SuzukiSavage.com - Left lights on.

Routy Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2280 Winston Oregon Gender:	Re: Left lights on. Reply #15 - 08/14/11 at 14:49:48 arteacher wrote on 08/13/11 at 06:12:33: Bike wouldn't start. Let it sit for 15 min- started right up. What some have missed here, is that the battery was nowhere close to stone dead. If a battery is stone dead, no amount of time setting is it going to start the bike.
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Gyrobob

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Re: Left lights on.
Reply #16 - 08/14/11 at 18:00:34

Routy wrote on 08/14/11 at 14:49:48:

arteacher wrote on 08/13/11 at 06:12:33:

Bike wouldn't start. Let it sit for 15 min- started right up.

What some have missed here, is that the battery was nowhere close to stone dead.
If a battery is stone dead, no amount of time setting is it going to start the bike.

This is true.

There are three types of "dead" batteries.
1. Broken -- will never work again (sulfated plates, internal short, no electrolyte (sulfuric acid solution), etc.). The bike won’t even click when you try to start it. No lights will come on.
2. Fully depleted -- You parked your bike, left the lights (or ignition on), and went away to visit your girlfriend in Uzbekistan for a week. The bike won’t even click when you try to start it. No lights will come on.
3. Seems to be depleted -- You parked your bike, left the ignition on, went to a movie ("P.S. I Love You" (you were trying to get in touch with your feminine side)), came out 2.5 hours later, and the battery acted dead when you tried to start it. You turn off the key, and stomp around, moaning about how stupid the engineers were to design a bike like that. Then you get back on after 15 minutes and just for old times’ sake, hit the starter. Vrooom. It started slow, but worked.
What happened was the electrolyte nearest the cells became depleted. When you let it sit for a while while you were throwing your tantrum, the depleted electrolyte mixed with the more potent solution and the battery sort of charged itself a little. The battery probably wasn’t fully discharged, it just seemed that way right after you tried to start it the first time after spending so much ranting about the "stupid engineering" design.

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Angie

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Re: Left lights on.
Reply #17 - 08/14/11 at 18:09:01

Funny that this topic should pop up just now. On friday, my husband had been working on my bike and got it put back together just before he had to go to work. So he wanted me to see if it would start, so I grabbed the key and went to try it out. It fired up great, so I was all excited. I didnt have time to take it for a ride, so I shut it off and went in the house. 2 days later, when I went to start it I discoverd that I had turned the key to the P for park instead of off. Uggh! Oh yeah, she was dead. Hubby hooked in up to a charger and did get it started. I saw all the posts about adding water and checking acid levels. I thought all batteries these days were sealed, just kind of hook em up and go. Huh

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Routy

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Re: Left lights on.
Reply #18 - 08/14/11 at 21:28:12

Angie wrote on 08/14/11 at 18:09:01:

I thought all batteries these days were sealed, just kind of hook em up and go. Huh

They should be, but the SLA AGM batteries are still more expensive,....money still talks. But some one said that the new s-40s have AGMs now. And I bought a new rider mower that also has an AGM battery in it,......so despite the money, it seems to be catching on.

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Gyrobob

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Re: Left lights on.
Reply #19 - 08/15/11 at 04:55:58

Look at your battery. If it has easily removable caps for each cell, and horizontal lines on the long side of the outside of the battery case, it means you have the most common type of battery,... a wet cell battery. So,.. you should check the acid levels in each cell periodically, and especially after a "drastic" battery event such as yours.

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Angie

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Re: Left lights on.
Reply #20 - 08/15/11 at 05:15:58

Personally I'd rather have a battery that I dont have to fart with. I know how to put gas in my bike, thats about the extent of my expertise. Wink

By the way, am I the only one that thinks even having that option of turning the key to Park is stupid? It like asking for trouble (yes, Im blonde. shush) because one day you'll not be paying attention and turn it off wrong. Esp during the day, you'll never notice that the tail light is still on. I guess I need an idiot proof bike. Grin

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Gyrobob

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Re: Left lights on.
Reply #21 - 08/15/11 at 05:40:53

Angie wrote on 08/15/11 at 05:15:58:

Personally I'd rather have a battery that I dont have to fart with. I know how to put gas in my bike, thats about the extent of my expertise. Wink

By the way, am I the only one that thinks even having that option of turning the key to Park is stupid? It like asking for trouble (yes, Im blonde. shush) because one day you'll not be paying attention and turn it off wrong. Esp during the day, you'll never notice that the tail light is still on. I guess I need an idiot proof bike. Grin

I would agree with you about the stupidity of having the option of turning the key to Park without realizing it,.. but you are the only one to ever make this mistake.

I've never done anything like that,...

Roll Eyes

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« Last Edit: 08/15/11 at 08:25:06 by Gyrobob »

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Routy Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2280 Winston Oregon Gender:	Re: Left lights on. Reply #22 - 08/15/11 at 06:36:48 Yes, its stupid,......but an idiot light (led) on the speedo would have made it ok. But I'd bet it could be easily disabled,.....depending on the ease of access to the back of the ign switch,.......or (god forbid) a wire cutters farther down the line ? On edit, disablement could be illegal in some states ?
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Re: Left lights on.
Reply #23 - 08/15/11 at 08:21:09

Routy wrote on 08/15/11 at 06:36:48:

Yes, its stupid,......but an idiot light (led) on the speedo would have made it ok.
But I'd bet it could be easily disabled,.....depending on the ease of access to the back of the ign switch,.......or (god forbid) a wire cutters farther down the line ? Undecided

On edit, disablement could be illegal in some states ? Shocked

For the RYCA folks, it would be fairly easy to add a red LED to the switch/lite panel on the tank, eh?

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