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4 Most Common Honda Foreman 500 Electric Shift Problems (Fixes Included)

One of the best things about the Honda Foreman 500 is the Electric Shift feature.

It lets you change gears effortlessly with just a press of a button.

However, some Foreman 500 owners have reported problems with the Electric Shift feature, including shifting issues and complete failure of the system.

In this article, we’ll go over the most common Honda Foreman 500 Electric Shift problems, their causes, how to diagnose them, and eventually fix them.

4 Most Common Honda Foreman 500 Electric Shift Problems

When your car’s Electric Shift system breaks down, it will stop working altogether and you won’t be able to shift gears or go in reverse. However, sometimes there are additional signs that can help narrow down the issue, like if the motor spins slowly or the engine has poor acceleration.

Now, the first thing that you should do when you’re having problems with the Electric Shift function is to check the battery voltage. All electrical systems are very fussy about battery voltage, especially the Electric Shift.

The battery should be fully charged (12.4 V or more) and in good condition. If the battery is too worn and does not hold a charge for long, the ES system will work intermittently or not at all.

If the battery is in good condition, then another easy thing to check is the fuses. There are three fuses that are used by the ES system – MAIN 1 (40A), MAIN 2 (10A), and the IGN (20A).

Another thing to check is the clutch adjustment. Many people forget about this, but the Electric Shift system heavily relies on the clutch adjustment by the rider. The clutch should be adjusted precisely, otherwise, the system will stop working.

Related: The Average Motorcycle Clutch Replacement Cost

1. ES Won’t Shift & Shift Motor Doesn’t Spin

One of the most common problems that people face with the Honda Forman 500 is that the Electric Shift doesn’t work at all.

The shift motor doesn’t even move and stays silent. In this case – you’re most likely facing a wiring issue or a bad sensor.

The ES system is constantly checking and verifying that all of the sensors are showing correct readings and that everything is within spec. If the ECM detects that one of the sensors has failed or is showing incorrect readings, the ES system will completely stop working for this ignition cycle as a failsafe to prevent further damage to itself.

If the ECM still detects the same issue after you cycle the ignition OFF and ON, then it will keep the ES system from working until the fault is fixed.

In this case, the ECM stores a fault code in its memory, and you should be able to retrieve it from the ATV. Fault codes or DTCs are not a 100% reliable indicator of what’s actually wrong with the vehicle, but they will point you in the right direction and save you lots of time.

In fact, troubleshooting the ES system can be very challenging without knowing the exact trouble code that causes the problem, therefore we strongly advise you to retrieve the fault codes (how-to down below).

Now, a lot of the Electric Shift problems are caused by loose or corroded connectors. Eventually, moisture does find a way inside the connector and corrodes the contacts, which then causes a short or an open circuit.

We advise you to first check the three main ES system connectors for loose contacts and corrosion, before moving on to the sensors.

2. ES Won’t Shift But Shift Motor Spins Slowly

Sometimes you can actually hear the shift motor desperately trying to shift gears, but being unable to because it’s too slow. In that case – you’re most likely dealing with a bad shift motor, a bad power feed, or a bad ground to the motor.

It’s extremely important to check the battery first when you hear the shift motor spinning slowly, as that can be the cause.

If the battery is fine, then the next easiest thing to check is the actual gearbox of the ATV.

Now, it’s very unlikely that the gearbox has failed because they do last almost a lifetime, but it can happen. Try to manually shift the gears. If you can shift the gears manually with ease, then the gearbox is fine and you should now focus on the shift motor itself.

honda foreman 500 shift motor

First, verify that the shift motor is actually getting good power and ground. We recommend using a test light for this in order to actually load the circuit, as sometimes a break in the wiring cannot be detected with a multimeter alone.

If the wiring is good, then the only thing left is the shift motor. Usually, the magnets inside the shift motor break and jam, or the grease inside becomes too sticky and slows the motor.

You can fix the shift motor yourself, at least most of the time, but getting a replacement motor is the best solution long term.

3. ES Won’t Shift & ATV Accelerates Poorly

On the more recent Honda Foreman 500 models, the PCM is beefier and is therefore tasked with controlling both the Electric Shift and the PGM-FI system (fancy name for fuel injection).

