Battery problems

  • Thread starter Thread starter SpitFire1982
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SpitFire1982

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Im having constant battery problems on my '06 1200gs. BMW emergency services had to jump start it 3 times in a 1 month period (once in Wales and twice at my home address).

Im fed up with this problem, and what Ive read from previous threads it seems that the standard battery does not have the required CCA (cold cranking amps) for the UK environment.

The bike is becoming an embarrassment to me, and I have zero faith in its reliability.

The bike was bought second hand from an approved BMW Motorrad dealer in London and came with a 12month warranty and roadside assistance.

What are my rights in making a claim against the dealer/BMW to replace the battery with a higher rated battery such as the Odyssey PC535GS?
 
I think you may just have a duff battery - unless someting is quietly draining it between runs. Mine's 3 years old, used all winter and never a problem.

I doubt you would be able to 'prove' the OEM battery is not fit for purpose and I think it's not even covered under the warrenty. A replacement as a goodwill gesture from the dealer may be your best hope
 
Just ordered a Odyssey battery (model number PC535GS) for my GS.

Will keep you updated if the battery problems persist after the new battery is installed.

:clap
 
Please let us know how the fitting goes, I'm on the point of replacing mine too

Regards Dave
 
I had similar problems on my '07 GS, three batteries in two years. Do you have Autocom and/or satnav wired in? I have both and at this years service the problem was identified and an electronic gizmo costing about £50 fitted. Seems to have solved the problem.

HTH
 
my 07 with 30,000km on it live in a very warm clime and has eaten 2 batteries in that time, just put in number three and a cost of 125 quid over, here.... a weak link.
 
Got rid of my standard issue battery for similar reasons after 6 months. Had an Odyssey ever since and never looked back.

The OEM battery was tested several times at dealer and didnt report any errors. I had to keep it on a constant charge as if i didnt i couldnt start the bike after leaving it for more than 3 days. My charger is now redundant :augie
 
My TomTom Rider (V1) is wired in via the auxiliary power socket outlet. I probably plug it in once every 2 weeks. Now that my battery problems started, I've noticed that the aux. socket outlet stopped working!!

The bikes next service is due by October/November or in another 3000miles ... which ever one comes first :)

The Odyssey PC535GS battery is sold by many distributors (Nippy Normans. Motorworks, eBay etc). I bought mine through "Motorworks" for £103,79 (includes VAT and P&P) on Sunday, and it should arrive by Thursday of this week.

As luck would have it, I just found a cheaper deal at "Knight Batteries" for £90 (includes VAT and P&P), and they do have some in stock.

http://www.knightbatteries.com/popup.cfm?p_n=364857&p_i=364857

I'm expecting the installation of my PC535GS battery to be a straight forward as this model was especially design for the R1200GS range.

The GS version of the battery (PC535GS) looks like this (more "rounded" edges compared to the standard version):

http://www.knightbatteries.com/popup.cfm?p_n=364857&p_i=364857

The Standard version of the battery (PC535) looks like this:

http://www.odysseybatteries.com/battery/pc535.htm

Will keep you updated on the installation :)

…………………………………………………

Commuting by train SUCKS!!!
 
I installed an Odyssey on my '04 GS in December. The most fiddly bit is the restraining strap which comes without the rubber padding fitted. It is a real b*gger to get on and I eventually gave up and have it attached at the top but not the bottom.

The terminal wiring is a bit tight as well - you may need to re-route it in order to get it to reach correctly.

Good Luck!
 
The new battery should solve your problems.
My OEM battery went completely on Friday night (06 GSA 80k miles). Had to be recovered from Warwick to Manchester.
It was possible to jump start the bike. Multimetre was showing 14.6 volts across the contacts, so it was getting a good charge off the bike. But as soon as it was running and under load (5 miles up the motorway from the services), lights failed, then brakes and then engine.
Odyssey battery fitted Saturday and everything working tickety boo.... Big thanks to Lee and all at Williams.:thumb
 
I think you will find that this will fix alot of your problems. I fitted this battery on my 06 bike back in 2007 and my faith returned in the motorcycle.

