2017 RT battery problems need advise

[spydernatic]

I have a 2017 RT purchased Oct. last year been on as many rides as weather permits here in GA, now have 1449 miles on the Spyder. Three weeks ago decided to ride as weather was perfect turned on the key about to get on the spyder when my wife heard something like glass fall on the concrete, I looked down and noticed my lens of my glasses had fallen out I picked it up went back inside re fitted it into the frame and came back out all this time the spyder ignition was on I would say about 15 min. tried to crank the spyder ...would not start. I tried a couple of times just would not start. Opened up the frunk got to the battery got my baby jump start out which I always carry on the spyder connected it up and the spyder started. I marked this as my stupidity for leaving the spyder turned on, had no start problems for the rest of the day doing about a 140 mile ride.
On Friday morning leaving to go on a 2 day conference class in Dalton about a 2 hour ride it was 6.30 am got on the spyder turned the key on waited for the Garmin to start up set in my destination for Dalton tied to start the spyder ...would not start. Had to take out all the riding gear out of the frunk to get to the battery got the baby jump start connected the spyder started, repacked everything and off we go but now this is worrying me as this was a normal everyday start which all spyders riders would do, anyway got to our destination spent 5 hours in the conference got on the spyder it started went to our hotel. Next morning spyder started without a problem went off and spent the next 5 hours in the conference got on the spyder it started again no problem, I needed gas so pulled into a gas station turned everything off gassed up turned key waited for garmin hit "go home" ....spyder would not start. So here we go again unpack frunk get out jump start connect up to battery but this time the spyder would not start left the jump start connected for 5 min. to see if that would get some power into the battery tried again spyder would not start. Now I am mad as I am standing in a gas station with all of our riding gear all on the pavement so now it is time to ask for help. There was a Goodyear store near and one of the tech guys saw me standing at the gas station he came over to ask if I need help after explaining what is going on he said he also has a baby jump start maybe mine now needed a recharge so he will get his ...which he did we connected his up and tried to start the spyder it would not start after several tries. He said he would get the company truck to see if that would work, while he went to do that I decided to do some checking on the battery I pushed on the positive connection it was solid and tight pushed on the negative side and it felt tight but as I pushed the negative cable moved some I applied a bit more pressure and cable moved easily so it was tight just not tight as the positive side. I pushed and pulled on it and it became more and more loose. I got my tool kit out of course had to unpack the trunk to get the tool kit found a #10 tightened up the negative terminal nice and tight the Goodyear tech brought over the truck we connected up and the spyder started up.
So here is my need for advise on getting back home I tried to duplicate the 2 previous situations by leaving the spyder turned on for around 15 min, I put a volt meter on to the battery and noticed after the 15 min. being turned on the voltage did not drop below 12.2 volts. I started the spyder and it started with no problem...so do you think this was due to the slightly loose negative as I said it was not very loose at all but it did move once I applied a bit of pressure, is that was the cause of the battery not getting charged up on my 2 hour ride or is this a bad battery on charging system problem. I have not checked the battery today but will go out at lunch time to do a voltage check.

[Highwayman2013]

Charge the battery to a full charge. Have it load tested,at an auto parts store. If the battery charges and tests good, clean the connections with sand paper. If battery tests bad get a new one. Now is a good time to install a Battery Tender and keep it plugged in when you aren't riding.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

When I bought my 14 RT ( new ) and had to drive it to Vt., Mine failed on the way home ...... If the dealer didn't PROPERLY do the initial charge, the battery will never be at it's maximum performance level ..... If you can't get yours re-placed under warranty then just do what I do .....I have a mini lithium type Starter device that I carry at all times...... Note: my WEAK battery sat all winter in my ( Warm ) basement ....4 mos. & not on a Maintainer ( on purpose for a test ) and it started ( not strongly ) when I turned the key ........ So I'm going to wait until it REALLY dies and then get a Yuasa that I will fill and charge .....good luck ... Mike

[IGETAROUND]

Good advise that has been given already. To answer your ?; Yes I believe that if you do not have a good ground connection that all that you described could easily be attributable to just that. When my ground gets loose my DPS works intermittently, great fun to get around the corners without the power steering's help. Do what the other posters have suggested. Get a battery maintainer and plug it in when you are done riding for the day. Life is so much more fun without these pesky annoyances to solve.

