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Ok last winter I fixed a short I had going to my rear liscence plate lite. I also put a brand new battery in this april when I started riding again. Well today the battery died AGAIN. Brand new battery just dies. Last couple weeks I hav e noticed that it was starting hard. I drive 12 miles one way back and forth to work. I was able to get a jump from a friend. I rode to the gas station 11 miles away. Turned the bike off pulled out the key. Filled the bike up put key in and the bike started right up. So that tells me my charging system is working. SSSOOOO does this mean I have a bad battery after only 2 months of riding? Or is my only riding 12 miles 1 way not enough to keep the battery charged???

I should mention that my battery was dieing last november when I put the bike up for the winter. Rather than buy a new battery I just put the bike up and waited till mid april to buy a new battery. I dont know if this battery is still under warranty but could it really die after only 2 months?

also forgot to mention that Tues night I added the fused garmin power wire to the bike for my GPS. Could my rectifier be so old that it cant handle the extra power being used by the GPS that it cant properly charge the battery as well? I mean the wires are still hooked up but it started after I turned it off at the gas station....


*edit I was just looking at the fuse box and it has all 10amp fuses in it. But one of the spots says it is supposed to be a 15amp fuse. Would that make a difference if I put the correct size fuse in? I would think, though, if it was a problem it would have blown the 10amp fuse????

Don't rely on on whether the bike will start at a gas station to determine if the charging system is working. Get the multimeter out and do a proper test. Should be getting about 14.5 volts @ around 3K RPM. It's too easy of a test to to just skip. If it is charging then start looking for something else.

Was the new battery properly charged to begin with?

Loose battery connection?

I suppose the GPS could be too much but you said that it was dying last november, so I would suspect something else.

P.S. you need a properly charged battery to get an accurate reading for the charging test.

Good luck

fireguzzi wrote:Don't rely on on whether the bike will start at a gas station to determine if the charging system is working. Get the multimeter out and do a proper test. Should be getting about 14.5 volts @ around 3K RPM. It's too easy of a test to to just skip. If it is charging then start looking for something else.

Was the new battery properly charged to begin with?

Loose battery connection?

I suppose the GPS could be too much but you said that it was dying last november, so I would suspect something else.

P.S. you need a properly charged battery to get an accurate reading for the charging test.

Good luck

it was properly charging 2 months ago when the battery was brand new and yes it was fully charged. checked battery and connections are tight. I will check the battery etc again tonight when I get to work and try disconnecting the GPS wires.

Did you check the electrolyte level in the battery? If your charging system is putting out a lot of juice, it can boil down the fluid in the battery over time. A battery that's low on electrolyte can mimic a dead/dying battery.

My bike does this. If I don't add some distilled water every 3 months or so, I'll start having similar problems.

flynrider wrote:Did you check the electrolyte level in the battery? If your charging system is putting out a lot of juice, it can boil down the fluid in the battery over time. A battery that's low on electrolyte can mimic a dead/dying battery.

My bike does this. If I don't add some distilled water every 3 months or so, I'll start having similar problems.

hmm never dawned on me to check that. I will have to check that next week (I have to work all weekend havent had a day off in 3 weeks now but im on vacation next week yeeehaaaww).