Okey dokey, I'm bizzack to pester everyone. As we remember, I had a totally dead battery that would not even hold a charge after being jumped. So I bought a battery tender Friday and left it on all weekend. And I go down to the basement yesterday to get it and was furious with what I found...


THE OUTLET I HAD IT PLUGGED INTO IS A SWITCHED SOURCE, SO WHEN I WENT UPSTAIRS ON FRIDAY AND SHUT OFF THE LIGHT, THE TENDER ALSO TURNED OFF!!!  :x

Yeah, I was pissed. So I brought it upstairs to an outlet that would not turn off. I let it charge from 5 last night to 7 this morning. I ran it outside, hoping to watch the bike turn over. I put the key in and turned the key to On, and the lights all came on. Good, that's a start. I turned the key, and heard "click-click-click-click" very rapidly from under the seat, but no engine turning over. I assumed the battery still needed to be charged, and put it back on the tender.

My questions are:
1) Does it sound like I am making progress and made the correct diagnosis of a dead battery? Remember that nothing turned on before I used the tender when I turned the key to On.

2) About how much longer will it take? The battery was totally dead, so the 1 amp charger will probably take a while to get it up to a good charge. Any ideas?  :dunno:

Thanks to everyone here for patiently helping me along with this. I'll keep you all updated.

Dave  

Yeah.  Just charge it longer.  

It will take a while, depending on your tender.  Maybe at least 12-13 days.


Just kidding.  It will be like 6 hours or so.

Jeebus Criminy, I didn't scroll all the way and just saw the "12-13 days" part and nearly passed out face-first in my coffee. Please don't do that to me again.  

I am just curious on what killed it the first time. I am guessing that turning the power on and off and the signals on and off over and over again just drained it.  I pray that I will be able to ride again soon. Oh please Zuke, God of motorcycles...

Dave  

If you don't ride it for a while, it will go dead faster than you think.

Did you go on like an 9 day super bender lately?

I did some good drinking recently, but I am drinking because I can't ride, not the other way around  

Dave  

I was in a dive bar recently, in a bad part of town.  There was a sign behind the bar, written in spanish, that read: "If you're drinking to forget, please pay first."

Sage.

Sage.

You can probably buy a "real" battery charger at Wal-mart or an auto parts store for under $20, that will charge the battery faster.  Also, have you checked electrolyte levels, and pH on the battery?  You could just have a bad battery (bad cell), new bikes don't always get 'new' batteries.  I think a motorcycle battery at Wal-mart is $20 or so, and hooked up to a "real" battery charger will be ready to go in about 24-hr.

I bought this tender at GI Joe's for $30. My buddy has the switchable charger for his car that puts out more amps, but I thought I needed one with 1 amp or thereabouts. Should I hook it up to the big charger?

And as for the pH and crap, no I didn't check it because I have no idea how. The fluid levels are OK, but that's it for my expertise. Should I take it to the Suzuki dealer to have it checked under warranty? Or AutoZone?

Dave  

Hooking your battery up to a larger charger will not help it charge faster. You need a charger designed to charge that specific battery capacity. Also, check your water levels. Fill them with distilled water if they are too low; that happened to my car once.

Jeebus, what is the deal?

So the battery had charged for 24 hours. I put it on the bike and heard only a buzzing from under the right side tail plastics when I tried to start it. When I touched what I think is the starter relay, it felt like this is where the buzzing came from. I have a small video of it, can I send it to someone here to review?

So the lights came on, but it wouldn't start. I jumped it off my car and it started fine, all lights worked, etc. Until 30 minutes into it, when it was like the battery was losing its charge. The lights were dimming when I hit the brakes and all that. And when I parked, I shut it off and tried to restart...nothing. The lights came on dimly, but that's all.

So, what in the world is going on here? Bad alternator? Bad starter relay? Sometyhing else? I'm f%$king tired of this and am gonna f%$king flip if I don't get this done ASAP. IT CANNOT BE THE INTEGRATOR. That would not cause this. So I'm stumped and frustrated beyond all belief.  :x  :x  :x  :x  :x

Dave  

If your battery is any good, it should have worked by now.
This has happened to me before.
You need a new battery

Quote from: ratzIf your battery is any good, it should have worked by now.
This has happened to me before.
You need a new battery

Ok, seeing how it is still within the warranty period, can I take it out and bring it to the shop to get it replaced? Or should I just go buy one?