Al in Kazoo

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Good advise that has been given already. To answer your ?; Yes I believe that if you do not have a good ground connection that all that you described could easily be attributable to just that. When my ground gets loose my DPS works intermittently, great fun to get around the corners without the power steering's help. Do what the other posters have suggested. Get a battery maintainer and plug it in when you are done riding for the day. Life is so much more fun without these pesky annoyances to solve.

Al in Kazoo

..........And I highly advise to put " STAR " washers on any and all bolt & nut connections in the wiring system of the Battery ....they will NEVER get loose - EVER .......Mike

[spydernatic]

So follow up on whats happening decided to take Spyder in to the local dealership seeing as its only 5 months old I should not be having this problem. Young service advisor was expecting me as I phoned in to speak to the service manager about my situation, explained everything to the service advisor and his explanation was ....yeah it looks as if we have to replace the battery. My response was so you ARE going to run a load test and check if the charging system is working OR if there is any other problem. His response was OH IF YOU WANT TO SPEND A $100 FOR US TO DO THAT WE WILL. I looked at this young service advisor and said NO I do not want to GIVE you $100 this will all be under warranty the Spyder is only 5 months old and checking the manual under the warranty section the battery is warranted for 6 months.
GOTTA LOVE YOUR DEALER

[Little Blue]

So they only replaced the battery? I am wondering if the Battery was Load Tested. Like someone stated install 'Star washers' for the battery cables. Good Luck on the Adventure.

[Easy Rider]

Now is a good time to install a Battery Tender and keep it plugged in when you aren't riding.

If and ONLY if you let it sit for MORE than a few days without a good ride.

BUT......at this point I think it is likely that the loose cable was a major cause.....but that depends on exactly what was happening when it "would not start".

More testing is needed. A full charge and then sitting 24 hours should have a voltage of 12.5 or more. It should be able to hold that voltage for a week of non-use. If not, time to shop for a new battery. Yours has had two "episodes" now and maybe more before you got it.

Edit: If you did get a new battery under warranty.......good for you. I'd be a bit surprised.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

If and ONLY if you let it sit for MORE than a few days without a good ride..... I recently posted , that my WEAK battery ( a 2014 ) was NOT on my maintainer for ....FOUR MONTHS .... ( winter storage ) .... and it started when I tried to ... I was trying to get it to fail so I could TEST my mini-jumper ......... I think it's fine to leave it on a maintainer but apparently it's not Necessary

BUT......at this point I think it is likely that the loose cable was a major cause.....but that depends on exactly what was happening when it "would not start".

More testing is needed. A full charge and then sitting 24 hours should have a voltage of 12.5 or more. It should be able to hold that voltage for a week of non-use. If not, time to shop for a new battery. Yours has had two "episodes" now and maybe more before you got it.

Edit: If you did get a new battery under warranty.......good for you. I'd be a bit surprised.

My response is in red above ....... Mike

[spydernatic]

So they only replaced the battery? I am wondering if the Battery was Load Tested. Like someone stated install 'Star washers' for the battery cables. Good Luck on the Adventure.

I dont know as they have promised me the spyder back only by the 12th or the 13th ...so we will see what they will do I will post an update. (they are 7-10 days behind)

[Easy Rider]

My response is in red above ....... Mike

Are you aware that a response entered like that will NOT come out in a quote ??

As I have recently posted......several times......it might be "OK" to leave a tender connected all the time, right up until the battery finally fails, but that almost guarantees that it will fail OUT ON THE ROAD somewhere instead of in your garage on the first start attempt of the day.

[Easy Rider]

I dont know as they have promised me the spyder back only by the 12th or the 13th ...so we will see what they will do I will post an update. (they are 7-10 days behind)

They get applause for just replacing the battery without a lot of hassle.

They get one BIG AW CRAP for holding it hostage 7-10 days just for a battery change.

[spydernatic]

Are you aware that a response entered like that will NOT come out in a quote ??

As I have recently posted......several times......it might be "OK" to leave a tender connected all the time, right up until the battery finally fails, but that almost guarantees that it will fail OUT ON THE ROAD somewhere instead of in your garage on the first start attempt of the day.

