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Battery life and replacement

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ShipofFools

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Twice last week, while trying to leave work, my bike would not start. I got a jump start both times from a coworker but this signaled to me that something was wrong. I took the battery to two place to have it checked and both places said it was fine and held a charge. Clearly this was not the case.

I bought a new battery to remedy this situation and am glad to report that it is working fine. The reason for this post is as follows: how long should the stock battery reasonably last? I ride it regularly, and when there's an extended wet or cold spell, or when I'm out of town, I keep it plugged into a battery tender. My Honda Civic lasted on the original battery for seven years, so I guess I expected the same out of the bike. Does heat have anything to do with it?

Also, to anyone who has gotten a replacement battery, have you had any problems installing it? More specifically, connecting the bolts and nuts on the terminals. I struggled with the installation because the damn nut refused to stay still for the bolt. It doesn't help that the positive terminal cable is very short. I want to reattach the battery tender cable eventually but I'm afraid I'll have the same problem with the nuts. Is there an easier way to install the cables?

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Over many years of motorcycling I have found that the more often one uses their motorcycle the longer the battery will last. The average 2700 mile a year rider will be buying a battery after the bike sits the full winter months. The fellow who uses his motorcycle every day will get about 3 years from that same battery. So, ride an use fewer batteries.
 
Well the battery on my wife's 2013 NC lasted 1 year and 7 months. It was kept on a tender during the winter and during long down-time periods but it wasn't ridden very often so I would say there is some validity to OCR's comment about use vs. life but then again it could have just been a bum battery.

It also showed that it held a charge and passed the load test at my local auto parts store but finally when I took it to the dealer convinced it wasn't the battery, their load tester proved that to be false. It was an expensive lesson that I have memorialized in a past post here.

I've had batteries in my other bikes last 5 years or more so there's just no telling exactly how long a battery should last vs. how long it will last.

Not sure why you are having issues connecting to the terminals. I have had the battery in and out of the NC several times with no issues. Sorry.
 
What timing. The battery on my 2012 just died after 2 years and 9 months and 20,000 miles. I live in Florida and that is a little on the short side. I have one of those lithium jump start batteries. I had to use that to get home yesterday. When I put the new battery in I'm going to have to do something that makes attaching the clips from the jump starter easier to do.
 
In regards to the battery nut moving out of position, what I do is cut a very short piece of vinyl tubing (small diameter) and jam it behind the nut. That keeps the nut from moving side-to-side and also pushes it as far to the outside as possible, making it much easier to start the bolt. :)

My 2010 NT700V bought new in Dec 2009 still has the original battery but I'm thinking about replacing it this winter, just for peace of mind. It lives on the X-charger whenever it isn't being ridden. Motorcycles don't have the powerful alternator fitted to cars so taking a lot of short trips can result in the battery's state of charge being lower than ideal.
 
turbodieseli4i6 said:
Amazon.com: Antigravity Batteries Micro-Start Jump Starter/Personal Power Supply XP-1 XP-1: Automotive
July 27th will be the third year I've had my NCX and have a tad over 32,000 miles on it. I do carry a XP1 in my side case.
You never know when it will come in handy. The only thing that I have used it for is jump starting a friends car at work though.
Hopefully when mine dies. I can make it home and order another without a tow.
Click to expand...

Very nice jump start kit! Even charges your electronics. I need to put this on my wish list!
 
I think it's pure luck of the draw (is there a bad pun in there somewhere...?) as far as how good/crappy the individual materials are, including quality control and construction tolerances, per every battery on the assembly line nowadays!

I treat my batteries even worse than my chains. :eek: I once in a blue moon remember to charge up a battery on a bike that sits for months over a winter, and have never used a battery tender in an every day kind of fashion in my life. While nearly everyone on the BMW forum was having theirs die, mine was the only thing on the damned bike that worked 100% perfectly 'til the day I got rid of it.

My 2007 CBR125R battery is not much larger than a juice box, lol, and I've accidently drained it dead several times over the years due to my own fault, not it's, and it works as well now as it did 8 years ago.

I killed the OEM battery in my Suzuki Samurai (again totally my fault :rolleyes:) but it was perfect for over 16 years up until then!

Come to think of it, I don't ever recall having a battery give up the ghost on any of my bikes, they were all either toasted due to dummy me, or a specific problem, like a stator failure or being run over by an a**hat in a car. Never just an unknown reason.

Go figure? :confused:

Why can't I have this kind of luck with lotto ticket numbers? :(
 
I usually run Yuasa batteries 8 years but there are no guarantees against surprise early failures. I had a Yuasa battery in my Goldwing that ran there 9 years, then I put in in the lawn mower for 4 more, then finally I just decided to retire it even though it was still working fine. I had some deep cycle batteries in my motor home I retired at 19 years old, though I admit they had almost no reserve capacity left in the end.

My toys store in an unheated building. I believe cold winter storage extends the battery life. It would be interesting to note if bikes kept in warmer climates had shorter battery life.
 
