[Buchnerb]

I came out from work yesterday and my 6 month old 2012 RT went dead. When I turned the key on it did the checks. When I hit the button the button everything flashed and shut down. When I retried it flashed and then went off. Another biker had jumper cables so tried to jump it. Panel would power up, did the checks, solenoid would click, click, click but no starter. Called BMW assist and they tried with bigger cables and more power. Same result. Came back later and pulled the battery to take home and charge. Battery charger (not tender) said “replace battery” and would not charge it.

When I started it that morning it had trouble starting and when it did there was a funny metallic noise for a second. No caution lights showing battery not charging. I had had the ignition turned on for short while Sunday trying to tune more channels in the sat radio. Could the battery be drained to the point it would start once and not take a charge anymore? Could the charger be programmed for car batteries and see the smaller motorcycle battery as a failure. Could the starter be a problem since it would not engage while we were jumping it?

I’m calling the dealer when it opens and see about a new battery. If that does not work they will have to come get it. And I was supposed to leave this Friday on a long road trip. Are there any known problems with late model RTs like thia?

Bruce

 

[GRB60]

You didn't say what kind of charger you hooked it to at home. It may not have the ability to charge a deeply discharged battery.

How long did you leave the jumper cables attached? Enough to charge the battery or just long enough to try to start it?

How long were you playing the radio? Is the battery normally maintained on a tender?

You could have a bad battery or one that needs a proper charger to revive it.
If you don't have a tender and can find one locally I'd recommend the Optimate 4 Dual Program charger. It says it can revive a battery where others can't. It will also charge your CANBUS bike thru the OE Powerlet plug.

 

[kimokk]

Does your bike have an alarm system? Maybe it's locked up or something.

I found this post in an earlier thread by rross and maybe will help your situation:

"FWIW, I saw this in a post about "Won't start," and it worked for me. On my '03 LTE, the battery discharged deeply and would barely light the dash indicators. I put it on the battery charger overnight and when I hit the key the next day, everything was back to normal, bright headlight, etc., but when I'd hit the starter button--nothing. You'd hear the faintest click deep in the bike, and if you hit it again within two seconds, no click. You have to wait two or three seconds for a reset, then you'd hear the click again, very faint. I checked the Reverser switch, kill switch, sidestand/in-gear situation, etc., to no avail. The fob worked the alarm arming and disarming apparently okay, but it was still locking out my starter.

In the post I read, one of the repliers (?) mentioned that when the battery gets that low, it can cause the anti-theft system to trip and lock out the starter. It'll remain in that condition until you set and unset it over and over until something different happens. In his case, it beeped once instead of twice; in mine, it flashed once instead of twice. When my sets, it flashes twice, no beep. When it unsets, it flashes twice and beeps once. So, when I saw a single flash (an unusual condition for my bike), I reset and unset the anti-theft one more time just to be sure and the bike started right up. On that last set/unset, it behaved as it always does: two flashes for set, two flashes and a beep for unset.

A final note: My bike didn't always have that pattern for set/unset. I can't remember what it was like when I first got it, but it was different. I think maybe one flash or beep for set, etc. Don't know when or why that changed, but it still works as designed, far as I can tell.

Hope that helps."

 

[racer7]

Do get yourself a modern charger with pulse capability. Old style car chargers and many of the 1A maintainers will not initiate a charge on a deeply discharged battery

I use an Xtreme- you can google it- but there are others as well. A while ago I even used my Xtreme to recover a car battery that no other charger in my set could.though its "only" a 3A device.

You may not need a new battery but if you do the BMW Exide isn't a very good choice unless you get a warranty freebie- they've got a history with many. The preferred battery is a PC680 Odyssey- cheaper and far superior especially at cool weather starts.