I previously had a 2012 RT that I had on a Battery tender for all of the 5 years I owned it never ever gave me one day trouble with that battery sold it last year and told him he must continue with the battery tender, he has and the battery is still going strong.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Are you aware that a response entered like that will NOT come out in a quote ??

As I have recently posted......several times......it might be "OK" to leave a tender connected all the time, right up until the battery finally fails, but that almost guarantees that it will fail OUT ON THE ROAD somewhere instead of in your garage on the first start attempt of the day.

are you AWARE that 99.999 % of the people who read my post will understand what it said .... Mike

[Ben Burped]

I have a 2017 RT purchased Oct. last year been on as many rides as weather permits here in GA, now have 1449 miles on the Spyder. Three weeks ago decided to ride as weather was perfect turned on the key about to get on the spyder when my wife heard something like glass fall on the concrete, I looked down and noticed my lens of my glasses had fallen out I picked it up went back inside re fitted it into the frame and came back out all this time the spyder ignition was on I would say about 15 min. tried to crank the spyder ...would not start. I tried a couple of times just would not start. Opened up the frunk got to the battery got my baby jump start out which I always carry on the spyder connected it up and the spyder started. I marked this as my stupidity for leaving the spyder turned on, had no start problems for the rest of the day doing about a 140 mile ride.
On Friday morning leaving to go on a 2 day conference class in Dalton about a 2 hour ride it was 6.30 am got on the spyder turned the key on waited for the Garmin to start up set in my destination for Dalton tied to start the spyder ...would not start. Had to take out all the riding gear out of the frunk to get to the battery got the baby jump start connected the spyder started, repacked everything and off we go but now this is worrying me as this was a normal everyday start which all spyders riders would do, anyway got to our destination spent 5 hours in the conference got on the spyder it started went to our hotel. Next morning spyder started without a problem went off and spent the next 5 hours in the conference got on the spyder it started again no problem, I needed gas so pulled into a gas station turned everything off gassed up turned key waited for garmin hit "go home" ....spyder would not start. So here we go again unpack frunk get out jump start connect up to battery but this time the spyder would not start left the jump start connected for 5 min. to see if that would get some power into the battery tried again spyder would not start. Now I am mad as I am standing in a gas station with all of our riding gear all on the pavement so now it is time to ask for help. There was a Goodyear store near and one of the tech guys saw me standing at the gas station he came over to ask if I need help after explaining what is going on he said he also has a baby jump start maybe mine now needed a recharge so he will get his ...which he did we connected his up and tried to start the spyder it would not start after several tries. He said he would get the company truck to see if that would work, while he went to do that I decided to do some checking on the battery I pushed on the positive connection it was solid and tight pushed on the negative side and it felt tight but as I pushed the negative cable moved some I applied a bit more pressure and cable moved easily so it was tight just not tight as the positive side. I pushed and pulled on it and it became more and more loose. I got my tool kit out of course had to unpack the trunk to get the tool kit found a #10 tightened up the negative terminal nice and tight the Goodyear tech brought over the truck we connected up and the spyder started up.
So here is my need for advise on getting back home I tried to duplicate the 2 previous situations by leaving the spyder turned on for around 15 min, I put a volt meter on to the battery and noticed after the 15 min. being turned on the voltage did not drop below 12.2 volts. I started the spyder and it started with no problem...so do you think this was due to the slightly loose negative as I said it was not very loose at all but it did move once I applied a bit of pressure, is that was the cause of the battery not getting charged up on my 2 hour ride or is this a bad battery on charging system problem. I have not checked the battery today but will go out at lunch time to do a voltage check.

What you are seeing on a volt meter is "surface voltage". It tells you very little about the real health of your battery. The sealed lead acid battery in your RT is very different from a car battery. The first time that you have to boost it off, drive directly to buy a new battery. There is no "charging" it. It is simply dead and needs to be replaced to be reliable. I am in the alarm business and deal with this type battery daily. Most batteries that I replace have 12+ volts of "surface voltage" but very low Mhos which is an accurate indicator of the useful life left in a sealed lead acid battery. I hope this helps.

[Ben Burped]

I previously had a 2012 RT that I had on a Battery tender for all of the 5 years I owned it never ever gave me one day trouble with that battery sold it last year and told him he must continue with the battery tender, he has and the battery is still going strong.

