Battery or Stator?

[houndguy]

First off let me state that I'm not a mechanical guy.  So I'll do my best to describe the issue.

I have not ridden my bike in about 2 weeks do to illness.   I jump on and go about 5 to 10 miles up the road to the local market (she fires right up).  I'm in the store for under 10 minutes, and I got nothing.   Not even a click.  No dash lights, etc.

I end up jumping the bike and take a long ride home, riding about 40 miles without issue.   I get home and try to start the bike roughly an hour later.  Same issue as before.

After about an hour of having it on a trickle charger I try it and she has lights and all that for about 30 seconds...then nothing.  So we pull the battery and have a load test done.  It's low but holding a charge. 

Right now she's on a trickle charger and that will take about 3 - 5 hours to fully charge.   My question is...Battery or something else. 

I'm not sure how old that battery is but I'm thinking less than 2 years.

[xsel777]

If the battery is low on the load, then perhaps a new battery is in order in any case. I would recommend a gel battery for your xciting 500.

The symptoms do hint at the moment stator being the likely culprit.
After a 40 minute drive, there definately should be juice in the battery.
Time to get out your multi tester,  to check if the battery is reading close to  14 V when the scoot is running.
No=stator or regulator.
Yes = battery

Let us know your results.

Sent from my MI MAX using Tapatalk

[Tromper]

Think I'd check the battery connections first for both corrosion, & tightness, & then consider a battery; albeit I'd nab a cheap multimeter from Harbor freight or something & verify that the output is good, or not.
Motorcycle batteries don't last well if not run or kept on a trickle charger, & the factory ones tend to be dubious.  I tend to replace them at the first sign of issues cuz I really don't want to deal with the hassle when I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere.
Folks will have their fav's for batteries, & they all have their merits.
I tend to be pretty conservative & stick with the YUASA AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) batteries.
There are a few discussions on the merit of various types & brands, generic vs. YUASA or other brand name etc. so I'll leave that for them for now.

[Mr. Paul]

My money is on a bad battery.

[willembop]

Get a voltmeter and do a simple test. With the scooter on the center stand and the engine running above idle, put the meter on the battery terminals. If your charging system is working, you should get a reading above 13 volts. If below 13 volts your charging system is at fault. This is most often caused by a bad rectifier, but it can also be a bunch of other things. If your reading is above 13 volts your charging system is working, and, if your battery is weak, you need a new battery.

[sissymary]

Battery. The stator got you home. And also check connections etc.

[mrbios]

Battery. The stator got you home. And also check connections etc.

I second this opinion.

[eakins]

I've tried all sorts of batteries and Yuasa/Motocross is the only brand worth buying.
Motocross is the exact same as Yuasa.

https://www.batterystuff.com/
These guys will fill your Motocross battery and charge it, then ship it.

I buy Yuasa branded from Amazon and fill it myself and properly charge it with a Optimate 6 (best charger on the market)

[sissymary]

Get at least a true gel battery, even better a lithium battery. They (Kymco) did not up the battery size when they went to fuel injection. A stock acid battery just can't handle the requirements needed to run head light, ignition, fuel pump and starter at the same time on cold days.

[eamartin]

Houndguy, who began this thread in Nov. 2016, has not commented since his original post.