Author Topic: Motobatt Failures? (Read 7242 times)

dickturpin · « **on:** 20 December 2015, 12:52:23 pm »

Anyone else had any failures on their Motobatt battery? I'm suspecting mine has failed . Under load the bike won't start. I just get a buzzing noise. It's on charge at the moment on a different charger to see what voltage I can get in it.
Bought in April 13 from Busters so will have done about 10k miles.

nickodemon · « **Reply #1 on:** 20 December 2015, 04:08:38 pm »

I've got a motobatt in mine and it has lasted two winters so far with no issue's. It sounds like yours just needs a good charge and it will work again. The buzzing is your solenoid trying to turn the engine over.

taylor · « **Reply #2 on:** 20 December 2015, 06:23:43 pm »

mine didn't last one winter,

dazza · « **Reply #3 on:** 20 December 2015, 06:31:49 pm »

My local bike shop's workbench has always got a selection of failed Motobatts on it.
Yuasa all the way for me.

dickturpin · « **Reply #4 on:** 20 December 2015, 06:56:42 pm »

Just tried the old battery that was in the bike prior to the Motobatt.... I had kept it on the bench for testing 12v kit..charged it up and bike started....guess that confirms the demise of the Motobatt

nickodemon · « **Reply #5 on:** 20 December 2015, 08:14:14 pm »

Did your motobatt not take a charge? What exact model is it, as fleabay advertises two part no's for the fazer and it's the MBT14B4 that should be fitted NOT the 12 model.

dickturpin · « **Reply #6 on:** 20 December 2015, 08:20:35 pm »

Yes its the 14b4 model....it shows 12.8 v straight off the charger (I realise I should give it half an hour) but just doesn't have any guts under load of starting.

slimwilly · « **Reply #7 on:** 20 December 2015, 08:23:46 pm »

Check all connections,,under loads they could be holding back your ooommmph, lol

nickodemon · « **Reply #8 on:** 20 December 2015, 08:28:24 pm »

Try leaving it on charge for as long as you can, as it might just not have a good enough charge in it. once charged check the reading and recheck an hour or two later. I had a yuasa battery in mine a couple of years ago and it lasted one winter, so i won't buy them again. (they used to be the best batteries, but i think there standards have dropped over the years

)I have an alarm on my bike, which kills the battery. My motobatt has worked perfectly for the last couple of years. Do you have an optimate?

dickturpin · « **Reply #9 on:** 20 December 2015, 08:36:14 pm »

No optimate but it has a trickle setting I can leave it on for 24 hours and see what happens when I put it back on the bike. Seems there is a lot of luck in battery life with differing views on different makes.

darrsi · « **Reply #10 on:** 21 December 2015, 05:30:10 am »

I deal with batteries at work on a daily basis in the film industry.
Old or new, batteries and chargers can go wrong, doesn't matter on make whatsoever, shit happens basically.
I have a feeling mine's a Motobatt which i've had a few years now and i was off work last year for 3 months without using the bike and it started straight away when i needed it to.
You need to phone them up and ask what the warranty is on batteries, as in my opinion they are a very good brand.
I'll ask the electronics fella at work if he knows general warranty periods as well in a few hours and let you know.

What amp charger are you using on it too, be very careful if you mention charging it off the bike because if you've used a charger that's got too much ampage they could use that as leverage to point the finger at you for possibly damaging it.

dickturpin · « **Reply #11 on:** 21 December 2015, 08:32:00 am »

When I checked last night I had 12.88 v in the Motobatt and 12.94 in the old battery.
Appreciate the comments about warranty but my contract is with suppliers not Motobatt direct...unless they offered any goodwill.
Battery always charged on 'bike' setting on charger.

dickturpin · « **Reply #12 on:** 21 December 2015, 12:39:59 pm »

So the motobatt had dropped to 11.4v overnight but the old battery had only dropped to 12.4 v

darrsi · « **Reply #13 on:** 21 December 2015, 01:41:31 pm »

Unfortunately the fella at work who mainly deals with our batteries is off work now, sorry fella.

Just read elsewhere though that MotoBatt warranty their batteries for 2 years!

Grahamm · « **Reply #14 on:** 21 December 2015, 02:10:54 pm »

Take it to a friendly garage and get them to put a Load Tester on it.

