I know I am thick, but.

if its just battery problems then you will not need to worry about breaking down, the bike should run fine engine wise otherwise its a whole other problem

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by drefraser

fairly quick on the clutch when it does start otherwise you do comedy things worthy of youtube

Absolutely f###ing hilarious, a mate of mine did a big snaking wheelie clinging onto a howling mad 250 crosser after a bump start

Originally Posted by Draper

if its just battery problems then you will not need to worry about breaking down, the bike should run fine engine wise otherwise its a whole other problem

Oh contrare, if the batterys completely buggered it won't idle

really? i was unaware of this? which isn't too surprising i'm pretty unaware of everything

but wouldn't there have to be some serious issues there for that to happen? whereas the bike has started after being on charge

i think the battery is holding the charge that has been put into it with the optimate, so my questions is:

why was it not able to start the bike when i had just riden it about 40 mile back from the dealers? please excuse my lack of knowledge, but if the battery were dead when i picked it up surely the good run down the M6 would have sorted that out?

any comments gratefully accepted.

Alan

Sounds like a voltage regulator/rectifier problem Alan. Its a common faliure on curvy's, so dont be too upset by this; its happened to me, and under similar circumstances when i came back from brands hatch and the battery had drained, and hadnt charged after the 120 mile round trip from my house, to brands and back again. A new unit will cost about £100, but i think suzuki have changed there design as the one i brought new was differant to the original one.

Its located inside the seat unit, near the rear, on the RHS (if you look at the bike from the rear) attached to the subframe. Unclip the wires, inscrew the bolts, chuck it in the bin, and get another one put in.

Have you got a haynes manual for your SV? it will show you how to test for a faulty regulator/rectifer (or at least rule out the possibility of it being something else)

Matt

depends?

just keep an eye on it for a while,


make sure you dont try to start the bike with your lights on (as this zaps the battery)

[timwilky]

Forget all the it might be stuff.

You need to check out the charging system. It could be battery, it could be the Rec/Reg or it could be the alternator. There is only one way to check. With a multimeter and the wisdom of sid squid.

The whole process takes about 30 minutes, involves the removal of the rear panels to get access to the R/R. But you would have had to do it anyway.

You have done the first part, start with a charged battery that has been allowed to settle.

Originally Posted by Sid Spanners Squid

First charge the battery and check the voltage across the battery terminals, (not immediately after disconnecting the charger, you'll get a falsely high reading), should be about 13V, much less and the battery is past it's best, do this first as some supposed charging system faults are duff batteries.

With the lights on and the engine spinning at 5000rpm there should be a reading of between 13.5 and 15V at the battery, if the reading is above 15V the regulator doesn't, if it's below 13.5V either the regulator is toasted or the alternator or wiring is goosed. This is a good rule of thumb test, but does assume that your meter is reasonably accurate, if you're not convinced your meter is accurate try this:
Ensure the battery is fully charged, start the engine, turn on the lights and rev the motor to about 5000rpm, what you're looking for is a rise in the reading of at least a volt, and when the engine speed falls back to tickover that it's still either equal to or preferably a bit above whatever reading you got from the battery alone.

Additionally he says

Originally Posted by Sid "The fettling Oracle" Squid

Assuming you are confident of the battery, it sounds most likely that the regulator rectifier is isn't doing so well, but first a check of the alternator output will determine this, do this: disconnect the reg/rec unit connectors and identify the three yellow wires, these are the alternator connections, and they can be considered to be three pairs, that is if you were to name them A, B and C, you could have a pair A and B, a pair B and C, and a pair A and C. using a voltmeter with an AC setting of about 100V check the output between each of the three pairs, at about 5000 rpm there should be about 70V AC, the most important thing is to satisfy yourself that all three pairs are about the same output, any one markedly different reading will stand out.
If the alternator passes this test, (there are other tests too, but I doubt you'll find anything amiss with it anyway), then you may be confident that the trouble lies in the reg/rec unit, remember, this includes it's connections, so check that all is well fitted, clean and not suffering from corrosion.

Heed the above words of wisdom, It is the only way of isolating /identifying a charging problem.

Now, seeing as you have a curvey, and got the side plastics off to do the above. Cut off all the plastic cable ties on your loom as it winds its way past your seat and pull the loom away from the frame. Examine it carefully for any signs of chaffing, especially where it passes the seat bolts etc.

Repair any damage now and cable tie it back in place ensuring any chaff points are well protected.

i started it again last night - it 'seemed' ok
visited Wyder dealership earlier today & explained that i am not entirely sure that it is a battery problem. i am going to give it a few days. the next time i will have an opertunity to get out on the bike is next monday - i will see how things go & get in touch with them after that

Hi Guys, piggy backed off that question, I have now got the seat off thanks, any ideas on getting a new battery?

[Wideboy]

Originally Posted by Kat8000

Hi Guys, piggy backed off that question, I have now got the seat off thanks, any ideas on getting a new battery?

what exactly do you mean, you want to know where to get a new battery?