 

[beech]

Kind of sideways here but still on topic, I too think you have battery issues and need a new one. But I also have an Xtream charger. I also have an Optimate 4 charger. The other day I left my radar detector on and went a couple of weeks without riding the bike. DEAD battery. The Xtream unit said battery no good and would not try to charge it. The optimate 4 said is was low and started the pulse charge sequence. I pulled the battery out of the bike so the Optimate could do its "out of the circuit" sequence. Battery back to life. I do note that it is on it's last leg as this is the second time I have killed it from forgetfulness and it is 3 years old. New battery coming for the Summer.

 

[GRB60]

Nice to hear I made a good choice with the Optimate 4. Of course, the irony is that if I use it properly I may never need the functions that make it such a valuable tool.

 

[Hammam]

Do get yourself a modern charger with pulse capability. Old style car chargers and many of the 1A maintainers will not initiate a charge on a deeply discharged battery

I use an Xtreme- you can google it- but there are others as well. A while ago I even used my Xtreme to recover a car battery that no other charger in my set could.though its "only" a 3A device.

You may not need a new battery but if you do the BMW Exide isn't a very good choice unless you get a warranty freebie- they've got a history with many. The preferred battery is a PC680 Odyssey- cheaper and far superior especially at cool weather starts.

Two questions:

- does the PC680 Odyssey fit hassle-free in the 2012 RT battery compartment? Is it just plug-and-play?

- can you recharge it, or just tend it over winter, with an Optimate 3 charger?

Thanks.

 

[Hammam]

I had a problem sarting my 2012 RT, with 5,000 kms on the clock, 2 weeks ago, after some 30 minutes parked with the warning lights flashing. I know this is a bit long, but still, I don't think it should have discharged an almost new GOOD battery. It just went click-click-click and didn't budge. As it turned out, my battery WAS faulty, and they replaced it under warranty. It seems that a batch of faulty batteries went in the 2012 RTs.

I don't know from whom BMW buy their batteries, but I had a similar bad battery a few years ago on an F800 ST.

 

[GRB60]

It fits in the battery box but you need to use "L" brackets to attach to the terminals. Check with the seller as many times they are included with the battery at no cost ( I believe Amazon.com includes them). I think it needs some shims to keep it from moving front to back. The cardboard from the box will do it.

 

[Hammam]

It fits in the battery box but you need to use "L" brackets to attach to the terminals. Check with the seller as many times they are included with the battery at no cost ( I believe Amazon.com includes them). I think it needs some shims to keep it from moving front to back. The cardboard from the box will do it.

That was a quick reply. Thanks.

 

[kimokk]

Two questions:

- does the PC680 Odyssey fit hassle-free in the 2012 RT battery compartment? Is it just plug-and-play?

- can you recharge it, or just tend it over winter, with an Optimate 3 charger?

Thanks.

Look on the Odyssey website for the recommended battery chargers. I don't think Optimate was one of them.

 

[Buchnerb]

The thread has drifted a bit but to give closure on my original problem the bike is fixed. It was towed to the dealer and they determined the battery was indeed bad and replaced it under warranty. The old battery was marked on the side in big letters "BMW" and "Exide" along with a sticker on top with my VIN number. I don't know who made the new one because it is buried down in the bike. They checked the charging system and it is good. I leave tomorrow on a my first long trip with the RT and I hope I don't come out my motel in Middle-Of-Nowhere, KY on Saturday morning and just get click, click, click.

Bruce

 

[GRB60]

Glad to hear it's fixed. Enjoy the trip.

 

[lkraus]

Look on the Odyssey website for the recommended battery chargers. I don't think Optimate was one of them.

I believe the Optimate 4 is OK to maintain or top off the charge on an Odyssey, but it does not provide the higher voltage and 6 to 20 amp current recommended to charge a completely dead battery. One of the Odyssey advantages is that it will not lose charge while disconnected in storage. My RT computer is a constant light drain on the battery, so I use the Optimate occasionally over winter rather than disconnect the battery. If I manage to kill the Odyssey completely, I have a regular automotive charger that can do the job.

 

[barryRT]

I had the same problem with my GT. A few trips to the dealer and and a new battery was installed under warranty. I purchased an Optimate 4 after the problems started.