Scooter Battery Tips and Tricks From Scooter Central Sydney
www.scootercentral.com.au
One of life’s frustrations is getting to your car, motorcycle, scooter or electric bicycle (even your torch when there is a blackout) and finding you have a flat battery. In this article we’ll take a look at your modern scooter battery, what its role is, and what we can do to extend it’s life.
Firstly, let take a look at where your battery is located.
Your battery may be located in several different positions around your modern scooter. Common locations are in the floor between your feet, in the glove box / knee panel area, under the saddle near your under saddle storage, or in a battery box, near the engine just to name a few.
If you are unsure where to find your battery on your scooter, feel free call Scooter Centrals workshop coordinator on 02 9938 5858 who can help you out.
The battery is an integral part of starting and then keeping your scooter running.
To engage the battery in starting your scooter you turn your ignition key to ON, hold on a brake lever, and push the starter button. This triggers the energy of the battery to supply power to the engines starter motor, which cranks the scooters engine and allows the engine to start.
FUN FACT – In the old days, scooters were often kick started by firmly pushing your foot down on a lever that was connected to the motor. This performed a similar cranking role as the electric start 12 Volt system in your modern scooter, albeit with a lot more effort on the part of the rider.
Now that your scooter has started and running we find out that it is also very clever. Your scooter knows that your battery just used up some of its stored energy to crank the engine over. To replenish this energy, there are components in the scooters electrical system that will resupply energy back into the battery, so it is fully charged and ready to start you again next time
QUICK TIP – This will require the scooter to be ridden for approximately 10 – 15 minutes and doesn’t operate successfully if the scooter is left at idle like a cars system does.
You can see from the images a battery prior to starting 12.60 Volts, and the second image of greater voltage being returned to the battery after starting and revving is 14.59 Volts.
When the scooter is running, the battery is busy playing its part in assisting overall power supply to many of your scooters components like Thermal Fans, Fuel Pump, Fuel Injectors, the Engine Control Module (ECU), ABS Braking, Traction Control, Lighting system and more!
TECHNICAL TIP – It is important to understand that compared with earlier older scooters, modern scooters have electronics operating even when the machine is not running. This includes when the key is turned OFF and there is no replacement charge available to your battery.
During this time the Engine Control Unit (the brain of your scooter) is always running in the background, as are alarms, clocks etc. Our technicians call this ‘parasitic draw’.
Once a 12 Volt battery goes below 8 Volts it is highly unlikely to recover, even with a recharge.
To overcome this, we always recommend riding your scooter on a 15 minutes trip at least once a week is the best solution.
But what if I’m not riding my scooter up for a couple of months over winter you ask? In this case, we recommend the assistance of an automatic charger and maintainer. These plug your scooter in to the 240 Volt household supply and ‘trick’ the battery to think its being ridden regularly by supplying a top up charge as needed. They are an excellent option if you are riding irregularly.
Here is a great example you can buy online or in store at Scooter Central.
https://www.scootercentral.com.au/shop/x-tech-12v-900ma-battery-charger/
TOP TIP FROM OUR TECHNICIANS – Automatic Charger / maintainer systems are also great if you ride less than 15 minutes for each journey and are concerned your battery is not getting fully recharged each time.
Which battery is best for my scooter? Here at Scooter Central we supply Absorbed Glass Matting technology batteries. Absorbed Glass Matting batteries are the next step up from your lead wet acid batteries of the past, and a huge step up from entry level batteries.
Our Absorbed Glass Matting batteries are specifically produced for modern scooters, and incorporate additional lead in the form of larger thicker plates that are individually wrapped in Absorbed Glass Matting or AGM. This assists with road going vibrations and also reduces failures due to migrating particles inside the battery which result in short circuits and weld breakages. Our technicians highly recommend them.
Another big bonus for less frequent riders is that Scooter Central’s AGM batteries have a much lower self-discharge rate than traditional wet flooded types.
All of our batteries come pre-charged and ready to go. There is no need to add sulphuric acid.
Contact parts@scootercentral.com.au for pricing and shipping to your door.
So lets take a quick summary
- Ride regularly for more than 15 minutes to regain charge in your battery.
- Use an automatic re-charger / maintainer if needed
- Call us if you have any battery concerns (it’s free!)
- If your battery is weak or fails, we can ship your replacement to your door.
- Our technician are here to help 6 days a week at Scooter Central in Brookvale.
- There has never been a better excuse for a 15 minute ride!
Scooter Central Team
Buy online or in store