[n_aditya]

Last month I rode to Sagar which is located pretty close to the popular Jog Falls, with a buddy of mine Leslie who is a relatively new owner of a Bajaj Dominar.

We did't do any sightseeing as the only reason we did this ride was to.. well ride.

Here are a couple of pics from our return leg:





After the spate of rains, the bike was in desperate need of a wash. Here she is after a wash and one coat of Collinite845.

The reflection is from the side panels.





My commute to work and back is crazy so I avoid driving as much as I can and have been using the bonnie for daily duties.

However two days back, on my way home, the headlight bulb fused, luckily just a km away from home. The next morning when I tried to start the bike, all I could hear was tick-tick noise from under the seat/right side panel area. No crank. The speedo diagnostic check, horn, etc. all work fine. I presume it may be an issue with the battery or a blown fuse. But a blown fuse won't even lead to this tick-tick sound so most probably the battery is shot. It is over 3.5 yrs so maybe the battery just died all of a sudden.

I bought the road side assistance package which is effective next week so if the neighborhood battery shop is unable to jump start the bike, then I will have her taken to the ASC on a flatbed truck.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by n_aditya

I bought the road side assistance package which is effective next week so if the neighborhood battery shop is unable to jump start the bike, then I will have her taken to the ASC on a flatbed truck

Sorry to know that Adi! Most probably its the battery that went bust. If it was fuse then entire console/ignition would be dead and crank option itself wont be there

Not sure how is your relationship with Keerthi, out here we use our good books to get a Triumph technician home to resolve such issues and pay anywhere between INR 300-INR 500 for his services (I used to have their numbers on speed dial and they come home that every evening after their showroom duties with a brand new battery, if required which you obviously have to reimburse the cost)

You Bangy guys do things too formally (flatbed truck...)... Use some of our (Indian) indigenous methods to save some of your hard earned dough

[Red Liner]

Why cant you just buy the battery and fit it yourself? Is it too complex for the bonneville? And shopping for a lion battery outside might make more sense... Should be cheaper in any guise from what you get at the stealership.

Pull the battery out and run a diagnostic check with the neighbor battery walla and check if he has anything that matches this spec from amaron or exide.

Reminds me i need to get one of those multimeters for the battery myself.

[n_aditya]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Sorry to know that Adi! Most probably its the battery that went bust. If it was fuse then entire console/ignition would be dead and crank option itself wont be there

Thanks. I figured it would be a battery issue.

Originally Posted by mobike008

Not sure how is your relationship with Keerthi, out here we use our good books to get a Triumph technician home to resolve such issues and pay anywhere between INR 300-INR 500 for his services (I used to have their numbers on speed dial and they come home that every evening after their showroom duties with a brand new battery, if required which you obviously have to reimburse the cost)

You Bangy guys do things too formally (flatbed truck...)... Use some of our (Indian) indigenous methods to save some of your hard earned dough

To be honest, I reach home way past the ASC's closing time and I don't feel like calling a technician home as late as 8pm to attend to my bike. They have a life after work too and I respect that (no offence to your suggestion).

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Why cant you just buy the battery and fit it yourself? Is it too complex for the bonneville? And shopping for a lion battery outside might make more sense... Should be cheaper in any guise from what you get at the stealership.

Pull the battery out and run a diagnostic check with the neighbor battery walla and check if he has anything that matches this spec from amaron or exide.

Reminds me i need to get one of those multimeters for the battery myself.

Not too difficult to remove the battery. Pop open the seat to access the battery. This needs allen key spanners which I don't have and will buy a set this weekend.

BTW, did my research and there are no batteries from Exide or Amaron that meet the OE spec. The OE spec is 12v 10Ah. Max spec for bike batteries is 9Ah. Anyway, I am getting the battery checked by the neighborhood shop guy today.

Will buy a battery trickle charger and a multimeter soon. Thanks for your suggestions.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by n_aditya

To be honest, I reach home way past the ASC's closing time and I don't feel like calling a technician home as late as 8pm to attend to my bike. They have a life after work too and I respect that (no offence to your suggestion)

Looks like you got the whole input wrong

It is NOT overtime of their regular work hours. These guys do it for extra money without the dealership knowing about it and pocket the money earned from their hard earned efforts

Off-topic, It was humanitarian suggestion as you will be providing them another source of income to them but, if you dont want to provide that source and want to prove your DIY skills then its purely your call

[Randhawa]

n-Aditya@ I am amazed that your battery lasted more then 2yrs to start with. Lucky you. Here is how you going to resolve your issue without any ones help- Just replace the headlight bulb and your bike should start. If not then proceed further with diagnostics.

[n_aditya]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Looks like you got the whole input wrong

It is NOT overtime of their regular work hours. These guys do it for extra money without the dealership knowing about it and pocket the money earned from their hard earned efforts

Off-topic, It was humanitarian suggestion as you will be providing them another source of income to them but, if you dont want to provide that source and want to prove your DIY skills then its purely your call

Sorry Avi. I must have misunderstood. My bad.

But I still am unable to understand one point. If these guys are doing something without the knowledge of the dealership, does that not make it unethical? I mean, I wouldn't approach my customers or clients without the knowledge of my manager/organization. Add to that, if something does go wrong, who owns the accountability for that?

Thanks for your humanitarian efforts suggestion. These guys are paid handsomely so I wouldn't call it humanitarian in my book. Again, sorry if I got you wrong.

Originally Posted by Randhawa

n-Aditya@ I am amazed that your battery lasted more then 2yrs to start with. Lucky you. Here is how you going to resolve your issue without any ones help- Just replace the headlight bulb and your bike should start. If not then proceed further with diagnostics.

