Discharge

[needsmust]

[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,Calibri,Geneva,sans-serif]It's a comfort of sorts to know that I'm not the only one with this problem.

[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,Calibri,Geneva,sans-serif]I've had the BMW charger since my run-in service (at a different BMW dealer). The battery was checked then and the issue raised with BMW who advised selling me a charger but not to bother putting in the replacement battery which the dealer had thoughtfully got in. Unsurprisingly, the battery hasn't cured itself.

My own dealer crawled into action about 3 weeks ago and contacted me to re-book the run-in service that was a victim of lockdown (they closed without telling me or putting a note on the website, so I turned up for the service to find locked doors). I had a chance to moan about the battery and had an engine management light, so went along to get that cleared and battery checked. Was told they would speak to BMW and get back in a couple of days.

I let a couple of weeks pass before calling them. "Is it still happening?" Yes. "Bring it in for a triple check".[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,Calibri,Geneva,sans-serif]I'm going in Thursday. Just for fun, I'm going to disconnect the charger, not ride, and check the battery status every day.
Unless it's really sunny.[/FONT]

 

[Colyn67]

So I had my first service, they know about my battery discharge issue but are not doing diag work only servicing, they suggested a charger and would sell me one for ?120, no thanks ! I shouldn?t have to leave my bike on charge to ensure it will start after just five days !!!
Anyhow I spoke to their tech .. I think they are aware that this is the Datatool that?s staying awake and this is the source of the discharge issue.
They have disconnected the Datatool and unsurprisingly the bike starts even after three weeks .. only problem no active tracking .. I?m not sure what the impact of theft would be ?? Would my insurance pay out still ?
There is no indication of resumption of normal service at the Motorad dealer I use ? So fingers crossed it?s doesn?t get stolen ! By the way I spoke to Datatool about this... BMW are supposed to liaise with their technical dept before attempting diag on their trackers ... just have to wait until the dealer is full open to get them to fit a new tracker I guess ??

 

[needsmust]

That all sounds believable, if a little depressing. My dealer gave no hint that it was a known issue.

I distinctly recall my insurance quote was very particular about the tracker. Arse.

 

[oldwobbler]

Its been pointed out before - discussing having your tracker removed on an open forum is not a good idea.

 

[SiMoto]

Defo the tracker, my bike is the same couple of weeks and stone dead, asked my dealer to have a look at the first service but said they did not have the capacity to do anything other than a first service without a re-book for this problem. Hooked it up to a charger and will re-book later in the year.

 

[Schuey]

So I had my first service, they know about my battery discharge issue but are not doing diag work only servicing, they suggested a charger and would sell me one for ?120, no thanks ! I shouldn?t have to leave my bike on charge to ensure it will start after just five days !!!
Anyhow I spoke to their tech .. I think they are aware that this is the Datatool that?s staying awake and this is the source of the discharge issue.
They have disconnected the Datatool and unsurprisingly the bike starts even after three weeks .. only problem no active tracking .. I?m not sure what the impact of theft would be ?? Would my insurance pay out still ?
There is no indication of resumption of normal service at the Motorad dealer I use ? So fingers crossed it?s doesn?t get stolen ! By the way I spoke to Datatool about this... BMW are supposed to liaise with their technical dept before attempting diag on their trackers ... just have to wait until the dealer is full open to get them to fit a new tracker I guess ??

If your insurance policy states you have a tracker fitted but you have had it de-activated, then you need to tell your insurer. Because if it's de-activated and you haven't told your insurer, then yes, you will have issues come claim/pay out time in the event of a theft if it's not active and functional.

 

[needsmust]

Progress. Dealer has had "extensive discussions" and a new wiring harness for the tracker is on order.

 

[needsmust]

I got a new tracker loom and a new battery fitted end of June, but no joy.

It's going in again soon for the dealer to watch the battery go flat.

