Any Beemer owners out there. May not be Beemer specific problem

[Normandog]

My neighbor has a 2002 BMW K1200LT. It killed a new battery mostly while sitting in the garage but it only took about 3 months to kill it. It was cranked and ran for 5 minutes every week.  He tried jumping the bike with the battery still hooked up. Nothing after that. I pulled the batt. and slow charged it overnite. It was dead. ( .15 volts ) He bought a new one and I went over to install it today. Soon as all cables were connected the darn starter started spinning. It's kinda like it's straight wired. Any thoughts on this strange case? We tried it with the kill switch in the no go position and it still tried to crank. We also removed the ground, turned the switch on, reconnected the ground and let it crank. Once it was running we turned the switch off and hit the kill switch. Darn thing kept running.

[CajunRider]

I don't know about the "kept running" thing,  but Beemers are VERY iffy with the battery. 

Take the brand new battery and give a proper charge before doing anything else.  Then try to crank it up again. 

Make sure you get a proper battery tender for the battery, and keep the bike on it unless he's riding EVERY day. 

Trust me on those two... I had a Beemer once... I been through the same thing, only without the "kept running" part. 

[sugerbear]

maybe a starter solinoid? stuck starter switch?

[X Ring]

Hey Norman,  go here, http://www.bmwlt.com/forums/cmps_index.php, to find info on the Beemer.  Give Carolina Girl a hug for me.

Marty

[Matsumike]

I have a 1200GS and I can tell you that there must be a drain on the battery even when it is sleeping in the garaage.  If it sets for a month I have to charge the battery before I take her out.   You also know if you start a bike and just let it idle, you are not really charging the battery.  You have to get the RPM's up - somewhere around 2,000 to get a decent charge. 
Beemer's are great bikes.... but like all bikes they haver their issues....

[Gryphon]

 You also know if you start a bike and just let it idle, you are not really charging the battery.  You have to get the RPM's up - somewhere around 2,000 to get a decent charge. 
Beemer's are great bikes.... but like all bikes they haver their issues....

He's telling you straight.  I can't claim any real knowledge about the K's, but on the airheads and early oilheads, the alternator doesn't even begin to charge until 2K.  If he was only starting it and then letting it run for 5 minutes, he was draining his battery and never recharging it.  We could begin another thread on what the five minute run time is doing to his oil and exhaust system.  IMHO, always run them enough to get them thoroughly warm and charged.  If the roads are dry, you can stay warm long enough to give them a proper warmup and circulate the oil even if its only once per month.

[N8171S]

I haave an R1200C and it came with a BMW charger.  These bikes  have computers for ABS and other things that constantly drain the batteries.  Most come with a port just for the charger.  My BMW is for sale, it just isn't a Valkyrie.

[Normandog]

  My BMW is for sale, it just isn't a Valkyrie.

 

[Oss]

when I got the 1150RT P   I decided to order  the bmw charger  like the I/S there is a drain on the battery when the bike is off for clock and such

It is safe for all 3 kinds of batteries you could get and like the prior posted said if the bike sits you should use the charger the night before you want to ride -  the P model has an aux battery tied into the main one

The bmw charger WILL get the battery up to full charge and float unless it is beyond redemption

I read somewhere that 4 yrs is considered a long life for a beemer battery.

Sorry cant help on the starter part

[Challenger]

The starter relay or the starter solenoid is stuck (shorted), the kill switch in the off positon should have eliminated the chance of a wireing problem.