the map and route acrobatics, I'm a simple, undemanding New England guy. Just want to know where I am and where I'm going.

So: mounting + wiring. I'm inclined to at least TRY the "in the box" mounting arm. Anyone else use it? Good? Bad? Indifferent? Are RAM or other aftermarket solutions worth it? I had the Touratech mount on my old F8, and it certainly worked, but it was like BattleStar Gallactica from and engineering standpoint. I kinda just want something simple to hold the unit.

As for power, I used the onboard BMW powerlet with my last Zumo. But would love a cleaner setup. Has anyone hard-wired their Zumo or other Garmin GPS? How hard is it to do? My bike has the OEM hand warmers installed...in terms of sourcing power, do they affect any wiring set up?

Many thanks in advance!
 

merchant

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North Texas
I have an old school Zumo 550 in a RAM mount, bolted to the front brake clamp. Hard wired to a fuse block. Works great. If no fuse block, tie right to the battery. Should work fine.
 

krussell

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Oct 30, 2013
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Portland, OR
The in box hardware is great for mounting to the handlebars. I've used the equivalent with various GPSes.

For power you can run the cable along the wires on the right side of the frame and right down to the battery. If you want it switched one option is the lead running to the cigarette lighter, another is the aux wiring lead.
 

vanha

New Member
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Nov 6, 2013
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5
Location
Finland
I power up my Garmin from the original power socket next to gauges. I have oem heated grips installed but no fog lights so I'm thinking that I could use the other Sumitomo connector to power up the navi. Problem is that I don't have any idea where to get the correct pins to use with the unused plug! Do you guys have any idea if those connector pins are universal?? I've asked almost every local auto/mc part dealer about that connector but nobody knows these Sumitomo connectors.. Local Yamaha center serviceman told me that they don't have those pins at all because oem fog lights etc.already have those connectors. Very frustrating because all I need is two very small pieces of metal! :mad:

Of course I can cut off that connector and replace it with more universal connector but I wouldn't want to cut the bikes original wires.. :'(
 

Dallara

Creaks When Walks
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Messages
2,195
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~


I use a Garmin Zumo 350LM on my 2012 Super Tenere. The 350 is very similar to the 390 - almost identical, in fact. I mount it to the handlebars with a standard Techmount...

http://www.techmounts.com/products/index.php?page_function=detail&product_id=149



And use the Garmin snap-on mount included with the GPS bolted to the Techmount. Only personal mod to this set-up is I use a piece of rubber between the Techmount and the Garmin mount.

Here's a couple of pictures of the rig on my bike...






I use the Garmin hard-mount wiring down to an Eastern Beaver (http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/main.html) product called the "3 Circuit Solution" wiring harness. You can find more info on the "3 Circuit Solution" here...

http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Wiring_Kits/Fuseboxes/3_Circuit/3_circuit.html




It gives you three fused circuits to work with, and all triggered by a relay so none of the circuits are "hot" unless the key is on. It use a plug for the relay that plugs directly into one of Yamaha's own accessory plugs under the right side panel (one is for the Yamaha heated grips, the other for the Yamaha driving lights), so it is literally *plug-and-play*. I run the GPS off of one of the fused cirucits, my radar detector on another, and my powered "Bags Connection" tank bag off the third.

If you need more circuits Eastern Beaver has their "PC-8" fuse block set-up as shown on this page...

http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Bike_Specific/Yamaha/yamaha.html




It also is relay controlled, and has a mission-specific plug to connect with the Yamaha accessory plug of your choice, so it, too, is literally *plug-and-play*. Simple, super-high quality, and flawless in operation and design, as are all Eastern Beaver's products.

Note, too, for you guys looking for the "pins" to go into the blind plugs that Yamaha includes with their accessory wiring plugs... Jim at Eastern Beaver sells those, too. Just take a look through these pages...

http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Elec__Products/Connectors/connectors.html

And you should be able to find whatever you need. However, if you simply drop Jim at Eastern Beaver an email asking for what you need he can usually point you right to it. He is truly a superior wealth of knowledge on the wiring stuff, and since he is based in Japan he has access to all the proprietary connectors, plugs, etc. that all the Jap bike manufacturers use. Best part is is he ships worldwide, and his stuff ships fast, too. I've never had anything I've ordered from him take more than a few days to arrive from Jim in Japan to my doorstep in the USA.

