I am a new rider so I have been riding are in parking lots and industrial parks. Since I am not going very fast (25mph or less) the bike gets pretty hot. After I stop riding and go back the bike usually has to be jump started. But if I do some highway driving the bike will start back up. Now after some reading on this forum and others, it seems that the rectifier is the problem. My wife bought the bike for me used from a dealership and got an extended warranty with it. My question - If I take the bike in and they replace the rectifier will I still have the same problem i.e. have they updated the rectifer? If not I have seen some fixes that I can do myself. Thanks for all the help.

Darren

Edit - I guess it would help if I told you what kind of bike I have 2005 CBR600F4i

 

from what you're describing, ithink your problem is not the rectifier. i think it's a worn battery with low speed/rpm riding that's the culprit. it's preventing the stator from charging the battery. hence, that's why when you go highway, etc. the bike still starts but not the slow parking lot stuff.

before you spend any money on a new rectifier or battery, you should check the charge on the battery and also the readings at the regulator.

 

Before I jumped started it the battery was reading around 12.3 volts (I think). After jumping it it was around 13.5 (again I think). I work in a parts department at a dealership and tow on the side, but bikes are completely foreign to me (for right know ) Thanks for the quick reply!

Edit - I also noticed that after jumping it when you rev the engine the headlight would get brighter. On cars this would usually mean a new alt. but I would ride it around and it ran fine. and would start up with out a jump (cruising around 40-45mph).

 

I think I've got some help for this one! One... your bike overheating may be part of the problem, but if you're not leaking coolant everywhere then that shouldn't be too much of it... If you ARE leaking coolant, check the fuses! That was part of my problem once. Two... motorcycles charge the batteries different than cars! I've been checking this out because I've also been having a charging issue. There are a couple of good websites and I'll get to that in a minute, but a car's battery is recharging as soon as the engine is running. A motorcycle's charging system does NOT recharge the battery with full regulated voltage until it is revs above 3000-5000 rpms (I've seen both numbers on different sites)... SO, if you're not operating the cycle above 3000 or 5000 rpms when driving around the lots, then the battery will fizzle out and die after awhile, which is why it will start again after a jump. Here are a couple of sites that might help you diagnose the charging system though:

"F2 dying while riding/battery wont charge...anyone had the same problem?" on this general tech forum
CBRWorld.net -- How to Diagnose the Charging System... might be http://cbrworld.net/forums/140473/ShowPost.aspx
Fault Finding FLow Chart for Motorcycle Charging System: http://www.offwidth.co.uk/bike/gener...lt_finding.pdf

Hope that helps!!!