New battery or NOT?

[DELL82]

I need some help from the XJ/XS team. Have been having some problems with bike stalling at a light. I get a click, click, wait 10 seconds, then try again to start and varoooommmmm it fires up. Is this a two year old battery on the way out or do I have some other issue? When I put the battery charger on it will not go to trickle charge(green). The alternator goes to 13.5VDC when engine gets to 2000RPM, so it works. My computer does not work on the battery monitor even though I checked the connection and it was 7.2VDC with the water level full. Before that the battery was found to be only half full when checking out the monitor circuit. The test button doesn't work either. Don't know if any of these symptoms are related or not. If a new battery is needed what is the recommendations, brand/ P/N.
Another request: is anyone in the Houston area with a colortune plug, I need the idle circuit tweaked, will travel to your place anytime.

[mro]

Some auto parts stores will test your battery for free.

Could be when coming to a stop, engine at idle and that applying brake could draw enough juoce to drop voltage below TCI's minimum ?

Have yet to have an XJ, but
Some of the circuit boards I've worked on of other types of equipment have had small fuses mounted on em in addition to the regular fuse block. Also can inspect circuit boards for obvious defective components. Sometimes it's only a "blown" resister or other item easily replaced.


mro

[Jerry]

Best to pull the battery and take it to a shop where they can test it under load. (Batteries Plus, NAPA test free, I think.)

Hard to tell if the batt is bad, you could also be having a fuse block problem. Have you replaced the fuse block? One sysmpton is the intermittent aspect of your problem, generally a bad battery is a go/no-go situation, fuse block can be intermittent. Do a search on fuse block and you will get numerous hots on how to troucle-shoot, repair, or replace the OEM block. This is a known problem area on most older Japanese bikes, including our Yamahas.

The battery sensor must be cleaned from time to time to read accuratly. If I were to replace the battery in my XJ today I would use the same battery I put in 5 years ago, it is a sealed, maintenance-free type. It does not have the battery sensor, but there is a Tech Tip about how to 'bypass' the circuit so the computer thinks the battery is OK. Trouble is this type of battery cost about double what a conventional lead-acid battery will cost you, but the no-spilll and maintenance-free part is worth it, IMHO. Going on 5 years and it still cranks the XJ over with no problems and I have never had to check the electrolyte level.

Couple other trouble areas to look at. First, clean the point where the ground (-) cable attaches to the frame. Corrosion here is not good. Second, look at the wire strands on both cables at the battery end. If they are green, corroded, or have 'stuff' around the wires, do yourself a favor and replace them. A ground cable can be found at most places that repair riding lawnmowers and such, but the positive cable, as it has a pigtail on it, should come from Yamaha.

2 - 3 years on a batt is fairly common, so I think the two most likly culprits are a battery on the edge of failure or a bad fuse block that is giving you intermittent problems. Get the battery checked under load and if it looks tests, take a hard look at your fuse block.

[DELL82]

I have replaced the fuse block with the MINI BLADE PLUG INS 6 position. New heavy duty ground strap. The positive cable has had a new connector put on it at the battery, not sure about its internal condition. Will take the battery to the NAPA store tomorrow for a check. I was thinking about the maintenance free, what is the part number for a good one?
Dell82

[Jerry]

This from DiverRay in a previous thread:

Just did a quick look for the Deka batteries. I can buy one locally for $64.64, the ETX18L. The Westco AGM battery is listed at $79.95.

I use the Westco, www.westcobattery.com. Part number is 12V22. The Deka battery is also a sealed, maintenance-free type, and according to DiverRay, is avbailable through "commercial" battery outlets, which means you would have to do some searching. That particular battery thread can be read here:
http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread...e+free+battery

These batteries tend to last longer but there is no guarantee of that. However, 5 years and counting is the best life I have gotten out of a motorcycle battery yet. I figure anything past 3 years is a bonus. I tend to ride in very hot weather, having lived in Arizona where I installed the battery, and in western Colorado and eastern Utah the riding temps are often in the 90 deg. F range, sometimes over 100 deg. F. Not having to worry about electrolyte level, particularly on long trips (to XS11 rallies!) is a real "peace of mind" thing.