Bike Won't Start??

gsbiker

gsbiker

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My 2+ year old GS1200adv won't start! Went to start it today since it's been sat in my garage for a number of weeks doing nothing, now it won't start! It's continually plugged into an Optimate 4. When I turn it on I get full dash lights, front light but when I press start I hear a click and lose my dash lights and everything. The bike fails to even try to turn the starter motor. Try it immediately again and this time nothing.

I pulled the battery out and plugged it into my car charger which says it can charge bike batteries. Well it told me it the battery had 13v but 0 amps??? I've left it being conditioned by the battery charger over night.

Any ideas please?
 
You need to replace the battery by the sound of it.

Open circuit voltage at the battery terminals is no indication of the stored energy within the battery itself. The only way to predict the energy left within a supposedly charged battery is to put it under load and see how it performs.

By pressing the starter button, you are conducting that test, and look what happens when you do.
 
Pukmeister said:
You need to replace the battery by the sound of it.

Open circuit voltage at the battery terminals is no indication of the stored energy within the battery itself. The only way to predict the energy left within a supposedly charged battery is to put it under load and see how it performs.

By pressing the starter button, you are conducting that test, and look what happens when you do.
Click to expand...

+1 on what he said
 
Thanks Pukmeister

Have I made a mistake putting my bike on Optimate charge every time I park my bike through summer & winter? It's on it's original BMW battery and is just over 2 years old, that doesn't seem long to me?

What do they cost by the way for the adventurer type?
 
06 bike.

On an Optimate 24/7 when not in use.

Starts every time.

Sometimes you just have to be lucky, I guess.


PS Your battery is fecked, buy a new one. Which sort / price? See assorted threads.
 
Thanks guys! Well if it's just the battery then I guess I need to count my blessings in one sense cause I was thinking it could be something more serious! Having said that I'm not impressed. I've done 12000 miles and the bike is only 28 months old and always on optimate! Not what I'd call value for money battery!

Not only that I've just paid £300 for and extended warranty which won't include a £60/£80/£100 battery!!!!
 
gsbiker said:
Thanks guys! Well if it's just the battery then I guess I need to count my blessings in one sense cause I was thinking it could be something more serious! Having said that I'm not impressed. I've done 12000 miles and the bike is only 28 months old and always on optimate! Not what I'd call value for money battery!

Not only that I've just paid £300 for and extended warranty which won't include a £60/£80/£100 battery!!!!
Click to expand...

£300 for extended where did you go harrods :D they got some good sensible priced batteries on the tanya site if thats any help :thumb2
 
I would strongly recommend using an AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) battery such as a Hawker Oddysey PC535 for the BMW 1200GS. I had one on my 2004 bike, and if my current 2008 bikes battery dies I'll buy another in a heartbeat. Expensive but very reliable and more powerful than the standard battery.

You also need the latest type of trickle chargers for AGM batteries (such as Ctek Multi XS 3600 etc) due to their higher cell charging voltage and current requirements to prevent cell sulphation.

The internal chemistry of some batteries make them prone to failure over time. Too much science involved to explain here (and I've forgotten it anyway since my apprenticeship 25 years ago), but being permanently under a floating charge on an optimate can sometimes affect these cells ability/capacity to store energy. I think its best to use an optimate weekly to top up to 100% rather than leave permanently connected.
 
GS batteries will suddenly just go dead with no warning so it's a common thing on 1200's. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it except it's a small battery turning over a big motor which is bound to hurt it!.

Just to go against the tide, I would recommend you get the cheapest battery to the right spec to fit the bike. You can probably buy 3 for the price of one Odyssey.

I fitted a £40 exide to mine a couple of years ago and it's never missed a beat in around 40,000 miles since it was fitted. Lives outside and has started the old girl after being left in temps down to -17c for a few weeks without hesitation. No Optimate or other charger. When it dies, it will be another cheapy for me.

One thing, do you ride yours long enough to get the battery fully charged? It takes around 30 miles IIRC to get the charge back in so if you are only doing short hops, that may not help.

If you ride it regularly, I think the optimate is a waste of money as well.

My 2p
 
Sgt Bilco said:
GS batteries will suddenly just go dead with no warning so it's a common thing on 1200's. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it except it's a small battery turning over a big motor which is bound to hurt it!.

Just to go against the tide, I would recommend you get the cheapest battery to the right spec to fit the bike. You can probably buy 3 for the price of one Odyssey.

