The bike struggles to start? The scooter does not turn on? The starter is spinning, but the engine is not starting? Or, even, the starter does not even turn? Probably the fault lies with the battery, which needs to be replaced. Let's see how to change the battery to the bike and which one to choose.
Battery to be replaced? Here are the symptoms!
It may happen that, after a few days of downtime, the bike struggles to leave. The starter turns less vigorously, or you can see the dashboard turn on and off continuously.
In other cases, the instrument panel does not even turn on and the starter does not turn.
In these situations, most likely the battery needs to be recharged or replaced. Continuing reading, you will find out how to change the battery to the bike and which one to choose.
Attempt to recharge the battery
The first step that I recommend to take, before replacing the battery, is to recharge it at least throughout the night.
Some batteries have unscrewable caps. Paying attention, and wearing chemical resistant protective gloves, you can check that the level of sulfuric acid is higher than the cell plates. In case the acid level of one or more elements is lower than the plates, it must be topped up with distilled water. This operation must be carried out before recharging the battery. To top up the battery, I recommend removing it from the housing compartment and removing it from the bike or scooter.
If the battery is in order, via a battery charger, you can set the charge by connecting the red and black terminals, respectively, to the positive and negative terminals of the battery. The red cable identifies the positive of the charger and must be connected to the + of the battery. The black at -.
Charging the battery can also be done with the battery in its housing, without disconnecting the red and black cables of the motorcycle. Lead-acid batteries must be recharged in a ventilated environment, as they can emit explosive gases (hydrogen) during recharge. Never use lighters, smoke, solder, emit flames and fire alongside a recharging lead battery!
If we are lucky, after charging, the battery will last a few more months.
It may happen that the charger does not detect the presence of the battery and, therefore, does not start charging. In this case, the tester will confirm that the battery voltage has dropped too much compared to its nominal value. The battery got damaged. Even on a battery (12V) discharged, you should still measure a voltage of at least 10.8 Volts. Below this voltage value, the battery may have damaged itself.
Choosing the battery for the motorcycle / scooter: compatibility and technical characteristics
If you are reading this paragraph, your battery has probably not recharged. The charging attempt failed:
- because the charger has not started the charging phase;
- the battery has not recharged enough to start the bike or scooter;
- even if it recharged, the battery did not last even a week!
In questi casi, la batteria deve essere sostituita. L'operazione può sicuramente essere effettuata dal meccanico o elettrauto di fiducia, che provvederà ad effettuare un lavoro a regola d'arte.
Se, però, avete un po' di capacità tecniche, può anche valere la pena tentare di sostituire la batteria da soli. Prima di vedere passo passo come cambiare la batteria alla moto, impariamo a sceglierla.
The choice of battery may not be easy, because there are many models, with different characteristics.
The first choice, of course, must be about compatibility with the motorcycle / scooter. The model of the battery to be purchased must be compatible with the one to be replaced, in terms of: Tensione (V - Volt), capacity (ah - ampre*hour), in-turn current (Ampere) and size.
The Nominal tension it must be identical: for example on a 12V system, you can not put a 6V battery and vice versa. the capacity of the new battery can be equivalent, but also greater than that of the old battery. The same goes for the inrush current, which can also be equal to or greater.
Relative to size, it is obvious that the new battery will have to be identical to the previous one or, at least, smaller, in order to enter the housing compartment.
This evaluation can be made by the shopkeeper (or by the e-Commerce site), indicating the make and model of the motorcycle. However, I recommend to personally check if the technical data of the battery are compatible with your motorcycle or your scooter.
Which battery for motorcycles / scooters to choose? Lead, Gel, Lithium-Ion, LiFePO4?
In addition to the technical data of the battery, you will also have to choose the type of battery to buy. On the market there are batteries with different construction technologies.
You can choose a normal one lead battery - acid. Esistono con e senza manutenzione. Possono essere fornite con elettrolita a parte oppure già pronte e cariche. Quando si effettua l'acquisto, bisogna controllare se, a corredo della batteria, vengono anche forniti dei flaconcini di acido. Qualora la lead acid battery was supplied with the bottles of acid solforico a parte, prima di montarla nella moto, l'acido dovrà essere versato nelle celle della batteria. Attenzione! Follow the instructions accompanying the battery and use gloves and goggles.
