[Scootereno]

I purchased and installed the much hyped MotoBatt battery for my 400. Everything on the specs looked great and probably is if there wasn't an apparent flaw in there design imho. I had no problems the first 4 months and was very pleased with it but then it started to seem weak after it sat for 2-3 days. :roll: I thoroughly checked for electrical shorts or a current drain but found none. Now 8 months later it is finally too weak to hold a charge while eating breakfast at IHOP...just ask Bikeisback.
I checked about their warranty and they said to remove the sonic welded cover which has the date stamp on it and return it along with $15 blah blah for a replacement. So I struggled with removing the top cover feeling like it was about to shatter and send shrapnel everywhere and I found 6 rubber caps covering the cells underneath. I removed the caps and found each cell bone dry! :shock: Now this is not a dry cell battery and obviously won't hold a charge when dry it is merely a Glass Mat Sealed battery. I keep distilled water for my golf cart batteries maintenance and got a syringe to fill the MotoBatt up to what I would think would be the proper level. Each cell took 1 oz. of water...that's 6 oz. in that little tiny battery. :?
So my questions are:
How does a sealed system go dry?
Was this just an example of poor quality control or a design flaw?
Why would you sonic weld the cover on if it apparently needs maintenance?
Should i ask for a refund instead of a replacement?

I know another member here on this forum has posted "Maintenance" procedures he got from the manufacturer to bring the MotoBatt's back to life if it happens to you...Really?....on a sealed maintenance free battery?

I have since reinstalled my original 8 year old battery that has been sitting on the shelf and being used to jump off the MotoBatt weekly and never recharged and it cranked the 400 right up with no problem. :thumbup:

 

[Ralph M]

They aren't really sealed if they were you would likely get a big bang if
they got hot for any reason it may be worth checking the on charge volts though
14.2 is about right.

 

[cliffyk]

I do not question your report of the battery failing (it is an imperfect world and increasingly we consumers are the final level of quality control), however I do not believe it failed because it was "dry". Motobatt batteries are of the AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) type, in which the electrolyte is completely absorbed into the glass matting wrapped around each plate; look into one as you did and they appear dry, that is why they do not leak--there is no free liquid to leak. Many AGM batteries used to be shipped bone dry dry along with pre-measured ampules of electrolyte. Once the juice was added it would be sucked up into the glass mats and you could turn the battery upside down without the caps on--strangest damned thing first time I installed one. After filling he caps snapped on flush to the battery top, never to come off again.

The caps you found are certainly those used in the final stages of manufacturing, through which the initial (and only) electrolyte charge is added. After that the battery is sealed never to be opened again. Likely they just wanted the "proof of ownership" that the information on the cover would provide. Adding water will have likely diluted the electrolyte reducing the battery's capacity.

 

[Elliott Larron]

Was having that Problem of Jumping the Battery in Cold weather, But since adding Fluid never had the Problem Since, there could be a number of reasons why it failed , the Charge Voltage on the Battery States 99.0 Less then 1 -Amp on the Charge, Not stating that you were using a Higher Source,

elliott,

 

[Scootereno]

Was having that Problem of Jumping the Battery in Cold weather, But since adding Fluid never had the Problem Since, there could be a number of reasons why it failed , the Charge Voltage on the Battery States 99.0 Less then 1 -Amp on the Charge, Not stating that you were using a Higher Source,

elliott,

Once again having to do maintenance on a "Maintenance Free" sealed battery is totally unacceptable! :x
Waiting on my replacement and will probably just use it as a spare or on my kayak for the fish finder.
The bad one is now a door stop. :roll:

 

[QuantumRift]

You know, it's possible to simply get a bad battery - BMW makes great cars but once in a while......Burgmans are great but once in a while.....you have a warranty, your choice whether to use it or not. A 1% failure rate is great. A 20% failure rate is not.
So while Motobatt makes good batteries, you may have gotten a bad one. It happens. :?

 

[Elliott Larron]

QuantumRift , Good Point

Maintenance Free, hhmmm. don't think so, Don't understand why there are Rubber Caps on there, if it would have been Maintenance Free, Then the Factory should have made it a Sealed Battery with No way to Open it what so ever.... :lol:

Don't understand why yours failed Scootereno, if any, mines should have Quit,Not Yours, I'm the one Over Watted i got so many Leds I'm over the Limit. :lol:

im using more Power then you. :?:

Elliott,

 

[Scootereno]

It does have clearly printed on my battery "Sealed" and "Maintenance Free". :roll:

 

[Desert Rat]

I do not question your report of the battery failing (it is an imperfect world and increasingly we consumers are the final level of quality control), however I do not believe it failed because it was "dry". Motobatt batteries are of the AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) type, in which the electrolyte is completely absorbed into the glass matting wrapped around each plate; look into one as you did and they appear dry, that is why they do not leak--there is no free liquid to leak. Many AGM batteries used to be shipped bone dry dry along with pre-measured ampules of electrolyte. Once the juice was added it would be sucked up into the glass mats and you could turn the battery upside down without the caps on--strangest damned thing first time I installed one. After filling he caps snapped on flush to the battery top, never to come off again.