 

[alex]

You've asked the tracker vendor to reduce the frequency of the updates, yes? Polling interval in bad signal areas massively impacts the battery draw.

 

[needsmust]

I must admit that I haven't, nor has it been suggested by the dealer. I've been given to understand that the tracker has it's own battery.I get calls from the tracker folk when I've been checking on the battery and see the voltage drop on day 4, but nothing from them if I just leave the bike to go completely flat.

I'm not in the Styx; no-one has trouble getting a signal where I live. The Datatool website tells me it sees 9 GPS satellites from my garage. I can't find anywhere on the website to reduce frequency of updates and I wouldn't be particularly keen - it doesn't take long to get away.

 

[Humptyfish]

Very interesting but cant say I get all the technical bits above
I have a tracker on my last Triumph and it would take the battery down in a couple of weeks sometimes. I relied on them to warn me when the battery was low and then swapped a second battery (as I have now power to the bike) As alex above, I bought a lithium as second battery hoping (techies may laugh at this point) it might hold the charge longer - it didnt.

Spoke to Scorpion and Triumph but never resolved it until I moved and could plug it in. (although they never offered to reduce the power/searching whilst in the underground carpark as above - so at least they are trying)

 

[Valhalla64]

I have had BMW assist out twice now for a dead battery and this is my understanding of it. If the battery drops below 12v a breaker is activated inside the battery to protect it. If the battery is then connected to a 12v source you are able to zap it back into life. Both times it happened after being in the dealership for work and both times the unmentionable called me to say it?s getting low. It is now always on the optimiser. Hope this helps.

Mick


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[needsmust]

I've not grizzled about this for a while, but it's still not sorted.

At the end of July, I left the bike at the dealer (4th time) so they could watch the battery go flat while I was on hols. When I went to collect it over a week later, I was told it had had an update and to go and fetch it. Someone in the workshop started it and I asked how the battery had behaved - he didn't know, it hadn't been touched for 3-4 days. I then asked for the bike to be turned off to have a look at the voltage. I stood and watched the voltage drop before my eyes while being told "they all do that" and "the lithium is only designed to start it, not hold a charge" and "well, what do think the bike should draw then?" sort of crap. The tech just walked off.
I wheeled it round to the front, voltage still dropping, before I got a warning sign and switched it off. I needed the bike that evening. I brought a service guy round and showed him the voltage/warnings before having to start it while I still could and leave; I had to interrupt a chat he was having with another guy having battery problems (with a different BMW).

Ironically enough, after not hearing a dicky bird from the dealer, a few days later I got a customer satisfaction survey from BMW. Now, I'm not one to go crying to BMW, but if they ask I'll tell them... A day later I got a call from the dealership to arrange to bring it in and "get it sorted". That's the problem they told me didn't exist.

Before I took it in, I took daily photos of the battery voltage on "My Vehicle"; turning the key, taking a pic, and turning it off. The voltage stays above 12v until day 5 when it just plummets. Just for fun, I then charged it fully and just left the ignition on: lights on, nuclear-submarine type whirrings, dash, the lot, and took pics every 10 mins. It lasted a respectable 70 mins - there's nothing wrong with the battery. I sent the dealership all the pics (they hadn't been interested in the ones I'd taken before).

So it's now been there over 2 weeks. After the 1st week I called (that's me, calling them) to be told that all the checks were fine and it had been starting ok. I asked if they'd just left it for 5 days to see if the battery went flat and, er, not sure, er, it might have been started in that time, er, let me get back to you... I asked if they could just leave it over the weekend and see. That was last weekend; still no call (so is it fine and I'm imagining things as they suggest, or is there an actual problem? I'll just have to guess). What's gone wrong in our relationship? - They never write, they never phone...

I'm frustrated and disappointed. The bike is amazing (apart from draining the battery). The dealership not.

I'll call them next week for an update. That's if they don't call me first. Hurrumph.

 

[bmwbadboy]

Buy new battery and be done with it?

