Just dead

[Stevemoloney]

This morning I put the key in my 2006 1200GS. All lights appeared on consol and the usual tests performed, ABS blinking, Neutral engaged, I pressed the start button and the motor turned over for one second seemingly about to start then everything just went dead. No slow dying sound - it went clunk and off. A red light on the instrument panel flashed as i turned the key from on to off. When I turned the key back to on, nothing, no lights, no start. I tried push starting it to no avail it would not fire. I tried jump starting it from both another bike first and then a car, this produced all the lights on the consol and the headlight was slowly blinking on for four seconds then off for one. Trying the start button I could only get a clicking sound. We removed the battery and placed it on a charger until fully charged. Replaced same battery but no lights on consol and no clicking just completely dead. No problems with this battery for the two months since purchase. I did notice the grip warming button was in the on position when trying to push start the bike. Maybe nothing. My fear is it is computer related. I am in Tegucigalpa Honduras with no BMW moto service here. All suggestions appreciated.

Regards Steve

[marc]

The most common cause of such issues is battery. They fail, sometimes suddenly. The BMW labeled Excide battery has a reputation for doing that (although the reputation may be unfair).

Try a replacement battery. Hook up a car battery sitting next to the bike with jumper cables if you have to to check things out. When doing that remove the current battery from the circuit.

Once you know for sure that it is not the battery you can look at other issues. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

[pdxrmccgs]

For situations and indications as you post I am down for the proposition
that your battery is bad and that you need a new battery. The clicking sound
is your starter selenoid trying to engage the starter.

[t6pilot]

your posting shows a 2006 bike if the battery was the original thats five years,pretty good service life, my guess time to invest in a new one, many times you can put a full charge on old battery but in a matter of hours it can lose it. we change ours at the three year point, hopefully so as not to be stuck somewhere.

[pdxrmccgs]

t6pilot is 100 per cent accurate. At some point in a batteries
life, usually because of sulfation of the plates, the lead and lead
oxides (or other compounds) can not chemically accept a
charge because, the internals show a high
resistance load to a battery charger. The voltage after charging will
show normal but it is just a small electron charge against a high
ohmic resistance which will dissipate in a couple of hours. This
"apparent" charge is called a "surface charge."

This is especially problematic with modern "sealed" AGM batteries as
the historic method of analyzing battery health, or SOC (state of charge)
with a hydrometer, is not available as the electrolyte is sealed inside
the battery. The work a round is to use an electronic load tester
or wait a couple of hours and put a load on (headlights...engine start)
and remeasure your voltage. The results will tell you if the "internals"
of the battery are still capable of the electro-chemistry required of a
healthy battery or if your battery "life" is gone and you need a new battery.