Battery Keeps Dying

[YoungAndDumb]

Hi, I'm a noob. I bought a new 2007 FZ6 two weekends ago. I rode it home that Saturday night from the dealer and everything was OK. The next day I took it out to do some very mild riding... learning the friction zone, smooth shifting, U-turns, etc... All low speed and low RPM stuff. I stalled it a few times that day and probably the 4th time, the engine would not turn over. I popped started it and took it home and then it still wouldn't start.

So I took the battery out and had a local dealer charget it up with a 2 amp trickle charge over night. I put it back in the next day and it started up fine. Since then I have ridden it 3 times (started right up each time, and I have not stalled it since) all medium riding stuff (a lot of ~4k RPM kinda riding), and I'll be damned!!! That battery is dead again.

This has been all day-time riding (maybe 3 hours total worth since the dealer charged the battery) and I have been riding with my high beams on.

Any ideas what's going on? Is the battery "bad"? Is there a problem with the bike? Will the high beams drain the battery like that??

Any ideas would be appreciated!

 

[Nelly]

Do you know how old the battery is? I have not experienced this problem with my FZ6 (but had loads of problems with medical device batteries) and there are many members who have a 4 year-old battery with no problems.
Do you run any external power from it?
How old is it? Can you verify that it has been looked after.
You may have a bad earth or just a bad battery.
Fortunatley there are loads of riders on here with more electricle knowlege than me to give you good advice.

Nelly

 

[jsteinb95]

It may have sat too long at the dealer and the battery's bad.

 

[FZ1inNH]

New, so no headlight mod yet? What RPM are you riding at? While in town, keep it in lower gears to keep the RPMs up. You need to run the bike at 2200 RPM to begin a charging cycle to the battery but it is optimal over 3300 RPM. Around town, I try to keep it in a gear that keeps me over 3500 RPM to be sure. Below 2200 RPM and you're putting a drain on the battery and will run it dead.

Also, take the battery out and have a shop do a load test to be sure it battery will hold up. Just because it has a charge doesn't mean it will hold up to the cold cranking amps needed to start the bike. If it's that new, take it back and demand the dealer replace it for free. Don't take no for an answer.

 

[sportrider]

1st off welcome to the forum.
regarding you battery, I'd contact the dealer were your bike was purchased. if you're having this problem odds are you've gotten a bad battery the dealer should offer a replacement. talk to the salesperson you worked with and see if he will make things right. if not go to the sales manager. there is no way you killed a battery in two weeks even if you stalled 100 times getting a feel for using the clutch. I'd also check to make sure the bike's charging system is working just to rule that out. if you have a multimeter check voltage before starting the bike it should read 12V. start the bike and check it again it should be reading around 13.8V depending on RPM. if your charging system is good then you've got a bad battery. but seeing how you can bump start the bike and it runs fine I think your charging system is probably OK.

 

[HavBlue]

We can go through all the scenarios associated with an excessive draw but considering the relative age of the bike (new) it would probably not be necessary as that battery is probably history. The only way to truly determine the actual condition of said battery is to charge it and then perform a load test to the designated load for the appropriate time. If the battery will not pass a load test it's time to get a new one. I do however have one question, is this bike not under the warranty period?

Welcome the the forum.....

 

[YoungAndDumb]

Thanks for the welcomes.

I don't know how old the battery is. I'm assuming it's been sitting on the show room floor for about a year since it's a 2007, but that's just a guess. No headlight mod, but I am running my high beams while I ride. One thing I was wondering is if those of you without the headlight mod ride with your high beams on during the day?

An overwhelming majority of my riding since I had the battery recharged LAST WEEK has been over 3k RPMs.

I sent the dealer an email and haven't heard back yet. I'll start pounding on them soon. It's a complete pain in the ass because they're over an hour away.

sportrider_fz6, I will check the bike's charging system, but I can't do it this time since the battery is already dead (and I can't start the bike).

HavBlue, the bike is under the 1-year warranty period, which started 2 weeks ago. BTW, how long does it take to perform a load test on a battery?

 

[HavBlue]

Thanks for the welcomes.

I don't know how old the battery is. I'm assuming it's been sitting on the show room floor for about a year since it's a 2007, but that's just a guess. No headlight mod, but I am running my high beams while I ride. One thing I was wondering is if those of you without the headlight mod ride with your high beams on during the day?

sportrider_fz6, I will check the bike's charging system, but I can't do it this time since the battery is already dead (and I can't start the bike).

HavBlue, the bike is under the 1-year warranty period, which started 2 weeks ago. BTW, how long does it take to perform a load test on a battery?

