BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

Been trying to gauge whether Im due for a new battery or not on my Rockster. I'll point out that I'm good mechanically, not really good electrically, but am feeling like I am starting to get it.

a bit of history - I had a non-start a bit back, towed to my house and am trying to complete the repair myself, so I have better understanding of my bike… the tank is off, and have been trying to follow the Climber manual for diagnosing.. But not quite sure I'm doing it correctly:

When first took the tank off, I put the battery on a tender and checked the terminal connections. They felt fine, but I did tighten them a bit, though I don't think it changed anything. I did notice that the fuse (7.5A) in the tender lead had blown, which is something I'd noticed a while ago. So replaced that fuse, but not really sure why that would blow. I had fiddled with the heated grips a while back, so I might have caused that.

Anyway, I brought it up to float and tried to start it - without the tank on - it tried to turn over, but struggled. I put the tank on and it struggled less, then I re-connected the tender (via the sae pigtail) and it did start, but wouldn't stay running w/o the throttle open. I didn't ride around because I only partially put the tank back on (didn't reconnect anything else). I just wanted to see what it would do with some gas available.

So the tank is back off - without the tender connected, the battery reads 12.68V, which is below what the Climber manual says is low charge (says it should be above 13V). And with the tender connected, it reads about 14.4V.

I did a parasitic draw test. Well, I should say I attempted that, but when I disconnected the negative terminal, and placed my ammeter in between there's no current at all. I tried this a couple different ways, and nothing would get any reading. If I put a bulb tester between just the terminals on the battery, it lights, and I can get a reading if I place the ammeter into that circuit, but don't get anything by placing it between the negative lead and the negative terminal (and trying this with the light tester does nothing as well).

Does having the tank off and that part of the electrical unplugged affect what I should see? Doesn't seem like it since that is what's described in the climber manual, but like I said, I don't understand the electrical well enough to really know for sure

I have to be doing something wrong, but don't see it… any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Dave

Dave - my guess is that the only parasitic draw from battery when bike is OFF would be clock/socket circuit, which is always hot via Fuse 3 (15A). The aftermarket Kisan turn signal module has been documented to add to parasitic load, if your bike has such installed.

Tank electrical circuit is fuel pump and level sensor, and neither should impact key switch OFF parasitic load.

If it was me, I'd start with fresh battery of known performance.
The R1150** alternator charging system has no problem history that I know of.
R1150** wiring is a known weakness: some rub areas under the tank, plus the potential for wire breaks in harness sections connecting to front end.
The oilhead starter is a known maintenance item.
You can find information on this board, on ADVrider, UKGSer, BMW Sports Touring about any/all of these.

If you're working on the bike this coming weekend, I can offer an extra set of eyes for troubleshooting, since I'm in the area.

Thanks sweatmark,

Been slow getting back to this. been swamped at work. Anyway, been reading through threads on the oilhead starter issues - I'm at about 28K miles, and seems that from what the Chris Harris was saying, it's not unusual for them to go around now. If i remember right, the one he took out in one video was at 35K. (btw, I have had a great time watching his videos since I first bought my bike a few years ago).

But, I don't seem to have the same symptoms that came up with the oilhead starter, although I guess I could just not be hearing it correctly. When I did start, it sounded pretty normal (though the first couple revolutions struggled a bit)… so I'm going to put in a new battery first since it seemed to be the most likely - it's ordered, but won't be her till early next week, so probably won't do much else this weekend. I would love to take you up on the offer in the future, though... still not sure I understand why I can't see any draw when i put the multimeter between the negative lead and negative pole, but the electrical looks all ok when it's all hooked up. I much be missing something, so if I have time this weekend (not sure I will), will try to figure that out more.

Thanks

dave

InvisibleOrdinary wrote:... still not sure I understand why I can't see any draw when i put the multimeter between the negative lead and negative pole, but the electrical looks all ok when it's all hooked up.

The clock is the only component that has active current draw when ignition key switch is OFF. The only current you might measure between battery (-) pole and the bike's ground wire would be that very small clock parasitic power draw.

There are other "hot" power circuits: emergency flasher function in turn signal module, primary power to iABS module (if bike is so equipped), supply to load relief relay... But none of these hot connections and associated components should draw power unless in use.

Your problem sounds to me, more likely to be your starter. The internal magnets often come loose as do the internal planetary gear covers. When either of those things happen, your symptoms appear. The starter isn't hard to repair and parts are available at euromotoelectric.

The battery after sitting overnight should be above 12.7 volts (roughly). What brand battery is installed?

You need to have your ammeter on a 100 milliampere (mA) range or lower. The usual draw is about 2.6 mA which is 0.0026 amps.

The draws with the key off are:

Motronic/Fuse 5: 0.8 mA
RID/Fuse 3: 1.5 mA
ABS: 0.3 mA
Total: 2.6 mA

Hi Roger & Sweatmark…

I finally installed a new battery today. it (or rather, the old one) was the issue. Starts and runs fine. The old - westco - was installed about 2.5 years ago. I bought a new odyssey. When I took it out, the westco was reading 12.65 V, the odyssey is 12.75… and from what I've been reading and what you said, after recharging the old one, it just wasn't holding enough charge. Now it purrs like it hasn't in a while, too, which is nice. Looks like i'll be a bit more attentive to keepig it on a charger from now on. -)
On a side note, I replaced some of the blind rivets, and the lower cooler bolt is a bit of a tough one to get in. This is new to me, but the threading doesn't seem correct, or long enough (though I see that they compress when they are first placed in. Let me know if I'm missing anything. Perusing real OEM, I don't see a different part for that hole in the tank…

Thanks for the advice!

Dave

… or. on the other hand, and what it really is, is that the threading is wonky on that screw. Note to self, try at least 8 times before assuming I know what's happening. got it in and should be all good.