I'm getting 8+ years out of my Yuasa battery (and you can too! lol) | GTAMotorcycle.com

I'm getting 8+ years out of my Yuasa battery (and you can too! lol)

adri

adri

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Did the title sound like a sales pitch much? haha

In this video I'm covering seven of the things that determine a motorcycle battery's lifespan, and how to maximize it. Four of these battery lifespan influences are completely in your control, and the other three are good to know before you spend your money on a new battery.

I'll show why the initial setup and charge of a new battery is crucial for its performance and longevity. We'll talk about how your motorcycle riding habits can impact your battery's lifespan, and the importance of good maintenance and storage.

For the side of the coin that's outside of our control we'll cover how battery capacity, type, and manufacturer choice makes a difference. I'll also explain why I recommend high-quality brands like Yuasa and Antigravity, and caution people against buying from shady Amazon and eBay sellers fly-by-night companies.

Basically, I wanted to create a comprehensive guide to maximizing your motorcycle battery's lifespan, because it's probably the #1 cause of people needing to spend money unnecessarily on bikes for towing and service. Hopefully this can help some people not get themselves stranded.

If I missed anything or got something wrong, please let me know and I'll pin a comment under the video to help others!

 
My OEM Honda battery was original when the stator went and was covered by warranty in its 7th year !!!!!
From my experience in Australia only lithium can handle the heat and humidity. It could sit for many months and instantly start the bike.
I was going through a lead acid yearly.
The lithium was on five years and still going strong when I sold the KLR in early 2021.
 
I always had good luck with the Yuasa batteries that come with most new Japanese bikes probably because they’re also made in Japan. I always got at least five years out of them.The replacement Yuasa batteries I was getting from GP Bikes were made in the USA and I typically got about 3 years out of them.
 
Throughout the years, I've run many different battery brands Yuasa, Shorai, SkyRich, UnitBat, Exide, Interstate (rebranded Yuasa), Moll, etc.

They've *ALL* lasted 5+ years if you properly maintain them with a battery tender and never let them discharge fully.

The least expensive battery will outlast the most expensive battery you can buy, if you don't maintain it.
 
My 16 vstrom starts like new, it still running its original OE battery.

My FJR got its last new battery in 2014, a cheapie from CTC. It finally gave up the ghost this winter.

My advice is simple. Never let it drain below where it can't start the bike - draining batteries kills them. Care and feeding is simple. Check water level and top up when you do LOF, start the bike and let it run till operating temp at least once every 3 weeks.

I dont remove them in the winter, I don't tender them either.

Done it that way for years, most batteries last me 8 years.
 
Every spring, the call of the mournful motorcyclist - "My bike won't start !!!".
 
My pre-riding check now involves “have I disconnected the trickle charger?”.

I got in the habit of connecting it when I put the bike away in the garage after a ride. Probably overkill but it works and the battery lasts and it’s easy with a pigtail added.
 
Chris-CJ said:
Liked
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Thanks!

MacDoc said:
My OEM Honda battery was original when the stator went and was covered by warranty in its 7th year !!!!!
From my experience in Australia only lithium can handle the heat and humidity. It could sit for many months and instantly start the bike.
I was going through a lead acid yearly.
The lithium was on five years and still going strong when I sold the KLR in early 2021.
Click to expand...

Dang. Really good tip! I'm going to find a way to include this when I do a written article on this subject, thanks!

Bobo said:
I always had good luck with the Yuasa batteries that come with most new Japanese bikes probably because they’re also made in Japan. I always got at least five years out of them.The replacement Yuasa batteries I was getting from GP Bikes were made in the USA and I typically got about 3 years out of them.
Click to expand...
Dang again. You're the second person to mention that Yuasa batteries made in the USA have been a disappointment. Someone on facebook said they had the same experience.

Lightcycle said:
Throughout the years, I've run many different battery brands Yuasa, Shorai, SkyRich, UnitBat, Exide, Interstate (rebranded Yuasa), Moll, etc.

They've *ALL* lasted 5+ years if you properly maintain them with a battery tender and never let them discharge fully.

The least expensive battery will outlast the most expensive battery you can buy, if you don't maintain it.
Click to expand...

Truth. I had someone leave a comment on the video that one year he bought a brand new battery in the fall, before putting his bike away, didn't maintain it over the winter, and had to buy a brand new one in the spring 🤦‍♂️ Two new batteries in six months, come on people! lol
 
Mad Mike said:
My 16 vstrom starts like new, it still running its original OE battery.

My FJR got its last new battery in 2014, a cheapie from CTC. It finally gave up the ghost this winter.

My advice is simple. Never let it drain below where it can't start the bike - draining batteries kills them. Care and feeding is simple. Check water level and top up when you do LOF, start the bike and let it run till operating temp at least once every 3 weeks.

