Like 200i as an external battery charger

[Duddy03]

I want to use the KYMCO scooter to charge an external scooter battery.  With the external battery, I could use an inverter to power small 110 VAC devices in an emergency. My thought was to turn off the headlight during the charging operation to lighten the load on the alternator.  (There is no ON/OFF switch for the headlamp.) Once removed, I expected either the 10 A or 15 A to kill the headlight or all of the lights while the remaining fuse would run the engine.  Unfortunately, what I found was that removal of the 10 A fuse killed everything.  Then, to my astonishment, I found out that removal of only the 15 A fuse also killed everything except, I believe, the fuel pump.  My plan is ruined!

I could put a kill switch in the glove compartment or under the seat, but that involves the disassembly of plexiglass panels and finding the appropriate wire in a wiring harness.  I would be satisfied with turning off only the front headlight and letting the other lights function.

In my old age, I seem to have forgotten the days when I traced electrons through a heavy fixed military radar set in the Air Force.

During the charge operation with a fully charged scooter battery and a discharged external battery, I plan to attach the batteries together without running the scooter.  After waiting some time for the two batteries to equalize, I would start the scooter and allow both batteries to be recharged. 

Does anyone know why removing either of the two fuses, essentially kills all electrical functions?  And, does anyone have a suggestion on how they would proceed with this project?  Thanks.

[Iahawk]

Happy Memorial Day (to our US members)!.. what I'm reading is you want to keep a 2nd, spare scooter battery charged up for possible future use..and you'd prefer to charge it off the scooter but are having problems killing the lights to reduce draw during charging?

How about skipping the 'scooter as a charger' and using a traditional wall plug battery tender / charger / maintainer to charge the extra battery?

I would also think that a small scooter battery would have a very limited amount of power available to use in a power outage...could you buy a larger battery to use or a dedicated power bank that is designed to recharge and then power electric accessories? Lots of those available, now.

(if you're dead set on using your scoot to charge the extra battery you can replace your original headlight bulb with an led one to save a lot of juice)

[Duddy03]

Iahawk:  Thanks for your reply. I do use a trickle charger to keep the aux battery charged.  And I agree that a full-size automotive battery would be better than a small scooter battery (YTZ14/12S).  This battery can now also be charged by a 1 amp, 15 W portable solar panel that I have had in storage for the past 15 years!  My two cars and the Like 200i all have power chargers connected to them which charge the power banks when the vehicles are running.  To assist in an all-out home power outage, I just can't justify the expense of a whole house backup generator or the expense of installing a power switch box for a portable natural gas generator.  I recognize that the 120 VAC inverter would only charge something like a smartphone a few times.

I am interested in learning more about LED headlights for the Like 200i but I understand there are pros & cons that need to be considered.

[Stig / Major Tom]

Duddy,
I believe that LED headlight bulbs have been used successfully by a few LIKE200I owners.
You might start a new thread to get their latest experiences.
Stig