Hope this helps!

Dallara



~
 

adventurelounger

Active Member
Joined
Apr 15, 2014
Messages
220
Location
New England
Oops...fat-fingered that one. Thanks for the incredibly useful and detailed info, Dallara. It's practically a step by step tutorial.

Handlebar mount seems like the way to go, and I like the plug and play nature of the power solution. And that it's switched.

I did some minor tinkering/farkling on my old F800GS, but I've yet to open a side panel on the ST. Always an intimidation factor until you crack it open and have a look. GPS is in the mail, so will undertake some minor surgery next weekend. But not before ordering some wiring stuff first.

Much appreciated!
 

adventurelounger

Active Member
Joined
Apr 15, 2014
Messages
220
Location
New England
Couple of quick questions as I'm checking out the parts, Dallara. Thanks in advance for your insight and help.

For the TechMount (which you seem to have placed more or less dead-center on your bars): does this setup obscure the dash view? Or can you see over and past the GPS to the tach/speedo?

As for the Eastern Beaver wiring set up:

When I look at the pictures and read the EB instructions, it has a blue PosiTap switching lead. But if I understand, that plug on the relay (which comes supplied with a little screw-hole mount) gets connected directly into an open accessory plug on the bike (I have the OEM grip heaters, so assume one plug will be free)? Does the Eastern Beaver plug mate directly with that? And do you just cut off (or fold and tape up) the unused PosiTap lead?

As far as connecting the Zumo power cord to the 3CS goes (apologies for asking this without the Zumo & all its assorted crap in hand): do you have to cut the end of the Garmin power cord (if it already has some kind of terminal or plug) and wire-on one of those loose plastic plug-clips from the EB kit, in order to "plug it in?" Assume it makes no difference which one of the 3 different fused leads you use, since it's just a GPS?

Finally, in digging into the other EB options...

1) Did you go with the "all sealed connector" version, or the standard one?
2) Did you use the "Easy Mount Tree Clip" for the fuse holder? Or just sort of stuff it in somewhere?
3) Did you choose to weather proof the relay with the shrink-wrap?

Sorry if all of this sounds remedial. I've installed pigtails on batteries and put in brake-light flashers, but this will be a "level two" project for me! Again, many thanks in advance.
 

Travex

Lost is my destination.
Joined
May 7, 2012
Messages
832
Location
Western New York State
On my '12 I found the bar center mount to be a conflict with my large-ish Famsa tank bag so I went with a behind-the-windscreen SW Motech center mount for my Garmin unit. For me it worked better insofar as being in my line of sight.



Wired it though a Fuzeblock (http://www.fuzeblocks.com/) under the right-side plastics which left 4 remaining switched or unswitched circuits for future potential.



All pretty simple to do with a little time, a few screws, and the wire runs.
 

Dallara

Creaks When Walks
Founding Member
Joined
Nov 26, 2010
Messages
2,195
Location
South Texas
adventurelounger said:
Couple of quick questions as I'm checking out the parts, Dallara. Thanks in advance for your insight and help.

For the TechMount (which you seem to have placed more or less dead-center on your bars): does this setup obscure the dash view? Or can you see over and past the GPS to the tach/speedo?

As for the Eastern Beaver wiring set up:

When I look at the pictures and read the EB instructions, it has a blue PosiTap switching lead. But if I understand, that plug on the relay (which comes supplied with a little screw-hole mount) gets connected directly into an open accessory plug on the bike (I have the OEM grip heaters, so assume one plug will be free)? Does the Eastern Beaver plug mate directly with that? And do you just cut off (or fold and tape up) the unused PosiTap lead?

As far as connecting the Zumo power cord to the 3CS goes (apologies for asking this without the Zumo & all its assorted crap in hand): do you have to cut the end of the Garmin power cord (if it already has some kind of terminal or plug) and wire-on one of those loose plastic plug-clips from the EB kit, in order to "plug it in?" Assume it makes no difference which one of the 3 different fused leads you use, since it's just a GPS?

