Short Battery Life for Harley's?

[fin_676]

I plug in my optimate charger to my bikes about once a month over the winter and never during the riding season
Sportster 8 years same battery dyna 5 years with the same battery softail came to me with a dead battery 6 years ago fitted an aftermarket gel battery however a faulty regulator cooked it as 17.7 volts was a wee bit too much had replacement aftermarket agm battery for a wee bit over a year
In times past with a lead acid battery once the cells were filled you had about 80% power from the battery and was always recommended that for best battery life it should be fully charged prior to use that would not happen if you turned up at a dealers to have the battery replaced
Even with gel and agm i have fully charged prior to fitting as old habits die hard

Brian

 

[DFHarley19]

I purchased Road King Classic last June 2010 and still have same battery. I only used the tender jr charger during winter. Maybe you have bad battery... hummm

 

[bobalu]

Well, the consensus seems to be that 2 years is a bit short for lifespan, and maybe it was just a bad OEM battery.

Still makes me nervous though as it failed without any warning whatsoever. Started perfectly on Saturday like it always did, failed without warning on Sunday. I was fortunate that it was in my driveway.

The only way to be sure is to specifically ask for it to be load tested when the bike is in for servicing, correct?

 

[FLHXSrider]

Just curious why you have it on the tender after a ride? I put mine on the tender in winter only for about a month at a time (1 month on, 1 month off) but not otherwise. I find they hold a charge pretty well. I have the original battery in mine and its a 2008, bought in late 2007 and all is good. Due to our long winters up in Canada, I only get to ride about 6 months a year :17:

 

[Trek]

Going on 4 years with original battery. Tender on it when not riding everyday. Just checked recently and all is good. I agree with maybe had a not so good battery from factory. I woud stay with HD batteries. My opinion.

 

[HDSickness]

I wasn't counting the year it sat on the showroom floor as it would be no different than the battery being on the stockroom shelf. I guess it counts though given that the batteries are fully charged and sealed when delivered. So what happens if you buy a new battery that's been in the stockroom for a year or two? I'm old school and remember when you had to add electrolyte to the old lead acid battery's when you bought them! (they were shipped dry).

Thanks for the responses guy's. :hii

Battery on a shelf not hooked up is different than installed and sitting.

 

[TQuentin1]

Check this out:

Let's see some data on batteries - Harley Davidson Forums - HDTimeline.com

TQ

 

[Wagney]

I was advised that if I change the battery every 3 years on your Touring model, that you wouldn't get any bigger electrical issues. Like a bad charging system or alternator...Of course this advice was given to me by a mechanic selling me a battery...:s

 

[bobalu]

Just curious why you have it on the tender after a ride? I put mine on the tender in winter only for about a month at a time (1 month on, 1 month off) but not otherwise. I find they hold a charge pretty well. I have the original battery in mine and its a 2008, bought in late 2007 and all is good. Due to our long winters up in Canada, I only get to ride about 6 months a year :17:

Sometimes I can only get out for a ride once a week (because of work) and I have the quick connect installed so it's convenient and I thought it would help extend the battery life. So much for that!

 

[btsom]

Batteries work on chemical reaction. They start to age the minute they are completed (electrolyte added or when built with AGM). The "wear" on a battery accelerates with large discharge cycles, life can be cut in half by a full discharge (leaving the lights on with a car). If your bike has a security system, it is the battery which makes that light flash every few seconds and there is volatile memory in the speedo and ECM which provide a very slight draw continuously. A battery "on the shelf" doesn't have that continuous draw that an installed battery has, but it still ages as it sits. A year of draw without a maintainer probably acted as a large discharge cycle and shortened the overall life.

Because of the aging from day 1 with a battery, try to get a battery with the most recent manufacturing date. (Tires are the same way) There is much on the net about how to decode the sticker or engraved info on the battery. You may get shocked by the price of a Harley branded replacement (typically in the $180 range). It has been reported that the Harley batteries are made by Deka (East Penn Manufacturing). The same battery minus the Harley label can be obtained for just over half price from several outlets, one of the most popular being "batterymart.com". In the US, it sells for about $98 delivered to your door. I have no idea what is involved with buying one in Canada. There may be a Canadian discount outlet, do an internet search and see what comes up.

Once you discover the date code meaning, you can find the real age of that battery. As another mentioned, it is really closer to 3 years old and that is on the short end of normal failure time, some get twice that, but it is not common.