Battery Life

[EasyRider]

So the ones of you who have had your RT for some years, can you tell us new owners how long your battery last.
The last owner of my RT had a new battery fitted by BMW in January 2022. I had to have a new one in December. So just 2 years the last one lasted.

post edited due to getting dates wrong.

[Sullivj]

It depends how you treat it.

I have a 2012. My bike doesn't get ridden as often as I would like. I charge the battery if it's been left in the garage for more than three weeks.

The battery then fails about every 3 years.

[Sullivj]

This was the best price I could find for the last replacement.

https://www.tayna.co.uk/motorcycle-batt ... ide/51913/

[MikeS]

My 2019 is still on the original. Do about 10k miles a year and use it during the winter, dont know if this helps its longevity .

[BoB21]

mine lasted over 6 years, never charged it, just rode it. No tracker which eats batterys.

[EasyRider]

Thank you all for the replys.
As the RT wont be used in the winter, i think i might just remove the battery altogether.

[Mac001]

Also note that BMW changed the specification as a result of starting issues to a higher specification CCA. This will have impacted the life of some bikes fitted batteries as they would have been working relatively harder. It will be difficult to work out the usual lifespan, but could explain the shorter than expected ones. Mine was changed last year. I have a tracker fitted as well as the alarm and I need to keep mine on a CTEK if it is not used for more than a couple of weeks. I use the fairing socket during the riding season and in the winter I have a pigtail under the seat I use to avoid the bike waking up all the time.

[Steve398]

Mine sits on a CTEK when it’s not in use, I’ve done this with all my bikes and it’s never caused me a problem.

[David.]

The Exide battery on my 2012 Camhead is 5 years old. The bike has been stood for over 3 months. When the battery is put on charge, it always goes straight to maintain voltage. GEL batteries seem to be the best for holding their charge when not in use. Fired up the bike today, it started at the first push of the button.

[Elkinell]

My 2020 showed signs of problems about four weeks after I got it second hand last January. When I questioned the dealer i was told unoficially that the new 1250's eat batteries. I was given a deal on a battery charger and told to keep it hooked up when not in use, which I wasn't happy about but did anyway. Last Sunday after a round trip of about 150 miles it was slow to turn over, so I've looked at a replacement. Do I go for the Exide from Nippy Normans which is the battery BMW fit without the sticker or a Yuasa from Tayna? A lesser man might thing that BMW didn't design a space big enough on the bike to fit a battery that could handle the drain....

[ColoradoGreek]

My 2016 R1200RT original battery lasted 6 years. I’m on year 2 of the replacement battery with no issues. I rarely if ever put the battery on a Battery Tender, even during the winter months. I try and get the bike out on the road whenever I can no matter the temperatures as long as the roads are safe to ride.

[Elkinell]

My local Halfrauds online say they have a Yuasa in stock for £78 which is cheaper than the Exide with postage from NN and Tayna but I have to collect in store which is about 8 miles each way, CCA's on Yuasa is 230a while Exide is 170a. Question is do I stump up the dosh for a better battery knowing the RT may eat it?

[Steve398]

I bought the Yuasa YTX20CH-BS from Tanya, same size as standard but higher rate, and recommended by Yuasa for the RTLC.

F4766DA7-E4E9-4FC7-87D1-CAF405D6E429.jpeg (128.44 KiB) Viewed 3709 times

[Elkinell]

I bought the Yuasa YTX20CH-BS from Tanya, same size as standard but higher rate, and recommended by Yuasa for the RTLC.

F4766DA7-E4E9-4FC7-87D1-CAF405D6E429.jpeg

Thanks for that, interesting thing is when I looked at Tayna for this battery to order it, it came up with the EXIDE ETX20CH-BS as a star buy in this size with 230CCA's....at £ 55.57 the same CCA's as the more expensive Yuasa I was going to buy originally...

[Stu]

I replaced my battery on my 2016 last year more out of precaution really!

The battery was good but a couple of times I had the bike not turn over and the clocks reset so I thought best to be safe than sorry