I recently enjoyed being stranded on the side of the road for and hour until I got a jump start by a kind stranger. To start from the beginning....
I picked up my TBS last December, which had ridiculously low mileage, but had been somewhat neglected. One of the items needed was a new battery. So, foolishly, I went to Advanced auto parts in January, a large chain down here, with the battery that was in the bike and with the help of the friendly clerk, purchased an Autocraft Motorsport GEL Battery. Installed said battery and all was fine. Until the cold came about 3 weeks ago here in the northeast USA.
Started having difficulty getting the bike started, needed to re-connect the tender after having it connected all night, just to start the bike. Finally, went for a ride, and ran the tank too low, and stalled her. Pulled to the side of the road, switched to reserve, and.....uh-oh. Not enough battery to git er done.
n hour later, got the jump, and took her home. Pulled the battery and brought it back to the friendly clerk. He said, " lets take a look". Put said crap battery on tester then stated, "oh yea, your about 60% below what the amperage should be". To which I replied, "well, I'm sure there's a warranty of some type", and he stated, yes, 90 days on motorsport batteries". I asked if there was any recourse or refund that could be offered. To which I was told "no...sorry. Warranty's expired". So, basically I was given the big heave ho, thanks for my $100+ dollar 10 month battery rental, and off ya go.
So, don't let my mistake be yours. I took said autocrap battery to my local bike repair center, and they noted it had been made in china in April 2017, was sealed and shipped from the factory, and likely was never charged whilst in possession of the retailer. So they sold me what was supposed to be a new battery in Jan 2018, that was actually 8 months old, and never charged.
I then purchase the factory recommended Yuasa that had yet to be filled and sealed. The repair center filled, charged, sealed and handed me the ready to go unit the next morning after an overnight charging. Stating the battery should last 5-8 years with proper tending, and even recommended bringing it in the house, should I winterize the bike. Of course, bike now starts like a champ, and I'm working diligently everyday to vent my frustration in a productive manner...like writing blog posts.
I picked up my TBS last December, which had ridiculously low mileage, but had been somewhat neglected. One of the items needed was a new battery. So, foolishly, I went to Advanced auto parts in January, a large chain down here, with the battery that was in the bike and with the help of the friendly clerk, purchased an Autocraft Motorsport GEL Battery. Installed said battery and all was fine. Until the cold came about 3 weeks ago here in the northeast USA.
Started having difficulty getting the bike started, needed to re-connect the tender after having it connected all night, just to start the bike. Finally, went for a ride, and ran the tank too low, and stalled her. Pulled to the side of the road, switched to reserve, and.....uh-oh. Not enough battery to git er done.
n hour later, got the jump, and took her home. Pulled the battery and brought it back to the friendly clerk. He said, " lets take a look". Put said crap battery on tester then stated, "oh yea, your about 60% below what the amperage should be". To which I replied, "well, I'm sure there's a warranty of some type", and he stated, yes, 90 days on motorsport batteries". I asked if there was any recourse or refund that could be offered. To which I was told "no...sorry. Warranty's expired". So, basically I was given the big heave ho, thanks for my $100+ dollar 10 month battery rental, and off ya go.
So, don't let my mistake be yours. I took said autocrap battery to my local bike repair center, and they noted it had been made in china in April 2017, was sealed and shipped from the factory, and likely was never charged whilst in possession of the retailer. So they sold me what was supposed to be a new battery in Jan 2018, that was actually 8 months old, and never charged.
I then purchase the factory recommended Yuasa that had yet to be filled and sealed. The repair center filled, charged, sealed and handed me the ready to go unit the next morning after an overnight charging. Stating the battery should last 5-8 years with proper tending, and even recommended bringing it in the house, should I winterize the bike. Of course, bike now starts like a champ, and I'm working diligently everyday to vent my frustration in a productive manner...like writing blog posts.