If the fuel injection system starts malfunctioning for some reason, then the PCM will also turn off the Electric Shift as well in order to prevent further damage. So if you’ve noticed that in addition to the Electric Shift not working, the engine is also running rough, accelerating poorly, or idling high, then it’s likely that the PGM-FI has a problem and has also caused the Electric Shift to stop functioning.

Now, if there really is a problem with the fuel injection system on your Honda Foreman 500, then it will have a fault code stored in its memory. Retrieving it would be very helpful, and we highly recommend doing so.

The process of retrieving fault codes on more recent Honda Foreman 500 models is quite different, and we will talk about how to do that later in this article.

honda foreman 500 throttle position sensor

If the fuel injection system has a fault and the ES system doesn’t work well, then the TP (Throttle Position) sensor is the most likely culprit.

The thing is, the Electric Shift system can only shift gears if the throttle is neutral (0 degrees), and if the TP sensor is showing readings higher than 0, the system will go into a fail-safe mode and use substituted values to replace the faulty TP sensor readings.

In turn, this forces the PCM to disable the Electric Shift in order to prevent damage to the gearbox.

4. ES Won’t Shift & Engine Does Not Start

In some cases, the Electric Shift system doesn’t work at all and you also can’t start the engine. This usually happens if there is a problem with the gear position switch or its circuit.

If the gear position switch is faulty, then the PCM won’t be able to tell whether the ATV is in gear or not, which forces it to go into a fail-safe mode again and prevent the ATV from starting in gear.

How To Retrieve Fault Codes for the Electric Shift System

We’ve gone over the most common Honda Foreman 500 Electric Shift problems, why they happen, and how to diagnose and fix them – now it’s time to find out how to retrieve the fault codes.

Fault codes are extremely helpful when diagnosing faults on the Foreman 500, especially when it comes to the ES system.

The Foreman 500 has a very nice fault detection system, which is constantly watching over different circuits and sensors in order to find abnormalities and prevent them from damaging the engine or the gearbox.

If the PCM detects a problem, then it will stop the Electric Shift system from working for this ignition cycle and store a fault code in its memory to ease diagnostics. Every time you cycle the ignition ON again, the PCM will check whether the problem is still present, and if it detects it – the PCM will stop the ES system from working again until it’s fixed.

In any case, if there if the PCM has detected a problem with the Electric Shift system, it will blink out a trouble code using the gear indicator.

How To Retrieve Electric Shift Trouble Codes on 05-11 Foreman 500

  1. Verify that the battery is fully charged (12.6-12.4 V)
  2. Turn ON the ignition and count the number of gear indicator blinks
  3. Reference the gear indicator blinks to the fault codes below in this article

Please note that if the fault is not detected during this ignition cycle, then the gear indicator will not blink the fault code with the ignition ON, and in order to retrieve it, you will have to force a fault code retrieval.

To force a fault code retrieval:

  1. Ignition OFF.
  2. Transmission in neutral.
  3. Parking brake ON.
  4. Push both Upshift and Downshift buttons.
  5. While holding the two shift buttons, turn the ignition ON.
  6. Before the letter “N” appears, release both shift buttons and then push them both again for more than 3 seconds.
  7. Count the number of gear indicator blinks and reference them to the fault codes found below in this article.
  8. If the gear indicator did not blink, start over and try again.
  9. If the gear indicator still did not blink a trouble code, then your ATV has no codes stored or you have a faulty gear position indicator.

How To Retrieve Electric Shift Fault Codes on 12+ Foreman 500

  1. Turn the ignition ON and count the gear position indicator blinks.
  2. The number of blinks indicates the current DTC, which can be referenced down below in this article.

To force a code retrieval:

  1. Disconnect the DLC.
  2. Short the two DLC terminals using SCS service connector 070PZ-ZY30100
  3. Turn the ignition ON and count the gear position indicator blinks
  4. The number of blinks indicates the current DTC, which can be referenced down below in this article.

It’s possible to short the DLC terminals without having to buy the SCS service connector from Honda by using a jumper wire, but we do not recommend doing that as you can damage your ATV. Do so at your own risk.

How To Read Electric Shift Trouble Codes

The Honda Foreman 500 provides the fault codes by blinking the gear indicator on the screen or the gear indicator light on earlier models.

The indicator can either blink at ~1-second intervals (long) or 1/4th of a second interval (short). A single long blink stands for a decimal 10, while a single short blink stands for a decimal 1. Keep in mind that models before 2011 will only do short blinks.

