| Author | Message | ||
     Southernmost_paul |
Hi 2009 has had the charging system recall. I thought I had a bad charger but no so. Three brand new batteries in the past year while not really riding it. Installed new battery this past Sunday. Dead as a doornail Wednesday a.m. No mods. This is driving me nuts. It's 200 miles to the nearest dealership. Any ideas? Thanks all, paul | ||
| Boogiman1981 |
bad regulator? | ||
| Frinzo |
Cant be a regulator if he's not riding it (thats if im assuming correctly?)..most likely u have a draw some where..sorry i cant help u on that. Would just suggest getting a battery tender for the time being till u find the issue.. | ||
| Nuts4mc |
1)buy a voltmeter - even a cheap one from WalMart- 2)hook it up to the battery and record the voltage- leave it hooked up - don't start the bike - don't switch it "On" 3) on '08s we have an issue with the Inst Cluster - to save the batt - we turn the kill switch "OFF" - try it and watch the meter - does it stop changing? - if so maybe it's a Inst Cluster issue if not..... 4) start unplugging electrical items -it can be difficult - see if the voltage stops changing...if you're mechanically challenged - you may want to take it to the shop with the cheap meter and show the service rep the issue...if you want to fix it your self - continue unplugging items until the voltage stops changing 5) If you don't ride it often ...Frinzo has the best solution - I like the chargers from Ctek - first class connectors and led status http://www.amazon.com/CTEK-800-Smart-Battery-Charg er/dp/B002QUT8IC/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1336655502 &sr=8-4 | ||
| Southernmost_paul |
Hello, Nuts4mc 1) Have one 2) after I installed the new battery this past weekend and started the bike (to make sure everything was cool) I read the volts at 13.3 3)I have not been using the kill switch - will. Thanks. this new battery I did not even connect to a charger. Installed that new battery and then walked away- angry I'd lost a couple of the body bolts. But I walked away and went about my work week. Had planned to ride it to work Friday. Won't now as battery is a gonner. Kill switch. I'll try that for sure. It's odd 'cause it just started doing this battery killing thing. All was fine and then I'd go to ride and the battery would be dead. Buy and install, go for a ride plug into my battery tender and even connected the battery would be dead next attempt. Any idea what might be draining the thing? Use of the kill switch might be a cure if that turns off all power but as I haven't been using that in the past and for the first year or two of owning the bike it didn't eat batteries as it is now. Thanks for all the ideas. pc | ||
| Boogiman1981 |
Frinzo yes it absolutely can be a regulator. the reg is direct connect to battery and if/when they fail shorted vs open they will kill the battery. i know this in theory and in reality as it happened to my 08 and has happened to other vehicles i've owned or worked on | ||
| Southernmost_paul |
Is the regulator something I can change myself? I'm handy. I have no idea where it's located though. | ||
| Southernmost_paul |
Check, Found the info here: http://hildstrom.com/projects/buellregulator/ | ||
| Boogiman1981 |
you can upgrade it if you feel like it might check into the stator subforum for more focused guidance. | ||
| Craigsmoney |
Southernmost, Frinzo is on the right track. What you need to do is undo the negative battery terminal and put your voltmeter between that terminal and the battery, and set the meter to read amps. There should be no more than a 3 milliamp draw. Once you do that, and if the draw is higher, start unplugging stuff. The regulator is easy to unplug as it is easy to see and get at with the seat off. I would pick up an electrical manual and it will walk you through the process. I hope this helps. Craig (Message edited by craigsmoney on May 10, 2012) | ||
| Nuts4mc |
I brought my '08 1125r home from a salvage yard - wifey was following in my P/U - she noted the tail light was getting weaker and weaker-Once home I check'd out the batt and electrical system...the VR was falling off - only held on by 1 bolt and nut - and they were loose - the VR generates heat - it uses the sub frame as a heat sink - it even has the "white" thermal paste used on old GM distributor modules and modern day PC's CPUs to help Xfr the heat to the heatsink. Chk the VRs attaching hardware.... I have had good results with replacing the stock VR with a unit from Shindengen...here's a link from the forum: http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/290 431/654507.html?1328141741 good luck Edit Note: - like me you live in a hot climate - recent postings on the sub forum concerning charging shows the Cooling Fans draw a lot of juice - at the same time you're stuck in traffic idling - the alternator isn't putting out the power at Low RPM...in a "thinking out of the box" type answer - how is the coolant level? - I run straight water with water wetter - it never gets that cold for that long here in the left coast paradise (Message edited by nuts4mc on May 10, 2012) | ||
| Reepicheep |
Once you hook up your meter in series with the battery and set up to measure amps, do NOT hit the starter. t will let the magic smoke out of your meter, and that stuff is really hard to put back in. | ||
| Craigsmoney |
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that you do the draw test with the key OFF, thanks for the reminder reep. | ||
| Southernmost_paul |
Y'all are the best. Thanks! | ||
| Southernmost_paul |
I'm rather stumped. Checked the drain got 1.92 m amps. Less than 3 (See above.) turned off the switch, no effect. Disconnected the VR.. no effect. Now I'm wondering if I'm reading the amp meter right. Is the 1.93 Amps? or Mili? Back to the book.. Any thoughts? (Message edited by Southernmost_Paul on May 12, 2012) | ||
| Craigsmoney |
It depends on your meter. Read the instructions and it will set you in the right direction. Will your battery die if it is disconnected? | ||
| Timebandit |
Did you ever remove the battery from the bike, put it on a full charge overnight, and then do a proper load test? You need to do that to confirm that the battery is OK, otherwise all of your tests are going to be difficult to interpret. Sometimes new batteries do fail. There's a reason that battery verification is the first step in the diagnostic flowsheet. | ||
| Southernmost_paul |
Check on the load test. And this is the 3rd battery since last fall. I installed a quick disconnect that I can unplug from the rear seat. The battery is good when disconnected. Check on reading the manual to the meter. I'm on page 37.  It's now a project and I'll let y'all know how it goes. Thanks again for everyone's help. If nothing I'm getting practice taking this thing apart and putting back together. I even found one of the missing bolts. Still one hiding someplace though. | ||
| Timebandit |
If you've got a parasitic drain that is depleting your battery overnight then identifying the offending circuit is simple. Put an ammeter in the battery circuit and start pulling fuses until the current stops. Then investigate the suspects in the offending circuit. | ||
| Southernmost_paul |
Perfect! Thank you. I can do that... paul |