I had a brand new one that was duff from the word go. Took a charge, seemed to be ok, but had repeated issues with the bike being difficult to start, it turned out that one of the cells was duff, so the Volts were fine, but not enough Amps.

darrsi · « **Reply #15 on:** 23 December 2015, 08:55:17 am »

I did get to talk to the person who deals with our batteries at work and he said that a standard warranty would be at least one year, but for more expensive ones they could give you two years, which is what I read about MotoBatt items.
Without me even mentioning it though, he did also say that it would be a factor on what you used to charge it with, which is what I said before about using a charger that is too extreme for a smaller battery.
Even though they will charge it quicker, and then cut off when done, it will decrease the battery life over time much quicker than normal.
I've said on here before, if a bike is used regularly then it is more than enough to keep a battery in good condition, even more so if a bike is garaged overnight.
Main problems occur with bike batteries when they are not used regularly, or are constantly left outside in very low temperatures during winter, which is totally understandable.
Other culprits that can add to problems tend to be alarms, or even other items that are wired straight to the battery and don't get turned off when finished with.

dickturpin · « **Reply #16 on:** 23 December 2015, 06:57:50 pm »

Thank you Darrsi
The bike is garaged but gets infrequent use at this time of year. No alarm, just a couple of power sockets left wired to the battery but no appliances in those sockets.
I have contacted Motobatt following the start of this thread...interested to see their response.
Will keep the thread updated.

Merry Christmas everyone!

D

mark g · « **Reply #17 on:** 24 December 2015, 07:14:18 pm »

Whats all the fuss about these Motobatt's anyway? I seem to read just as many bad reports than good $:\$

dickturpin · « **Reply #18 on:** 27 December 2015, 11:57:43 pm »

So this was the response....
Motobatt has a 24 month warranty, if your battery has last you three seasons that is good going, and it's now outside the warranty period.[/size][/color]

Exupnut · « **Reply #19 on:** 28 December 2015, 01:16:34 am »

What a load of bollox

His Dudeness · « **Reply #20 on:** 28 December 2015, 01:41:31 am »

Quote from: Exupnut on 28 December 2015, 01:16:34 am

What a load of bollox

If it's outside the warranty why would they replace it? If you leave any brand bike battery sitting around for long periods especially in cold weather it'll die or if it doesn't totally die it'll be damaged. I don't see it as a moto battery failure.

joebloggs · « **Reply #21 on:** 28 December 2015, 04:10:04 am »

Deep discharge kills batteries.

My alarm on my Eunos killed an expensive one when I parked it up for winter and neglected it, the replacement was the cheapest I could find and has lasted me two years without any issues so far but the car is used daily

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjplP2d1_3JAhVL1RoKHYYrBMkQFggkMAA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tayna.co.uk%2Ftutorials%2Fcaring-for-your-battery&usg=AFQjCNFGEuVVEl2iruqy03aDjh0pHZxOug

darrsi · « **Reply #22 on:** 28 December 2015, 05:26:42 am »

Quote from: Exupnut on 28 December 2015, 01:16:34 am

What a load of bollox

Gotta agree with you, a good looked after/used regularly charged battery will last a lot longer than that.
May not be brilliant, but a good brand will still work fine.

Mobile phone batteries only have a supposed 2 years lifespan, but I bet you don't change it that often?

dickturpin · « **Reply #23 on:** 28 December 2015, 09:43:39 am »

Now don't get me wrong, I fully understand when an article is out of warranty its tough poo and no goodwill is expected but by bringing this failure to the manufacturers attention there is an opportunity for perhaps a kindly offer or contribution. This is the subsequent comment. I leave it to you to decide whether or not you would buy Motobatt in the future....

Motobatt gives an industry leading 24 month warranty on its lead acid batteries.
In reality if a battery is faulty it faults almost right away, but we build extra capacity into our batteries over and above genuine which gives more amp hour capacity for heavy cycling.
A battery is a chemical accumulator and all kinds of things can go on inside of it over a three year period which in theory could shorten it's life.
No manufacturer can warranty that.
Forums can be a curse there is a lot of misinformation out there about batteries, and in particular in motorcycles and the people that use them.
Batteries are just like tyres, they wear out.

D

darrsi · « **Reply #24 on:** 28 December 2015, 11:50:42 am »

Please don't shoot the messenger, but they are actually right in what they're trying to say, although that does admittedly sound a bit of a blunt reply to be honest, but also straight to the point as in not bullshitting you at all.
As was told to me at work, most companies generally only give one years warranty, so the fact MotoBatt gives two years is above the norm anyway, and you've had yours even longer than that.
You've obviously been very unlucky with this particular one, but i genuinely wouldn't let that put you off them, as i do believe they are a decent brand, and you are the first person i've ever heard of to have any issues at all from them.
We get all sorts of electrical items at work that can fail from new, but then we also deal with hundreds of items, rather than just the one off in a blue moon.
It could've gone wrong for any number of reasons, and you'll probably never know which one, but as i've said before "shit happens" so just time to look for a replacement battery i s'pose and pass it off as just being unlucky. $:\$