So last evening the battery was checked with a multimeter and it showed a healthy 12.5 volts. Push starting brought the bike to life. I am taking her to the shop today. Let's see what the service guys say.

[Randhawa]

Charge on the Bonnveille battery is usually considered healthy if it's above 12.8 but 12.5 isn't necessarily bad. I have started my bike with as low as 12v. Our Rectifier/Relay SCR series Shunt unit isn't the best in business although we do have a strong stator. First try getting 14v+ on our Bonnies at the battery terminals then see how long will it hold the charging value. On our Bonnies, hotter the R/R gets-lower the charge gets. The R/R (on our bikes)works cooler when on load rather then what you might think otherwise.


A battery might show 13v with engine switched off but if one of the cells are weak then it won't have enough juice to provide the Amps needed to crank.

The reason I said to replace the headlight bulb is because our Bonnies are wired like that. ECU lets you crank only if headlight bulb is working as it completes the circuit, allowing it to crank. Try cranking when headlight bulb fuse is removed, you will get the same result as what you are having now.

You have the Allen key under the fuse box to remove the seat, that's the only piece of tool kit Triumph provides But to get the Allen key, you either need a coin or screw driver to remove the side cover.

Your battery has outlived it's life and good to know that it's still good if just by changing the bulb your engine cranks.

There is a wedge plate inside the battery box, that allows to use a smaller battery if we choose to do so on our own will but it should be 10A or higher then our CCA of OEM battery.

Then there are few more things which does not allow the engine to crank. Issues with side stand switch, clutch switch and funny enough if you forget to put the bike in neutral.

[n_aditya]

Originally Posted by Randhawa

Then there are few more things which does not allow the engine to crank. Issues with side stand switch, clutch switch and funny enough if you forget to put the bike in neutral.

Thank you for your inputs Sir. I dropped the bike off at the ASC yesterday. Took two people to get the bike to start by pushing.

The ASC has put the battery on charge and will observe. However even with four other batteries she did not start. I was told those batteries weren't exactly good either. Replacing the headlight bulb with a brand new one did not work as well so it seems to be an issue with the wiring somewhere. They managed to start the bike but the headlight circuit is off so they are trying to ascertain where the issue is.

I should know by tomorrow. Thanks for your inputs. I opted for the roadside assistance package last week. Didn't think I ever needed it as I presumed these bikes rarely break down. My ninja never did in 6 years. Japanese engg and reliability rocks. However with the RSA now, it brings some peace of mind

[Randhawa]

How did they managed to start the bike without the headlight bulb or blown bulb, by pushing it? Ask them to check the stator relay and stator solenoid. RSA is really a good thing to have regardless of 2 wheelers or 4 wheelers, you might never use it but when you do then it really pays off.

[n_aditya]

Originally Posted by Randhawa

How did they managed to start the bike without the headlight bulb or blown bulb, by pushing it? Ask them to check the stator relay and stator solenoid. RSA is really a good thing to have regardless of 2 wheelers or 4 wheelers, you might never use it but when you do then it really pays off.

I was around when the bike was tried to be revived with the other 4 batteries. I was told those batteries weren't brand new. They didn't push start the bike as it was in the service bay. Not sure how they started it. Waiting to hear from them.

[dinu2506]

Whats the cost of the OEM battery for the Bonnie from Keerthi? Also, what are the repurcussions if we use a 9AH battery (easily available) instead of the 10AH one?

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by n_aditya

Sorry Avi. I must have misunderstood. My bad.

But I still am unable to understand one point. If these guys are doing something without the knowledge of the dealership, does that not make it unethical? I mean, I wouldn't approach my customers or clients without the knowledge of my manager/organization. Add to that, if something does go wrong, who owns the accountability for that?

These technicians are doing this After their work hours. It can be treated as their second job.

Let me give you a few examples

Teachers giving tuition classes
Musicians giving music classes
Doctors running a private practice along with their paid jobs etc...


Are all these "unethical" activities as you strongly put it?

Originally Posted by n_aditya

Thanks for your humanitarian efforts suggestion. These guys are paid handsomely so I wouldn't call it humanitarian in my book.

I know they get paid 20-25k/month at the maximum unless you have an insider information about their package OR unfortunately, you think this a "handsome" package???

With regards to owning accountability, it is obvious you are calling the technician home for these simple jobs so it's your own accountability. Btw, what is accountability related to? It's not like you are doing an engine overhaul at your doorstep

Anyways, many folks do that out here and I dont think anything wrong about it. As mentioned earlier, if you dont want to do it, its your call

Btw, how much is a new battery and is the bike back home?

[n_aditya]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Btw, how much is a new battery and is the bike back home?

Lol avi, there is no arguing with you and your logic. Anyway, our logic seems right to us and thats how opinions work, isn't it? I respect your opinion even if I may not agree.

So back to the bike... She's back and turned out like I rightly suspected, it was a blown main relay fuse. The aux lights are wired to the high beam and when they opened up the headlight unit to fit the grill last time, the bulb socket was not fitted properly which caused the fuse to go bust.

The battery is a bit weak and I was told to replace it if the bike is used occasionally. Since I commute daily to work, they said it wasn't an issue but nevertheless, I have asked them to source a new battery and inform me when it arrives.

The headlight bulb was good and did not need replacement. I didn't have to pay for anything which was again a pleasant surprise. I'm glad it wasn't anything major like a busted rectifier/regulator for example.

[Randhawa]

Nice to know it's all sorted and it was a small issue. When you do decide to get a new battery, tell them to charge it for more then 6hrs, that is when they commission it for the first time. The first charge is what will decide the life of your battery although there are other factors which effects the life of a battery as you know.