Battery Replacement

[Skeeve]

While I agree with the sentiment that a lithium battery is not worth the trouble for a V11, I have not had the same good success with Yuasa as I used to have. They used to be the best battery, made in Japan. The ones I have seen in recent times were made in China and did not last as long.

 

YUASA has been known to have problems with the "random internal open circuit" now for decades. It will start fine for years [or months, or weeks...], then just suddenly one day... there will be a "snap" & nothing. Not what one wants in a battery needed for a vehicle to run. Things were different in the old days when a bike could be bump- or kick-started & ran off the magneto, and the battery was just there for load-balancing & legal reasons [running the headlight w/ motor off is a DOT requirement, I think.]

 

I like the idea of the lithium moto batteries [LiFePO4, of course, not lithium ion!], but even the Li-PO batteries don't balance charging across all the cells very well and you need a special charger to keep them in top form & to prevent shorter lifespan. Hopefully the price will come down rapidly over the next couple of years, 'cause right now they're just not cost effective unless you're looking to save every extra ounce & are willing to pay the price for their "lightness of being."

[gstallons]

What is a "special " battery charger ? What does it do that a conventional charger or tender does not or cannot do ?

[smmudd83_1999]

What is a "special " battery charger ? What does it do that a conventional charger or tender does not or cannot do ?

A typical charger for lead-acid or gel, AGM batteries tends to use a de-sulfation phase for battery recovery. I think this uses a "pulsing" charge to reinvigorate the battery somehow.

LiFePO4s don't like this stage. Typically, most LiFePO suppliers recommend a lithium charger. It costs like $60 USD delivered.

 

I'm not using Shorai. I'm using Deltran who have been involved in the new lithium battery game only for the last year or so. My battery is the same size as the original but is a 21-24Ah unit, which is a lot higher than the 13 or 15Ah original. I did this because of reports of cold weather issues with the lithium technology and decided to go overkill on the capacity.

Now I think about it though, Wellington, New Zealand only ever gets to an overnight low of about 3 degrees (Celcius - I mean who other than USA use Fahrenheit?) so maybe I could have gone with a slightly smaller 18Ah unit and been fine in my case and given a bit more room under the seat...

[smmudd83_1999]

"I like the idea of the lithium moto batteries [LiFePO4, of course, not lithium ion!], but even the Li-PO batteries don't balance charging across all the cells very well and you need a special charger to keep them in top form & to prevent shorter lifespan. "

 

This might be true for Shorai, but the Deltran unit has a battery management system onboard to control cell loading and balancing.

But I did still need a special charger as my lead-acid/gell AGM Oxford Maximiser charger had a recovery/desulfation stage that kills LiFePO units. So I splashed out some big bucks and got a Battery Tender W800 for lithium batteries.

 

Having said that, if you don't ever discharge the battery really low it might never use that desulfation stage. I wonder if it would still be OK to use the old charger if I were careful...but a battery at $329 NZD delivered, that's for someone else to try!

[4corsa]

Was just told by Yuasa not to use their battery since ours is installed horizontally.  They said it must be a factory sealed battery, and their YTX15L for V11s is NOT.

[BMWDavid]

My 2002 V11 LeMans that I bought used has a Yuasa YTX-15L...I just checked and its been in the bike at least 3-4 years. No apparent leakage. The Yuasa is an AGM so it should not leak.

 

My 2003 V11 LeMans has a SigmasTek AGM battery (STX15L-BS) although the fitment chart shows I should have a STX30L-BS. Funny that the STX30L-BS is slightly smaller and has 30AH while the STX15L-BS is bigger and has only 15 AH. I do have a bit of seat pan rubbing on both the Yuasa and the SigmasTek battery's and it looks like the higher rated SigmasTek is a better fit and may eliminate the seat pan rubbing.

[leroysch]

Thanks for the observations. I've only briefly looked under the seat of my recently acquired 2004 V11 LeMans, (the weather stayed nice..needed to put some miles on her) but I did notice some scuffing on the forward corners of the battery.

[docc]

Seems prudent to "drop the basket."

 

Placing the forward mounts of the battery cage under the subframe instead of on top makes for better clearance under the seat pan.

[Kiwi_Roy]

 YUASA has been known to have problems with the "random internal open circuit" now for decades. It will start fine for years [or months, or weeks...], then just suddenly one day... there will be a "snap" & nothing. Not what one wants in a battery needed for a vehicle to run.

 I had a near new Yuasa fail, it would charge on trickle to a ridiculous Voltage like 16 then have no grunt for starting, I think it had gone open circuit as you describe, the bike would push start and run fine.

 

I took it back to the dealer and they replaced it with another the same, this has been an awesome battery for the last 4 years I would buy another but make sure it comes with a good warrantee.

 

As Skeeve pointed out don't try to run without  a battery, the alternator can spike the Voltage to 20 Volts or more without the battery to clamp it down.