I run with the brights on all the time in the daylight ours and even at night when I ride at night (not very often around here due to critters). A load test will require maybe 2-3 minutes if the battery is fully charged at the point of test and it should be to get an accurate measurement of its health.

Remember, unlike a cage alternator the bikes charging system must attain an rpm of 5,000rpm (pp 8-25 of the 2004 shop manual)or more to be in a full output mode so it must be triggered where the cage does not. The battery when fully charged should be at a minimum of 12.8 vdc. Note: the FZ6 has a constant draw on the battery due in part to the clock and computer. While this is more than likely in millivolts it can still damage a battery over long periods of storage or floor time.

 

[reiobard]

Sounds like the battery is either dead or the charging system is not keeping up, where as the RPM's have to be up over 2200 to charge, the bike should not drain even when idling. I would take it back to the shop and have them replace the battery and check the charging system. the bike is NEW and you shouldn;t have to deal with diagnosing things yet

 

[sportrider]

One thing I was wondering is if those of you without the headlight mod ride with your high beams on during the day?

how long does it take to perform a load test on a battery?

I ride with low beam, I just flip on the highbeam at the dangerous crossings.

you'll need a load tester, it only takes a few seconds. most auto part stores will test a battery for you for free if you bring it in. autozone (most anyways) will let you borrow one for a $20.00 deposit.

 

[keira]

if the bike is under any sort of warranty, bring it in and make them test the battery. they should do it for free since you just bought the bike. maybe they'll even replace it if need be.

 

[wrightme43]

Simplest first. Battery is probley bad. If its a hour there and hour back considering the cost of fuel and your time.
Is it more cost effective to go and buy a battery or to go get one from the dealer.

 

[YoungAndDumb]

if the bike is under any sort of warranty, bring it in and make them test the battery. they should do it for free since you just bought the bike. maybe they'll even replace it if need be.

Bring in the bike or the battery? The bike currently won't start.

 

[YoungAndDumb]

Simplest first. Battery is probley bad. If its a hour there and hour back considering the cost of fuel and your time.
Is it more cost effective to go and buy a battery or to go get one from the dealer.

I was wondering the exact same thing. My time is valuable. There are other Yamaha dealers closer. Does it have to be the one I bought the bike at? I was under the impression that you can get "warranty work" done at any Yamaha dealer, it would still be free.

 

[keira]

I believe any reputable Yamaha dealership will perform warranty work.

 

[HavBlue]

I believe any reputable Yamaha dealership will perform warranty work.

They don't have a choice if the bike is under warranty and they are a licensed Yamaha dealer. They can however ask that you bring the whole bike in as opposed to just showing up with a battery.

 

[trampld]

With the factory warranty still in full effect I would first demand that the selling dealer take care of the issue...if it is not worth your time to deal with them, talk to someone closer and let them know whats going on. Based on the amount of sitting waiting to be sold I think it is safe to assume that the problem is the battery. As others mentioned, the fact that with a bump start it would stay running is a good sign that the charging system is operating - but even that could depend on how long it stayed running. If it were only a few minutes or so, it is possible that you were running off of the battery and that it was too weak to start the bike but strong enough to power the electrics.
Has the clock been resetting it's time? This would be an indication of a completely dead battery.
The load test is pretty straight forward especially if they are using a conductance style tester (such as midtronics)...it will take 2-3 minutes. The waiting will be for the battery to be charged first before it can be tested.
Bottom line:
I would call the sales person you worked with and get he/she on the ball taking care of it.

 

[trampld]

Bring in the bike or the battery? The bike currently won't start.

Given this, call the selling dealer and they will likely refer you to a local dealer and they may cover towing or something.

Out of curiousity - why can't you bump start it now?

 

[YoungAndDumb]

trampld, I'm not sure about the clock. I'll take your advice and ask the selling dealer about my options for another dealer.

As far as bump starting, I did it once because I was at the top of a hill so I got it rolling with all my weight on it. Since then I tried it in my parking garage running along side it and I didn't have quite as much momentum and the rear tire locked and skidded (both times going into first). That garage floor is that REAL smooth concrete though. I only tried it that once, so it could very well still be possible.

 

[HavBlue]

As far as bump starting, I did it once because I was at the top of a hill so I got it rolling with all my weight on it. Since then I tried it in my parking garage running along side it and I didn't have quite as much momentum and the rear tire locked and skidded (both times going into first). That garage floor is that REAL smooth concrete though. I only tried it that once, so it could very well still be possible.

If I am attempting a bump start I use second as it is less likely to lock up and this also works with manual transmissions in cages too.