Yuasa YTZ14S Battery Short Life

[970mike]

I purchased my 12 ST 1300 7 months ago with a brand new battery that had just been installed prior to me picking up the ST. This battery has never been run down on voltage and has been on a smart battery tender when not in use.

I will be replacing it with an Antigravity brand battery like I have in my 07 ST. That battery is over 9 years old and still going strong.

Here is the one that will get recycled.

 

[TourNut]

Did the battery tender actually quit when it indicated it was working , & let the battery die ? That has happened several times to me over the years .

( I run 6 chargers on 6 "vehicles" for the many years . : cars , MCs & John Deere )

 

[970mike]

Did the battery tender actually quit when it indicated it was working , & let the battery die ? That has happened several times to me over the years .

( I run 6 chargers on 6 "vehicles" for the many years . : cars , MCs & John Deere )

No the battery tender is still working fine.

 

[Andrew Shadow]

Only 7 months. No warranty? Or you don't want another of that brand even if it is under warranty?

 

[970mike]

Only 7 months. No warranty? Or you don't want another of that brand even if it is under warranty?

I did not buy it and have no receipt for it. I have had the Antigravity battery in my older ST for over 9 years and it is still working great. I have heard that the replacement Yuasa batteries don't last like the original ones that came with the ST.

 

[OkieRider]

Have you checked the cca spec for your machine? I don't recall what it is, just recall it's high relative to most of the early available batteries.

 

[970mike]

Have you checked the cca spec for your machine? I don't recall what it is, just recall it's high relative to most of the early available batteries.

Yes I have an the CCA is 230 which is what the battery that died is. I am going with this battery.

 

[Stylo Steve]

I worked at a Polaris / Victory / KTM dealership back in the 2000s and the Yuasa batteries were prone to fail if they weren't put on the charger for a minimum of 24 hours after filling them with the acid solution that came with the battery. I thought the owner was nuts but apparently, he knew what he was doing since he grew tired of refunding and replacing new batteries. Hope this helps.

 

[snowmoer]

I have not had good luck with factory filled batteries for bikes like the one you are showing. They just don't seem to last as long as the ones that I put the acid in and initialize myself. Two years at best even on a tender with the factory filled. Non filled, I get 8 to 9 years out of them on a tender when not riding.

 

[Uncle Phil]

I have heard that the replacement Yuasa batteries don't last like the original ones that came with the ST.

That was my experience - after three times I went to Motobatt batteries in my ST1100s.

 

[Larry Fine]

I slow-charge every new battery, whether bought wet or dry.

 

[SMSW]

I worked at a Polaris / Victory / KTM dealership back in the 2000s and the Yuasa batteries were prone to fail if they weren't put on the charger for a minimum of 24 hours after filling them with the acid solution that came with the battery. I thought the owner was nuts but apparently, he knew what he was doing since he grew tired of refunding and replacing new batteries. Hope this helps.

Every new battery should be charged at the recommended current before being put into service. If this is not done, you lose up to 10% of the capacity of the battery. Check out batteryuniversity.com for more info.

 

[David Fyffe]

Getting ready for spring.
Just put in a new LIon battery.
Date on the Yuasa is 13 12 12 43
I think that is 13th of December 2012 batch or line 43.
Always on a maintainer when parked in garage, guess it lived a full life.

 

[TMF]

I've keep all my batteries on smart chargers year round and monitor things with voltmeters I install on every bike. I went to start my '03 SV1000S for the first time since December the other day and there was barely enough juice to run the fuel pump and not enough to engage the starter. A few seconds later the fuel pump wouldn't run and the lights were weak. I checked my log file for that bike and the Yuasa was 5 1/2 years old so the assumption was a normal death. Upon removal, I noticed some minor corrosion on the terminals. No green stuff just a lack of shiny metal. Hmmmm. My Civic had failed to crank rapidly enough to start just a week or so earlier and responded to cleaning it's decent looking terminals. I charged the Yuasa and cleaned it and the fittings thoroughly with a dremel and put it back together. Afterwards, I got normal voltage readings and a strong starter spin. I've heard of Yuasas going longer than 5 years and hope to see 6 to 8 years or more out of this one. Even the lousy $26 Chinese battery in my TT600 is strong after 4 years of sitting on a smart charger. It's taken decades for the bulb to go on but now I know that less than fully clean terminals can cause a perfectly good battery to slowly lose charge to the point of failure.

