Battery not charging

[Thomas]

I have a venture 2004 50,000 miles when I run my bike my lights radio everything works just fine but after a while my battery runs all the way down I replace the battery twice and I'm still having the same problem it's like my battery is not taking a charge from the bike I wire brush the terminals and the connections are good and the fuses is good .Can anybody please help me with this problem.

[Kybigmac]

Have you checked the charging system to see what voltage it's putting out? I have a voltage gauge that hooks to the battery tender pig tail that I put on the bike,but you can also do it with a voltmeter. It should be charging somewhere between 13.5 and 14.1. Do a search about charging systems on this site,there should be a tremendous amount of information! Good luck with your problem.

[bongobobny]

Yup, very good likelihood that your charging system has taken a dump! As mentioned in the above thread, if you have any electrical aptitude at all you can check out the Stator and the R/R for proper operation. If you are afraid of electricity, maybe there is a member close to you that can help...

[gggGary]

Since this sounds like 101 stuff. Does that battery go down while you are riding it or only when parked? I got caught a couple of times because the RSV ignition switch is off | acc | on. If you turn the key off just one position to the left it, shuts off the bike but continues to power the radio, cb etc., there are no dash lights lit so it's easy to walk away and come back to a dead battery. I added an LED to the fairing so I know the key is still in accessory position. Serves as a reminder when I am charging a helmet or phone at the campground. The LED is kind of bright and lit in both ACC and On position. I think I can move the (LED ground) to a lighting circuit so it will only light in ACC position. I will mess with that the next time I pull the fairing (new steering bearings are here).

[Thomas]

Since this sounds like 101 stuff. Does that battery go down while you are riding it or only when parked? I got caught a couple of times because the RSV ignition switch is off | acc | on. If you turn the key off just one position to the left it, shuts off the bike but continues to power the radio, cb etc., there are no dash lights lit so it's easy to walk away and come back to a dead battery. I added an LED to the fairing so I know the key is still in accessory position. Serves as a reminder when I am charging a helmet or phone at the campground. The LED is kind of bright and lit in both ACC and On position. I think I can move the (LED ground) to a lighting circuit so it will only light in ACC position. I will mess with that the next time I pull the fairing (new steering bearings are here).

 

 

It only runs down when I'm riding it I can let it set for a week after charging the battery and it will start right up. If I ride it for like 50 miles it will run the battery all the way down tell there's nothing left in the battery .

[bongobobny]

YUP!!!!! Once again, with feeling, your charging system has taken a dump!!!!!

[camos]

It only runs down when I'm riding it I can let it set for a week after charging the battery and it will start right up. If I ride it for like 50 miles it will run the battery all the way down tell there's nothing left in the battery .

Find the stator flat connector with 3 white wires on the left side. The voltage between each of the 3 pins should read at least 55-60 VAC and could be up to 100 VAC. The important thing is they should all be relatively the same within that range. If the stator voltage looks OK then the problem will be with the R/R... or between the R/R and the battery.

[Thomas]

Find the stator flat connector with 3 white wires on the left side. The voltage between each of the 3 pins should read at least 55-60 VAC and could be up to 100 VAC. The important thing is they should all be relatively the same within that range. If the stator voltage looks OK then the problem will be with the R/R... or between the R/R and the battery.

 

 

I appreciate the info and I'm going to check the voltage thanks again your information is very useful .

[bongobobny]

OK on the second generation Venture that white connector he is referring to is under the seat behind the fake battery covers just about in the middle, and is a slight pain to get to as you need to remove the radiator overflow bottle (surge tank) and possibly the fuel pump sub assembly, but that connector is sometimes where the problem lies with corrosion or even melting. Sooo, to make life easier for you, start with the connector for the Regulator/rectifier which is located behind the front part of the lower fairing on the right side, and disconnect it. There are five pins on that connector, three the same color that come from the stator all the same color, and two that go to the battery which are red, and black. For the 3 stator wires, first take an ohmmeter and check each pin to ground. You should have infinity ohms. If you find a low resistance to ground your stator has one or more windings shorted to ground.

 

OK next thing is, in your mind label the three wires as 1, 2, and 3 or A, B, and C. Now you are going to read the resistance between all three combinations of wires, 1 to 2, 1 to 3, and 2 to 3, or if you used letters, a to b, a to c, and b to c. These 3 resistance readings should be roughly the same readings, say within 2% of each other. If not, one of your 3 stator windings is most likely partially shorted, a common failure.

