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2011 1200RT battery

royaltyl

New member
I have a 2011 R1200RT; I bought it used with only 869 miles on it. It sat unridden for most of a year I suppose. It now has 10800 and I think it needs a new battery (already!). I rode it 7000 miles on a western trip twice it would not start in the morning after sitting out all night in near-freezing temperatures. The last night in such cold conditions I got up 4 times during the night to warm the oil and keep it warm. That worked at the expense of my sleep. Sitting in the garage after a week it wouldn't start and I hooked a charger up to it. I took it out today, stopped for some gas. When I tried to restart the warm engine it sounded labored. Well, I quit on the starter button and retried to start it.. I got those clicks. I let it rest for a few minutes and it started, but again sounded labored. I have had the battery checked twice on diagnostic equipment and the techs said it passed all tests. Should I get a new battery? Should I expect the same problems with a new battery? that would be a real bummer. Should I spring for the BMW battery? It now has 10W-40 oil in it, which should be good for a lot colder temps than we have had.

Larry
 
classic bad battery or loose connections. Lead does flow a bit, connections can get loose.

The newer bikes only use a 14 amp hour battery, the older oil heads used a 20 amp hour. The new motors are not easier to crank, they are about the same. So the smaller battery (70% the size of the old one) will be working harder, and its condition is more critical.

Sitting is very hard on batteries. Just get a new one. Odyssey is highly recommended.

Rod
 
Does the Odyssey battery fit inside the bike with no alterations? I bought a non-BMW battery once and the fit was lousy. The terminals and connections had to be altered to make it usable.
 
I've had two batteries replaced under warranty on my 2011RT. Diagnostics show the bike's charging system is working correctly and I use a BMW system charger during the winter.

There's no reason for it other than duff batteries. My six year old Triumph is working fine with its original.
 
My 2012 R1200R is doing much the same. After reading the MOA article a month ago about the lithium batteries, I have decided to replace mine with a Shorai battery. About twice the cost, but probably worth it too.
 
The dealer wouldn't give me a new battery under warranty, if the existing battery passed all the tests. The fact it often does not pass the "start" test doesn't matter. I don't want to buy a new battery and have the same problem.
 
I have a 2011 R1200RT; I bought it used with only 869 miles on it. It sat unridden for most of a year I suppose. It now has 10800 and I think it needs a new battery (already!). I rode it 7000 miles on a western trip twice it would not start in the morning after sitting out all night in near-freezing temperatures. The last night in such cold conditions I got up 4 times during the night to warm the oil and keep it warm.
Larry

It sounds like the original problem was that the battery & starter worked in cold temps, but the engine did not fire. Check your owners manual - it will tell you to apply a little throttle when starting at low temperatures. My RT needs just enough throttle to get it off the idle stop when the temp drops below about 35??F. Its possible that cranking the engine for long periods has damaged the battery. Before giving up on it I'd try charging it again, making sure it has time to get a FULL charge - not just enough to start once. Your short ride to the gas station probably did not allow time for the battery to recover. If you do need a new battery I'd recommend the Odyssey PC680.

(No, I'm not talking to myself...)
 
I had it on the BMW battery tender for days. After that it started fine and then the problem repeated. It seems this battery has no reserve capacity at all. A bad connection, maybe? The connections on the battery are clean and tight. The tests that dealers and shops do: do they test cranking amps?
 
I had a 4 1/2 year old battery in a BMW that behaved EXACTLY as yours is behaving. Cool mornings it would not start. Put it on a charger and it would seem to be fine. Go on a ride and I would need to stop and start say, 10X, and it would die. A charger would again bring it up to where it seemed strong. A battery tender would show it was 100% fine, which it wasn't.

No, the problem is, the battery sat for the year. Whoever tests it should do a load test and I bet it shows as bad. Anyway, it is now damaged- unable to retain a full charge. Maybe a bad cell, whatever. It is at the end of it's life. Replace it and you'll be fine. It's not your bike.
 
Wow! BMW dodged another warranty claim. I'd try to have a discussion with that dealer. My 2006 RT still has the original battery and does just fine, so far.
 
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