After 5 years my F800GT is cranking slightly slower than it has in the past to start. I just ordered a new YUASA battery. Having never replaced the battery on this bike before, should I be aware of any special procedure to follow other than disconnecting the old and reconnecting the new battery? I read in one post where the "Service" light came on after the battery replacement which had to be reset by the local BMW dealer. I hope that does not happen to mine.Thank you for your advise. Side note: battery prices REALLY vary for the SAME battery. The YUASA YTX14 High Performance battery on Amazon $67. Revzilla $115. Sierra BMW $164. Avid Cycles $62. All with free shipping.
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New battery time - a question please.
- Thread starter Illiya
- Start date
irish
Registered Schmoozer
I read somewhere that after replacing the battery you should turn the ignition to ON (but not start the engine) and twist the throttle fully open and closed a few times so the engine electronics re-learn the the throttle position sensor limits, or something along those lines. I am sure someone else can explain it better, but it only takes a few seconds to do it so I make this part of my battery changing routine.
Nice work shopping around and saving some $$$ on the battery.
Nice work shopping around and saving some $$$ on the battery.
guenner
Member
After reconnecting the battery you have to reset the date in the instrument cluster (=computer).
BMW in its glory design wisdom did not add a small battery to keep the current date or, allow to set the date with the buttons on the instrument cluster yourself.
You either have the dealer reset the date (~$50 ???) or, use a GS911 or equivalent tool to reset the date yourself. If the date is not reset then the service light comes on because "you are far behind the 1 year oil change interval".
No mumbling-fumbling with the throttle!
/Guenther
BMW in its glory design wisdom did not add a small battery to keep the current date or, allow to set the date with the buttons on the instrument cluster yourself.
You either have the dealer reset the date (~$50 ???) or, use a GS911 or equivalent tool to reset the date yourself. If the date is not reset then the service light comes on because "you are far behind the 1 year oil change interval".
No mumbling-fumbling with the throttle!
/Guenther
date set
or just turn on the ignition. your BMW NAV unit will automatically reset time and date via GPS
or just turn on the ignition. your BMW NAV unit will automatically reset time and date via GPS
If your bike has a gps. Many don’t (mine doesn’t.)
Would it be possible to maintain uninterrupted power, by connecting the new battery before disconnecting the old? (By using a set of jumper cables or similar?)
dieselyoda
Active member
Most auto parts stores will/should/might have a memory saver tool that is essentially a 9V battery with alligator clips or a plug that goes into cigarette lighter.
They do work and don't have the current to melt wrenches.
Thanks for the great tip!
36654
New member
That battery is shipped dry. You'll have to fill the battery with the supplied acid and then charge.
pglaves
#13338
These may be accurate in this case but I have found that many vendors on the Internet confound you when you do a search for a specific battery. They list batteries that are "equivalent to" the brand and model you are looking for but are not the genuine article. From the above example I trust that Revzilla and Sierra BMW both have the genuine article. Revzilla as a high volume Internet seller is less expensive than the brick and mortar dealership. I suspect that the Amazon seller and Avid Cycles were selling "equivalent" sized batteries of indistinguishable origin. I have been burned by this in the past.
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RadioFlyer
Right2Repair
If one orders the YTX14-BS one gets a factory sealed battery with no need to add acid.
Personally I would order a Deka ETX14 AGM battery.
Sent from my SM-T813 using Tapatalk
AKsuited
New member
I prefer a battery that you add acid to. The day you do that is the "born on" date. Otherwise, you won't know how long a battery has been sitting on a shelf in a warehouse.
Harry
36654
New member
That's what happened to me this time. During the 18K service, the shop said a weak battery code was returned but the battery seemed OK. So, I bought one of the "dry" units waiting for the big "Oh Crap" moment. We're now at nearly 22K and the original battery is still going strong.
36654
New member
The Deka and Yuasa USA plants are fairly close to each other near Reading PA.
RadioFlyer
Right2Repair
Batteries are date stamped. Ordering from a battery speciality place (as I do) guarantees a fresh battery. Deka is highly regarded by the F800GS crowd on ADVrider.
Sent from my SM-T813 using Tapatalk
lkchris
Active member
This sort of thing is usually described in owners manual
pglaves
#13338
Once you have attached the negative connection first and then, when connecting the positive cable, had the wrench accidentally touch the frame or some other grounded point you will never do that again. The burned paint, spot welded 10mm, and burned hand will teach you not to do it again, assuming the battery doesn't explode, after which you won't ever do it again for sure.
As long as the negative (ground) battery post is not connected to the chassis you can have a minor mishap with what the wrench touches and it does nothing. Then if while you are hooking up the ground cable you happen to touch the chassis again nothing happens.
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