 

[970mike]

Here is the new Antigravity battery installed.

 

[ST Gui]

the Yuasa batteries were prone to fail if they weren't put on the charger for a minimum of 24 hours after filling them with the acid solution that came with the battery.

I think this is the proper practice for any lead-acid battery which would include the Yuasa AGMs for our bikes and that recommendation has been around since shortly after the wheel was invented.

At a service station I worked at as a kid the owner would charge them for four hours if the customer needed it "right away" and overnight as close to 24hrs if possible.

 

[ST Gui]

Here is the new Antigravity battery installed.

This is really interesting: ATX12-HD-RS

ST1300:
Capacity: 16AH Pb equiv / 8 actual (?)
CA: 480 (not listed as CCA)

The ATX12-HD compatible 12 different OEM bike battery sizes (Li cells easy to configure for size) and built-in BMS. Impressive – maybe not unique.

BUT WAIT – there more!

These batteries have four – count 'em – FOUR battery terminals. Not only is orientation/positioning not a problem — you have two terminals left over for wiring farkles. Awesome.

BUT WAIT – there's still more!

This has what A-G calls built-in jump starting.

The revolutionary ATX12-HD-RS RE-START Battery intelligently monitors its status, and just before going completely dead puts itself to sleep with just enough energy to get your vehicle start again. Simply press the RE-START button located on the battery, start your vehicle and drive away…

Sears Die Hard batteries once had something similar. IIRC there was a "reserve" section that with a flip of a switch on the battery allowed that to start the car. But I believe that was at the expense of maximum battery capacity.

There have been a couple of third-party add-ons that do the same thing as the A-G Re-Start — shutting down the battery at a give voltage to save enough to start a car.

BUT WAIT – there's still more!

There's a remote available so you don't have to access the battery proper to press the Re-Start button.

I know — there's 50 ways to start your motor without all this gee-gas tech and that ain't what grandpappy would do — he'd spin in his grave first. But this ain't my grandpappy's ST so my next battery might just be this A-G.

And jumper cables are cheaper but if you don't have a buddy with you that day — who wants to stand next to your ride with cables in had begging "Please sir - may I have some Amps?"

Downside — an Li specific charger is a must. But this could be the last battery I'll ever buy.

Mike – way to omit bury the lede. (The devil is in the pics.)

 

[Andrew Shadow]

CA: 480 (not listed as CCA)

CA is cranking amps. It is measured at 0°C, 32°F.
CCA is cold cranking amps. It is measured at -18°C, 0°F.

From what I understand, CCA is not a rating that is used with Lithium batteries, possibly because they do not do well in extreme cold.
The CA rating is the maximum that a lithium battery is capable of supplying for a very short time of only three (3) seconds.
In place of CCA, starting amps is what seems to be referenced for Lithium batteries and would seem to provide a better reference of its ability to deliver power.
The SA rating is the maximum that a lithium battery is capable of supplying for thirty (30) seconds.

There doesn't seem to be a lot of standardization in how Lithium batteries are tested and rated however, like there is for lead acid batteries. Each manufacturer seems to have their own test criteria.
Obviously with Lithium batteries, the CA will be higher than the SA. Marketers like to use the bigger number because it looks better.

 

[st1300doug]

Yuasa's ain't what they use to be. Bought a $48 BatteryMax from Amazon. 5+ years- Still working geat. Yes, always on a Battery Tender. If it dies tomorrow.......hey, I'll buy another one at that price. Over the Yuasa's $110~$130.

 

[970mike]

Here is the remote for restarting the bike if the battery goes dead.