Cyclone alarm + battery = pain in my bottom

It appears the installation of the cyclone alarm seems to either have shown that my battery is on the way out (which it is) or the alarm itself is draining a ridiculous amount of power

Had it jump stated on friday afternoon as batt dead, had it running for quite a while. This afternoon, get ready for a trip to halfords to get a new batt for it, oh great the battery is flat as a pancake again.

Ive never had any problems with the battery before this (and it does need replacing). But i didnt even have the alarm set, should it drain this quickly? the alternator and everything is fine so its either the battery has just died, or the battery has died and the alarm is raping it of anything it has.

Is fitting a new battery easy? I've heard its pretty simple, couple of bolts and slides out. Also will the alarm go spare if i disconnect the current battery? (i dont have the immobiliser fitted) Dont have the destructions for the alarm on me so i dont know.

And will it just drain the new battery i get? in which case should i abandon the alarm? I have been talking to my cousin who rides and he was telling me that he always got warned that crap like this would happen when getting an alarm, so he got an alarm disclock

cheers,
Draper

[yorkie_chris]

I would say get the seat off and put an ammeter in series with the battery earth (don't try to start the bike unless its a f##king huge meter you've got) then alarm the bike, this should show you how much current the alarm is drawing.

I suspect your battery is not healthy and the alarm is just giving it the final kick in the guts, only using the bike for short runs or only occasionally compounds this problem.
Current draw test, then new battery + optimate.

Chris

cheers chris, i'll have a butchers tomorrow

I knew someone that fitted the alarm for me, so not sure how it's all set up, hoping some of the cyclone owners view this. Unsure as to whether disconnecting the battery will balls anything up. Then perhaps if the alarm is drawing too much, i'll see how it goes with the new batt, and disconnect it if needs be

[yorkie_chris]

They normally have a backup battery inside, (my meta did and others too, not sure about cyclone specifically) and you can normally disconnect the battery, disconnecting while armed will usually set the alarm off though.

I've got the Cyclone C11 on my bike.

For what it's worth, I haven't had battery issues except for the time I went away for a fortnight, and left the alarm armed. The bike sat still for a fortnight with the alarm armed. When I came back to it, I had to bump start it. But that was a fortnight, not a couple of hours.

Run through the usual checks for R/R & alternator output before you go & buy a new battery.

Hi, my cyclone doesn't cause any probs either. Are you sure it's wired in ok? can you borrow a battery for a check? do you have instructions for the alarm if not give me a fax number and I'll send them over for you. Other than that disconnect the thing and try the bike without it fitted. If you're unsure about testing anything or don't have the kit to do it that may be the easy way.

well my suspician is that the battery is the original one, so stuck on it in 99, probably not up to much anymore. The alternator is fine aswell.

I dont have the instructions on me no, dont have a fax either. so i could disconnect the battery without any trouble off it? and if replacing the battery would i need to reset the alarm or anything like that (and how that's done)?

cheers guys

i'm saying remove the battery as if i know how to do it?


...how do i do it ?

Originally Posted by Draper

i'm saying remove the battery as if i know how to do it?


...how do i do it ?

Jeez, now you're asking. Well, the technical answer is, it depends.

You should have a red wire from the main unit running to a positive supply, and a black one to earth (I hate those colour conventions on wires, but that's what I remember on the Cyclone).

Now, if you remove the positive, that'll stop the alarm working. But have you wired up the immobiliser functions (to the ignition - should be jumped in at the thick orange wire in the fuse box IIRC), and will removing alarm power lock the immobiliser on - good question. This is why I fitted mine with discreet bullet connectors so I could rip it out at a moments notice.

If the orange wire from the fuse box isn't wired into the alarm, it probably doesn't have the immobiliser setup (which IMO, it should have been setup), and therefore isn't a problem.

I fitted one of these alarms to by new 650s sport. Very simple and straightforward to fit I thought. (mind you I was an auto electrician in a previous life). I was very careful with the wiring and each model bike has different colour wires to connect. When I bought the alarm I specified the type of bike and got the correct wiring diagram with it which I checked and double checked.

I have only encountered one flat battery and that was when I parked the bike up and did not immobilise it then switch on the alarm.

If its wired correctly and you do NOT immobilise the bike then the relay that should have been fitted with the alarm is still on (the relay that cuts ignition cicuit). With the bike stood it will drain the battery quickly. My bike is brand new and I did this once and 48hrs later had a flat battery.

I now make sure it is immobilised then alarmed every time I park it up, at home its plugged into an optimiser, nothing worse than planning a day out on the bike getting all yer kit on then trying to start a dead bike !!!

Hope this helps !! I can probably still find all the info i got with mine if thats any use

By the way, with this alarm there is a remote start feature available, has anybody gone down that route??