Dopo aver versato l'acido nella batteria, bisognerà attendere qualche ora prima di procedere al montaggio della batteria. Il tempo varia tra batteria e batteria. Normalmente, durante il tempo di attesa, si sente l'acido sfrigolare, friggere, bollire all'interno delle celle.
The maintenance-free lead-acid batteries sono già fornite cariche e pronte da utilizzare. Dopo l'acquisto, è possibile montarle direttamente nella moto (o nello scooter), seguendo le istruzioni presenti nel paragrafo successivo.
If your budget allows, you can buy a lead gel battery. Compared to traditional lead-acid batteries, they have a lower self-discharge: they manage, that is, to maintain the charge during periods of inactivity of the motorcycle. They can also be installed upside down, without fear that the electrolyte liquid will escape from the battery (not that it is necessary, mind you). During the recharge phase, they do not emit explosive vapors (hydrogen).
Finally, the lithium batteries sono molto più compatte e leggere rispetto a quelle al piombo/acido e al piombo/gel. Il ciclo di vita delle batterie al litio è molto più duraturo, anche quattro volte maggiore rispetto a quelle al piombo. Possono essere installate capovolte, data l'assenza di liquido elettrolita. Le batterie al litio, rispetto a quelle al piombo tradizionali, hanno una minore autoscarica: mantengono la carica durante i periodi di inattività della motocicletta o dello scooter. Possono essere dotate di LED per visualizzarne lo stato di carica. Come controindicazione, sono molto più costose rispetto a quelle al piombo.
Deepening the technology of lithium batteries, there are several types. The most common are:
- Lithium Ion (Li-Ion, LiCo or LiCoO2), is the first technology born, in chronological order. The rated voltage of lithium-ion batteries is slightly higher than that of lead-acid batteries. If a lead-acid battery, charged, reaches 12.6V, an ion battery reaches 14.8V. A lead-acid battery is considered discharged at 10.8V. The lithium-ion one is already discharged at 12.6V. This technology is less secure than the later LiFePO4 and I'm not particularly excited about it.
- LiFePO4 (lithium-iron-phosphate or LFP), more reliable, stable and safe, with a rated voltage comparable to lead-acid batteries.
With regard to the charge of lithium batteries, you can use a normal charger but without desulfation function. E' comunque raccomandato l'acquisto di un caricabatterie dedicato. Le batterie al litio supportano la funzione di ricarica rapida. Durante la fase di ricarica, le batterie al litio non emettono vapori esplosivi.
Dopo tutte queste considerazioni, ho deciso di acquistare una batteria Unibat Ready, al piombo/acido senza manutenzione, molto economica, fornita già carica. Oltretutto, la batteria era anche in offerta! Non ho necessità di inserire l'acido manualmente nelle celle della batteria, il che è un grande vantaggio. Inoltre, ho speso circa un terzo rispetto ad una batteria al litio. Queste, ovviamente, sono solo considerazioni personali.
How to replace the battery of the motorcycle and scooter
Finalmente siamo arrivati nel vivo del discorso! Vediamo, passo dopo passo, come cambiare la batteria alla moto o allo scooter. La moto dell'esempio è una Yamaha XJ6 Diversion.
Identify where the battery is located. The battery can be located in the undersealing compartment, in the central tunnel or behind the front crankcases. Mine is located in the undersealing compartment.
Release the battery. The battery of the bike, in my case (Yamaha XJ6 Diversion), is fixed via a rubber belt.
Togliete eventuali carter di protezione e scollegate i cavi dell'impianto elettrico. To disconnect the cables, you have to unscrew the screws that keep them fixed at the battery poles. Use a screwdriver or a key. Normally, the mass cable is disconnected first (the negative, the black one, also identified with the symbol -).
La batteria può trovarsi avvolta all'interno di una protezione contro il calore. Per sostituire la batteria della moto o dello scooter, fate ordine tra i cavi in modo da poterla sfilare agevolmente.
