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Best Replacement Battery- 1200 GS


mrsoup

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Posted

My BMW battery failed 1 month 23 days past the warranty- BMW will not replace it even though the bike has just rolled over 3,000 miles.

 

I am looking for the best alternative for a replacement- NON OEM BMW for obvious reasons. I want a good long life battery that I won't have to worry about for 6 or more years.

 

Odyssey- Had 8+ years of service from my PC680 but they don't seem to have a good fit for the GS. Is the 535 too tall to work (3/8" taller)?

 

Shorai- Have no experience with these but appear to be good. The Ducati bunch loves them as they save weight. I don't know how well they perform a low temperatures, I typically ride when I need the bike to start at below freezing temps. Li-on fail without warning.

 

Any other suggestion or advice will be appreciated!!!

 

 

 

 

Posted

Even with the fit, everyone seems to say PC680...

Posted

Afternoon mrsoup

 

Obviously the Odyssey 680 won't fit in the BMW1200 GS.

 

But the Odyssey PC 535 will fit with a lot of teeth gnashing.

 

I have done a couple of GS PC 535 installs & as of yet don't have it down to a smooth install.

 

last one I did I turned the battery around with the terminals towards the rear of the bike & that helped the cable cross-over routing issue. (might still have to slightly notch a battery case rib)

 

The stock battery retaining strap won't fit so you ether have to modify & re-bend the original or make a new one from stainless steel strap material. (that is what I did on the last install so I could go back to a standard battery if I needed to). You can just trash the original then buy a new original if ever needed.

 

You will have also re-bend the negative cable ear that bolts to the battery terminal (a simple job with 2 pairs of pliers) & also tweak the positive one a little.

 

This isn't for the faint of heart but not rocket science either.

 

 

Added: If you don't want to make or modify your battery retaining strap try Wundrlich as they have (had anyhow) an Odyssey Battery Holder Part Number: 1900111 (about $30.00).

Posted
Even with the fit, everyone seems to say PC680...

 

Afternoon Phil

 

Who says the PC 680 will fit in the GS? Who is this "everyone" I would like to know how he did it.

 

 

Posted

I wasn't talking about fit, DR.. Just that for BMW, the Odyssey batteries seem to bethe way to go..

 

I didn't know that the GS battery fit was that much different than the RT. Surprised, actually.

Guest Kakugo
Posted

Yuasa YTX-14BS. I have been using Yuasa batteries for two decades now and very happy with them. Sure, Odyssey is the best choice, but requires a bit of fiddling to fit a GS. Yuasa is the second best.

The YTX-14BS is used in plenty of Japanese and Italian bikes so it's easy to find good deals.

 

PS: if you have a GS-Adventure you should get the YTZ-14S. Again used in a wide array of bikes (Yamaha V-Max, Honda ST1300 etc) so good deals to be had.

Posted

Shorai is what I have in my RT.

Way lighter and, well, lighter.:)

Cost $40 more but makes up for the Corbin seat weight gain!

Posted

Doesn't the GS/A have the same size battery box as the standaard GS? Why is the YTZ better than the YTX?

 

The YTX has 230cca vs. 220cca for the YTZ- plus it costs $40.00 less.

 

Please help me understand...

Dewayne Harkov
Posted

Big long discussion on ADV rider about this. Search it if you care to. A guy in the battery world expressed his thoughts. The Deka ETX14 was a solid contender. I ordered one so we'll find out. Not a bad price and made in USA. Good Luck. http://etx14.com/

 

Guest Kakugo
Posted
Doesn't the GS/A have the same size battery box as the standaard GS? Why is the YTZ better than the YTX?

 

The YTX has 230cca vs. 220cca for the YTZ- plus it costs $40.00 less.

 

Please help me understand...

 

YTZ is "factory activated", meaning you only need to give it a charge and install it. YTX is "maintenance free", meaning you fill it with the supplied acid pack, charge it and install.

 

YTZ also has higher vibration resistance than the YTX, hence no need to tell you why it's recommended fit for the GS-A. ;)

Posted

Several good choices out there, really. Personally, I'm off BMW brand batteries as well as Odysseys. Too many disappointments. Had an Odyssey fail completely on me a couple of years ago. It was less than three years old. I've heard they've addressed the problem (how?) but they've lost me as a customer. I'm back to Westcos. Hard to beat the price and they're plug and play on my 1200RT and 1150GS. Dunno about the 1200GS. Call Beemer Boneyard and ask.

Posted

Afternoon CVA-42

 

From my point of view the Westco's have been failing at a frightening rate lately. Years ago they were pretty good but the last 5 years or so have been nothing but problems. I have seen sudden death failures in 5 Westco's just this year alone (not all BMW's though). Westco doen't make their own battery so my guess is they have switched to a different supplier than they had years ago.

 

Posted

Ouch! D.R. that's a revoltin' development! We have a bunch of Westcos in use in our local club with seemingly good results, although I haven't taken a poll. I've got five of the things in use now (hexhead, oilhead, and 3 airheads). Oldest is about four years old (airhead) and youngest is eight months old (hexhead). But I'll certainly weigh your info next time I need a battery.

 

Here's a Yuasa story...I purchased a 1965 R50/2 this past spring which had undergone a mechanical resto including conversion to 12 volt in 2001. A Yuasa wet cell was installed at that time and was still in the bike when I bought it. I called Yuasa with the code from the battery and they verified that it had indeed been manufactured in 2001. It was actually still fine but I replaced it anyway figuring it HAD to be on borrowed time.

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