Bike is a 2005 Kawa Ninja250. 12k miles. I recently had the battery die, so I went to walmart and got a replacement. I added the electrolyte and let the battery sit for ~one hour as per the instructions. I then charged it at a 2amp rating.
Popped it in the bike and it started strong and ran well. I took it to work the next morning (50mi commute one way at highway speeds), and it started fine again. After work, it started strong.
When I was about halfway home, it started acting up, it wasnt idling smoothly, and I came to realize there wasn't enough juice to even blow the horn. It died on the highway in slow traffic, thankfully. It was so weak the instrument cluster lights would barely come on. I had to pop start it and keep the rpm's up while sitting until I got home.
I'm now wondering if I have a charging system issue, or if the battery is crap. When I got home I charged it and the voltage check said 14.1V after charging, which I've read is normal. It started, but I have not had time or patience to take it around the block it yet.
Any suggestions?
Take the battery out and have it tested, easiest way to find out.
Quote:
Watching you parade around my bedroom in a thong was a little like watching sea lions mate.
lone_wolf wrote:Take the battery out and have it tested, easiest way to find out.
Do you mean just remove the battery from the system and test the voltage?
You get the electrolyte checked.
You most likely have a stator issue, it's not charging the battery, so the entire system is running off the battery. This kills batteries fast.
^ I'm with him
If you have to keep it revved to keep it from dying, your stator is not putting out enough juice.
Whoops, forgot to add this:
Charge battery, check voltage, install in bike, start bike, and check voltage at battery terminals. If the voltage is the same or lower while the bike is running as it is while the bike is shut off, then you need a new stator (or possibly a regulator/rectifier).
Thanks for the advice!
I tried fooling a little more with it - I put the charger on at 2amp rating and just lefti it go. Its one of those microprocessor controled jobs where the thing automatically goes into float mode to maintain the battery. After it was done charging, the votage read 14.1V. After about five minutes, it went into float and the voltage was already down to ~12.5, and it continued this cycle pretty frequently.
I'm thinking i got a @!#$ battery from walmart, but correct me if im wrong.
Also, I later started the bike and voltage when idling after warming up was ~12V, and I couldn't reproduce the origninal symptoms, although it was running for only a short time.
It should be around 14.4VDC (typically no less than 13.7VDC) when running, otherwise it's running off the battery alone.
Carter wrote:It should be around 14.4VDC (typically no less than 13.7VDC) when running, otherwise it's running off the battery alone.
So there is another issue other than a crap battery. It does not hold charge when the bike is not running, according to the charger anyway, and when its running, the voltage is too low, so either the charging system is faulty, or it cannot keep up. Something is discharging it even when the bike is not running, I guess I need to tare the thing apart and check for a short/tore up wire.
Thanks again for the advice all!
Sounds to me like a stator problem, just like the other guys said. Id get it taken care of sooner then later. It will just ruin your riding experience if you dont
"Louis, you better watch who you call a child. Because if I'm a child,
that makes you a pedafile, and I'm not gonna stand here and argue
with a pervert" -- Peter Griffin
