Just wondering if longer battery life can be expected with police models because of the different charging system? The battery in my 06 is original from what I can tell and I havent had any issues with mine since purchased , havent used the tender yet but the bike has sat for more than a week a few times due to weather, but always cranks well(knock on wood of course) Still probably will purchase new next year but was just curious about the charging systems effect on batteries. Thanks

 

I bought my 2006 FLHTPI two years ago. No idea how old the battery is. It sat for three months this past winter without a charger. Fired right up...

 

things that kill batteries are heat, vibration and discharging.

we can only control one of those.

a battery if fully discharged will loose about 50% of it's rated capacity- things like security systems, radio memory and dirt on the battery will have a light drain that over time...

which is why a trickle charger is a good idea.

if a battery is flat use a real charger on it.

a flat battery may have an internal problem which could overload the charging system causing damage

mike

 

The original battery only lasted 8 years in my FLHPI. Of course, the aternator went bad too.

 

My 2002 FLHPi had the original battery in it until 2010, and it was still going strong, but when my voltage regulator gave up the ghost on me, i replaced the battery at that time. Being from michigan mine sits all winter on a battery tender usually. other than that, it gets ridden at least every week.

 

I was looking at one at the dealer a while ago and they told me that Police models outfitted as police models actually have TWO batteries. There's an additional battery in the "tourpack" on the back that also contains the radio and whatever other police equipment the bike might have. That part isn't included when you buy the bike for civilian use so I don't think you'll see a significant difference in battery performance. It MIGHT charge a little faster, but you might also have some extra parasitic drag and lower motor output from the heavier-duty alternator, but it would be a VERY small difference.

 

trying to charge a bad battery will do that...

 

my 2008 battery went dead in Phoenix over a few weeks of rougher starts then died luckily in my garage.