 

OK if the readings seem to be OK now is the time to dynamically test these 3 windings for proper AC voltage out. Start the bike and at idle you should see a somewhat low AC voltage of around 20 volts AC (not DC) give or take for each combination of wires described in the previous paragraph. These 3 voltages should be close just like the resistance readings were. AS you rev up the engine the voltage should get higher with more RPM's to say 100 volts or more at higher RPM's. The higher the RPM's the higher the AC voltage, and all 3 windings should be approximately equal.

 

OK if all your AC voltage readings are OK, the likely culprit is your R/R, a common failure point for the 2nd gens! If your AC voltages are OK shut the bike off, reconnect the connector (look for any corrosion or melting of the connector), and restart your bike. With your meter on DC volts, measure across the battery. At idle you should see around 13.0 volts, maybe a little less, and as you rev the bike up, the DC voltage should rise to closer to 14 volts or so. If the voltage does not go up, and in some cases goes down instead, your R/R is defective and needs changing.

 

Now, say your readings for resistance or voltage was not good. Well, NOW would be the time to locate that 3 wire connector that comes from the stator and goes into the wiring harness!! Disconnect the connector and repeat the tests I described for the stator wires on the R/R connector. You want the connector that leads towards the stator, not the connector that leads to the main harness. Chances are likely you should see the same results that you did at the R/R, meaning it's time for a new stator. If the tests were good at the connector but not at the R/R chances are you have an issue with the connector. Unlike Gold Wings, the stator is replaced while the engine is still in the bike...

 

Hope this helps you out! Although the stator, and the R/R is different from 1st gen Ventures and 2nd Gen Ventures, they still work the same and are tested the same!

[RoyalRider05]

Stator....i just did mine last summer with around 60,000 miles. Bought one from Ricks Motorsport! Has worked fine every since

[camos]

OK next thing is, in your mind label the three wires as 1, 2, and 3 or A, B, and C. Now you are going to read the resistance between all three combinations of wires, 1 to 2, 1 to 3, and 2 to 3, or if you used letters, a to b, a to c, and b to c. These 3 resistance readings should be roughly the same readings, say within 2% of each other. If not, one of your 3 stator windings is most likely partially shorted, a common failure.

What you have said is absolutely correct but IMHO testing the resistance is a waste of time. If the AC voltage does not come out in the correct range then there is a problem with the windings, no resistance reading required.

 

A voltage of 50-60 VAC will still give enough voltage at the battery to operate and charge adequately but should be considered a heads-up to find a new stator so you will have one on hand when it goes tits-up.

[bongobobny]

Ummmm, going to humbly disagree with you on this one Camos, resistance readings take maybe about 30 seconds tops (OK maybe a minute and a half if you drop the probe or something) to do and if the resistance readings are bad then you already will know the stator is bad without even having to start the bike...

[bongobobny]

OK just a little more added info for someone who may be reading this, just because the resistance readings are good does not necessarily mean the stator is good. The stator winding is just a plain piece of wire that has varnish only as an insulator and is wound up in a coil configuration, actually several coils make up one total winding. A simple ohmmeter only applies a few volts to the wire to measure it. If the varnish was weak this small voltage may not break down the varnish. Also an ohmmeter applies DC or direct current to the wire. Now DC travels down the whole area of the wire. AC voltage, on the other hand does a thing called "skin effect" as it travels down the wire, the electron "movement" tends to travel along the circumference of the wire. In case you don't know our charging system is just like an alternator, it generates AC voltage, not DC. As stated the higher the RPM's the higher the EMF (voltage), and also the higher the frequency of the AC voltage. Now the combination of higher voltage and higher frequency coupled with skin effect can cause the varnish insulation to break down even though it did not break down with the low level DC applied when reading resistance.

 

Now this condition does not happen that often, generally if the insulation breaks down it becomes a permanent failure and will show up as an abnormal resistance reading. What I am driving at is if your resistance checks are OK do not assume that there is nothing wrong with the stator, do an output voltage reading anyway. Also it is always important to check each wire to ground as a winding may be shorted to ground somewhere along the winding, but the total resistance of the winding may very well test OK!

[camos]

Now this condition does not happen that often, generally if the insulation breaks down it becomes a permanent failure and will show up as an abnormal resistance reading. What I am driving at is if your resistance checks are OK do not assume that there is nothing wrong with the stator, do an output voltage reading anyway. Also it is always important to check each wire to ground as a winding may be shorted to ground somewhere along the winding, but the total resistance of the winding may very well test OK!

Right, since the resistance reading may be inconclusive why bother with it? The output voltage is the only thing that really matters no matter what the cause. But, as you say, it only take a minute or five to check the resistance.