As an example, let’s say the gear indicator blinks 2 long blinks, and then 1 short blink. The two long blinks stand for 20 (10+10) and the one short blink simply stands for 1.

You then have to add them together in order to get DTC 21 – Shift angle sensor circuit High Voltage.

Need access to all Honda Foreman 500 fault codes? We’ve got a complete list of all Honda Foreman 500 Fault Codes.

Honda Foreman 500 ES System Fault Code (DTC) List

For 2005-2011 Honda Foreman 500:

Gear Position Indicator BlinksCheck Part and/or System
1ECM (writing & recording circuit
2ES shift switch system (up & down)
3Angle sensor system
4Gear position switch system
5ECM motor driver circuit
6ECM fail-safe relay circuit
7ECM voltage convert circuit
8Angle sensor system
9Angle sensor system
10CKP sensor system
11Rear VS sensor system
12Gear position switch system
13Throttle position (TP) sensor system

For 2012+ Honda Foreman 500:

DTC (“-” blinks)Function FailureSymptom/Fail-safe function
8-1 (8)TP sensor circuit low voltage (less than 0.22 V)
• TP sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Poor engine acceleration
• Fail-safe value: O°
• ESP does not work
8-2 (8)TP sensor circuit High voltage (more than 4.93 V)
• Loose or poor contact of the TP sensor connector
• TP sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Poor engine acceleration
• Fail-safe value: O°
• ESP does not work
11-1 (11)VS sensor no signal
• Loose or poor contact of the Rear VS sensor connector
• Rear VS sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• ESP does not work
21-1 (21)Shift angle sensor circuit low voltage (less than 0.37 V)
• Shift angle sensor or its circuit malfunction
• ESP does not work
21-2 (21)Shift angle sensor circuit High voltage (more than 4.62 V)
• Loose or poor contact of the Sub-gearshift spindle angle sensor connector
• Shift angle sensor or its circuit malfunction
• ESP does not work
22-1 (22)Shift angle sensor response (Control motor lock)
• PCM activates the motor but the angle sensor voltage does not change in middle position
• Control motor or its circuit malfunction
• Shift angle sensor or its circuit malfunction
• ESP does not work
22-2 (22)Shift angle sensor response (Control motor stuck)
• PCM does not activate the motor but angle sensor
voltage stays out of middle position (195 – 3.05 V)
• Control motor or its circuit malfunction
• Shift angle sensor or its circuit malfunction
• ESP does not work
23-1 (23)Shift angle sensor response (Voltage variation)
• PCM does not activate the motor but angle sensor voltage varies constantly
• Shift angle sensor installation problem
• Shift angle sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Control motor or its circuit malfunction
• ESP does not work
24-1 (24)Shift control motor drive circuit
• Control motor or its circuit malfunction
• Control motor drive circuit malfunction
• ESP does not work
32-1 (32)Fail-safe relay circuit
• Fail-safe relay circuit malfunction
• ESP does not work
33-2 (33)EEPROM malfunction• Engine operates normally
41-1 (41)Gear position switch circuit
• Gear position switch circuit malfunction (Short)
• Engine does not start
• ESP does not work
• Gear position indicator blinks “-“
41-2 (41)Gear position switch circuit
• Gear position switch circuit malfunction (Open)
• ESP does not work
• Gear position indicator blinks “-“
42-1 (42)Gearshift (UP/DOWN) switch circuit
• Gearshift (UP/DOWN) switch circuit malfunction (Short)
• ESP does not work

PGM-FI System Fault Codes:

