[Phreon]

If I recall correctly, the PO of my bike replaced the battery not long before I got it. They were meticulous and gave me a stack of maintenance orders. Therefore, best guess is the battery is less than 3 years old.

I was going to take the Vulcan 500 for a ride with my buddy yesterday - I took it off the battery tender, hit the starter and got Grrrrrrrr... Classic dead battery relay chatter. To cut to the chase, after dorking with starting the bike with my big charger, I took the battery out. NO CELL HAS MORE THAN AN INCH OF ACID IN IT!!

Where the heck did the acid go? Could a bad connection at the battery (it was a little loose) trick the Battery Tender Jr. into cooking the battery? It has been on the tender for several months, but should have just been float charging it.

Now I'm out $90 or so to get a new battery.

 

[bikerbill]

The charging system on our bike has the tendency to make the battery fluid disappear. And the Battery Tender owners manual it says to check the fluid level periodically during storage.

When using a standard 'flooded' battery I make checking the battery fluid a regular maintenance check item, always topping up with DISTILLED water. Check the post adapters while you're there too.

The last 'flooded' battery I used was replaced after five years and 50,000 miles. And it was still working fine, but noticably weaker, and I had a road trip coming up so it was replaced before it failed.

Hope this helps.

 

[Phreon]

I assume boiled this dry, it's trash? It's no Yuesa - PowerStart or some other nonsense.

 

[bikerbill]

Yes, its life is very limited at this point. However you can try refilling it with distilled water and giving it a full charge. It will probably last long enough until the new one comes in.

 

[Blaine]

When buying a new battery a "Gel cell" or sealed design will eliminate the need/nuisance of checking/filling with water.

 

[vulcandoc]

WHY are you paying $90 for a battery?
AND why NOT get a no water type instead of having to worry if your battery water level is correct?

From this site use this - its only $60. I have one and love it.
http://www.batterystuff.com/powersports-batteries/sYT12CL.html

 

[Phreon]

Ok, now I'm supremely cornfused. I went to 3 places looking for a suitable battery, 2 of which didn't carry. Here's what's driving me nuts. Everything I've found online and the 3rd shop I went to listed the OEM battery as a YB12AL-A2, which is a side post. Given the length and orientation of the leads on my bike, it seams clear it should be a top post. It *does* take a top post battery, right? What the heck is the correct battery for this bike? Are the battery lugs on your bike flat or angled 90 degrees? Mine are dead straight.

I found the cable routing guide in the Kawasaki manual which reveals 2 things:

A) The batter in the bike had the +/- terminals reversed, meaning they were towards the rear, not the front of the bike
B) I sure looks like it's supposed to be a top post.

Thanks

 

[Red Rider]

Ok, now I'm supremely cornfused. I went to 3 places looking for a suitable battery, 2 of which didn't carry. Here's what's driving me nuts. Everything I've found online and the 3rd shop I went to listed the OEM battery as a YB12AL-A2, which is a side post. Given the length and orientation of the leads on my bike, it seams clear it should be a top post. It *does* take a top post battery, right? What the heck is the correct battery for this bike? Are the battery lugs on your bike flat or angled 90 degrees? Mine are dead straight.

I found the cable routing guide in the Kawasaki manual which reveals 2 things:

A) The batter in the bike had the +/- terminals reversed, meaning they were towards the rear, not the front of the bike
B) I sure looks like it's supposed to be a top post.

Thanks

The battery uses brass adapters.

 

[Phreon]

The battery uses brass adapters.

Those bloody horrible adapters came with the bike, stock? I thought the last shop who put a battery in just used them to kludge the non-standard one in. No wonder battery connection and the ensuing engine issues are common on these bikes! It also means I had the correct battery in my hand today, and didn't buy it.

Damn.

 

[Phreon]

As a follow up, I did figure out that the "A2" in the Yuasa part number just specifies "with adapters".

I'm just going to order an AGM from the above link and be done with it.

 

[Phreon]

Update to my update. BatteryStuff.com was out of the YT12CL. However, looking at their picture, one can see it's clearly marked as "UB12CL". Plugged that into Amazon and BAM, they have it, 10 dollars cheaper. [ame]http://www.amazon.com/UPG-UT12CL-Adventure-Series-Battery/dp/B001ZTBSMO[/ame]

Ordered. Will be here in 2 shipping days.