The caps you found are certainly those used in the final stages of manufacturing, through which the initial (and only) electrolyte charge is added. After that the battery is sealed never to be opened again. Likely they just wanted the "proof of ownership" that the information on the cover would provide. Adding water will have likely diluted the electrolyte reducing the battery's capacity.

Totally agree.............AGM batteries no matter what brand are no maintenance batteries. You just got a bad one.
They do take a little care in recharging them over a normal wet cell battery if they have gone dead.

 

[QuantumRift]

That's why there is a "AGM BATTERY " choice on my DieHard engine starter/battery charger in additon to REGULAR and DEEP CYCLE selections.

 

[Yogurt49]

I have a G750 Genius charger. Has been very good. On sale at geniuschargers.com for less than $30. Handles agm.

 

[LeDude]

you probably just got a bad battery, mine is over two years old and still going strong. This is the first time I have used anything else than a YUASA OEM battery, so am still waiting to see how long it lasts.

It's always a bummer to have a bad part but I am sure they will work with you to resolve the issue.

 

[Buffalo]

My experience was that the MotoBatt battery lasted about the same length of time that the OEM battery did.

 

[Scootereno]

Unfortunately it takes time to follow their troubleshooting and report back to them for them to accept their warranty and then dissassembly of the battery to send the top back. My thought is that these are cookie cutter production batteries and to have gotten a bad one makes me extremely nervous. It could have been handled harshly in shipping but who's to say that won't be the case again? Still waiting on them to confirm receiving the top so they can charge me $15.95 to ship me a replacement battery. Then I wonder if I have lost half of my warranty or do I get a full 2 years on the replacement? The Oem 8 year old battery is still hanging in there for now otherwise I'd be real pissed off.

 

[TechArtGuy]

It's going on 4 years now for the Motobatt I had purchased for my old bike. Haven't heard anything back yet about it from my buyer but did deep discharge it once when the regulator went out and still going strong. Will see how long it lasts as I keep in touch with him often. But I'm on board that it was just a bad batt, much like any product mass produced there are bound to be defective units.

 

[Scootereno]

That does give me some hope Sean.
Thanks!

 

[Scootereno]

Ok so the Saga continues.:angryfire:
I have not heard from the MotoBatt folks so I gave them a call. They said they had not received the top from my battery and would not send out the new one until they did. Well I called BS and gave them the info showing where it had been received by them Monday (3 days ago). I then asked since they delayed the process if they would give me free shipping and also what the new warranty terms were on the replacement battery. Well the girl had no clue about anything and was not authorized to give any discounts and probably just a call center operator. So I have followed up with an email to see if any response is given. So far things do not look good for their product or customer service in my instance. Not once have they called...only generic email responses have been sent. I have lost my faith and confidence in their product and their company completely.
Anybody want to buy my replacement MotBatt if I ever even get it?

 

[Scootereno]

I WILL NEVER DEAL WITH MOTOBATT AGAIN!
They dropped the ball on their end every way possible and cost me an extra week in replacing the defective battery. 2 weeks lost! They do not extend the warranty passed the original purchase date. They give you plenty of attitude when dealing with their customer service dept. and no one is authorized to do anything that you can talk to.
www.motobatt.com (Impact Battery) will take your money and leave you hanging if you don't watch out! If you get a good one you are lucky not to have to deal with them. Feel Blessed!

 

[Scootereno]

Update Again

The replacement MotoBatt battery died on Christmas eve causing me to miss my annual Christmas lights ride. It was getting weak for the last month.
8 Months from install just like the last one.....2 batteries in 16 months Hmmmm
Yuasa here I come!

 

[Elliott Larron]

Mines is Still going Strong, the new one that is 20AH the old 10AH is now 8AH battery under the seat it seem to still run my Power tools OK! thru the inverter. Scootereno, Before you Purchase a new battery Check your Regulator,Charging Systems First, Seems Odd ,

May be a hidden Problem some where that just Showed up out of no where it's worth a check before you Change Brands... and buy a new battery.

Sorry you missed your Christmas Lights Ride.....

Elliott,