DTCFunction FailureSymptom/Fail-safe function
1-1MAP sensor circuit low voltage (less than 0.195 V)
• MAP sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• Pre-program value: 64 kPa
1-2MAP sensor circuit high voltage (more than 3.804 V)
• Loose or poor contact of the MAP sensor connector
• MAP sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• Pre-program value: 64 kPa
7-1ECT sensor circuit low voltage (less than 0.015 V)
• ECT sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Hard to start at low temperature
• Pre-program value: 78.6°C/173.5°F
• Cooling fan turns on
7-2ECT sensor circuit high voltage (more than 4.981 V)
• Loose or poor contact of the ECT sensor connect
• ECT sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Hard to start at low temperature
• Pre-program value: 78.6°C/173.5°F
• Cooling fan turns on
8-1TP sensor circuit low voltage (less than 0.107 V)
• Loose or poor contact of the TP sensor connector
• TP sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Poor engine acceleration
• Pre-program value: 0°
• ESP does not work
8-2TP sensor circuit high voltage (more than 4.981 V)
• TP sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Poor engine acceleration
• Pre-program value: 0°
• ESP does not work
9-1IAT sensor circuit low voltage (less than 0.015 V)
• IAT sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• Pre-program value: 34.8°C/94.6°F
9-2IAT sensor circuit high voltage (more than 4.981 V)
• Loose or poor contact of the IAT sensor connector
• IAT sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• Pre-program value: 34.8°C/94.6°F
11-1VS sensor no signal
• Loose or poor contact of the IAT sensor connector
• IAT sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• ESP does not work
12-1Fuel Injector circuit malfunction
• Loose or poor contact of the fuel injector connector
• Fuel injector or its circuit malfunction
• Engine does not start
• Fuel injector, fuel pump and ignition shut down
21-1O2 sensor malfunction
• Loose or poor contact of the O2 sensor connector
• O2 sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
23-1O2 sensor heater circuit malfunction
• Loose or poor contact of the O2 sensor heater connector
• O2 sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
29-1IACV circuit malfunction
• Loose or poor contact of the IACV connector
• IACV or its circuit malfunction
• Engine stalls, hard to start, rough idling
41-1Except FA: Gear position switch/FA: Shift drum position switch malfunction
• Loose or poor contact of the gear/shift drum position switch connector
• Gear/shift position switch or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• ESP does not work
• Gear position indicator blinks “-“
54-1Bank angle sensor circuit low voltage
• Bank angle sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• Bank angle sensor stops the control
54-2Bank angle sensor circuit high voltage
• Loose or poor contact of the bank angle sensor connector
• Bank angle sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• Bank angle sensor stops the control
66-1
(FA
models
only)
Rear VS sensor no signal
• Loose or poor contact of the rear VS sensor connector
• Rear VS sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• Gearshift function does not work (2nd, 4th or reverse gear only)
67-1
(FA
models
only)
Front VS sensor no signal
• Loose or poor contact of the front VS sensor connector
• Front VS sensor or its circuit malfunction
• Engine operates normally
• Gearshift function does not work (2nd, 4th or reverse gear only)

Conclusion

The Electric Shift system on the Honda Foreman 500 is a really fun and helpful feature that allows for easy and effortless shifting. However, as with anything electrical – things can go wrong.

In this article, we’ve gone over some of the most common Electric Shift problems on the Honda Foreman 500, as well as how to retrieve and interpret Electric Shift trouble codes.

We hope that this article will help you troubleshoot your ATV and successfully fix it. Ride safe!

9 thoughts on “4 Most Common Honda Foreman 500 Electric Shift Problems (Fixes Included)”

    1. Hey, Joseph!

      It sounds like a bad gear position switch, but it could also be many other things. Try to retrieve the fault codes to get a better clue on what is going on. Also, check all the main ES connectors for corrosion.

    1. Hi, Victor!

      Try to add more slack to the cable that goes from the left hand brake to the front of the transmission. Loosen the transmission side adjuster to extend the cable and see if that helps. You can actually bypass the reverse safety by loosening the cable quite a bit. If that doesn’t work, try to manually switch the transmission to reverse with the emergency tool in order to know whether it’s a mechanical problem with the transmission (pretty rare).

  1. The shift indicator on my 2011 rubicon sometimes will blink six times and sometimes ten times. The bike will start fine and drive forward and reverse but won’t shift up and in reverse acts like it’s starving for fuel.

  2. I have a 2007 foreman 500es it will shift to first gear but not to second gear. It will also shift from first to neutral and to reverse but it will not shift to second or above. Any ideal what’s wrong?

    1. Hi Zach!

      Try to manually shift into second gear. If you can’t, then it’s a mechanical problem with the gearbox. If you can shift into second gear manually, then there’s an issue with the electrical system – probably the gear indicator. Also, remember to check if there are any fault codes stored.

  3. Ok I have tried everything with no progress. I have a 2015 trx 500 ES, bike was not running originally when purchased. Got it running and shifting then one day stopped shifting with the ES. It still runs and starts on first crank. Currently I have check the continuity on the shift paddles they work fine, replaced the module on the transmission, taken it in to get scanned and they said they couldn’taccess it, and even change out the tilt sensor. It shifts fine with the manual shift lever

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