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2016 NC700x - dead, could it be a bad battery?

melensdad

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I was rearranging my garage bays, wanted to move the bikes to the bay that has our car lift. My wife has not been riding her 2016 NC700x very much (lots of reasons), most of the time her bike is started moved 50 or 100 feet, let run for a few minutes and then turned off.

I put the key in the bike, turned it and NOTHING happened. Totally blank screen. No horn. No light. No nothing.

Could it just be a completely dead battery?
Battery is the original factory battery.

What else do I look for on this bike?
 
Battery would be my first guess. Original from 2016? It's at least 6 years old and as you said hasn't been used much lately.
 
The battery could be dead, although 6 years of age in not too old in my experience. It depends how the battery was cared for throughout it’s life. I proactively replaced my original NC battery at 8 years but it was working fine at the time.

Battery self discharge is highest in warm weather, like this summer has been. Has it been on a battery charger/maintainer?

A voltmeter would be my tool of choice to find out where the problem lies.

BTW, running an engine a few minutes now and then usually does more harm than good. If you need to move the motorcycle, fine, but ideally it would benefit from a 10 mile or more ride.
 
All batteries self discharge over time and bikes that have clocks or other similar low amperage devices draw current all the time which accelerates the discharge of the battery.

Motorcycles not ridden much and operated like described for a few minutes at a time never even get to replace the energy needed to start it and move it 50 feet.

In the long term a battery not maintained at a healthy state of charge undergoes a process where the lead alloy plates inside accumulate a coat of sulphates over weeks and months which reduces the battery’s ability to be fully charged to it’s original capacity when it is finally placed on a charger to revive it. Strikes 1, 2, 3.
 
Yeah, battery. I forget what part of the continent you’re in. Here, 6 years is FAR longer than what a battery will last, outside exceptional cases.

Volt meter will tell quickly.
 
Yeah, battery. I forget what part of the continent you’re in. Here, 6 years is FAR longer than what a battery will last, outside exceptional cases.

Volt meter will tell quickly.
OP resides in similar climate as I do, and 8 years is my average battery life. I agree though, based on anecdotes, that batteries are very short lived in Arizona (and Texas).
 
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I live in the midwest. My bikes are on battery tender jrs whenever they are not being ridden. I unplug one, go for a ride, and plug it back in after the ride before I even take my helmet off. Ive never had a battery last over 5 years. Like I said Im on 4 forums and average battery life by threads I read are 2-3 years in hot climates to 4-5 years in cold climates. You are the first person I've ever heard of that gets 8 years out of motorcycle batteries.
 
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...You are the first person I've ever heard of that gets 8 years out of motorcycle batteries.
I have a 2010 Honda SH150i with an original YUASA battery. Charges the battery every 3 weeks to 1 month.
Despite the fact that the voltage reaches about 12.4V after charging, I have no problems with starting the engine.
 
I live in the midwest. My bikes are on battery tender jrs whenever they are not being ridden. I unplug one, go for a ride, and plug it back in after the ride before I even take my helmet off. Ive never had a battery last over 5 years. Like I said Im on 4 forums and average battery life by threads I read are 2-3 years in hot climates to 4-5 years in cold climates. You are the first person I've ever heard of that gets 8 years out of motorcycle batteries.
It’s not isolated cases. It’s the norm for me. The oldest battery I currently have is the Yuasa in my Ruckus. That battery is almost 7 years old. No problems when I rode the scooter yesterday. 4 other batteries in my vehicle fleet are currently 5 to 5.5 years old. I keep a chart of battery dates for all the machines. I usually replace them at 8 years whether they have failed or not. I replaced my original NC battery at 7 years, 10 months even though it was working fine. I once pulled a Goldwing battery at 8 years old, put it in my riding mower and used it 3 more years.

I believe the secret for me is that most of these batteries are stored at near outdoor temperatures in the winter. Cold is very good for batteries. An army study I read about battery use in cold climates said that below a certain temperature, lead acid battery self discharge goes to zero. A charged battery will not freeze at any natural outdoor temperature I might encounter. Heat kills batteries, as residents of Arizona will often tell you.
 
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Interesting. Ive never myself or anyone I know gotten that kinda life out of a battery.

I just googled "Average life of a motorcycle battery"

"According to Motor Gear Expert, a sealed Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) battery usually lasts from about three to five years. A conventional acid-filled battery has a lifetime of two to five years. "
 
Interesting. Ive never myself or anyone I know gotten that kinda life out of a battery.

I just googled "Average life of a motorcycle battery"

"According to Motor Gear Expert, a sealed Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) battery usually lasts from about three to five years. A conventional acid-filled battery has a lifetime of two to five years. "
Whatever. My batteries’ average life is not part of that Googled data as I never answered a survey about battery life. I guess I’m just a lucky guy with consistently long life batteries. It’s a good thing they last awhile. I currently have 19 vehicle/boat/RV/yard equipment/generator batteries in service at the moment. Count the fancy battery pack in the Zero motorcycle and that makes 20.

I wonder how many people shorten their batteries’ lives by bringing them into a warm environment for winter storage.
 
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Battery self discharge is highest in warm weather, like this summer has been. Has it been on a battery charger/maintainer?
Garage is climate controlled, it never freezes are rarely gets over 80. Bike is on a BatteryTender brand 4 port battery maintainer.
 
I replaced my battery in the summer of 2021. I assumed the battery was original. My understanding is the previous owner purchased the new 2013 in 2014. I bought it from him in 2015 with 11k km. I did almost nothing to the battery. I put it on a charger when I noticed some weakness a few times in its lifetime. I knew it was dying and started carrying a mobile jumper with me for its last year of life. I put in a budget battery and we will see how long it lasts. ymmv
 
I keep thinking about this.

potter0o got 8 years from the battery, rarely charged it. I assume the climate there in B.C., Canada is usually mild.

lootzyan has a 12 year old battery, charged every month or so.

the Ferret has his on Battery Tender Juniors all the time; batteries don‘t last over 5 years. Doesn’t live in southern USA.

melensdad presumably has a dead 6 year old battery. Charged on Battery Tender. Doesn’t live in southern USA.

670cc gets around 8 years battery life. No longer uses Battery Tender brand due to reliability issues, total failures, and odd observed charger behavior. Uses Optimate brand chargers and only intermittently during long storage. Midwestern USA climate.

Batteries used in hot climates, i.e. Arizona or Texas, reportedly die quickly.

While these are merely a few small data points, I loosely conclude that intermittent charging could possibly be better than constant charging. I continue to distrust Deltran brand Battery Tenders. Evidence still supports longer battery life in cooler climates.
 
The battery in my bike died at 5 years. It died as in, it would no longer hold charge long-term; I could put it on a tender, get it running again, and then in a couple weeks it would be dead again and leave me stranded (just at work, thankfully).

I am not sure what the previous owner did with the bike, but given it barely had any miles I think it just sat in a shed/garage for 4 years. Wisconsin - very cold in the winter, fairly hot in the summer. Thermal cycles.
 
This pdf is as good as I've ever seen describing self discharge rates of sealed lead acid sealed batteries such as those found in motorcycles, effects of temperature on that rate, and consequences of storing then in a partially or fully discharged state.

 
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