Have a Super (8) question!

[RlwadeII]

Thought I would pose this to the board for review. I have a 2013 Super 8 150 that I bought brand new earlier this year. I typically ride to work 4 days a week (weather permitting) and the trip is about 15 minutes each way in stop and go traffic. Last week I went to get on it and hit the starter and bubkis! It had been about 4 days since I had ran it and it was about 32 degrees so I thought that maybe the battery had just gone out. Kick started it and let it warm up for about 5 minutes and when I went to take of the it would not even rev before it died. Started it again and it idled fine but the moment I roll on the throttle it dies. Now all the lights work and other than the starter not going all seemed fine. My question is can the battery be so dead it is killing the bike? I thought that once it was running the battery should not affect the motor. Further more how much do I need to ride to keep the battery charged Nd shouldn't it have lasted longer? I am going to bring it to the dealer as soon as I can borrow a trailer but would love to see if this is easily resolved! Thanks in advance!!

[RlwadeII]

So update I finally got off of work early enough to check out the bike and low and behold it started with the electric start and ran ok. I took it around the yard and it seems to be running a little sluggish but otherwise fine. It is 72 degrees here now also. Could the cold have temporarily zapped the battery? I'm thoroughly perplexed!

[ophelia]

Some thoughts:

A battery has less usable capacity when it's near freezing outside. Batteries also love being fully charged, especially if it's cold outside.

The alternator produces max output when you're on the move and on the throttle (i.e. >5000 rpm on a small bike). When you're idling or at very low speed, the alternator might be producing enough to power the lights and ignition, but it might not be producing enough extra current to recharge the battery at the same time.

If you aren't getting enough charge to top the battery sufficiently for a cold start, it might be a good idea to supplement the charging system on your Super 8 to get you through the winter months and prolong the battery. Some people like to go on a longer, faster ride to fully warm up the bike and get the battery fully charged once in a while. Others like to use a battery maintainer like the Deltran Battery Tender Jr. that they plug the bike into after they finish their ride. I do a combination of both.

Hope that helps steer you towards a solution.