I am a firm believer in battery tenders. I keep one on my RT at all times it sits over a few days. Last Labor day, my wife and I went on a day long ride stopping several times. I stopped a few blocks from home to fill up for the next outing and it wouldn't turn over at all. It did great until it didn't do anything at all. Still believe in battery tenders.

[Easy Rider]

told him he must continue with the battery tender, he has and the battery is still going strong.

That's all well and good but........it WILL fail at some point in time.

And those of us who made that mistake in the past, me included, aren't likely to repeat it in the future......I think.

[Easy Rider]

are you AWARE that 99.999 % of the people who read my post will understand what it said .... Mike

It is not a matter of understanding.
You said what you SAID.

I do not agree that leaving it on a tender all the time is "fine".

[Easy Rider]

The sealed lead acid battery in your RT is very different from a car battery.

I am in the alarm business and deal with this type battery daily.

No it isn't.
Most cars these days have sealed AGM batteries which are just a larger version of what is in the Spyder.

And I'm pretty sure that the sealed lead acid ones in residential alarm systems are NOT AGMs. The ones in the UPS units I have certainly are not.

[HayRog]

... High resistant ground connections will cause a multitude of weird problems.
Remove both pos and neg terminal cables from the battery, clean thoroughly and tighten down well.
Solved many problems for me over the bike years.

[oldgoat]

As I have recently posted......several times......it might be "OK" to leave a tender connected all the time, right up until the battery finally fails, but that almost guarantees that it will fail OUT ON THE ROAD somewhere instead of in your garage on the first start attempt of the day.

IMHO.......Nonsense.

[spyderider1]

I'll try to keep this short. The day I picked up the new Spyder was a day I'm sure the dealer would like to forget. Everything that could go wrong...did. They were short staffed on the scheduled day to take ownership. They rolled the unit out in the showroom covered with dust and fingerprints, not cool but I wasn't going to make a scene. Next during the orientation I discover the wrong Owners manual, it's for an F3. "How'd that get in there"? Next, time to fire her up....the battery is dead. Mad scramble by the sales person to find a 10mm wrench and new battery. Struggles getting the old one out, even more struggles to get the new one in. Finally, considering the dollars I just spent in there, I'm out the door vowing never to set foot in that store again. We're fortunate to have another dealer in the area and they excel at service for Spyders so not a problem there. But here's the takeaway for the original post on this thread.

About a month into ownership I also had some starting problems, intermittent, which sometimes are worse than a consistent issue. Come to find out the guy didn't tighten the negative cable completely on the new battery. When I checked it, it was tight but I could still see movement. Once I applied pressure with a wrench there was quite a bit of give. Problem solved. Sometimes I have to remind myself to check for the obvious before the troubleshooting goes too far in the wrong direction.

[Mr. White]

I am on my third Spyder and here is what I do. I have a 1.5v charger with a cigarette lighter plug. I plug it in the trunk outlet. Ya gotta change the fuse first or it will run you battery down. I plug it in as soon as I get the new machine home and let it cook for 24 hours.....bringing the battery up to 100%. The dealers NEVER do this. I generally plug it in after one or two rides. I have never had a battery failure doing this. I ride in some very remote west Texas country, no cell service, etc. I change batteries every three years.....regardless! $80 every three years is no big deal compared to the charge I would pay in Redford, TX......

[Easy Rider]

IMHO.......Nonsense.

Explain to me please exactly how/why you think that is "nonsense" ?

It has happened to me and to several contributing members on this forum too.

Having the charger connected will guarantee that the first time you start it on a given day it will have enough "juice" to do that.
When you ride it down the road and stop for lunch and it sits for an hour, a worn out battery will "self discharge" while just sitting there and you will come back to the bike to find it DEAD.

Of course, sometimes a battery will fail in a manner that it won't start the first time either.......but I quite assure you that the above is NOT nonsense.

[Easy Rider]

I have a 1.5v charger with a cigarette lighter plug.

I change batteries every three years.....regardless!

You might want to correct that "typo" to say 1.5 AMP charger.

Your "schedule" is perfect; it will ensure the longest possible battery life.

HOWEVER......with good maintenance like you describe, the battery should last 7-8 years.....so you are throwing away half of it's useful life, probably.
And you are throwing out a battery that has worked good for a new one of unknown quality. Sometimes new ones are bad.

But whatever makes you feel good is what is right for YOU !!