Replaced Battery - Big Improvement

[Lotsokids]

My battery died after about 3 or 4 years of use. Wouldn't hold a charge and for the last few months very slow starting. But the bike has consistently been a hard starter in the nearly 5 years I've owned it. I even had a shop rebuild my starter a couple years ago.

Anyway, the bike sat while we went back to the U.S. in July/August on vacation. Since replacing the battery, it fired up IMMEDIATELY, and has every time since.

Maybe I'm stating the obvious here. But if your FJ has been struggling to start, try changing the battery.

I'm ready for all the "...well, duh..." comments. Just throwing my thoughts out there - might help someone.

[red]

My battery died after about 3 or 4 years of use. Wouldn't hold a charge and for the last few months very slow starting. But the bike has consistently been a hard starter in the nearly 5 years I've owned it. I even had a shop rebuild my starter a couple years ago.  Since replacing the battery, it fired up IMMEDIATELY, and has every time since.  Maybe I'm stating the obvious here. But if your FJ has been struggling to start, try changing the battery. Just throwing my thoughts out there - might help someone.

Lotsokids,

I have worked a career in electronics, lastly as the lead technician in my shop.  Part of the job is helping anybody else who hits a snag with their work.  It is amazing how many times I need to tell people, "If all else fails, apply Power and Ground."  Low battery voltage (or low amps) can cause many odd malfunctions, and causes needless repair attempts where nothing but bad power (or a bad ground) is to blame.  I'm not immune, either; I was about to replace my car battery when I realized that I had not cleaned the connections in a good while.  The connections were corroded, which can act just like a bad battery.  A little wire brush, baking soda, and clean water did the job for me.  Still, batteries do have a limited life-span, and I think yours was due for a funeral.

I'm all in favor of the new "battery tender" chargers, which have a de-sulfating cycle in their operation.  With all else being equal, they can extend the life of a lead-acid battery.

Cheers,
Red

[Lotsokids]

Thanks Red. Good comments.
Another thing I might add here is never charge your battery with more than 1.5 amps. I cooked a battery with somewhere around 10 amps many years ago and paid $50 to learn that lesson.

[ribbert]

My battery died after about 3 or 4 years of use. Wouldn't hold a charge and for the last few months very slow starting. But the bike has consistently been a hard starter in the nearly 5 years I've owned it. I even had a shop rebuild my starter a couple years ago.  Since replacing the battery, it fired up IMMEDIATELY, and has every time since.  Maybe I'm stating the obvious here. But if your FJ has been struggling to start, try changing the battery. Just throwing my thoughts out there - might help someone.

Lotsokids,

I have worked a career in electronics, lastly as the lead technician in my shop.  Part of the job is helping anybody else who hits a snag with their work.  It is amazing how many times I need to tell people, "If all else fails, apply Power and Ground."  Low battery voltage (or low amps) can cause many odd malfunctions, and causes needless repair attempts where nothing but bad power (or a bad ground) is to blame.  I'm not immune, either; I was about to replace my car battery when I realized that I had not cleaned the connections in a good while.  The connections were corroded, which can act just like a bad battery.  A little wire brush, baking soda, and clean water did the job for me.  Still, batteries do have a limited life-span, and I think yours was due for a funeral.

I'm all in favor of the new "battery tender" chargers, which have a de-sulfating cycle in their operation.  With all else being equal, they can extend the life of a lead-acid battery.

Cheers,
Red

A bike can do this, spin over at normal speed but won't start or even fire unless jumped. I have one at the moment, full voltage at the battery and starter, 8.8v at the front of the bike and no doubt less when cranking!
A tired battery vs a new battery can make the difference between enough to fire the ignition and not but that's only masking the problem. You need to make sure you're getting full voltage where it matters.

Noel