Battery Woes

[pglaves]

Beats me. But, I would like to know in case a G310 every follows me home.

It is distinctly possible that by the time I noticed the instrument display and GPS the engine was stopped and the alternator was failing to alternate. Things happen fast when the engine dies going down the road. Luckily it was an empty two-lane rural highway with wide shoulders and little traffic.

 

[wbrownell9]

Maybe, but why would that also kill the instrument display, the lighting, and even my Zumo 660 wired to the battery?

Possibly those circuits can't power up until the bike decides the power supply is clean enough, that is, if the battery isn't providing stable power, the computer won't allow current from the alternator to go anywhere? So there would be no alternator current going to the dead battery for the Zumo to pick up. Just a guess.

I had a 2016 GSA, ran the OEM battery for 120K miles, never an issue. Still, I talked myself into getting a new battery which may or may not have been necessary (I'll never know) but the replacement lasted another 30K/rest of the summer until I traded it. Now I have a 2020 GSA that's given me electrical fits. Nothing like yours where it just quit, but twice it failed to start, and several times it was reluctant but finally caught. Once running it was fine. But the 2016 I thought nothing of shutting it off waiting for construction (I waited over a half hour one time somewhere in BC), secure in the knowledge it'd fire right up. The 2020 - not so much. So far it's on its 2nd warranty battery plus a software update. After 3 days, nothing's gone wrong. Bugs the hell out of me that I need to add yet another thing to the pannier "just in case". A complete set of ratchet straps is probably overkill, but I never know when I'll find myself on a ferry that doesn't supply tiedowns - the USS Badger that goes across Lake Michigan doesn't.

I hope this turns out like my K1600 that behaved just like you described. After a software update it was completely reliable for the next 32K until I sold it. But I was pretty nervous for a while.

 

[r0ckrat]

Paul, this is a SWAG, but I suspect that the computer circuity on your G310 requires a highly stabilized voltage to function correctly, and that requires a healthy battery to provide that stability. Something the alternator alone can not do.

Isn't this why there is a regulator/rectifier? Or does BMW not include this on the G310?

 

[Omega Man]

When there is an internal plate separation, it’s “possible” to “see” an adequate voltage on a meter. This voltage is a ghost of actual power availability. I have found that it’s 50/50 whether a bike can be “jumped” with a donor battery as the defective battery won’t pass voltage/amperage through the separation.
This plate separation will also most likely prevent the bike from “running” on the alternator. You can check my previous post link to a classic example of this.

OM

BTW, a friend of mine had a Yamaha ATV in which the battery, small as it was....with no special care, last 13 years. I told him that he should have it bronzed.

 

[nickrides]

Nothing positive to add to this thread just a observation that I was surprised to read that the 310 only has a 8 AH Battery, Man that's so small.
Nick

 

[pglaves]

Nothing positive to add to this thread just a observation that I was surprised to read that the 310 only has a 8 AH Battery, Man that's so small.
Nick

When it works it is OK, but it doesn't have a lot of reserve capacity. And of course when it breaks it is useless.

 

[gregfeeler]

When it works it is OK, but it doesn't have a lot of reserve capacity. And of course when it breaks it is useless.

Look at it this way. With a battery that small, you can charge it from your cell phone.

 

[pglaves]

Look at it this way. With a battery that small, you can charge it from your cell phone.

I think my weed wacker has a bigger battery.

 

[globalrider]

Nothing new there. All bikes that small always had small batteries.

You are not going to find a 20 or 30 Ah battery on a small bike, ever.

 

[pglaves]

Nothing new there. All bikes that small always had small batteries.

You are not going to find a 20 or 30 Ah battery on a small bike, ever.

The 8 AH are enough. I just want one that doesn't physically BREAK. And no, rough riding is not the cause. My G310GS has fewer than 100 miles off pavement.

 

[pauls1150]

RR - Of course there has to be a regulator & rectifier setup (everything runs on DC, not AC), but their output can still be somewhat "choppy", not really smooth. Part of the function of the battery is to act as a huge capacitor, to help smooth the DC delivered to the bike; if the battery opens or shorts, that is lost.
I'd still expect the designers of the computer/etc. to incorporate a bit of "local" voltage regulation; but again, if there's some external failure, you'd still be screwed.

 

[globalrider]

The 8 AH are enough. I just want one that doesn't physically BREAK. And no, rough riding is not the cause. My G310GS has fewer than 100 miles off pavement.

Yeah, but I have seen you ride.

Try a name brand battery. Mind you, I have never been a fan of AGM, GEL and all these high-tech batteries that they have these days, having worked in a defense lab with them. I have an AGM in my R1200 GSA LC and my Porsche, but they have to prove themselves to me.

Maybe place a closed cell foam bad under your battery to help with vibrations. I do so on my batteries.

 

[pglaves]

Yeah, but I have seen you ride.

Try a name brand battery. Mind you, I have never been a fan of AGM, GEL and all these high-tech batteries that they have these days, having worked in a defense lab with them. I have an AGM in my R1200 GSA LC and my Porsche, but they have to prove themselves to me.

Maybe place a closed cell foam bad under your battery to help with vibrations. I do so on my batteries.

This time I did get a genuine Yuasa brand battery. I do recall though back in the '90s when Yuasa also had a large number of physical breaks in cell and plate connectors so there are no guarantees.

 

[globalrider]

This time I did get a genuine Yuasa brand battery.

I wonder where they are now made?

YUASA has a plant in PA, USA and they were and maybe still are good batteries. I always had them in my Jap bikes ages ago. My BMWs always had the MAREG batteries and they lasted, but I think my 2016 R1200 GSA LC has a smaller YUASA AGM, soon to be 5 years old.

It just came to my mind. You live in Texas and the heat and possible overcharging might be an issue. As you know charge voltage is temperature dependent. Does your BMW have a voltmeter?



Paul, even my R1200 GSA LC has one of these and it is marginally bigger than your battery.
11.8 Ah and 6 in. x 3 7⁄16 in. x 4 3⁄8 in. But made in Japan.

 

[pglaves]

The bike seems (based on several tests with a volt meter) to charge at 14.3 volts which might be greater than optimal anywhere temperatures exceed 80 degrees or in other words 90% of the US in summer. I am not convinced though that over charging would cause cell or plate connectors to fracture.

Other than Odyssey I prefer a wet cell battery in my K75s because it does not take a gymnast or magician to check the electrolyte level periodically. For an R1100RS or R1150R I would detest a wet cell battery. On a G310GS the hold down and two wiring harnesses would interfere with checking the level and I am not aware of any available wet cell battery in a size that would fit.

 

[globalrider]

I am not convinced though that over charging would cause cell or plate connectors to fracture.

Without cutting it open, who knows. But these so called "sealed batteries" are not sealed which is why they are called VRLA types. Even though they can be set in any position, they can "gas" when being overcharged (not saying that is what happened) and they cannot really be topped up. So after a while, the battery runs dry.

 

[henzilla]

Motobatt? The site directed to this for a 310... and some lithium’s

https://www.motobatt.us/MBTX9U-Motobatt-12V-Battery