Time for a new battery or ?????

[the Ferret]

Yesterday my 21 DCT bike (purchased new 6/22/21) now with 57,000 miles on it, wouldn't shift from Neutral to Drive after being started in the morning.

After hooking it up to the battery tender jr and firing it up with the tender attached it did go into D.

I rode it 42 miles and the bike shifted up and down thru all 6 gears fine.

When I got home it would start and go from N to D to N to D whenever the button was pressed.

I let it sit overnight without being hooked up to the tender and took a battery voltage reading this morning which read 13.0V

I then turned on the ignition without starting the bike and left it on for about 90 secs and the reading went down to 12.3V

I hit the starter button and it went down to 10.0v and started, but again would not shift into D.

Since I've read here that DCT's need a good battery to operate, do you think could this be the issue?

Or maybe the shift pin?

Or something else?

I love my DCT, but it certainly seems this bike has the "potential" for leaving me stranded more than any bike I've ever owned.

 

[670cc]

Yesterday my 21 DCT bike (purchased new 6/22/21) now with 57,000 miles on it, wouldn't shift from Neutral to Drive after being started in the morning.

After hooking it up to the battery tender jr and firing it up with the tender attached it did go into D.

I rode it 42 miles and the bike shifted up and down thru all 6 gears fine.

When I got home it would start and go from N to D to N to D whenever the button was pressed.

I let it sit overnight without being hooked up to the tender and took a battery voltage reading this morning which read 13.0V

I then turned on the ignition without starting the bike and left it on for about 90 secs and the reading went down to 12.3V

I hit the starter button and it went down to 10.0v and started, but again would not shift into D.

Since I've read here that DCT's need a good battery to operate, do you think could this be the issue?

Or maybe the shift pin?

Or something else?

I’m in the midwest in a climate likely similar to yours. I would expect the battery to last 7-8 years (my 2017 CRF still has it’s original battery). Battery voltage falling to 12.3 after the non running bike is left on 90 seconds sounds normal (although not a good practice). Once the engine is running and you want to shift to D, the engine alternator is assisting in supplying the power. What would be important is that you have 14 volts or more with the engine running when you go to D. Perhaps if you leave the non-running bike switched on for awhile before starting, start the engine and let it run a few more seconds so the battery recovery is complete.

I love my DCT, but it certainly seems this bike has the "potential" for leaving me stranded more than any bike I've ever owned.

Having read this forum for over 12 years, I feel the same way about DCT reliability.

 

[TNHoosier]

My '21 manual battery only lasted three years. I suspect your battery is on it's way out. I replaced mine when it was very sluggish turning over to start. The DCT seems to require more from a battery so maybe that is where it starts showing a weak battery.

 

[the Ferret]

My volt meter reads between 14.2 and 14.6 while running. (mostly 14.3, 14.4 & 14.5)

I generally get 4 years out of a street bike battery. That's all I got out of my last 2 CB 1100 batteries as well. My 2015 Honda 420 Rancher with snow blade is still on the original battery . Go figure.

On first start this afternoon it would not go into D. I restarted the bike and it went into D. Went for 46-mile ride. Trans shifted fine up and down thru all 6 gears. Stopped for gas and put it in N, and it shifted to D after the fill up. Got home and tested D to N to D to N to D to N, and it worked fine?

Surely in 12 years someone else has had this issue.

 

[dduelin]

I’m in the midwest in a climate likely similar to yours. I would expect the battery to last 7-8 years (my 2017 CRF still has it’s original battery). Battery voltage falling to 12.3 after the non running bike is left on 90 seconds sounds normal (although not a good practice). Once the engine is running and you want to shift to D, the engine alternator is assisting in supplying the power. What would be important is that you have 14 volts or more with the engine running when you go to D. Perhaps if you leave the non-running bike switched on for awhile before starting, start the engine and let it run a few more seconds so the battery recovery is complete.



Having read this forum for over 12 years, I feel the same way about DCT reliability.

Is the CRF the one you ride every day? Would the battery last 7 - 8 years if it was ridden every day pretty much year round as long as it's not a blizzard or the day after a blizzard?

 

[670cc]

Is the CRF the one you ride every day? Would the battery last 7 - 8 years if it was ridden every day pretty much year round as long as it's not a blizzard or the day after a blizzard?

I don’t know how much riding or not riding affects battery life. My 7-8 year usual battery life is fairly consistent across multiple vehicles, be they motorcycle, car, van, boat, RV. Everything gets used to some degree. Using a vehicle more or less doesn’t seem to correlate to battery lifespan. I do make sure all batteries are kept charged.

When I was working and we all drove company vehicles daily, I can’t remember anyone ever replacing a battery. Constant use did not seem detrimental to battery life. Maybe we burned through the cars too fast to age out a battery.

Anecdotal evidence from forums strongly suggests that hot climates are bad for lead acid battery life. I keep most of my vehicles in non-heated buildings in winter, and that helps minimize self discharge, and theoretically (my theory) extands life.

