Batteries (again)- Yuasa vs. third party, gel?

[Y-me]

Hi all,

2013 RT battery stone cold dead, cannot jump start.
Keep it on a trickle charger and turn the bike over every two weeks when out of season.
The battery is the original and so is over 7 years old so may be time to replace.

Some questions,

Is it worth looking at a a third party or only stick with the OEM?

The OEM Yuasa seems to be lead acid but some in other threads are recommending gels.
Whats a good gel?

I've seem other using lithium, look nice, very expensive.

Thanks,
Y

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Hi all,

2013 RT battery stone cold dead, cannot jump start.
Keep it on a trickle charger and turn the bike over every two weeks when out of season.
The battery is the original and so is over 7 years old so may be time to replace.

Some questions,

Is it worth looking at a a third party or only stick with the OEM?

The OEM Yuasa seems to be lead acid but some in other threads are recommending gels.
Whats a good gel?

I've seem other using lithium, look nice, very expensive.

Thanks,
Y

I quite sure ALL Spyder batteries are and have been AGM type. I know mine have been …. If your battery is laid down - lead acid is not usable …. I believe and trust in the Yuasa brand …. or if you can find one an " Interstate " AGM battery. …..I would not recommend the newer Ion type, they fuction differently than Gel batteries …... You said you turn the bike over every two weeks - this is NOT a good thing to do, especially if you run it for a few minutes. …. Condensation will be present or formed, this is Water and it will rust the internal steel / iron parts, especially the exhaust system. …….. good luck …. Mike hyea:

 

[RICZ]

There are some excellent batteries out there. Yuasa is a very good one, and I have have very good luck with Batteries+ top on the line, American made AGM batteries. At 7 years, you went well past the use by date. Don't trust a battery much more than 4 years, especially in a bike.
Leave a hibernating bike alone. Put stabilizer in the fuel and an automatic trickle charger on the battery and tell it, I'll see you come spring. There are so many things wrong with occasionally starting it and running for a few minutes that I do not want to begin listing them.

 

[Y-me]

Thanks for the replies.

It doesn't really hibernate as its ridden any day that dry and where the temps are not below the mid 30's with the gear I have.
Since its not ridden as often in the winter it has stabilizer in the fuel and is on a charger in the winter.
Yeah, I could see running it for 5 minutes would be a problem which is why its run for longer, usually 20-30 minutes and ridden around inside the garage it seems to burn off the moisture.

Opinion on Motocross (Yuasa) batteries?

Y

 

[Peter Aawen]

......
Yeah, I could see running it for 5 minutes would be a problem which is why its run for longer, usually 20-30 minutes and ridden around inside the garage it seems to burn off the moisture.
.......

For a 2013 (like mine, still on its original battery too! :thumbup: ) with a magneto charging system, that 20-30 mins is barely long enough to even begin to replace the charge drain of starting the engine; then there's the ongoing charge drain for up to about 30 mins after you shut it dfown for things like keeping the throttle bodies closed & holding a bunch of other stuff ready in case you want to start up again..... and even then a trickle charger only sloooowly brings the charge back up to 'Full' & an acceptable level for storage, so it's not really good for your battery - it works, sorta, but it does tend to slowly kill the battery AND HIDE IT!! Also, if it really is a trickle charger you're using & not actually a smart charger that tapers off & then maintains your battery's state of charge, all the above adds up to you putting battery thru a never ending cycle of heavy discharge; standing stored discharged; slooooow recharge; over charge; significant starting drain; & back to the heavy discharge & repeat...... and you REALLY aren't being kind to your battery by doing that! It might still start OK while its got a good cover charge, but it probably won't like starting a few times in quick succession when it heads out on the road again.... :shocked: Altho, if you don't do too many short runs & rarely load up the charge & electrical circuits, you might get away with it being sorta OK for a while as you gradually kill your battery until one day it just gives up completely, no power, no chance of jump starting, nothing, nada, zilch.... :dontknow:

When you store your Spyder, ride it for at least 30 mins before the last shut-down for the season; top up its fuel & add fuel stabiliser; make sure you DO NOT connect it to a 'trickle charger', use a smart charger or a battery maintainer instead; and DO NOT START IT AGAIN until you intend to ride it on the road/track for AT LEAST 30 mins under normal road use conditions. Doing anything else is very likely detrimental to your battery! :lecturef_smilie:

