My 14 Fat Boy eats batteries
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Joined: Nov 2013
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From: Hayward, CA
My 14 Fat Boy eats batteries
So I have a 2014 Fat Boy that eats batteries. If its not on the trickle charger when Im not riding it, it becomes really cranky about starting after about a week, and and after 2 weeks it just wont kick over at all until its been on the charger for a while. I ended up moving, and with all the craziness with contractors not being finished with stuff in the garage on time etc my bike ended up just sitting in the driveway for almost two months. Now the battery is really dead. This is also its third battery since I got it in September of 2013.
I am pretty sure part of the problem is some of my mods. I added a fairing which has a stereo, two amps (my sig is slightly out of date), two speakers in the fairing, and two in in the saddlebags, as well as the stock HD security system. With the bike off should that equipment be drawing enough passive power to drain a stock battery, or could there be another issue. If the battery cant hack it, would a different battery with a higher CCA handle the issue better? Can you over do it with too high of a CCA?
And what are the differences between battery types? (AGM, Lead Acid, Gel, etc)
I am pretty sure part of the problem is some of my mods. I added a fairing which has a stereo, two amps (my sig is slightly out of date), two speakers in the fairing, and two in in the saddlebags, as well as the stock HD security system. With the bike off should that equipment be drawing enough passive power to drain a stock battery, or could there be another issue. If the battery cant hack it, would a different battery with a higher CCA handle the issue better? Can you over do it with too high of a CCA?
And what are the differences between battery types? (AGM, Lead Acid, Gel, etc)
Last edited by Techgnosis; Jan 13, 2019 at 05:14 AM.
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From: Bedford UK
AGM batteries are possibly the most recent type, are also what gives us much improved cranking power over other types, so they are what I recommend and use. AGM stands for "absorbent glass mat" and refers to the internal design and construction - it is not a brand and many battery brands make and sell them. The other types you mention are previous styles that are superseded by AGM, if you are looking for good reliable performance.
As for your batteries dying, you either have to bone up on vehicle electrics pdq, so you can rigorously inspect your bike's electrics yourself to diagnose the problem, or find a competent local indy. For quick results I recommend the latter. Should be quicker and cheaper than buying and killing yet another battery!
As for your batteries dying, you either have to bone up on vehicle electrics pdq, so you can rigorously inspect your bike's electrics yourself to diagnose the problem, or find a competent local indy. For quick results I recommend the latter. Should be quicker and cheaper than buying and killing yet another battery!
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Joined: Dec 2012
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From: Texas
If I were looking for this problem, I would start with a basic power off parasitic current draw measurement. Set your DMM for reading amps, take the negative cable off of the battery, put the positive lead of the meter on that cable and the negative lead of the meter to the battery and note the reading without turning on any switches. There is a normal trickle draw you will see so you will need to find out what is published for your model and do the math to see if it is too high. If we are assuming it is high then you will need to remove modifications until it drops back to normal and you have located the problem. BTW, if you did not isolate the audio system power amps with a dead kill switch or relay, then that is a good place to start looking for leaks...almost all high power amps are bad for that when their power drivers start going south.
If it's time related and you added security, make sure you set the appropriate settings for sleep and minimal battery draw.
If you wired something incorrectly - especially amps as listed above - you could certainly have an excessive draw when off.
If you wired something incorrectly - especially amps as listed above - you could certainly have an excessive draw when off.
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