Options to start bike when battery is dead

sfarson · 04:48 PM

Noted the battery thread. Mine is charging now because there wasn't enough juice to turn the starter fast enough.

In case after a charge I still don't get enough power are there any kinds of push/bump starting options? I think the shaft drive prevents this? I tried bump starting the S down the slight hill of my dirt driveway but when I let the clutch out the rear wheel just skidded.

Thanks for any advice.

Steve

RoundelRider · 05-23-2003, 05:05 PM

I had the same problem after my dumb arse left the key in the ignition switch. I called the friendly people at the BMW store and they said you can bump start the engine, no problem. He suggested that I put the bike in 2nd or 3rd gear and roll down a nice hill. My personal attempts were unsuccessful, and I stuck it back in the garage and charged the battery properly. Good Luck

John

dsl · 06:04 PM

I think I remember being able to jump start my old air head using 2nd gear. I wonder, though, how much all the electrics on a modern bike need to be juiced up before they'll allow ignition. IE, full pump, motronic, fuel injection etc.

I thought I've read here that you can jump the bike off a car (not running) by using the positive terminal on starter motor (being much easier to access than the battery). Or is this still too much juice that risks frying your electrics?

Steve, don't you have a number of beemer bike that you could jump from?

hwy1&17 · 05-23-2003, 06:00 PM

I have a long paved hill outside my house and I tried bump starting in most gears 1,2,3,&4 with no sucsess. took two of us to push it back up the hill.
needless to say I had an outlet put on for easy charging.

RoundelRider · 05-23-2003, 06:22 PM

I jumped my S, 4 wheeler, and previous bike using the cage. No Problemo!

John

webby · 05-23-2003, 09:49 PM

As I understand a translation from the German boxer site (boxer-forum.de).....

If you remove the starter motor cover you'll find a heavy duty cable terminal to which you can attached the positive end of the jumper cable directly.
You attach the negative end to a "substantial" frame element and off you go.

Is this correct and if so has anyone tried this method?

Thanks

RoundelRider · 05-24-2003, 04:50 PM

I seroiusly thought about it when my batt was kaput. Being a mechainc i look for things like that but I played it "safe" by removing the side panels and going directly to the battery. At the same time I installed my Induct, and SJ filter; so it wasnt a total waste of time. Its still a pain in the ass to get to that battery.

sfarson · 05-24-2003, 08:21 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by RoundelRider
I seroiusly thought about it when my batt was kaput. Being a mechainc i look for things like that but I played it "safe" by removing the side panels and going directly to the battery. At the same time I installed my Induct, and SJ filter; so it wasnt a total waste of time. Its still a pain in the ass to get to that battery.

Tried the battery again after charging all night. Dead. Doesn't look like bump starting is much of an option. The jump using the starter looks interesting but I'm hesitant.

Soooo... I've bought a battery, and mechanic challenged Steve here is going to try to swap batteries. See other thread.

Thanks everyone for your thoughts.

Steve

GUS · 05-25-2003, 06:54 AM

I know how you feel guys.I spent a good hour trying to bump my bike from cold when the battery died on me.It aint possible!Its a big ****off twin,thats why honda left their starter motors on there SP 1 superbike.
GUS

CarlosT · 05-25-2003, 07:27 AM

There are too many subsystems on the S to try to bump start a dead battery. Steve it sounds like you got other problems. Are you sure that it was charging?

Ted in Evanston · 05-25-2003, 09:45 AM

I had to bump start my K12RS, during a trip, when the sprag clutch on the starter failed. It came to life, using 2nd gear. Must've been lucky. It did not get shut off for the subsequent fuel stops that day!

Rattus · Rattus's Garage

Roll starting the S isnt easy but it can be done. If you're by yourself, its hard to get enough speed up so when your release the clutch the engine starts - it helps to be fit if you want to try this. I've had best success down a slight hill with another person pushing (2nd gear). Having weight over the rear wheel is a good idea to avoid the skid. Suffice to say I'm a fan of battery chargers now.

Trevor Rossack · 05-25-2003, 05:49 PM

Funnily enough, when I went to go for a ride yesterday, my battery was flat. I haven't fired the bike up for a month, it has been getting down to 4 degreesC regularly overnight lately and it is almost fives years old.

Thanks to information from this BBS I tried jump starting directly to the starter motor - no problems!! The hardest part was trying to get the Allen key in position to remove the starter motor cover. It is bit of a pain.

I will be installing an Odyssey battery in the next week or so, along with my idea ( never got around to it) of a short length of 6mm cable from each terminal ending up under the seat, so that one can easily jump start the bike when (sometime) in the future the battery is flat once again.

Cheers
TREVOR

Rattus · Rattus's Garage

Hi Trevor - I suggest you have a look at this trickle charger that Jenny and I have used to good effect. Note the leads that stay permanently on the battery. But making a "crossover" cable we can jumpstart our bikes easily from the other bike or an external source, or just trickle charge it if need be.

http://www.roadandrace.com.au/battery_charger.htm

fiery · 05-25-2003, 11:45 PM

Cool tip Rattus. For $AUD 65, sounds good.

Bumble Bee · 05-26-2003, 03:38 AM

An easy way to either top up your battery or kepp it charged for periods that the bike is unused is to purchase a 240VAC to 12VDC (or 110VAC to 12VDC) transformer / power supply available at TANDY or the like ensuring the AMP rating is no more than 500milliamp or 0.5 Amp. Attach a male plug of your choice to the end of the lead and a female plug to a short lead then dirrectly to your Battery. The current from this type of power supply is not enough to do any damage and will keep your battery voltage at a usable state all times. I have used this system on many bikes and cars for years all with positive results.

levert · 05-26-2003, 06:56 AM

I do the same thing B Bee.My 1999 s battery is in great shape. I have used this method for years and usually get 5-6 yrs from a battery. Radio Shack $9.99! for 500 ma 12v charger.

RBMann · 05-26-2003, 07:20 AM

I would lose battery water over time with the constant rate charger. What a drag on the S. I do not have that problem now that I use a Battery Tender.

RB

Houstonj · 05-26-2003, 08:04 AM

Hello,

I bought one of those $20 battery trickle chargers from Wal Mart last fall and attached the leads to an aux plug I got from A&S cycles. This I just plug into the Aux plug below the seat. Kept my battery good all winter.

Jon

ckcarr · ckcarr's Garage

Battery Tender & accessory plug are a given I presume.

Battery Tenders are cheap at the right online store although the accessory is another $50-$60. I am still on my first battery with it tho.

wallyscycleworld.com