I fitted a £40 exide to mine a couple of years ago and it's never missed a beat in around 40,000 miles since it was fitted. Lives outside and has started the old girl after being left in temps down to -17c for a few weeks without hesitation. No Optimate or other charger. When it dies, it will be another cheapy for me.

One thing, do you ride yours long enough to get the battery fully charged? It takes around 30 miles IIRC to get the charge back in so if you are only doing short hops, that may not help.

If you ride it regularly, I think the optimate is a waste of money as well.

My 2p
Click to expand...

+ 1 sb , put a £50 westco on mine and has been great , charge it up if needed on a ctec :thumb2
 
Sgt Bilco said:
GS batteries will suddenly just go dead with no warning so it's a common thing on 1200's. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it except it's a small battery turning over a big motor which is bound to hurt it!.
Click to expand...

In a nutshell SB. You draw power out and not replace it to 100%, the next time you draw power again and not replace etc etc until eventually the cell could no longer recover back to 100% even if left permanently connected to a charger.

Over time, the cells capacity to chemically store energy diminishes until the plates become sulphated and the battery fails. Either that or sustained current draw if cranking continually in cold weather causes so much internal heat that plates buckle and fail internally, and once one cell (connected in series) inside the battery fails, the item is scrap.

Optimates will show they have restored a battery to 100% capacity, but thats 100% of whatever the cell can hold (which could be feck all) not the original 100% you started with.
 
This has been a learning curve for me. BMW have offered to charge it on their system but I don't think they have anything better that I'm using! They said it's outside of 2yr warranty but any goodwill gesture will require my bike in for inspection.

I'm alittle unclear why my optimate hasn't saved my battery? Thought that was the idea? Why would my battery capacity decrease if it's constantly charging? Or should I allow it to drain and then fully charge like a laptop battery?

Lastly, where are you guys buying your batteries from? Ebay has nothing? Not sure how to search for the right battery? Plus my bike is the adventurer and I think it has a higher amperage than the std GS.

O I havn't ridden my GSA in MANY months but when I ride I do tend to do more than 30 miles. I have noticed over recent the last year that my bike does seem to struggle to turn the bike over even when I thought it was fully charged! Seemed a bit slow like the battery was not fully charged but I have just been trusting the green light on my Optimate - cause thats what it's there for - my manual says so! :D
Cheers.
 
forest biker said:
£300 for extended where did you go harrods :D they got some good sensible priced batteries on the tanya site if thats any help :thumb2
Click to expand...

Got a letter the other day from BMW inviting me to take out the extended warranty @ £310 so I guess its the BMW one. So that plus lets say an average of £250 per year for a service, not worth it in my opinion.
 
Marki_GSA said:
Got a letter the other day from BMW inviting me to take out the extended warranty @ £310 so I guess its the BMW one. So that plus lets say an average of £250 per year for a service, not worth it in my opinion.
Click to expand...

I thought mine cost £330? and yes it's a BMW one.

I was really unsure whether or not to get it but what did it for me was the possible cost of serious failure - would I have the money to get things fixed? But I agree, it's way too much money imo.
 
Marki_GSA said:
Got a letter the other day from BMW inviting me to take out the extended warranty @ £310 so I guess its the BMW one. So that plus lets say an average of £250 per year for a service, not worth it in my opinion.
Click to expand...

No i dont think it is at that price either , i used warranty direct in the end .I went through both policies with a fine toothed coomb and there almost identical , i know three peolple who have used W/D for fairly big claims and havent had any problems with them so glad i did now and saved £114 at the same time :thumb2
 
Last edited:
I believe that is the top whack including breakdown recovery (don't know if WD includes that) which you can drop bringing the price down but its still a lot. Ultimately it comes down to risk. Do you save £500 a year (do your own servicing) and pay for parts yourself or do you insure against it. You could get a new FD every 2 years at that money!
 
Marki_GSA said:
I believe that is the top whack including breakdown recovery (don't know if WD includes that) which you can drop bringing the price down but its still a lot. Ultimately it comes down to risk. Do you save £500 a year (do your own servicing) and pay for parts yourself or do you insure against it. You could get a new FD every 2 years at that money!
Click to expand...

You do get breakdown in with that but they put a limit of £250 on it, but i thought for £196 its worth it just in case i have a fd go down or clutch etc then you get your money back ten fold , it everyones choice isnt it the debate could go on forever , some for it , some against i just use it for piece of mind and get it as cheap as i can :thumb2
 
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