Last edited:
When my OEM battery failed, I had slight warning. The bike seemed to crank just a touch slower than normal one morning. Nothing huge; it just didn't quite sound/feel as speedy as normal. An afternoon or so later it wouldn't start the bike to leave work. I was lucky that we have a battery charger at work, so I jump-started it. I ride my bike most days, so if/when it just sits there, it's rarely for more than a couple to few days at a time, and usually when it's super hot out.

My previous bike, a CBR600F4, had a used battery of unknown age when I bought it basically wrecked off a kid in a college town. It lasted fine for as long or longer, time-wise, than the NCX's battery, and that CBR sat over the winter in an unheated garage in a _cold_ part of Idaho.

So, I know that no one knows how long an m/c battery will last. I also know that high heat is way harder on batteries than cold is. Car batteries, for example, have a noticeably shorter lifespan in Phoenix than in more northern climes.
 
Seems it may just be the Texas heat that's eating my battery up. I keep my bike garaged at home but it stays outside when I'm at work. I ride whenever I can and my Deltran tender stays plugged in if I don't ride for 4 or more days. Seems like 2 years is a bit short, though.

I noticed that the terminals on the OEM battery had little plastic retainers built in to keep the nuts from sliding around. They are not there on the new battery, but I will keep that tubing trick in mind for the next time I need to take the battery out.
 
lootzyan said:
According to YUASA, quote: "Sealed AGM batteries typically last 3 to 5 years on average. 6 to 8 years is easily obtainable with proper maintenance".
"Hotter climates tend to discharge batteries quicker".
To properly charge and maintain AGM batteries the voltage reading should be approx. 13.8 - 14.5 volts. Does your tender can provide this level of charging? Most tenders keep about 12.5 V. I'd recommend Yuasa (YUA1201000) 1 Amp Automatic Battery Charger and Maintainer.
If your tender cable has eye connectors, make cut-out with side cutters to look like fork terminal, so you wouldn't have to unscrew battery terminal bolt completely, just loosen up.

View attachment 24945
Click to expand...

AGMs are sensitive to over voltage charging. If the batt is really an AGM a standard charger for flooded lead-acid will harm it.

turbodieseli4i6 said:
Amazon.com: Antigravity Batteries Micro-Start Jump Starter/Personal Power Supply XP-1 XP-1: Automotive
July 27th will be the third year I've had my NCX and have a tad over 32,000 miles on it. I do carry a XP1 in my side case.
You never know when it will come in handy. The only thing that I have used it for is jump starting a friends car at work though.
Hopefully when mine dies. I can make it home and order another without a tow.
Click to expand...

OOH. Nice.

lootzyan said:
Why?
On average, I don't see a reason not to believe battery manufacturer - YUASA that battery can last more than 3 years with proper maintenance. Of course there are always exceptions.
Click to expand...

If it is an AGM there is no maintenance unless one considers cleaning terminals ...........

L.B.S. said:
I think it's pure luck of the draw (is there a bad pun in there somewhere...?) as far as how good/crappy the individual materials are, including quality control and construction tolerances, per every battery on the assembly line nowadays!

I treat my batteries even worse than my chains. :eek: I once in a blue moon remember to charge up a battery on a bike that sits for months over a winter, and have never used a battery tender in an every day kind of fashion in my life. While nearly everyone on the BMW forum was having theirs die, mine was the only thing on the damned bike that worked 100% perfectly 'til the day I got rid of it.

My 2007 CBR125R battery is not much larger than a juice box, lol, and I've accidently drained it dead several times over the years due to my own fault, not it's, and it works as well now as it did 8 years ago.

I killed the OEM battery in my Suzuki Samurai (again totally my fault :rolleyes:) but it was perfect for over 16 years up until then!

Come to think of it, I don't ever recall having a battery give up the ghost on any of my bikes, they were all either toasted due to dummy me, or a specific problem, like a stator failure or being run over by an a**hat in a car. Never just an unknown reason.

Go figure? :confused:

Why can't I have this kind of luck with lotto ticket numbers? :(
Click to expand...

That must have been the Super Ninja Samurai model.
And you should apply to the Guinness book of records as that is sort of unbelievable.

ShipofFools said:
Seems it may just be the Texas heat that's eating my battery up. I keep my bike garaged at home but it stays outside when I'm at work. I ride whenever I can and my Deltran tender stays plugged in if I don't ride for 4 or more days. Seems like 2 years is a bit short, though.

I noticed that the terminals on the OEM battery had little plastic retainers built in to keep the nuts from sliding around. They are not there on the new battery, but I will keep that tubing trick in mind for the next time I need to take the battery out.
Click to expand...

Heat is a problem. Even sealed batteries are flooded cells and lose liquid. I don't yet know what modern Honda batteries are made of.
 
lootzyan said:
Does it mean that those "over 9000 RPM screamers" will charge battery double-better?
Click to expand...
The maximum output of a generator is at 5,000 RPM. After that it drops... In theory... In reality you've to measure it with a watt meter. I think it's ok in the range 2,500 - 3,500 RPM...

Time is always the key. A lead acid battery needs a lot of time to fully charge (full charge stops sulfation), especially the last stage (absorb stage if I remember correctly...). Short trips in the city doesn't help...
 
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