BATTERY INFORMATION
Bend the tabs at the bottom and sides of the battery box out of the way. Install a 20 Ah Goldwing battery from the GL1100-1200 series bikes. More amperage, less price ($40-50 locally), easily removed. My LT never started this well before. I personally like batteries I can add water too. In our desert heat batteries never last over 3 years, so why would I spend more for an expensive battery?
MODS - Please leave this here for a while so that everyone will see it, a lot of time when into compiling this info and it will get lost in the "battery" section!
Well, since my 2nd Odyssey PC680 left me rideless on a fine Christmas Day I decided to do some shopping for a new battery - and thought I would share some current pricing and resources. I did this based soley on price and specifications called for in the repair manual. Discussions of which battery is "best" has been covered many times before in many threads, and like oil, everyone has their favorite.
BMW Brand
It's a battery, not a chunk of gold. About $120.00, or more.
Odyssey PC680
I've given up on this battery and have tried hard to like them for the past several years - but it just did not work well for me. Sure, they have a flashy red case and marketing hype to go with it, but at only 16ah instead of the specified 19ah for our LT's it ain't gonna happen again. The prices seem to be hovering around $100.00 or more currently.
Panasonic LCX1220P*
This one is 20ah so it fits the bill and a solid brand. The least expensive price I found was at "U batteries" for $53.19 - BUT - it appears their web site is not working properly - even on Christmas you would think it would be functional....
* This is the same battery as the WestCo12V 20P, (WestCo slaps their sticker on it) but it appears that since the WestCo is "specifically" for motorcycles they feel compelled to charge a MUCH higher price for it. More marketing hype.
Werker WKA 12-18NB
At 18ah it should werk, and it is made by Exide in the USA. This is carried by Batteries Plus but I've found their prices are ALWAYS high, either at the store or on the web. A big plus is that it comes with a 2 year warranty. Best price I found was $42.95 at
Universal Battery UB 12180
18ah, but right on the cover it says made in China, and at only $33.92 a smoking bargain, but I figure it probably WOULD be smoking in short time... You pays your money and you takes your chances. Not for me.
Yuasa/Enersys NP18-12BFR
18ah, a respected brand that I've had good luck with over the years. It's probably made in Chinainstead of Japan these days, hopefully in an ISO Certified facility. I found it for $24.99 on Flea bay, item no. 220166181378 from a 99.7% supplier. Ding, Ding, a winner! Add $9.50 Priority Mail shipping and it has a new home for the grand total of $34.49. Maybe in time for a New Years Day ride!
Almost all of the batteries had a shipping charge of $10.00, but I didn't spend much time looking at that. Freshness is an important consideration when buying batteries - and you are probably more likely to get a newer one from the big suppliers, but unfortunately there is no way to tell in advance. I sure do wish they were required to put a date on them that was not buried in some arcane manufacturer's "code."
I did find several other brands that I had never heard of before - and they were dirt cheap - they were probably just rebranded Chinese stuff like the UB mentioned above - they looked the same.
My take on batteries is that proper care and charging routines are critically important in gettting max life from them, once again fodder for another thread.
I bought the United Power Group AGM battery from last year and love it. My 99 starts after sitting for weeks even this time of year. Here are the three batteries that they carry for the LTs:
The following battery options have been identified for your application:
WestCo 12V20P Sealed AGM - 12 Volt - 275 CCA - 20 AH - $106.95.
United Power Group - Adventure Power UB22-12N Sealed AGM - 12 Volt - 420 CCA - 22 AH - $74.95.
Power Source WP20-12I Sealed AGM - 12 Volt - 325 CCA - 20 AH
$84.95
Special - FREE SHIPPING on ... all orders that total $50 or more within the contiguous United States.
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A 20A/hr battery will run for 3 hours longer at one amp draw (in theory at least) than a 17A/h battery.
What's important for a start battery is the CCA value. Can the battery in question deliver the amperage at design voltage needed to start the engine reliably and repeatedly? And have some reserve for hard start situations? There are a whole boat load of other factors come into play. Charge level, ambient temps, oil, etc, etc. But the CCA number is a better value to consider for comparing starting batteries than A/hrs
The attraction of the Odysee is it's ability to survive deep discharge as well as operate near the norms of a conventional lead/acid setup. Most LA setups, if deeply discharged (left those lights on? Turned the key to far when parking again, eh? or like me - left all the radio gear running.) will degrade their ability to provide sufficient amperage at design voltage for starting. Do that enough times and you've a toxic paper weight. I've collected several.
I've been using a 17A/hr rated battery for better part of 3 years now - no issues at all. I've run it totally dead many severals of times too (those pesky radios!) and it still keeps on going. The 'traditional' LA battery I used to have "died" totally on me after the 3rd accidental deep discharge. That's when I started looking for an alternative.
Marine style batteries - like those used for trolling motors - are designed for deep discharge, but they don't supply the short durration, high amperage power needed for starting - well. They'll do it a few times, but it degrades the battery for deep discharge. Kind of the reverse of a traditional starter battery.
The Odysee is designed to do both - deep discharge AND high Amp starts - reasonably well. It doesn't do either as well as a single purpose battery might - but it does do both better than a either type of single purpose could.
So, if you're after maximum CCA or you're after maximum A/hr - each of those qualities are aimed at different duties. Choice is good!!
Me? I want my bike to start in spite of my in-attention to a couple extra switches and my laziness at not installing a 'cut-off' relay - yet. So far - it's done very well for me.
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