At this point, you can remove the battery from the compartment. Non bisogna sforzare: se la batteria non si muove, evidentemente c'è qualche fermo o supporto da svitare. Tenete comunque presente il peso di una batteria: se è al piombo, può pesare anche 5Kg. Regolate opportunamente la vostra forza per estrarla.
Unless the new battery is identical to the old one, most likely the screws and the fixing pins of the cables are different. The new battery must be equipped with its own kit of nuts and screws for fixing the cables.
Before changing the battery to the bike or scooter with the new one, I recommend checking, through a multimeter, the voltage of the battery just purchased. It must be higher than 12.6V (in case of lead-acid battery). Do this to avoid mounting an already low or defective battery.
Insert the new battery into the heat protection. Se la batteria ha una dimensione identica alla precedente, non avrete alcun problema. Se, invece, si è scelta una batteria al litio, normalmente viene fornita con un kit di distanziatori modulari, in modo da ottenere l'altezza della vecchia batteria.
Mount the screws and nuts for the cables, without tightening them. In the photo you can also see the difference between the old screw to tighten the battery cables and the new ones, already mounted (they are only pointed, not tight).
House the new battery in the compartment. Obviously, mount the battery with the same orientation as the previous one, so as to have the poles (positive and negative) in correspondence with the correct cables.
Se ne avete a disposizione, spruzzate un po' di disossidante sui poli della batteria e sui cavi della motocicletta (o dello scooter). In questo modo, garantiremo l'assenza di ossido ed una migliore conducibilità della corrente elettrica.
Starting from positive pole of the battery, indicated by the symbol +, screw in the red cable.
After that, you can also screw the black cable to the Negative pole (contrassegnato con il simbolo - ) della batteria. Può essere necessario svitare la vite, per inserire l'occhiello del cavo elettrico. In tal caso, prestare attenzione a non far cadere il dado. E' anche possibile aiutarsi con un secondo cacciavite, per tenere il dado in posizione mentre si punta la vite di serraggio dei cavi. Attenzione! La batteria è carica e c'è tensione! If the screwdriver touches the positive pole of the battery (with the negative already connected), it should not touch any metal part of the motorcycle! Do not combine the positive pole with the negative pole of the battery!
Screws can also be screwed in via a wrench. When tightening the screw, be careful not to apply too much force, otherwise the screw can spread. Attenzione! Ricordo che la batteria è carica e c'è tensione! If the screwdriver touches the positive pole of the battery (with the negative already connected), it should not touch any metal part of the motorcycle! Do not combine the positive pole with the negative pole of the battery!
Ci siamo quasi! Siamo quasi arrivati alla fine del tutorial "come cambiare la batteria alla moto"! Mancano solo due operazioni: montiamo il carter di protezione della batteria, stando attenti a sfruttare i passaggi corretti dei cavi elettrici.
Finally, fix the new battery. In my case, I had to pull and tighten the rubber belt.
Before closing the saddle, check that the cables pass in the appropriate positions and that they do not interfere with the size of the saddle. Check well that you have tightened the cable clamping screws well.
Also try to turn on the bike or scooter, in order to verify the correct operation of the new battery. Visually, you can check that the new battery does not emit smoke, odors, and that there are no parts that heat up.
At this point, you can close the saddle (or the protective casings)!
And here, we finished the work and also the tutorial on how to change the battery to the bike and scooter. From time to time, especially if the bike is not used for long periods, it is good to recharge the battery with an appropriate battery charger for motorcycles. If you have purchased a lithium battery, I suggest using a dedicated charger.
Disposal of the exhausted battery
Last recommendation: the exhausted battery must be taken to the collection center (discarica), riponendola nell'apposito cassonetto! Le batterie, infatti, contengono acido e metalli pericolosi per l'ambiente e devono essere smaltite correttamente.
Almost 8 months after the battery was replaced, everything is still working correctly. The new battery allows the bike to start immediately, even after long breaks (without charger or maintainer).
Ottimo! A distanza di 2 anni dall'installazione della batteria, tutto funziona perfettamente!
The battery is still operational, after 4 years.