Ducati Monster Forum

...or "when will it ever die?"
My lil Monster has just a tick under 50K miles on it now. I have had this bike since 4/1/04 and have never changed the fecking battery. It just won't die. [beer]

mine too is stock from 04. Always on battery tender and still keeps its charge and running strong.

You guys know you just doomed yourself to imminent battery failure, yes?

its only been 7 years. I have heard other owners with same stock battery lasting over 10 years.

 ;D

why I remember it as if it were yesterday..........


(July 17th 2004)
 IZ_     " I can't believe my luck..... I've never picked up a nail. I'm one lucky SOB. Todays the day I take a photography class.... I can't wait."

Well, yeah, there's tempting fate... and walking up and poking her in the eye.

My TL1000S's oem battery lasted a decade and ~50k miles.  I replaced it when it got a bit slow to crank in sub 20 deg F temps, otherwise it was just dandy.  If the bike were only used in above-freezing weather you'd never have known the battery wasn't tip top.

+1 [thumbsup] Just ordered another Battery Tender today. The one I use on my lawn tractor at my farm died yesterday. It was weird. Just un-hooked the terminal clamps and set in on the floor of my barn because I was going to mow. ZAP!!! Sparks flew out of it and the air filled with electric short smoke. Never had that happen before. It was probably 5+ years old but I have older ones on my bikes. Still doesn't shake my faith in BTs. [thumbsup] One of my bikes is a 2004 Gixxer 1000. Still has the original battery and it has lived on a BT since day one. I expect it to die at any moment but I'm keeping it in the bike as an experiment. It currently has my personal bike battery longevity record. Long live Battery Tenders. [beer]

Can it hurt to change it out...? Probably not.

Two Reasons
-You can clean up/check for any corrosion.
-No reason to stress the starter/electronics the battery can still be weak even if it does start the bike.

Fate is female. I keep forgetting that... but it explains SO much.

(original battery in my 24k '06, never Tendered)

Original Yuasa battery from July of 2004 still going strong. [Dolph]

50k, but you have probably had long trips.

my bike had 24k on it when the batt died, but i probably started her about 10 times a day  atleast 4 days a week and never tendered it. just depends on how you abuse it.

I just replaced the original battery on my '02, so 10+ish years.  It was kept on a battery tender religiously though...

8 years and >70k miles from the Yuasa in my '04 Bandit.   :)

I get about 3 to 4 years out of a battery on average, which equates to about 35K to 45K miles.  Historically, I've not used battery tenders; I've just ridden it every day, which keeps the charge decent.  Since I've been in actual seasons the last couple of winters, I got a tender to hold it up when I can't ride it (and to help make sure it's as charged as it can be when I can ride it, but it's 30ºF out and it doesn't much like that).

A lot of what does in motorcycle batteries is vibration.  So they can last quite a long time if they are kept tended, but don't get ridden a lot.  Likewise, if the bike is smoother it is likely to be easier on a battery and help it last longer even if it does get some real miles under it.

And of course the quality of the battery itself matters.

PhilB

This set-up has been going strong for a while now.....



(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7562751960_8ee8cae2a5_m.jpg)

My stock 02 battery just died this year. I never had to use a battery tender either. I have been through two batteries since!