Battery drain on XL883C

[yobbo71]

Ok I just recently bought a 2008 XL. About 4 weeks after owning it. I left it for a week without riding it and, it had a flat battery. I thought fair enough the battery is stuffed. Bought a new one.

The new battery same thing. Good for a couple of weeks. A week of (EDIT) weather, didn't ride it for 5 days. And it would turn over but not start.

After charging it put a multimeter over the battery with the ignition turned off and its drawing 85 milliamps. Thats 1020 milliamps over 12 hours. Or 2 amp hours a day.

Is this normal for a sportster?

I mean it only has like a 14 amp hour battery so I can see why drawing 2 amp hours a day would kill the battery in a week. Is this normal or is there something that can be done ?

 

[Mongrel]

i reckon you got a short man, i can leave my sporty for 3-4 weeks and never have a problem starting it i,ve got a H-D gel battrey in mine and yours shouldnt be losing power that quick regardless of what type of battery you have.
failing that try a trickle charger when your not riding it.
hope that helps

 

[HarryB737]

Welcome to H-D talking... Several things, Your 2008 M/C is under warranty, battery included. The newer bikes have an onboard computer to monitor engine performance, Security ect... These consume power even when the ignition is off. Invest in a "Battery Tender" to connect to the battery when you're not riding every day. This will monitor the charge state of the battery & only charge it when the voltage drops to a specific amount.(It's automatic just connect it and forget it) Advise... route the cord across your seat so you won't forget to disconnect when you're ready to ride...

 

[yobbo71]

I didn't realize the battery would be covered by warranty. It was purchased January 2008 so its just out of warranty now anyway.

Yeah it has aftermarket thundermax autotune ecm. Maybe that's whats sucking the juice. I guess I'll have to set it up with a trickle charger.

Just a bit of a pain that the bike sucks so much juice at rest.

 

[R. Lewis]

I didn't realize the battery would be covered by warranty. It was purchased January 2008 so its just out of warranty now anyway.

Yeah it has aftermarket thundermax autotune ecm. Maybe that's whats sucking the juice. I guess I'll have to set it up with a trickle charger.

Just a bit of a pain that the bike sucks so much juice at rest.

It's not your battery ---- you have a dead-short somewhere drawing the battery down!

 

[Chopper]

Welcome Yobbo, a battery tender is never a bad thing and sporsters & v-rods do have small battery's that sometimes makes winter starting hard. Is this how you checked the battery draw?

Milliampere Draw Test
• Be sure accessories are not wired so they stay on at all times. This condition could drain battery completely if vehicle is parked for a long time. Check for this by connecting
ammeter between negative battery cable and ground.

• TSM/TSSM/HFSM will continue to draw 16-25 mA for 30 seconds after ignition is turned off. Any disruption and reconnection of battery power, such as disconnecting the
battery to place a meter in series, will cause TSM/TSSM/HFSM to draw 16-25 mA for 30 seconds.
1.Connect ammeter between negative battery cable and crankcase ground. With this arrangement, you will also pick up any regulator drain.
2. With ignition switch turned to OFF and all lights and accessories off, observe current reading.
a. Add voltage regulator draw to appropriate value for TSM/TSSM/HFSM. If sum is greater than reading observed on ammeter, draw is within limits.
b. A higher reading indicates excessive current draw.
Any accessories must be considered and checked for excessive drain.
NOTE
A battery with a surface discharge condition could suffer a static drain. Correct by cleaning battery case.
Maximum Meter Reading (Averaged)
ITEM DRAW IN MILLIAMPERES
Voltage regulator 1
Speedometer 1
Tachometer (if equipped) 1
TSM (non-security models) 1
TSSM (disarmed) 3
TSSM (armed) 3
TSSM (storage mode) 1
HFSM 1
Security siren 20.0*
* Siren will draw for 2-24 hours from time motorcycle battery is connected and 0.05 milliamperes once siren battery is charged. For best results, disconnect siren during milliampere draw test.

 

[NEWHD74FAN]

Welcome Yobbo, a battery tender is never a bad thing and sporsters & v-rods do have small battery's that sometimes makes winter starting hard. Is this how you checked the battery draw?

Milliampere Draw Test
• Be sure accessories are not wired so they stay on at all times. This condition could drain battery completely if vehicle is parked for a long time. Check for this by connecting
ammeter between negative battery cable and ground.