I dont remove them in the winter, I don't tender them either.

Done it that way for years, most batteries last me 8 years.
Click to expand...
Your post has me so perplexed, never let them drain, but you let them go months without charging them, but you buy a cheap battery, but it still lasted you 9 years without winter maintenance? Is your garage heated or something? What am I missing? I gotta sit down, my head is spinning lol.

TK4 said:
Every spring, the call of the mournful motorcyclist - "My bike won't start !!!".
Click to expand...

****, tell me about it, the same conversation 55 times a week with customers.

Customer: Bike won't start
Me: Another dead battery
Customer: Nah, the dash lights up, it just won't start.
Me: It can still be the battery, did you charge the battery?
Customer: No, but it can't be the battery.
Me: Because you checked the voltage.
Customer: No, it's new, I replaced it last year.
Me: Have you charged it since then?
Customer: No.
Me: ...
Customer: ...
Me: Another dead battery
Customer: But the dash lights up??

At this point I give the "Okay, I can teach you how to help yourself, or I can take your money and fix your problem. What do you want?" talk.

Thank God there are a lot of learning-adverse people out there. For everyone else, I make youtube videos lol

nikos1965 said:
I have a 2011 Vstar with an original Yuasa battery that finally died last month. What a run .. 13 years!!
Click to expand...

Wow! At that point it deserves a celebration of life ceremony lol

danp said:
"Don't buy xyz until you watch this!"
Click to expand...
Or don't watch it, and be like the guy who commented that he wish he saw the video before he had to buy two batteries in six months lol. Not saying you'd make that mistake, but you get it.

The videos are just to help those who want to learn. I make a lot more from motorcyclists who don't watch my videos than I do from the ones that do lol
 
jc100 said:
My pre-riding check now involves “have I disconnected the trickle charger?”.

I got in the habit of connecting it when I put the bike away in the garage after a ride. Probably overkill but it works and the battery lasts and it’s easy with a pigtail added.
Click to expand...
LOL. You know how many times I ride out of the garage and feel that snag? You know the feeling, when the cord goes around the corner and gets pulled out of the pigtail as you ride away. Happens once a week 🤦‍♂️

Merkid said:
Very good info.
Click to expand...
Thank you!

iblastoff said:
i dunno what the stock battery in my ducati is but its been the same one since 2016 and still works just fine.
Click to expand...
Hopefully you won't find out what it is any time soon lol
 
adri said:
****, tell me about it, the same conversation 55 times a week with customers.

Customer: Bike won't start
Me: Another dead battery
Customer: Nah, the dash lights up, it just won't start.
Me: It can still be the battery, did you charge the battery?
Customer: No, but it can't be the battery.
Me: Because you checked the voltage.
Customer: No, it's new, I replaced it last year.
Me: Have you charged it since then?
Customer: No.
Me: ...
Customer: ...
Me: Another dead battery
Customer: But the dash lights up??

At this point I give the "Okay, I can teach you how to help yourself, or I can take your money and fix your problem. What do you want?" talk.

Thank God there are a lot of learning-adverse people out there. For everyone else, I make youtube videos lol
Click to expand...
"Take the battery out and bring it in - we'll check it with the load tester, no cost. We can even put it on the desulphating charger and try to bring it back"
"That's too much work - I'll just bring the bike it."
"No you won't - we have nowhere to keep it and besides which you can save yourself a lot of hassle."
"Well, I need it for this weekend - what am I supposed to do ?"
 
3 years for me and I'll replace it.

My luck the battery will **** itself up at elephant lake road or down in Pennsylvania.

I'm not rich, just got better things to save money on.
 
Mad Mike said:
My 16 vstrom starts like new, it still running its original OE battery.

My FJR got its last new battery in 2014, a cheapie from CTC. It finally gave up the ghost this winter.

My advice is simple. Never let it drain below where it can't start the bike - draining batteries kills them. Care and feeding is simple. Check water level and top up when you do LOF, start the bike and let it run till operating temp at least once every 3 weeks.

I dont remove them in the winter, I don't tender them either.

Done it that way for years, most batteries last me 8 years.
Click to expand...
I treated all my batteries exactly the same. The Japanese made Yuasa’s just lasted longer than the American made ones for whatever reason.
 
adri said:
Your post has me so perplexed, never let them drain, but you let them go months without charging them, but you buy a cheap battery, but it still lasted you 9 years without winter maintenance? Is your garage heated or something? What am I missing? I gotta sit down, my head is spinning lol.
Click to expand...
I never let them go more than 3 weeks without charging -- I run my bikes regularly in the winter so the topups are done by the bike's charging system. Running bikes for 10-15 minutes every few weeks has always worked for me.

I do have a heated garage, but it only gets heat when I'm working in there - otherwise it's unheated and because it's detached, it gets cold. At most 10 hours a week.
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