 

[the Ferret]

I too wonder sometimes if daily use wears the battery out quicker. More cycles so to speak. I've always felt everything has a limited number of cycles in its life.

But in this case. I'm wondering if battery condition is keeping it from shifting from Neutral to Drive

 

[dduelin]

My volt meter reads between 14.2 and 14.6 while running. (mostly 14.3, 14.4 & 14.5)

I generally get 4 years out of a street bike battery. That's all I got out of my last 2 CB 1100 batteries as well. My 2015 Honda 420 Rancher with snow blade is still on the original battery . Go figure.

On first start this afternoon it would not go into D. I restarted the bike and it went into D. Went for 46-mile ride. Trans shifted fine up and down thru all 6 gears. Stopped for gas and put it in N, and it shifted to D after the fill up. Got home and tested D to N to D to N to D to N, and it worked fine?

Surely in 12 years someone else has had this issue.

It's hard to say what it is but like 670cc said the battery starts the engine but once running the charge system maintains system voltage and yours between 14.2 & 14.6 is normal. To satisfy your curiousity you might check the battery voltage at the terminals with the engine running and see what it does when you shift into D. I suspect the voltage holds steady. If the battery starts the bike OK it's probably not the battery. It could be the N/D switch or the side stand switch either of which could prevent D from being selected. The shift control motor turns the shift drum and it might be an intermittent fault.

 

[potter0o]

I got one of these digital battery load testers.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B08K3885C4?ref=fed_asin_title

 

[the Ferret]

arrgggh frustrating. Not being the mechanical type, I'm lost as to what to do or check or how to check. Since I was going to replace the battery in June anyway out of precaution, I think I'll just go ahead and start that process and go from there.

 

[milesprwr]

Sorry to hear of the troubles @the Ferret . I got my bike second hand and didn't have any info when the last battery was replaced. When that battery was on the way out I experienced longer crank times before starting, then cranking with no starting, then nothing. I never experienced what you described where the bike starts but won't shift from Neutral to Drive.

Do you happen have voltage readings of the battery after it was running? Based on the information provided the battery does sound suspect. Seems like an easy starting point.

 

[milesprwr]

I love my DCT, but it certainly seems this bike has the "potential" for leaving me stranded more than any bike I've ever owned.

I'm assuming you mean the DCT's inability to push start? I've had to push start some of my bikes in the past. I always carry a combo jump starter and air pump in the frunk of the NC. Needed the jump starter and the pump once each!

 

[670cc]

Yesterday my 21 DCT bike (purchased new 6/22/21) now with 57,000 miles on it, wouldn't shift from Neutral to Drive after being started in the morning.

I’m curious about the symptoms. When you had this problem, what all happened when you attempted to switch to D? Is there any sound, movement, or display indication when you press the D button, or does the bike sImply do nothing in response to your action? Even if conditions were not correct for shift, some kind of message or response from the bike would be nice.

 

[the Ferret]

Yea nothing happens.... no movement, no sound, no indicator, it just as if you never pushed the button.

 

[the Ferret]

I'm assuming you mean the DCT's inability to push start? I've had to push start some of my bikes in the past. I always carry a combo jump starter and air pump in the frunk of the NC. Needed the jump starter and the pump once each!

Yes, the inability to bump start it if it doesn't start, but just as bad is the ability to start it, but inability to put it in gear. You are dead in the water with both issues.

I bought a Noco jump starter and the cable that attaches to the battery, and carry it in the tailpack.

 

[670cc]

Yes, the inability to bump start it if it doesn't start, but just as bad is the ability to start it, but inability to put it in gear. You are dead in the water with both issues.

I bought a Noco jump starter and the cable that attaches to the battery, and carry it in the tailpack.

Many scooters with centrifugal clutch CVT can't be bump started either (Ruckus actually has a kick starter as backup). But, barring starter motor or relay failure, starting a bike's engine with a dead battery can be as easy as using a jumper pack. OTOH, getting a computer controlled dual clutch transmission to shift into gear when there is a fault in the system is a bit more difficult to manage by the side of the road.

 

[the Ferret]

Yea my wife's Yamaha XMax scooter with CVT can't be bump started either. I attached one of the Noco battery pigtails to it as well. Also maintenance tenders for both although I still use my Battery Tender jr for battery maintenance and running my heated gear in winter, but I use the Noco battery tender on hers.

 

[milesprwr]

We could be conflating low battery with the inability to shift. The side stand switch could be at fault here.

 

[the Ferret]

So do we think the two "most likely" culprits would be (1) battery and (2) side stand switch?

How often do side stand switches go out? I've never had one go out before

 

[670cc]

So do we think the two "most likely" culprits would be (1) battery and (2) side stand switch?

How often do side stand switches go out? I've never had one go out before

In this forum's history, it seems sidestand switch failures, while rare, were largely due to inappropriate assembly after messing with the sidstand for some other reason. In my third of a million miles of motorcycle riding, I have never had a stand switch fail. If yours was questionable, the switch contacts could be tested with an ohmmeter.