3 years - 3 batterys

Nemo

Nemo

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Any ideas on how I can work out what is going wrong with my electrics in my 66 Reg 1200? I've put another new battery in it, this time a Lithium Ion one because they are meant to have more power, but after a week of not being used, it refused to start. On with the charger and it's fine.

I don't leave a GPS on the bike etc. So what or how can I check to determine where all the volts are running off to? Little buggers! :mad::mad:
 
Is it possible that in short runs in winter, with heated grips on etc, that you are actually depleting the battery charge during your runs, rather than topping up?


Get a multimeter with line-current measurement and hook it into the main outlet from the battery once you have charged the battery on the bike.


You will be able to tell if you are getting current drain. Not sure how easy it is to chase that down on a Canbus-equipped bike, though.

Be aware that Lithium batteries don’t like cold weather, nor sulphating battery conditioners (optimates etc) anyway.
 
Sounds like you have something creating a parasitic drain.

What, if any, after-market electickery has been fitted? Nav cradles failing to shut down & aux lights are a favourite.
 
Had exactly this issue with my GSLC, battery flat after a week in the garage
Traced to faulty aftermarket daylight running lights. Off with the DRLs, all's well
 
You definitely have a problem

Mine hadn't been started for over a month, sat nav still in cradle and fired up straight away
 
Two bikes I've bought came with USB chargers connected directly to their batteries which drained them after a couple of weeks even though nothing was plugged into them.
 
Thanks everyone, lots to think about. Cant think of any accessories that could drain power, but I know nothing. Nippy Norman's USB socket installed instead of canbus socket. I'm confused.
 
Nemo said:
Thanks everyone, lots to think about. Cant think of any accessories that could drain power, but I know nothing. Nippy Norman's USB socket installed instead of canbus socket. I'm confused.
Click to expand...

If the usb socket is permanently wired to the battery, then the adapter to step down from 12v to 5v will be a constant drain on the battery.
 
You say you've replaced 3 batteries-- are the batteries kaput each time or simply flat?
Have you had them tested to confirm they are faulty?
If the batteries are being damaged it points to a different issue ( alternator not charging properly, or over-charging) rather than a drain on the system.
 
I really do appreciate the input. It's just that it makes my head hurt thinking abiout how to diagnose this. I don't think a multimeter is that expensive and I could monitor the battery voltage that way. And check the old battery. Thanks again folks :thumb:thumb
 
Don't you have the parked up bike connected to an Optimate or similar while not in use?
 
Nemo said:
I really do appreciate the input. It's just that it makes my head hurt thinking abiout how to diagnose this. I don't think a multimeter is that expensive and I could monitor the battery voltage that way. And check the old battery. Thanks again folks :thumb:thumb
Click to expand...

Get something half-decent (making sure it will measure 10a DC inline) and check how to use it.

The correct meter will have the “10A Max Fused” socket, together with the “common” socket.



Not viewed this past first 5 secs, but it should give the basics.

 

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All good stuff and advice.
The GS needs a battery voltage of 12.5 volts to start, if it drops to less than 12v then your bike will not start.

Measuring DC current as Blackal states is the most logical way forward. 100% be sure you have no additional items connected, such as aux lights, usb sockets etc.
I hope you read the article i posted earlier and selected post 1, there were 2016 bikes for a short period of time built with a parasitic light module.... If you hit a brick wall this is something to consider - BMW did do not issue a recall. Did you raise this issue with your dealer whilst under warranty?
 
Blackal and malcopopolo - thanks for your advice. Got the loan of a multimeter (UNI-T UT131B) and I'm off to poke about. I didn't know about the battery issue so didn't raise it with the dealer. I do have a USB socket from Nippy Normans but that was a direct replacement for the Canbus socket - obviously something I need to check.
 
If that USB socket is wired in just as the power socket, then it should switch off 10mins after you switch off the ignition and should be okay. Easy to check.
 
Nemo said:
Any ideas on how I can work out what is going wrong with my electrics in my 66 Reg 1200? I've put another new battery in it, this time a Lithium Ion one because they are meant to have more power, but after a week of not being used, it refused to start. On with the charger and it's fine.

I don't leave a GPS on the bike etc. So what or how can I check to determine where all the volts are running off to? Little buggers! :mad::mad:
Click to expand...

All advice seems great, just a point on the Lithium battery - I took mine off after a while as IMHO it just didn`t have the cranking power for the boxer engine (and it also needed different charging protocols).
 
Nemo said:
Any ideas on how I can work out what is going wrong with my electrics in my 66 Reg 1200? I've put another new battery in it, this time a Lithium Ion one because they are meant to have more power, but after a week of not being used, it refused to start. On with the charger and it's fine.

I don't leave a GPS on the bike etc. So what or how can I check to determine where all the volts are running off to? Little buggers! :mad::mad:
Click to expand...

Is anything at all connected to the sockets? What sat nav cradle do you have fitted and from where does it take its power?

Oh and firstly remove everything that isn’t standard BMW fitment, does the battery hold up then?

Just a simple process of elimination.
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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