As for which battery - the Yuasa batteries in our Spyders are AGM (or if you prefer the other label, GEL type) batteries, and it's become obvious thru the 'less than ideal' experiences of many reported here on the Forum, that few 'cheaper alternatives' work well or for long. :shocked: So your best bet is to either replace your Yuasa battery with an identical replacement from Yuasa & charge it well before fitting; or at least get a quality Brand AGM battery with the same or better specs & charge it well before fitting - altho if you do the latter, you might have to fiddle around a bit to get the replacement to fit! The size & shape of the battery, including the location & type of the posts and the profile on the top of the battery case is pretty critical for a good fit.

Good Luck! :cheers:

 

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

and you REALLY aren't being kind to your battery by doing that! It might still start OK while its got a good cover charge, but it probably won't like starting a few times in quick succession when it heads out on the road again.... :shocked: Altho, if you don't do too many short runs & rarely load up the charge & electrical circuits, you might get away with it being sorta OK for a while as you gradually kill your battery until one day it just gives up completely, no power, no chance of jump starting, nothing, nada, zilch.... :dontknow:

But it did last 7 years so he couldn't have been mistreating it too badly!!

 

[Peter Aawen]

But it did last 7 years so he couldn't have been mistreating it too badly!!

That's true, altho it's probably made its 'end of life' a fairly sudden & un-recoverable thing, instead of being the 'slow decline' that's the designed intention for AGM batteries.

With proper care, they should last fairly well & then gradually but noticeably start to take longer to start the engine, giving you plenty of warning about their decline. A sudden & total failure on an AGM battery should be a rare event, and one that usually indicates some form of 'misuse' or an 'inappropriate charging regime'. Altho there's no denying that the yearly 'cold storage' needs that some of you lot need to treat them to really doesn't help their life-span, it's still not beyond the designed life of a well maintained AGM battery! :thumbup:

 

[Fat Baxter]

Check out Optima batteries. Back when I rode BMWs they were considered the high end. Pricey, but owners would get 2 - 4 years extra use out if them over stock AGM batteries.

https://www.optimabatteries.com/en-us

 

[krakum1967]

I went with the Battery Tender Lithium Ion 24X model, it has 480 CCAs. The Can AM loves that battery. And being its Lith Ion, it drops like 10 pounds of weight too. My whole electrical system performs better with those amps available, its charges in a snap, and I have not used the trickle charger all winter, and I have a winter, we hit 10 below for a week, I went out when it went over 10 above, and the Can Am fired right off, no charger. I love the battery. Let me know if you are interested, I can send you the battery data from FleaBay, its an awesome unit. I have the Battery Tender Lithium Ion in all three of my bikes in fact. All with higher CCAs than stock, and they all improved the performance of the machines, I swear. I have not needed the maintainer all winter on all three bikes. I start them once every week or two weeks to keep them active and prevent ethanol sludging. The FleaBay link is below.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Battery-Tender-BMS-12-Volt-Lithium-Battery-BTL24A480CW/174051477406

 

[RICZ]

I cringe when I read a post where an engine is fired up during hibernation. So wrong in many ways. Star Tron stabilizer will prevent ethanol sludging. Or fill with non ethanol gas prior to putting it to sleep.

 

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

With proper care, they should last fairly well & then gradually but noticeably start to take longer to start the engine, giving you plenty of warning about their decline.

I'm skeptical that the average owner is going to notice an increase in cranking time to start as the battery voltage will drop significantly when the starter button is pushed. And when it drops below 10.5 volts the computer quits. That's still high enough to crank the engine to running mode in a pretty short time. So the battery dying instantly isn't so much a sudden drop off in it's capacity to start as it is a result of the externally imposed drop off cliff of 10.5 volts.

 

[krakum1967]

RICZ, I have only done this 42 years, and I have owned, ridden, bought and sold, and rebuilt in some fashion or another well over 200 machines in my shops over these last 42 years, and I am a NODAK and Alaska Native.

"Storing" and those "chems" are the worst thing you can do....they eat your rubber lines...and the internal seals in your injectors and carbs.....pass, and no thanks. I kick them off once a week, I am golden...let them warm to temp, and because I am 50 miles from the desert, I occasionally suck it up for an hour and go have fun.