 

[needsmust]

Hi BBB,

It's had a new battery (on the 3rd visit). I reckon if the battery can keep the thing alive with lights on and various whirring noises, just sat there for over an hour, then that's pretty good.

Tracker is biggest suspect, but my insurance depends on it.

 

[bmwbadboy]

I guess so

 

[Schuey]

Hi BBB,

It's had a new battery (on the 3rd visit). I reckon if the battery can keep the thing alive with lights on and various whirring noises, just sat there for over an hour, then that's pretty good.

Tracker is biggest suspect, but my insurance depends on it.

I think many including myself have advised you weeks ago just to leave it on a battery optimiser like Optimate and your troubles will be gone. The bike will spend more time with you and less with your dealer. It will be ready and good to use whenever you need it and will keep the battery charge you need. It will also stop the annoying phone calls you are getting from the Tracker company. Unless there?s a good reason why you can?t keep it plugged in, then in my honest opinion it is a no brainer option.

 

[needsmust]

Hi Shuey,

I see your point, and raise it with a wtf?

I bought the BMW charger at my RIS as advised. It's on it all the time. But the manual says if you leave your bike more than 4 weeks, you should consider putting it on charge.

I've been a biker all my life. I've bought the BMW lithium charger and can connect it easily enough (with the terminals I bodged myself) because I have power to my garage, but I'm used to being a daily biker and not needing to rely on a charger. It was a source of miserable reflection for me when the kids arrived, that I realised that I was no longer riding often enough to never have to think about how long a battery charge would last.

I had to think long and hard about whether to buy another sportsbike which would be, essentially, a luxury toy. I decided to pay extra for the weight-saving of a lithium battery, and then got sucked into the Sport package (I don't need forged wheels any more than anyone else, but I like the idea). I hoped to get a lighter, better, modern battery (a ?200 option without the wheels).

I should not expect a battery to last less than a week on a ?20k+ road bike, when my CBR still fires up after 3 months neglect.

What if I want actually to travel somewhere further than a tank-full on it and stay still for a week? In real life, I might not, but that's not the point.

 

[JamieMac]

My two pennies worth...

My OE alarm on my Gen 3 will flatten either an old style gel battery or lithium battery in 10 days.

Trackers will flatten any battery within a few days. The only way to solve this is trickle charge with the appropriate charger I?m afraid. All batteries hate being left flat, generally it kills them.

J

 

[Schuey]

Hi Shuey,

I see your point, and raise it with a wtf?

I bought the BMW charger at my RIS as advised. It's on it all the time. But the manual says if you leave your bike more than 4 weeks, you should consider putting it on charge.

I've been a biker all my life. I've bought the BMW lithium charger and can connect it easily enough (with the terminals I bodged myself) because I have power to my garage, but I'm used to being a daily biker and not needing to rely on a charger. It was a source of miserable reflection for me when the kids arrived, that I realised that I was no longer riding often enough to never have to think about how long a battery charge would last.

I had to think long and hard about whether to buy another sportsbike which would be, essentially, a luxury toy. I decided to pay extra for the weight-saving of a lithium battery, and then got sucked into the Sport package (I don't need forged wheels any more than anyone else, but I like the idea). I hoped to get a lighter, better, modern battery (a ?200 option without the wheels).

I should not expect a battery to last less than a week on a ?20k+ road bike, when my CBR still fires up after 3 months neglect.

What if I want actually to travel somewhere further than a tank-full on it and stay still for a week? In real life, I might not, but that's not the point.

Hi,

Whilst not ideal, it really is the best option. And it's not just your bike I'm sure, so it's not like your bike or battery is faulty, it's just the way they are (again not ideal). So I think in order to avoid regular disappointment, keeping it on a Lithium Battery Optimiser when not in use is the best solution, doing that will probably keep the battery in a healthier state and enable it to hold charge better for those days where you might be going for a long ride and staying overnight somewhere and can't plug it in.