Battery Question

[deaninkl]

My GS12 is an 06 model that I bought new in 07, on delivery day it wouldnt start...new batery fitted and all was well. Then 14 months later batter fekked again, changed under warranty. Year later another one paid for by me as warranty had just ended. The current one has lasted two and a half years...(which may point to a bad or old batch being kept by BMW Malaysia previously). As all the previous failures are instant and total (won't even start by jumping) I'm getting a little worried that anytime soon the current one will give out?

So my question is what voltage reading should I get to show me a healthy battery is I test with the bike not running across the terminals?

thanks.

 

[Wapping]

http://www.google.co.uk/search?clie...oe=UTF-8&redir_esc=&ei=ylVwTs2HEMTJhAe695G9CQ

 

[TeaPig]

The voltage isn't always a measure of how healthy a battery is. A failing battery, when freshly charged, may show the same voltage as a good one but not have the capacity to deliver the current to turn over the engine for long, or at all.

 

[deaninkl]

http://www.google.co.uk/search?clie...oe=UTF-8&redir_esc=&ei=ylVwTs2HEMTJhAe695G9CQ

Thanks Wapping, useful links.

TeaPig, I appreciate voltage is not a perfect method, but it can be a sign that the battery is on the way out, thus far its starts fine. Just with my past history with OEM batteries, the thought of being stuck in the middle of nowhere for a relatively simple fault is a pain. Unfortunately here only fairly large cities would have a bike battery for a GS.

GS battery life does not seem that good on the 12's, a previous Harley I owned was going strong after five years on the original battery, my GS is on its 4th in the same period.

Thanks.

 

[Nice 'n' Fat]

My 06 GSA is still on its original

 

[trainman]

My 06 GSA is still on its original

same for me, 2 x 10 mile commute trips per day and on the optimate if left for a week or more

is the problem short journeys or extra electrical kit (or a current draw fault when the bike is off?)

 

[Stahlgewittern]

dead battery

Had a total battery failure earlier this year, would not even jump from a landrover. Had many types of bikes over the years and fitted cheapy batteries and top of the range high output ones they all seem to last an average of 2 years even using an optimate.So buget for a change every couple of years.
I have a friend who has had the same OEM on his Pan for 11 years, but thats just boring but true.

 

[Mad Mac]

Consider looking for more obscure intermittent faults also....
I had a recurring issue of dead bateries on my 2008GS and turned out to be a faulty starter in the end, with sticking solenoid......Not fully disengaging and leaving a residual load on the battery after switch off......could drain the battery in a week......two batteries changed under warranty before the issue was found.......6 months duration.....

 

[deaninkl]

I don't think there is anythink wrong with my current battery, its been in 2.5 years, seems OK. I'm pretty sure the problem with the first three batteries was just a bad batch. BMW Malaysia sell about 100 bikes a year, maybe 20 GS's, so it is well possible that they had new batteries laying arround a long while before selling them. When I bought my bike in 2007, they were trying hard to get rid of 2005 stock. The told me they had no newer models, lucky I knew the mechanic who told me of an 06 still in the crate so I insuiated on that one.

The bike only does long journeys, I use it for my commute from KL to Singapore, which I do on the bike about twice a month, its 800km round trip. For running around town I use a Bonneville, so its not a stop start issue.

And like I said I think its not a problem with the current battery. My problem has been that on all previouse failures, there was no warning, it just left me dead in the water. Lucky for me I was only once outside, once was at home and once in the BMW showroom. Unliky was the the outside one was after the warranty was over and the pick-up cost a bunch.

I have found out that Yuasa sell the battery to replace the OEM one, in Singapore so I'm going to replace the current one. Better safe than sorry.

 

[Roymondo]

Lots of reports of similar battery failures on the F800 forums - They call it Sudden Battery Death Syndrome. Typically occurs at about 2 years of age, regardless of mileage. Affected bikes will start and run perfectly with no sign of battery problems, then one day, even after a brief fuel/coffee stop will simply refuse to start - the power-on self-test cycles normally, but as soon as you hit the Go button the electrics simply die. I believe the same Exide PGM battery is fitted on the F800 and R12GS models.

I get the impression it may be a vibration issue causing an internal failure in the battery.