Dave  

Quote from: 2005-GS500-PDX

Quote from: ratzIf your battery is any good, it should have worked by now.
This has happened to me before.
You need a new battery

Ok, seeing how it is still within the warranty period, can I take it out and bring it to the shop to get it replaced? Or should I just go buy one?

Dave  

yes









1 : Take just the battery back for warranty replacement.

OR

2 : You can go ahead and buy a new one.

Take YOUR choice of 1 or 2.

If your battery is still under warranty just take it to where you bought it and they will replace it for a new one.  Should be no charge.

Per the dealer: Kawasaki, Yamaha, Suzuki, Arctic Cat, etc. do not warrantee their batteries. So I can:

1) Bring the bike in and have the charging system diagnosed. If there's something wrong with the system, they'll repair and replace under warranty. If it's merely a dead battery, I will have to pay for the tech time and the cost of the battery.

2) Replace the battery on my own.

So..............I think I'll just do it myself. Anyone have a store that I can get one at for cheap and get it today? A part number would also be great.

Thanks guys,

Dave  

If you're mucking with electrical things, you need a multimeter.  They're cheap.  It tells you if a battery is charged or not.

I've got a tech-dwell meter, and I think it may also tell you amperage. I'll look tonight.

Goodnight man, this is taking forever to fix! I'll be ready to ride just in time for rainy season  

Dave  

Roadstergal has the right idea.  A multimeter will tell you if you have a short across the cells or if the battery is offering enough voltage.  (No less than 12.6 volts for a charged battery.)

But from what you say:

• 12+hours on a 1 amp charger and fails to turn over = can't deliver the amps.
• Starts and runs fine jumpered froma car battery = alternator/rectifier is working.
• Fluids okay = alternator/rectifier not overcharging.[/list:u] I wouldn't mess with it any further.  Batteries wear out or otherwise fail.  They rarely heal themselves from your symptoms.
  
  Cut your losses, invest in a new bike battery and watch for future signs of repeat performance.  The battery will cost less than 30 minutes of shop time.

OK, so I went out last night in search of a battery. I went to a few places around town. Anyone wanna take a guess at where I found the right battery?

RedShift, your guess is AutoZone? Oh, incorrect. Sorry.

Ratz...what did you say? Wal-Mart? No, they didn't have anything close.

RoadsterGal, you're saying GI Joes? Yeah, you must know that store because you're from WA. However, no battery was found there.

Anyone else? Oppy00, I think I heard you say Batteries Plus? Well, they were closed by the time I got there, so no go. But they may have it, so good guess.

OK, here's where I found it: NOWHERE! I went to 4 stores, and in the 3 that were open, nobody had the right battery. Wow, was I happy. The closest I got was at AutoZone, where they had a CB10L-A2, and I need the B2. The A2 had the vent tube on the opposite side as ours, so that would not work. So here I am, sans battery and almost losing sanity. I need to ride now. Patience is lost. I need to ride; I really miss it like it were a woman who left me for some Romeo overseas. Please please please, where can I get a battery tonight? Portland seems to be all out of the battery I need.

Even at GI Joes, the book had an asterik next to the battery that said "unique size" or something. So this freak of a battery is MIA. COuld I reroute the vent tube and use the A2? I really want to get on the road.

Thanks all,

Dave  

OK, because I know that nobody gives a shaZam!, I'm going to give an update. So if you're here for the buffet, it ended at noon.

OK, I called Batteries Plus by my house. I asked for the CB10L-B2. She tells me the system shows it as discontinued. Fiddle Faddle, I say. This can't be. So she asks for the make and model of the bike. I tell her it's the one just above the Hayabusa: the storied GS500. She oohs and aahs and then looks it up...

Well, she tells me they have a CB10L-B. But I don't need that one. Or do I???

She takes it out of the box and looks down at it. On the left is the negative terminal and on the right is the positive. Ah, we're making progress! And what side is the vent tube on? The right? Next to the positive terminal? YES, IT IS! Holy Helmet Shine, is this it? The dimensions are exactly the same, the polarity is the same, the connectors are in the correct places, and the cold-craking amps and all that other industry jive is just the same. SUCCESS!

$37.99 you say? Sold. Hold it for me. I'll be there at 4:30.

So, for now...dare I say I am going to get back on the road? I just may ride tomorrow. Unless I have something else wrong. Oh, rest assured that I will let you all know.

Dave      :mrgreen: