Is this what killed my Battery?

[ABBADABBA]

Merry Christmas everyone and Happy New Year to you all. Now my question to you is: I have a 2013 RT & I have a question about charging the battery; I had to move it in and out 3 or times, so it hasn't run long. This is so I can get to Christmas toots etc. I went to move it today and low and behold, click, click, click - battery is dead! Is what I did by starting it off and on for short times what ran it dead??? I have a trickle charger on it now. How long does this take; for now, the wife and I have to push it back in the shed. Any help would be great. Can't wait for spring. Hopefully, I can find your replies... you can tell I don't use the site much. Help....

[CopperSpyder]

Merry Christmas every one and Happy New Year to you all.Now my question to you is I have a 2013 RT.I have a question about charging the battery,i had to move it in and out 3 or times ,so it hasnt ran long.This is so i can get to christmas toots etc.I went to move it today and low and behold click,click battery is dead.Is what i did by starting it of and on for short times ran it dead ????I have a trickle charge on it now.How long does this take,now the wife and i have to push it back in the shed,any help would be great.Cant wait for spring ,hopefully i can find your replies you can tell i dont use the site much ,help....

If the bike has been sitting for a long time and you just started it to move a few feet then shut it off do that a few times that can kill the battery. You should keep your battery on a battery maintainer not a trickle charger. leaving your battery on a trickle charger for a long time will damage it. You should always use a maintainer like Battery Tender Jr. that you can buy almost any where (Walmart, auto parts store, amazon ,etc.). Happy New year to you!!

[Peter Aawen]

Because turning the Spyder's ignition on (at all) starts up all sorts of electrical loads THAT THEN continue to RUN and drain power FOR UP TO 30 MINUTES, even just turning the ignition on a few times each winter to release the park brake (without actually starting the engine!) before pushing your Spyder out &/or back can be enough battery drain to drag the voltage down too low; but if you add in the fairly significant power drain imposed on your battery by actually starting the engine & then not running it at road going revs for AT LEAST 30 mins each start to replenish the power you just drained out, then yes, what you've been doing is pretty much guaranteed to have been the cause of your drained battery now!! Aaaand, bear in mind that if you are still running the original battery in your 2013 RT (as am I) then it is getting on a bit and so is probably juuust a little tired even under ideal conditions now! So your battery's age might not be helping much either!

How long it'll take to re-charge depends a lot upon exactly WHICH trickle charger you've got & what type of batteries it's designed to best suit &/or what charging profile it uses..... but if it's a true 'trickle charger' and not a Smart Charger or battery maintainer, don't ever leave it running & connected to the battery for more than 24 hours in any one hit!! And if the battery starts getting noticeably warm to the touch during any charging session, disconnect it IMMEDIATELY! You really don't want to risk exploding your battery at all, let alone while it's installed in your Spyder, so unless you are sure about what your doing, it might even be best to get the battery out and get it to someone who can load test it & recharge it properly. Hope you get it all sorted quickly!

Btw, when you park up your Spyder next winter, leave the park brake OFF (the alarm only goes for 30 seconds or so!) chock the wheels if necessary, then don't turn the ignition on until you need to start it to ryde it next season, simply PUSH it around if you need to move it without giving it at least 30 mins of road going revs &/or a ryde! And connecting it up to a proper Battery Maintainer for the duration (or at least a few days each month) will probably be a good idea too! Good Luck

[ABBADABBA]

Thank you for your response it helps,when i move it i leave it running for 5 or 10 mins,than stop it do what i have to and put it away.would the tender recharge the bike back up to par.I understand they are not the easiest to get to the battery.I have always used a trickle on my Gold wing and no problems, I will get the Tender Jr. Walmart is just up the street ,thanks for help .Be safe.

[ABBADABBA]

Good i got a lot to learn thanks ,it our first spyder ,hopping to have fun .so you leave the parking brake off hmm.how do you get to feel the battery its hidden so bad ??

[Peter Aawen]

Yeah, 5 to 10 mins of running is just not enough, especially if it's only idling & even more especially so on a 2013 or earlier Spyder, cos we have magneto's not alternators!

The battery itself isn't really all that hard to get to, it's in the frunk (front trunk) behind a panel on the rear wall. If your Spyder has a frunk liner, unzip that down both sides, then simply remove the top 2 screws (the correct fitting is in the 'under seat toobag') and lift the covering panel out. You can then see the front of the battery, the retaining strap, & access both terminals, altho they are a little hard to get at unless you release the strap & jiggle the battery forward a bit! Buuuut, on the 2013's there is also a 'jump start & accessory' attachment up the top of the frunk, just under the lid & the left hand side black panel (well, it's the rhs panel as you face the front of the Spyder, but generally left & right sides on Spyders/bikes are made with reference to the rider sitting on the seat! ) That panel is held in by one push pin (don't lose it!) and 1 looong tab that slides sorta sideways into a slot in the tupperware below the headlight - so pull the push pin out, then slide the panel forwards & to the left to get it free. That should reveal a bracket holding a pair of remote terminals just there - the positive terminal towards the centre of the Spyder should have a red cap pushed over the nut! However, be advised that some of us have found that using these remote terminals for anything but low power draw accessories is less than ideal..... probably because they simply introduce another set of potentially not fantastic connections between the terminals & the battery, but still! So if you want to 'properly' charge/maintain/or jump the battery, it might not work ideally thru the remote terminals, but should if you use the battery terminals down in the frunk - and they really don't take long to get to, but you will need to empty the frunk!

Good Luck!

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Is the battery the original, or do you know? If it's the original then it's most likely pretty well shot.

[ABBADABBA]

Thanks for the help,now can i leave the battery on the Tender for the winter.I asked about the wearabuts the battery becuse i thought i saw it mounted under the rear of the seat.Can you jump the bike from a car. Im sorry i have lots of questiones so here i am . will the tender charge it good enough to start it later.

[CopperSpyder]

Tender will charge it, it will take a long time. You can jump with you car battery as long as your car is not running. just hookup the jumpers without your car running. Yes you can leave the battery tender jr. hooked up all winter.

[CopperSpyder]

The battery is located in the front trunk behind the zip liner facing your handle bars. see videos https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...%26FORM%3DVDRE

[RICZ]

1. i move it i leave it running for 5 or 10 mins,than stop it.
2. would the tender recharge the bike back up to par.
3. I understand they are not the easiest to get to the battery.

My response....
1. This is not a good thing to do for reasons posted above. Once my bike has been tucked in for its long winter nap, I leave alone (except for maintenance or doing add ons) and will only start it if I am going for at least a half hour ride - the longer, the better.
2. Eventually. Best to leave to hooked up to the battery and tell the bike good night.
3. Being an F3 guy, I can only assume the battery is behind the frunk.
Re jump starts from a car: That's tricky, as car batteries have much more amperage than do bike batteries. The car's engine should be off. Attach cable connectors to both the bike's battery poles. Connect only one to the car battery. Have someone touch the other connector to the terminal just a moment before you attempt to start the Spyder. Once it's started, have that someone remove the connector from the terminal.

[Peter Aawen]

It was only the Pre 2013 Spyders that had their batteries mounted in a little recessed space underneath the seat - if you look into the LHS pannier on just about any year RT you can see the 'outside' of the battery case still taking up room despite the batteries having being moved from there back in 2013. (I don't know if the 2020 RT's still kept this vestigial remnant of years gone by... )

[ABBADABBA]

Do all 2013 ,s come with the sip liner and Bags ??

[Sarge707]

Peter says above----Btw, when you park up your Spyder next winter, leave the park brake OFF (the alarm only goes for 30 seconds or so!) chock the wheels if necessary, then don't turn the ignition on until you need to start it to ryde it next season, simply PUSH it around if you need to move it without giving it at least 30 mins of road going revs &/or a ryde! And connecting it up to a proper Battery Maintainer for the duration (or at least a few days each month) will probably be a good idea too! Good Luck

Great idea- I usually turn on in the winter to unlock brake and push it out of garage and then start 10 minutes later and it will turn slower depending on the temperature. I'm going to leave brake off in the locked secure garage but lock the wheels so I don't have to start till I leave and I will see if it makes a difference. My F3 battery is 4 years old and still fine My RT went 5 years and I replaced it even though it still worked. My toys are ALL on maintainers.

[cptjam]

If it were me, I would replace a 7 year old battery. Put it on a tender, leave the brake off, and park it. Or, jump it, park it, and buy a new battery in the spring. My rule on batteries is simple; anything over 2 years old is on notice. If it fails, replace it. Batteries, like tires and brakes, are a consumable good. They don’t get better. Two bolts and a rubber strap, after the cover is off. Maybe $100. Not worth risking being stranded.