Shorai batteries

Anyone here have experience with them? opinion of them?

Yes I know they are a-tad pricey , but just in the consideration stage @ this time. I have an Odyssey in my Roadster, and this LT I bought has one as well. But! I have tried several times to bring it back too life....but it will not hold a charge, even over-night. So before I buy another, thought I'd ask around.

Thanks

71243 said:

Anyone here have experience with them? opinion of them?

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I put a Shorai in my '08 R1200GS last fall and have no issues with it. Either starting in cold Wisconsin weather or the heat of Central America. Haven't had a need of a trickle charger since installation. My moto sat for a month in a storage facility down in Memphis for a month prior to taking off for Panama. I also like the weight savings over a wet cell battery also. There was an article about Shorai in the BMW ON a few issues ago.

Shorai

71243 said:

Anyone here have experience with them? opinion of them?

Click to expand...

Put one in my '04 GT a couple years ago. I like the fact that it's so much lighter and smaller than OEM, so there is room in the battery box to store other items (my Stop-n-Go w/extra CO2 lives there). No problems whatsoever cranking in any weather, hot or cold, winter, summer, whatever... it just works. Battery Tender stays hooked to my wife's bike because the Shorai doesn't need it. But, I ride the K-bike year round... Shorai is said to be good for long-term storage (low self-discharge rate). I haven't stress tested that feature yet and don't intend to. ;-)

-MTS

Just a quick update. It has been 2 years now (and 2 Winters) that I have had the Shorai lithium battery installed. have not had it on a battery charger once since Oct 2012. This includes during the Winter, sitting in cold storage out in the garage.

rjzinc said:

I put a Shorai in my '08 R1200GS last fall and have no issues with it. Either starting in cold Wisconsin weather or the heat of Central America. Haven't had a need of a trickle charger since installation. My moto sat for a month in a storage facility down in Memphis for a month prior to taking off for Panama. I also like the weight savings over a wet cell battery also. There was an article about Shorai in the BMW ON a few issues ago.

Click to expand...

Shorai Update

rjzinc said:

Just a quick update. It has been 2 years now (and 2 Winters) that I have had the Shorai lithium battery installed. have not had it on a battery charger once since Oct 2012. This includes during the Winter, sitting in cold storage out in the garage.

Click to expand...

Similar experience here. My Shorai is well over 3 years old now and I've had zero problems with it on the K bike. Let's see... Smaller form factor, less weight, and it just works! What's not to like?

Pricey, yes, but so far it certainly seems worth the money. We'll have to wait and see how it does through the 4th winter (sans charger) and I'll try to remember to post another update next spring.

It may crap out on me next week, next month, or next year. Who knows? However, at this point I couldn't be more impressed.

-MTS

Bad experience with Shorai in 2012 R1200 GSA

I replaced my original OEM battery after 2.5 years of normal use. It was not holding a charge and the starter was dragging. I thought I would do a "good thing" for the bike to install a Shorai Li battery, so I purchased the battery and charging system for $228 from BatteryMart. I was very impressed with the light weight and small battery size. I installed the Shorai battery after adding multiple layers of foam (supplied with the battery) to make it fit in the battery box.

The first start with the new battery was sluggish. Over the next 4 weeks I continued to have sluggish starts and was concerned I was damaging the computer. I even blew a headlamp bulb. I took the bike to the dealer and their inspection indicated the battery voltage would drop to 7.5 volts during a start. (I am very fortunate to have a great dealer nearby with competent mechanics). I also confirmed the starting voltage drop with my GS911 diagnostics tool.

Conducting more research revealed more owners of Shorai Li batteries having similar problems. I talked to the guys at Batteries Plus about Shorai batteries and they confirmed the Shorai technology has issues and they dropped Shorai from the product offering. My mechanic at the dealer said essentially the same thing and also mentioned the Li battery technology fails quickly, unlike conventional batteries.

I ended up installing a conventional Pb Acid battery and the bike starts fine. I now own a very nice, $228 battery that does not work correctly in my motorcycle and plan to use it in my lawn mower or my son's scooter.

Update to my previous post about bad experience with Shorai battery

After contacting BatteryMart and Shorai about my battery woes, it turns out the battery I ordered was not the correct battery for my 2012 GS Adventure. The recommendation from the BattyMart webpage was wrong.

The Shorai battery finder webpage is correct.

I have an option to exchange my incorrect battery for the correct one for an additional $70. I have already replaced the Shorai with a reliable Pb/Acid battery, so throwing more $$$ at it is not attractive. The lawn mower needs a battery though. I might have the best John Deere lawn mower battery in North America.

Thanks for the update. I have been mulling which way to go when I get a new battery for my old K. My Shorai experience on my track bike was exceptionally good, so reading your post made me wonder if the wrong size battery had been delivered to you. I think you would ultimately be happy if you went with the 'correct' battery, but certainly understand you might be less than enthusiastic to pay another $70 to have an 'extra' battery hanging around. Thanks again for the update.