2008 GSA Battery?

LHutchin

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Hi

Need to get a new battery for my 2008 GSA

Two options at Halfords:

1. Yuasa YTX14-BS Powersport Motorcycle Battery

Or

2. Yuasa YTX14H-BS 12V High Performance Maintenance Free VRLA Battery

The second one is a bit more expensive

Can anyone advise which is the best one to got for?
Is the second one worth the extra?

Thanks :thumb2
 
Without a doubt odyssey battery's are the way to go bit of a faff getting it to fit but
Great cranking power :thumb2
 
The 200CCA Odyssey costs £110 and weighs more than 5 Kg It's a glass mat lead acid. but still the same old tech.

The 240 CCA Lithium by JMT costs £65 and weighs 0.85Kg. The usable high current engine start output is the same for both batteries.

Both start the bike, but one of them can be left unused for moths without any damage. Charge loss is 10% over 2 months. Leave any lead acid like that and it will be dead when you need it.

If you park the bike outside and need it to start on very cold mornings then the Odyssey might be better but you will only get one chance. If it can't start the bike first try is almost certainly wont manage a second try. Lithiums need to self warm before they'll start the engine. They need two or three failed starts to warm the battery then they'll do the job just fine.
 
Yuasa high performance is what I went for 2 years ago. Still fine, as you'd expect. Reccomended. There's a reason they are fitted as standard to those reliable Jap bikes.

Sent from my LG-K350 using Tapatalk
 
I don’t have power to the garage and bike has periods of disuse.
The Odyssey was doing ok but starting was getting erratic.
Lithium was slow this morning but engine fired as normal. 2nd attempt (just to see what happened) flung the engine over.
it wasn’t cold so will have to check for a current leak.
 
Bendy toy said:
I don’t have power to the garage and bike has periods of disuse.
The Odyssey was doing ok but starting was getting erratic.
Lithium was slow this morning but engine fired as normal. 2nd attempt (just to see what happened) flung the engine over.
it wasn’t cold so will have to check for a current leak.
Click to expand...

I thought that was the nature of lithiums, seems the temp must have had an effect on it if the second try was an improvement
 
Good point
It needs investigating but temp was only about 10 degrees. Not really cold tbh.
Tonight after rain all afternoon the bike started normally. Temp was 15 degs.
 
Must admit the Lithium sounds to have some very useful properties but, do i really want a battery on my bike that
doesn't like the cold and needs to warm up before it'll start the engine? Not really. When i push the button i want it to
start the engine which my Motobatt has done for years now without a hitch. :thumb2

I do know that now i have said that, it's going to fail very soon :blast
 
UturnTony said:
Must admit the Lithium sounds to have some very useful properties but, do i really want a battery on my bike that
doesn't like the cold and needs to warm up before it'll start the engine? Not really. When i push the button i want it to
start the engine which my Motobatt has done for years now without a hitch. :thumb2

I do know that now i have said that, it's going to fail very soon :blast
Click to expand...

TBH that's missing the point.

There are very few situations where lithium disadvantages show up. Very cold starts are one but how often do we use a bike in sub zero temperatures? Even for those who do, the battery will start the bike but will take two or three non starts to warm the battery. That is normal and the bike will start. That's under conditions where a worn lead acid would struggle and when they do, you have one chance, then its game over.

If you have power to the garage and are happy to plug in the Optimate every time or you use the bike every day then a Motobatt is adequate. If you have periods of disuse and/or no power to the garage a lithium makes more sense.

For most users, lithium advantages will outweigh the disadvantages and they are now the same price as a half decent lead acid.
 
I do have a workshop with power and i do have an optimate to use which, i rarely do; I will leave my bike unused on occasion
for 3 weeks even a month or so and still the Motobatt is good to go and in fact it has been on the high seas
going to and returning from the USA for 6 weeks at a time plus standing around in storage waiting and still it starts.
Don't get me wrong, i do see merit in the Lithium batteries.
 
£50 to buy dressed up 19th Century technology. Or £65 for lightweight current (sic) technology.
No competition IMO.
But I hate fuel injection, ABS and electronics. Next week I’m ripping it all out and fitting some big fat Bings.
 
Hi All- I'm just picking up a 1200gsa 2007 next week and will be using it for a month before not using it for another two months over Dec and Jan as out the country. Am I better to fit a lithium battery to power alarm or use a motobatt?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
:blast Right, done with batteries for now, i'm off to read some ride reports on Eastern europe.

Over to you to answer that one Bendy :thumb2 :D
 
dbreaks said:
Hi All- I'm just picking up a 1200gsa 2007 next week and will be using it for a month before not using it for another two months over Dec and Jan as out the country. Am I better to fit a lithium battery to power alarm or use a motobatt?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

You need to know the alarm power drain.
The Motobat has a charge capacity of 14AH but can only deliver 30% (around 4 AH) with any useful power. It will give up its 14 AH at very low current which will easily drive the alarm.
However if the alarm completely flattens the battery it will be a dead brick by the time you get home. Also if the alarm uses a substantial chunk of the overall charge it might not have enough oomph to drive the siren if it’s triggered.

The lithium has “only” 4AH which in normal use is the same as the Motobatt. However it will not last as long at very low current. As with lead acids very low volts at no load will kill the battery. But bike battery lithiums have inbuilt circuits to stop their voltage going too low or too high. Both extremes are death to lithium.

If you have power to the garage a Motobatt with Optimate is likely to be the best option. Optimates will kill a lithium. You can then keep the alarm happy indefinitely.

Personally I think alarms are a waste of time. People ignore the noise and thieves with a van will just have it away complete with noise.
 
No techy knowledge on batteries but I replaced the original with a Motobatt on my 08 GS two years ago. It's parked in a lock-up with no power and left for sometimes months and always starts on the button. I've had several Motobatt batteries on various bikes and they've always been reliable.
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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