Battery Life

[Smoky14]

My 2005 Zuki Bandit is running the original battery that came with it. This is by far the longest I've ever had a battery last and was wondering what kind of life you guys were getting. Prior to this the best I'd been able to get was about 7 years.
I hate to change it, but I have a trip coming up which will take me to remote areas of the state when cycle shops are few and far between and cell service is spotty and who's to say a new one won't drop dead.
In the old days of kick starters not a real big deal, but at my age "run and bump" is no longer an option.

Smoky the venerable

 

[skyactiv]

I'd go ahead and replace it. I'm guessing you'll keep the bike long enough to where the battery will need replaced eventually. But you might get tired of the bike and sell it before it's time for battery number 3. Replace it with a good battery so your trip wont be ruined.

 

[JHZR2]

How has the battery been maintained? How has it been stored? We've had many >10 year batteries on low drain applications, and plenty of other batteries that never lasted. In general I wouldn't be very concerned, except that you say that where you're going may not have a lot of places to get a replacement. Because of that, peace of mind is probably worth a lot more.

 

[Klutch9]

That's impressive! But you are on borrowed time for sure. Replace it and give yourself peace of mind on your trip. The longest I've ever had a battery last was 7 years on the original battery on the Focus I sold last year. It was still cranking strong when I sold it!

 

[BigCahuna]

Well you could take it somewhere and have it load tested. At least you'd know what's left in it. So if it's barley hanging on, you won't fell like you wasted money when you replaced it.,,

 

[Chris142]

In cars 3 yrs is average here. I did have an exide orbital that lasted 90 months.and an ac delco that was still going strong after 11 yrs but i replaced it just cause.

 

[IndyIan]

We had a 92 sentra with the original battery in 2001... Of course the alternator failed at dusk in the middle of the Smokey Mountains probably due to trying to charge that old weak battery... So we ended up getting a new alternator and a battery.

 

[mrsilv04]

My experiences with batteries has been all over the place. Worst was a battery that I didn't recognize the brand name, that was made in China. It was already in a bike when I bought it, the owner gave me the original receipt, and it lasted 13 months.

I've had mediocre luck with Yuasa batteries. Not enough to be impressed.

I've done well and had the longest, trouble free experience with the East Penn/Deka batteries. For my application, they come activated and sealed. Just pull it out of the box, top off the charge, and install.

http://www.dekabatteries.com/default.aspx?pageid=510

 

[EdwardC]

I use the Walmart AGM ES12BS in my GS500 that the previous owner put in. I bought the thing back in 2008 and it still starts up no problem. I even left it on the bike for several winters outside. This last winter I brought it in to put on a solar charger in the window, started the bike up last week better than ever.

I'm going on at least 6 years with that battery.

I like the idea of getting it load tested before trashing a perfectly good battery and putting in a potentially dodgy new battery.

 

[dernp]

You've got your money's worth out of the battery. For piece of mind, I'd replace it now before your trip. The last thing you want, is a dead battery in the middle of nowhere.

 

[Smoky14]

New Yuasa installed. cap checked the old one and it appears to have less than 50% of the new one. The plates must be almost gone. Thanks for the advice to get the old one out of there.

Smoky

 

[OAS]

Kinda OT, but had a weird experience with an atv battery last year.
Bought one from rocky mountain atv/mc, one of their "house brand" gel cells. Followed procedure, installed, and it died in 2 weeks.
[censored] off of course, but tried to charge it, and reinstalled.
2 weeks later,.....dead. :-(
Frikken...^%#$$%^!!!!!
Jump started, and rode for the day. Put it in storage, figgured i'd buy another one in the spring.
Pulled it out in the spring for a ride, but forgot about the battery..... Tried it anyways.... BAM! started right up!
Worked great all year. O,o
Pulled it out again bout a month ago. All the other quads...dead.
Mine? ......BAM! fired right up! WTH???
Its like this thing thrives on neglect..... never saw anything like it.
The older it gets, and the less i maintain it, the better it works!
Figure that out?!? ;-)

 

[smokey422]

My first battery in my Kawasaki Drifter 1500 went a little over 9 years and was still performing fine but I was getting nervous about the age. I attribute the long life to regular use of a Battery Tender, at least once a month during non-riding season. I think battery technology has really advanced in the last several years. When I started riding over 40 years ago, I was replacing them every couple of years. Of course, we didn't have Battery Tenders back then. I think riding your bike in the rpm range where you are getting high amperage output from the charging system helps, too.