www.boxertrix.com

Simply put, I'm after the easiest way to get my bike going without having to take fairings off and bringing the battery indoors to recharge - which is what I'll do if I have to of course!

This goes back to my earlier thread about leaving parking light on . I've not had chance to sort it due to the birth of my son (our first) last week.

If the battery is completely, utterly flat then you'll have to charge it - if there's not enough power to get the fuel pump, injectors and ECU working then no amount of bumping in gear will get it started.

Do you have a power socket? If so you could charge through that. Otherwise you can get to the battery terminals (if you have a small battery, anyway - fitted to bikes without heated grips) just by removing the two side fairings. There are only 7 little screws holding each one on - it's very quick and easy. But be careful you don't short things out on the underside of the tank......

Put the kill switch in one of the 'off' positions before charging the battery on the bike, connected.

And if you do have to take the battery out of the bike this time, before you put it back in fit a power socket, flying leads, optimate lead or similar so that if you make the same mistake again you can re-charge the battery without disturbing the bodywork!

^ ^ cheers for the tips.

I'm about to pop outside and get the fairing off now so I can get the battery on to charge.

...maybe they could have put the battery inside the sump and made it completely inaccessible. Ah, forgot; you wouldn't have the potential 'spark-vapour' entertainment that you get when the battery is in a concealed space under the fuel tank. Halfords sell red battery leads about a foot long - fasten one of these to the +ve terminal and leave the flying end under the seat. Happy jump starting.

Put the kill switch in one of the 'off' positions before charging the battery on the bike, connected.

Why?

The other way to get to the battery positive for jump starting is to remove the starter cover. It only attaches with one allen screw, but the red cable from the starter goes to the battery + and the other jump lead can be attached to anywhere on the engine. You can leave the starter cover off and still ride the bike till you have a new battery.

oyster wrote:

Put the kill switch in one of the 'off' positions before charging the battery on the bike, connected.

Why?

Just paranoia, really - it avoids any possibility of a voltage spike from the charger reaching the ECU and causing damage there. This is why most battery charger instructions say to only charge the battery when it's disconnected from the bike (or car - same advice). Obviously very low current chargers such as Optimates don't have such potential problems.

Got it going in the end by jump starting it from my car.

Yesterday:

1. Get left fairing off (7 screw!)
2. Get right fairing off (7 screws!) after discovering +ve terminal is on that side.
3. Connect +ve and -ve.
4. Jump start bike.
5. Put both fairings back on (14 screws!)
6. Whilst leaving bike locked to lampost, return to house and get kitted up for ride to charge battery.
7. Walk out to bike and when only 10ft away scream as bike stalls for no reason. Bike obviously will not restart.
8. Take helmet and gloves off.
9. Get right fairing off (7 screws!)
10. Jump start bike.
11. Put fairing back on (7 screws!)
12. Get helmet and gloves back on in DOUBLE quick time.
13. Ride away. YES!!

This morning:
1. Attempt to start bike - no good, just a rattle from the starter.
2. Bump start bike - Yes!
3. Ride 40 miles before having to stop for petrol.
4. Fill er up.
5. Cross everything and hope it starts.
6. IT DOES! Hu-fooking-ray!

I will NEVER leave my parking light on again! (when I say never......)

a note of caution, these bikes should never be left siationary with the engine running as they will over heat. You could then find it will blow out the oil sight glass, no fun if your leg is in the way, it won't do the rest of the bike any good either.
Just start and go.

You could have saved yourself all that hassle just by removing the starter cover as I said in a previous post. Are you a glutton for punishment?

tripe wrote:a note of caution, these bikes should never be left siationary with the engine running as they will over heat. You could then find it will blow out the oil sight glass, no fun if your leg is in the way, it won't do the rest of the bike any good either.
Just start and go.

I think that's a bit over-dramatic! Although the bikes don't need warming up, leaving a bike running for a while from cold won't do it any harm in the long term, and it won't overheat in 10 minutes if it started off stone cold.

I've sat in queues of traffic for ages on various oilheads in ambient temperatures well over 40 degrees and sure, they get hot, but I don't see why the oil sight glass should 'blow out' as there shouldn't be that much pressure in the crank case.

I can't imagine that BMW would have designed these engines with a cooling system so marginal that they can't handle idling for 10 minutes at lunch time in Arizona in mid-summer, let alone on a cool, UK morning. What do you do, switch your engine off every time you stop at traffic lights?! I know there are reports on Pelican (surprise surprise) of engines dying when left idling for hours in a garage, but I've never heard of it happening in the UK. If you have experience of the sight glass 'blowing out' as a result of idling when stationary then I'm sorry, but I just don't see it happening unless other factors come in to play.

madman wrote:You could have saved yourself all that hassle just by removing the starter cover as I said in a previous post. Are you a glutton for punishment?

Yeah, didn't know about that at the time - should really have checked back here again before I took the plunge!

However I have also just read somewhere on t'internet that the starter cover trick only works on bikes post 2004. Is this true? I might have a look myself tonight when I get home if I have time.

not sure about any 'post 2004' thing... I can definitely jump start onto the starter motor terminal on my 1998.
Getting the starter motor cover back on straight ... I'd sooner change the camshafts

The post 2004 thing is that at that date a terminal was fitted to the starter motor cover so nothing had to be removed! Mine has it, but Judes 2001 doesn't. I know this because it was Judes battery that went on the blink. We removed the starter cover and just carried a set of jump leads when we went out, before we managed to get the new battery.

If you look at this picture you can see the black rubber bung on the starter motor cover on the post 2004 bikes.

If you look at the back of the cylinder head, just below the plug lead, you can also see the negative terminal.