Why store?....not for me anymore....and even in Nodak (North Dakota) and Alaska it was warm storage where I could access the bikes and start them, no chemicals, and I know how to drain the carbs. Carbed bikes are easiest, fill the tank, drain the bowls and lines, pull the positive terminal, reconnect and fire it up in March. I have never nor will ever use a storage or carb cleaning chemical, eats your seals and costs users very expensive time and labor. And I maintain and repair all my vehicles, always have, always will. And I still have my 97 BMW Funduro in the garage. Its carbed and runs like brand new, I do not store it here in Colorado.

 

[Y-me]

Thanks for the post.

Some clarification, trickle charger in this case is a smart charger.
The OEM Yuasa specs has electrolyte absorbed into a fiberglass mat, not as a gel.
The OEM is the factory activated version, those with -BS are retail activated.
It hardly matters in 13 RT as the battery sits upright anyway.
I'm sure that if I take out the battery and charge it, it would work for awhile but it seems to be getting weaker and is becoming a trust issue.
My 09 GS did go over 50k with the original battery, the RT has 35k with this one.
The RT has a lot more blinky things on it so perhaps the difference.

 

[RICZ]

Krakum1967......apologies for assuming. You know what you are doing, but I have encountered many who start and run for about 5 minutes. I had the impression that Star Tron was safer than most. Your thoughts Kraig?

 

[Y-me]

Ended up going with a X-Rated battery from throttleX.
It’s made in TN and the casing and terminals seem to be of better quality than on the Yuasa.
It came charged but put it on the charger then popped it in and she started right up.

-Y

 

[scarecrow]

I use Stinger Batteries in all my vehicles.

 

[billybovine]

I quite sure ALL Spyder batteries are and have been GEL type. I know mine have been …. If your battery is laid down - lead acid is not usable …. I believe and trust in the Yuasa brand …. or if you can find one an " Interstate " gel battery. …..I would not recommend the newer Ion type, they fuction differently than Gel batteries …... You said you turn the bike over every two weeks - this is NOT a good thing to do, especially if you run it for a few minutes. …. Condensation will be present or formed, this is Water and it will rust the internal steel / iron parts, especially the exhaust system. …….. good luck …. Mike hyea:

The Yuasa battery used in the Spyder is a AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) battery not a gel. Gel cell batteries are mostly used in more deep cycle applications. Like electric wheelchairs and mobility scooters. I believe there is someone marketing a gel battery for powersports use. But I don't see the point.

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

As usual you are correct about the type of battery ….sooooooooooo I have changed my orig. post to reflect that ……. I often confuse AGM & GEL, and I apologize for posting mis-information …… Mike hyea:

 

[triplethreat]

Kind of off topic, but maybe not.... So I was hooking up a Battery Tender pigtail this past weekend and was going to pull the battery part of the way out to be able to unscrew the battery lead terminals and add the pigtail, and I couldn't figure out how to get the battery out of the little cubby hole that it's in. This is a 2019 RTL and it seems that I couldn't lift it enough to get the battery over the lip of base it sits on. Can anyone tell me what the secret is to getting it out of the cubby hole that in the frunk?

 

[h0gr1der]

Kind of off topic, but maybe not.... So I was hooking up a Battery Tender pigtail this past weekend and was going to pull the battery part of the way out to be able to unscrew the battery lead terminals and add the pigtail, and I couldn't figure out how to get the battery out of the little cubby hole that it's in. This is a 2019 RTL and it seems that I couldn't lift it enough to get the battery over the lip of base it sits on. Can anyone tell me what the secret is to getting it out of the cubby hole that in the frunk?

I just did my 2018 RTL. Undo the negative post first. Then remove all wiring. Next you have to get the upper retaining bracket out of the way. Kind of a blind operation, it has two hooks that fit in slots way up in there. Once that is out of the way you tilt the battery out top first. Kind of roll it out. If you use a non-OEM battery the top bracket may have to be adjusted to get a snug fit. I put a Deka in there and had to bend the two retainers in the middle of the bracket out of the way.

One take I had with the disappointing failure of my 10 moth old Yuasa battery. BRP only has a 6 month warranty on their batteries. So basically if you buy the battery from Walmart you get a 1 year warranty, but if you have the dealer install the same Yuasa battery they reduce the warranty to 6 months. Don't fall into this trap. Let the buyer beware.