• TSM/TSSM/HFSM will continue to draw 16-25 mA for 30 seconds after ignition is turned off. Any disruption and reconnection of battery power, such as disconnecting the
battery to place a meter in series, will cause TSM/TSSM/HFSM to draw 16-25 mA for 30 seconds.
1.Connect ammeter between negative battery cable and crankcase ground. With this arrangement, you will also pick up any regulator drain.
2. With ignition switch turned to OFF and all lights and accessories off, observe current reading.
a. Add voltage regulator draw to appropriate value for TSM/TSSM/HFSM. If sum is greater than reading observed on ammeter, draw is within limits.
b. A higher reading indicates excessive current draw.
Any accessories must be considered and checked for excessive drain.
NOTE
A battery with a surface discharge condition could suffer a static drain. Correct by cleaning battery case.
Maximum Meter Reading (Averaged)
ITEM DRAW IN MILLIAMPERES
Voltage regulator 1
Speedometer 1
Tachometer (if equipped) 1
TSM (non-security models) 1
TSSM (disarmed) 3
TSSM (armed) 3
TSSM (storage mode) 1
HFSM 1
Security siren 20.0*
* Siren will draw for 2-24 hours from time motorcycle battery is connected and 0.05 milliamperes once siren battery is charged. For best results, disconnect siren during milliampere draw test.

Chopper included the additional leakage stats for the TSM/TSSM and Alarm System besides the usual ones the voltage regulator and guages. Notice that all said and done a far cry from the 1020 milliamps = 1A which is WAY TOO HIGH. Troubleshooting means either isolation of the parallel paths until the main one is found or using ammeter in series to check and then measure each potential leakage path. By the way a DMM from Harbor Freight is about $1.99 (normally $9.99) and here in the states they have a 20% Off coupon...worth the price of admission to be sure! :s

 

[HarryB737]

Let me modify my 1st Post.... Welcome to HD Talking..............

Sorry, I didn't have all the spec's on current draw of those items, with that being said... Let me ask: To help trouble shoot & with the meter connected as shown, Could you go to fuse block & while watching meter disconnect 1-branch fuse at the time to see which circuit is pulling the most, to narrow down the search... :small3d029:

 

[RicardoJPinto]

Ok I just recently bought a 2008 XL. About 4 weeks after owning it. I left it for a week without riding it and, it had a flat battery. I thought fair enough the battery is stuffed. Bought a new one.

The new battery same thing. Good for a couple of weeks. A week of crap weather, didn't ride it for 5 days. And it would turn over but not start.

After charging it put a multimeter over the battery with the ignition turned off and its drawing 85 milliamps. Thats 1020 milliamps over 12 hours. Or 2 amp hours a day.

Is this normal for a sportster?

I mean it only has like a 14 amp hour battery so I can see why drawing 2 amp hours a day would kill the battery in a week. Is this normal or is there something that can be done ?

That's not normal, my sportster rests for 2 weeks without riding and the battery is from 2005, and starts without any problem.

Welcome Yobbo, a battery tender is never a bad thing and sporsters & v-rods do have small battery's that sometimes makes winter starting hard. Is this how you checked the battery draw?

Milliampere Draw Test
• Be sure accessories are not wired so they stay on at all times. This condition could drain battery completely if vehicle is parked for a long time. Check for this by connecting
ammeter between negative battery cable and ground.

• TSM/TSSM/HFSM will continue to draw 16-25 mA for 30 seconds after ignition is turned off. Any disruption and reconnection of battery power, such as disconnecting the
battery to place a meter in series, will cause TSM/TSSM/HFSM to draw 16-25 mA for 30 seconds.
1.Connect ammeter between negative battery cable and crankcase ground. With this arrangement, you will also pick up any regulator drain.
2. With ignition switch turned to OFF and all lights and accessories off, observe current reading.
a. Add voltage regulator draw to appropriate value for TSM/TSSM/HFSM. If sum is greater than reading observed on ammeter, draw is within limits.
b. A higher reading indicates excessive current draw.
Any accessories must be considered and checked for excessive drain.
NOTE
A battery with a surface discharge condition could suffer a static drain. Correct by cleaning battery case.
Maximum Meter Reading (Averaged)
ITEM DRAW IN MILLIAMPERES
Voltage regulator 1
Speedometer 1
Tachometer (if equipped) 1
TSM (non-security models) 1
TSSM (disarmed) 3
TSSM (armed) 3
TSSM (storage mode) 1
HFSM 1
Security siren 20.0*
* Siren will draw for 2-24 hours from time motorcycle battery is connected and 0.05 milliamperes once siren battery is charged. For best results, disconnect siren during milliampere draw test.

Nice info here.

The Cranckcase you refer is the engine cranckcase?

 

[Chopper]

Let me modify my 1st Post.... Welcome to HD Talking..............

Sorry, I didn't have all the spec's on current draw of those items, with that being said... Let me ask: To help trouble shoot & with the meter connected as shown, Could you go to fuse block & while watching meter disconnect 1-branch fuse at the time to see which circuit is pulling the most, to narrow down the search... :small3d029:

Yes, you can isolate the circuits that way and also unplug things to isolate them as well.

Nice info here.

The Cranckcase you refer is the engine cranckcase?

Yes, it's just a ground.