Back in the day i was having problems with the alarm and starter problems leaving me stranded. I was mad and ashamed and was just about ready to abandon the brand. The technicians said something about a low battery. That is when i started research about the oddysee battery. It took some modification to fit but i am very pleased with it.

Since June of 2007 the bike has not stranded me ever again and have since taken it far far offroad deep into the bush days away from a city center.

This battery should be OEM equipment in my opinion.
 
SpitFire1982 said:
Im having constant battery problems on my '06 1200gs. BMW emergency services had to jump start it 3 times in a 1 month period (once in Wales and twice at my home address).

Im fed up with this problem, and what Ive read from previous threads it seems that the standard battery does not have the required CCA (cold cranking amps) for the UK environment.

The bike is becoming an embarrassment to me, and I have zero faith in its reliability.

The bike was bought second hand from an approved BMW Motorrad dealer in London and came with a 12month warranty and roadside assistance.

What are my rights in making a claim against the dealer/BMW to replace the battery with a higher rated battery such as the Odyssey PC535GS?
Click to expand...

I've got the exact same problem as you with my 06 bike, its going into the dealers to be checked out next week, its only a month since it was in and got a new starter motor fixed under waranty because it was pulling too much current, I would be interested to know how you get on. I will also feed back as to what they say.
 
Just as a matter of interest on my previous GS (05) I had problems with the sat nav socket up by the headstock - it appeared to randomly power up and the sat nav mount, having a very slight current drain even without the unit fitted, flattened the battery. At first I though I had a dead battery and got a new one but it made no difference and I eventually deduced that the satnav socket either wasn't powering down or was powering back up on its own. I changed the satnav power to my centec switched off the underseat accessory socket and never had any problems until the new battery died - I fitted the original battery and it worked fine ever after.
Phil
 
My new Odyssey PC535GS battery arrived yesterday (ordered it from "Motorworks" on Sunday).

It was a pretty straight forward installation (just replace like for like) and took less than 10min in total. No need to make any modifications to the battery (like trimming the fins etc). The battery even came with a new mounting bracket which fitted perfectly (not sure if this comes with every Odyssey PC535GS battery or maybe it was just a Motorworks free extra included in the order).

I bought a little CTEK XS800 battery charger (from "Nippy Normans"), and also installed the accompanying "Eyelet Terminal Quick Charging Connector" (for when I want to charge the battery in the future). This eliminated the need to remove the seats if the battery needs charging.

http://www.ctek.com/EN-GB/Buy-Charger.aspx?charger=xs800

The bike now starts on the first turn, which is a relief to say the least.

I've decided to temporarily "disarm" the alarm until my faith in my BMW returns (just to be sure). From what I've read in this thread, maybe even unplug the TomTom charging lead to accessory socket until I need it again.

Now only time will tell what happens next, and if the problem is solved. I'm hoping that this is the end of my battery problems.

You can be sure that I will ride the crap out of the bike on the weekend (The SA vs. Lions game will have to wait)!!

Bernard :)
 
Anybody got a picture of their odyssey installed ?

Bernard, (or anybody else) , do you have a picture of how the cables are routed to the new battery, and which wat round the two plates that go to the battery terminals are fitted ?. Mine's fouling on the seat so it looks like i've got something wrong.

Cheers

John
 
In the pictorial by Jim von Baden there are clear instructions how to route the cables. See post 11 above.
 
Hi John,

I will post some pictures over the weekend.

Regards
Bernard
 
sandyB said:
I've got the exact same problem as you with my 06 bike, its going into the dealers to be checked out next week, its only a month since it was in and got a new starter motor fixed under waranty because it was pulling too much current, I would be interested to know how you get on. I will also feed back as to what they say.
Click to expand...

I've just been called from my dealer that the bike wasn't pulling any current and they said it was the battery on the way out, so they replaced it under waranty. I think good result from JC in Dundee.

I would imagine that it will be the standard BMW supplied battery they have replaced it with.
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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