Finally, in digging into the other EB options...

1) Did you go with the "all sealed connector" version, or the standard one?
2) Did you use the "Easy Mount Tree Clip" for the fuse holder? Or just sort of stuff it in somewhere?
3) Did you choose to weather proof the relay with the shrink-wrap?

Sorry if all of this sounds remedial. I've installed pigtails on batteries and put in brake-light flashers, but this will be a "level two" project for me! Again, many thanks in advance.



Regarding the TechMount...

No, as you can clearly see from the picture below, the Garmin Zumo 350LM on the TechMount does not in anyway obscure the view of the instruments. I have it set up where when I am in my seated riding position the Garmin GPS appears in my line of sight just below the bike's instrument cluster, so whenever I glance down at the instruments I get a view of the GPs screen, too.





And placing the GPS on the TechMount on the bars makes it much, much easier to reach for any programming, route changes, etc. than if it were mounted up above the instruments near the windscreen. I have had my GPs mounted both ways (I once used an SW Motech GPS mount up by the windscreen), and I far prefer it on the TechMount on the handlebars. It also does not in any way interfere with my "Bags Connection" tank bag, and I still have a clear view of the GPS screen over the front edge of the tank bag when I have it mounted.

There is *NO* Posi-Tap lead on my Eastern Beaver "3 Circuit Solution" set-up. I know it shows one in the picture above, but the one Jim sent me had the plug on it there that plugs into the bike's own accessory plug (mine went to the Yamaha driving light plug), so the whole rig was truly *plug-and-play*. There is no Posi-Tap lead to "cut off (or fold and tape up)".

Regarding the Garmin Zump power leads... The Eastern Beaver 3CS kit comes with your choice of plugs to mount to the end of your various accessories, and I simply cut the ends of the Garmin harness, mounted the pins for the plugs on the ends of the wires, and then inserted the pins into the proper plugs. This makes removing or changing any accessories quick, easy, and again, *plug-and-play*.

As for the rest of your questions...

1. - Regarding the plugs - I used the plugs Jim sent me at the time with the 3CS kit. I was one of the first in the world to get one of these kits, and it came with some plain, black plastic male-female plugs that look like a lot of the connectors on many Jap bikes. They had flat, spade type "pins" for the wire leads.

2. - I have no idea what a "Easy Mount Tree Clip" is. I mounted the fuse block part with some velcro, and zip-tied the relay to a place on the factory panel that holds several relays.

3. - No, I did not do any special weatherproofing of any kind, other than using silicone dielectric grease on all my connections. I have not had any trouble of any kind with any of the accessories, connections, etc. in the tens of thousands of miles I have all this mounted, and everything works great. That said, I have been a mechanic of one kind or another almost all my life, and I do take great care in mounting and assembling the farkles on my bikes. Just take your time and do good work. That's all it takes.

Trust me, this is not rocket science. Don't make it any more complex or complicated than necessary. This is simple, easy, basic stuff. Be patient, follow the instructions, and make good connections and you're golden.

Hope this helps.

Dallara



~
 

adventurelounger

Active Member
Joined
Apr 15, 2014
Messages
220
Location
New England
Excellent clarifications, and greatly appreciated!

Ordered the Eastern Beaver & Techmount parts today...and will be assembling as soon as UPS delivers.

Thank you Dallara for your expert guidance. Will post pics of my install for future Tenere/GPS installation adventurers!
 

Bombadier36

Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2019
Messages
81
Location
Florida Panhandle
Thank you for all the information on thread. I just bought a 2017 Super Tenere non-ES and looking to add nav and heated grips.

Heated grips are on order and are simple to install. I’m looking at the NAV wiring information posted here and want to make sure I purchase the correct Eastern Beaver connector kit.

“3 Circuit Solution HD for New Super Tenere” is the one I’m looking at. Will this work for the 2017 and do I need anything else in addition to this item?
http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Bike_Specific/Yamaha/yamaha.html

There doesn’t seem to be a contact for the website that I can reach out to so posting here instead.
 
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