Battery's had it, gonna get a new one

[carbacca]

last weekend saturday, after leaving the bike alone for a week, decided it wouldnt start anymore. starter just turning real slow so the battery's low. grabbed one of the many old-ish car batteries i had lying around and started it with that no probs. i though it was just an isolated incident since i charged it in the afternoon for a couple of hours and it started fine on sunday as well.

now fast forward to today, again the bike has been left alone for the whole week, i just went to try and start it just incase for riding tomorrow, and again same problem. hooked it up to the charger and it was charged in 30-45mins. stuck a meter over it and it read 14.4-ish volts. the bike started no problem, but just to be sure i turned it off and started it again a few times, it managed to start 4 times before the battery went flat. stuck a meter over it and it read 12-ish volts.

my diagnostic is that the battery is just not holding charge anymore, so probably gonna get a new one.

i am still moderately new to the biking thing so just want to check with some more experienced people that my diagnotic is correct. also to ask where is a good place to get a new battery?? i know century is a good brand cos their car ones lasts forever, probably try putting one in myself if its not too difficult

thanks in advance for any useful replies, will +bling (if i remember lol)

(bike is 06 hyosung gt250r btw. has a mongoose alarm as well which may have contributed to the problem...)

[FROSTY]

You are most likely exactly right.I did hear of the 650's having regulator rectifier issues sometimes but unlikely

[Big Dog]

(bike is 06 hyosung gt250r btw. has a mongoose alarm as well which may have contributed to the problem...)

In a passive state, the alarm should take about 2 weeks to drain a battery.
In an active state about 10 days (unless it goes off a lot).
This is of course dependent on quality of battery.

If your fluid levels are good and your connections are solid, a new battery is definitely in order if it struggles to start more than 3 times (unless you wind it a bit each time).

After my mongoose was fitted the earth was not particularly sound.
There were battery issues until I took to the terminals with a wire brush.

[klyong82]

Since you have a multi-meter, start the bike and rev it to say 5000rpm and measure the battery voltage. Make sure it is no more than 15V. If it is more than 15V then you might have a problem with regulator/rectifier. But from what you describe sounds like a battery issue.

My Fireblades starts without problem after sitting for 2 or 3 weeks. If you do purchase a new battery get a good quality brand Yuasa maintenance free battery. It is worth it. Think it comes with 2 years warranty too.

Hope you can sort your problem so that we can see you for the ride tomorrow.
All the best

[bimotabob]

last weekend saturday, after leaving the bike alone for a week, decided it wouldnt start anymore. starter just turning real slow so the battery's low. grabbed one of the many old-ish car batteries i had lying around and started it with that no probs. i though it was just an isolated incident since i charged it in the afternoon for a couple of hours and it started fine on sunday as well.

now fast forward to today, again the bike has been left alone for the whole week, i just went to try and start it just incase for riding tomorrow, and again same problem. hooked it up to the charger and it was charged in 30-45mins. stuck a meter over it and it read 14.4-ish volts. the bike started no problem, but just to be sure i turned it off and started it again a few times, it managed to start 4 times before the battery went flat. stuck a meter over it and it read 12-ish volts.

my diagnostic is that the battery is just not holding charge anymore, so probably gonna get a new one.

i am still moderately new to the biking thing so just want to check with some more experienced people that my diagnotic is correct. also to ask where is a good place to get a new battery?? i know century is a good brand cos their car ones lasts forever, probably try putting one in myself if its not too difficult

thanks in advance for any useful replies, will +bling (if i remember lol)

(bike is 06 hyosung gt250r btw. has a mongoose alarm as well which may have contributed to the problem...)


Hi,

Sounds like a battery fault.

The best method of checking is to first charge the battery.
Then let it sit off the charger for a few hours - overnight is best.
Then recheck battery voltage with meter - should be 12.6 - 12.8 depending on battery type.
Older batteries can lose more than 2% charge per day so often they start it if used daily.
Then install on bike and check charging, making sure it goes up to 14-14.5 volts and not above 15. Also check with lights on.
Checking the Battery voltage drop when cranking will give you an idea is to how much grunt your battery has. A good battery wont drop a lot of voltage - 11.5 volts or higher is good, if you see under 11v I'd replace.


I didn't realise how slow my cranking had got till I got a new one.
I actually kept flooding mine as it's very sensitive to low voltage (EFI)
Go for high quality Jap or US made maintenance free type if you can afford it.
I got a US made high CCA motorsport type for $150 but yours will be cheaper.
I have a dreaded alarm too - when mine's disarmed the LED draw 20-30ma.

A battery load tester is the ideal way to go - our local bike shop has a flash one that you key in the battery type and it loads it accordingly - 100% accurate.


Cheers

[carbacca]

oh well thanks all, ended up getting a new battery and its miles better.

while the old one was still in i did a few tests as suggested here

- at 5000-ish rpm its plugging out 13-something volts, doesnt change a whole lot through the rev ranges so i would say the alternator/regulator is good
- voltage drops to 5-6 volts when cranking so thats not good, reinforces the crapped out battery diagnostic which is good. the new sits on about 11.5 when cranking so thats all good

thanks to mt eden motorcyles for the discount on the battery ;)

[klyong82]

oh well thanks all, ended up getting a new battery and its miles better.

while the old one was still in i did a few tests as suggested here

- at 5000-ish rpm its plugging out 13-something volts, doesnt change a whole lot through the rev ranges so i would say the alternator/regulator is good
- voltage drops to 5-6 volts when cranking so thats not good, reinforces the crapped out battery diagnostic which is good. the new sits on about 11.5 when cranking so thats all good

thanks to mt eden motorcyles for the discount on the battery ;)

Glad you got your battery sorted.
There is a place in Mt Wellington that can reconditioned your old battery for 30-40 bucks. Might be worth having a spare lying around. I think the place is called "The Battery Clinic".

[HungusMaximist]

I have also used a product called 'INOX' battery conditioner which you pour into your individual battery cells. Which claims to make the battery last longer and dissolves suplur build up.

I haven't used a maintenance battery before but I sure do know they will save you heaps of trouble on the long run.

I have a YUASA battery that I bought from Red Baron for about 70 bucks. It's not maintenance free and I think there's two versions, one is made in Japan and the other in Taiwan.

There's heaps of batteries on the market but like kim said, have a spare one lying around and you can't go wrong looking after your battery. I have also purchased a hydro-meter which tests the electrolyte levels inside the battery, but that's purely up to you.

Also taking it into a battery centre can diagnose your battery, usually what they tell you is true but most of the time if you're battery is dead they can recondition it to get some life out of it (but just don't count on it).

Heaps of posts on batteries maintenance here, do a search!

Cheers!

[Picle]

Where can i find the battery on my hyosung gt 250r needs a charge and new to bikes

[Big Dog]

From memory under the seat.