wickedandlazee Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 Hi all. New to the forum. My girlfriend has just got a dragstar 125 2002 plate. Had to put a new battery on as the old one was dead. However it keeps losing its charge. Have checked the voltage across it and it goes up to 14v when the engine is running which indicates the alternator is charging it. It drops to 12V when the lights are turned on. it lasts about 2-3 days before it discharges to the point where it will not turn the starter. Seems like something is draining the battery. Anyone had this problem before or any ideas where to start? cheers stu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Airhead Posted November 10, 2009 Moderator Share Posted November 10, 2009 Hi all. New to the forum. My girlfriend has just got a dragstar 125 2002 plate. Had to put a new battery on as the old one was dead. However it keeps losing its charge. Have checked the voltage across it and it goes up to 14v when the engine is running which indicates the alternator is charging it. It drops to 12V when the lights are turned on. it lasts about 2-3 days before it discharges to the point where it will not turn the starter. Seems like something is draining the battery. Anyone had this problem before or any ideas where to start? cheers stu Hi Stu and welcome Have you got a multimeter? If so set it to DC Amps, plug in to the 20A socket, disconnect one side of the battery and connect the multimeter in series, leave the switch OFF and the bike shut down as parked. You should see little or no current flow through the meter. If you do then there is leakage to earth. I would start with unplugging the reg / rectifier to see if thats the culprit and take it from there. ...Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wickedandlazee Posted November 12, 2009 Author Share Posted November 12, 2009 Hi Stu and welcome Have you got a multimeter? If so set it to DC Amps, plug in to the 20A socket, disconnect one side of the battery and connect the multimeter in series, leave the switch OFF and the bike shut down as parked. You should see little or no current flow through the meter. If you do then there is leakage to earth. I would start with unplugging the reg / rectifier to see if thats the culprit and take it from there. ...Paul Thanks will check that. I've also heard that the alarm can be the culprit. Several people have said they had to remove it becuase it was draining the battery all the time. However I cannot find how to do this - itsnot in the manual. Can anyone help with this? thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ttaskmaster Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Ah.... you didn't mention the alarm.... It is indeed quite possible that your alarm is fecking with your battery. Mine does. Is it an alarm or an immobiliser? BIG difference. If it's an alarm, you should be able to just trace the wires, cut it out and chuck it away. I'm also guessing that it was an aftermarket/DIY installation and isn't properly earthed. An alarm only does one thing anyway - Alerts you to someone fecking with your bike. Neighbours won't care, but at least you will know. Immobilisers will not stop a pro thief, as they just lift the bike into a van. It just stops someone riding off if they don't have the key. I've known several to fail mid-ride, as well. Get a chain and secure the bike to something immovable. Make sure the chain is well off the ground, so they can't brace bolt-cutters on the floor as leverage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wickedandlazee Posted November 12, 2009 Author Share Posted November 12, 2009 Ah.... you didn't mention the alarm.... It is indeed quite possible that your alarm is fecking with your battery. Mine does. Is it an alarm or an immobiliser? BIG difference. If it's an alarm, you should be able to just trace the wires, cut it out and chuck it away. I'm also guessing that it was an aftermarket/DIY installation and isn't properly earthed. An alarm only does one thing anyway - Alerts you to someone fecking with your bike. Neighbours won't care, but at least you will know. Immobilisers will not stop a pro thief, as they just lift the bike into a van. It just stops someone riding off if they don't have the key. I've known several to fail mid-ride, as well. Get a chain and secure the bike to something immovable. Make sure the chain is well off the ground, so they can't brace bolt-cutters on the floor as leverage. [/quote It is an immobilise - tried pulling the lead out and nothing would work. I'm old it was a factory fitted one but canna be sure. Might be a bit more complicated removing it than i first thought lol someone told me there might be a jumper lead somewhere where it ties into the main wiring loom and that i could rmeove it there Might be easier taking it in somewhere first. Think i will check the earths before i get involved in that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ttaskmaster Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 OK, Immob is a big difference. Realistically, it's best to get it checked and/or uninstalled by a pro. But you're doing well by checking earthing and so on first. Always check and replace the cheapest parts first!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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