[bongobobny]

Well, the main reason to "bother" with it is if you have shorted turns or a short to ground you will know right away without even having to start and rev the bike...

[jolkives]

I have a problem sorta related to this post. While my bike sits for a few days, the battery will go dead. When riding, charges fine. Just when parked in the garage for a few days. Even with a battery tender on it, it will go dead. Any ideas?

[videoarizona]

I have a problem sorta related to this post. While my bike sits for a few days, the battery will go dead. When riding, charges fine. Just when parked in the garage for a few days. Even with a battery tender on it, it will go dead. Any ideas?

 

 

My guess is either a weak or dying cell in the battery or you have something drawing battery juice while the bike is resting....assuming all connections are clean on battery.

[jolkives]

The battery is new. How would I check to see if something is drawing power while the bike is parked, everything is off, key is out of ignition?

[gggGary]

New does not guarantee good........

Disconnect one battery terminal charge, check voltage about 1/2 hour after it is fully charged it should read about 12.7 12.8 volts, check again once daily. it should drop to no less than about 12.6 volts. Meters aren't always super accurate. check you car battery after it's been sitting for at least an hour. it should also read about 12.8 volts no big deal if you meter is off the MC battery should match the healthy car battery voltage.

If you bought a gel cell battery the voltage readings should be about .1 higher.

[videoarizona]

The battery is new. How would I check to see if something is drawing power while the bike is parked, everything is off, key is out of ignition?

 

Take battery to Autozone and have them do a load test. If it passes, battery probably good.

 

To test for current, set your meter to the "DC amp" mode. You may have to plug the positive meter lead into another terminal to read amps.

Disconnect positive lead from battery. Should be no spark at all. From a test site:

 

Connect the Positive Multimeter Lead to the Battery Positive terminal. Make sure the Positive Lead you removed from the battery does not touch anything grounded, like the Bike frame etc…. Connect the Negative Lead from the Multimeter to the Positive Lead you removed from the Battery. You should now see current drain measured in Amps. Move to the lower Amp setting on your multimeter if the current is lower than the setting on the Multimeter Low setting. Start to unplug the wires or fuses around your bike and see if the current reading goes to zero. This will point you in the direction of the current thief. You can convert to Power measured in Watts by multiplying it by the Battery Voltage. Power = Volts x Amps 4.2Watts or (12Volts x 0.35Amps).

 

If there is current draw with key off, there is a parasitic draw somewhere in the electrical system drawing more current than normal. The only current you should see is a teeny amount to keep the Odometer and clock memory.

[camos]

A quick way to narrow down to a battery problem or a leak somewhere is to disconnect the battery then give it a full charge. When you come back later if the battery voltage has dropped below 12 v then there is probably a problem with the cells in the battery. If the charge has not dropped then there is a leak somewhere in the wiring system.

[snyper316]

I don't know about this but I been haven battery problems since I put the new radio in my bike, not sure if possible but I did volt check with radio on and in acc position. I would have 12.5 volts with key off but with radio on it would drop to 11.3 volts and when I crank the radio up it would drop to 10.8-11.2 volts. But with the memory wire pulled and the fuse pulled I am seeing 12.8 volts in the Elcheapo battery. Would any of that be normal.

 

Sent from my LG-K371 using Tapatalk

[bongobobny]

I don't know about this but I been haven battery problems since I put the new radio in my bike, not sure if possible but I did volt check with radio on and in acc position. I would have 12.5 volts with key off but with radio on it would drop to 11.3 volts and when I crank the radio up it would drop to 10.8-11.2 volts. But with the memory wire pulled and the fuse pulled I am seeing 12.8 volts in the Elcheapo battery. Would any of that be normal.

 

Sent from my LG-K371 using Tapatalk

Well, that is the main reason for load testing a battery! At no load a weak battery certainly can read a nice 12.8 volts but as soon as any kind of load is put on it the voltage will take a nose dive. Auto Zone along with several other places will load test your battery for free...

[snyper316]

I haven't a clue how this post is showing new but.... Took my battery to autozone and oreily the both told me battery is fine. I just don't see how when even fully charged I get no sparks. Now I charged battery to full it get to 12.9 to 13.1 as soon as I turn the key on it nose dives within a minute to 9.6 volts. Unplugged the head light fuse charged the battery to full hit the key within 1 minute it nosed dived to 10.2 volts. So I have very good reason to believe my battery is toast. When I hit the starter it dived to 6.8 volts.

 

Living life one curve after the other. Vroom scooting, thru the countryside.

[Flyinfool]

You may have run into individuals in the stores that did not know how to test a battery.