
Customers often ask us at Picture Me Rollin “which is the
best Lithium motorcycle battery”? Which
can be tricky to answer, because of many variables. Including which motorcycle they are being used
in, how often they are used, and at what temperature they will be used.
THE FACTS
The popularity of Lithium batteries is increasing. They are often promoted as a premium
aftermarket option to replace the factory-fitted lead acid battery designed for
your motorcycle. When we think of Lithium starting batteries, the first things that come
to mind are high cranking power and light weight.
LEAD ACID VS LITHIUM
There are many claims about the features and benefits of
replacing a factory-fitted lead acid battery with a lithium alternative.
Before deciding to swap your motorcycle lead acid motorcycle battery over, do your research.
1. Read
the warnings on the battery packaging.
2. What
are the effects of overcharging a lithium motorcycle battery?
3. What
are the effects of over-discharging a lithium motorcycle battery?
4. What
effects does heat have on a lithium battery
5. What
effects does cold have on a lithium motorcycle battery?
6. How
long do lithium motorcycle batteries last?
7. Weight,
does this really make a difference to performance?
8. The
battery management system – is the battery you choose protected or not
protected?
What are the problems with lithium batteries for
motorcycles?
A lithium battery may not be the best choice if you have
a custom bike with many electrical accessories fitted. It will do great starting the bike but may
fail to run the accessory items like a winch for as long as a Lead Acid battery
would. Another issue is that Lithium
does not perform as well as traditional lead-based motorcycle batteries when
the outdoor temperature is at or below freezing (usually not an issue in most
parts of Australia). Lithium batteries will perform as normal down to
about 5 °C, but as temps get lower, their performance degrades. So, if you have lots of accessories like a
booming stereo, winch, or lots of lights or ride mainly in below-freezing
temperatures, you might consider going with a more traditional battery choice
(i.e. lead acid).
Let’s look into this further…
READ THE WARNINGS ON THE PACKAGING
Lithium batteries must be used within their recommended
parameters. Replacing a lead acid
battery with a lithium can be catastrophic.
As the labels on most batteries will clearly highlight, using the
incorrect charger, overcharging, overcurrent, or short circuiting will damage
the battery and compromise your safety.
Although many articles and YouTube videos claim you can
charge a lithium battery using a standard lead acid charger, lithium battery
manufacturers clearly state you must use a lithium specific charger. Failure to charge your lithium battery within
the manufacturers recommendations may have catastrophic results.
OVER-CHARGE
Overcharging a Lithium battery causes irreversible damage
to the cells. When a motorcycle charging
system has a higher charging voltage than the manufacturers recommendations,
the battery will overheat, causing swelling that can lead to explosion or fire.
OVER-DISCHARGE
Some Lithium motorcycle batteries are fitted with a
Battery Management System (BMS). The BMS
protects the battery and activates the low voltage cut off when the voltage
drops below 15.V. This disconnects power
to the battery terminals, putting the battery into sleep mode. The battery can usually be “woken up” by
using a special lithium battery charger.
If this reactivation is not successful, the battery becomes unusable.
Lithium motorcycle batteries without a Battery Management
System don’t have low voltage protection.
Over discharging these batteries causes permanent damage to the cells
and increases the risk of a fire or explosion.
HEAT
Motorcycles with factory-fitted lead acid batteries
usually have the battery compartment in a high heat area. This may be under fuel tank, above the
cylinder heads, or in a side compartment that is exposed to heat from the hot
exhaust system or engine.
These external heat sources can generate higher internal
temperatures in a lithium battery. The
result is long term cell damage or temperature reaching critical levels
resulting in venting flammable gases.
Motorcycles with factory-fitted lithium batteries are
designed with the battery compartment at the back of the seat, away from any
heat source to prevent overheating.
Where is the battery compartment located on your
motorcycle?
COLD
Colder temperatures cause higher internal resistance in a
lithium battery. The higher the internal
resistance, the lower the capacity.
Lithium batteries can also suffer from permanent reduced
capacity or serious cell damage if charged in colder temperatures.
SERVICE LIFE
Due to the low uptake of lithium motorcycle batteries,
there is no accurate data to validate claims that using an aftermarket lithium
battery to replace the factory-fitted lead acid battery will deliver increases
in performance or service life.
WEIGHT
There is no denying that lithium batteries are lighter
than lead acid batteries. Lead by its
very nature is heavy and a good quality lead acid battery will contain plenty
of good quality albeit heavy lead!
It’s appealing to consider replacing a lead acid battery
with a lithium due to the lighter weight.
Motorcycles be design have high power to weight ratios, with modern
supersports bikes having to close to 1:1 ratio (Hp to Kg) and therefore a
reduction in weight on the road, seems irrelevant unless you are at the very
cutting edge in a competitive environment.
BMS – PROTECTED OR UNPROTECTED?
Some Lithium motorcycle batteries are fitted with a
Battery Management System (BMS) and some without. The BMS protects the cells from over charge,
over discharge and short circuit. This
helps prevent the risk of explosion or fire.
Motorcycles factory-fitted with a lead acid battery can
have variations in charge voltages.
If an unprotected lithium battery
was fitted and the charge voltage was too high (particularly at higher RPM’s)
for the internal cells, the result would be irreversible cell damage and the
risk of the cells venting flammable gases.
Even with a BMS, if the motorcycle charging system
voltage is too high, a lithium motorcycle battery could be damaged when the BMS
activates over-voltage protection. This
could cause failure of the electrical system.
In short, lead acid motorcycle batteries are far more
tolerant of variations in charge voltage than a lithium motorcycle battery.
SUMMARY
In summary, it should be noted that whilst some lithium
batteries provide excellent performance in deep cycle applications, when fitted
in motorcycles designed for lead acid, there are still many challenges and
unknown long-term repercussions despite years of research and development.
If reliability and performance is what you require, then
using the original factory-fitted battery is the best option for your
motorcycle. For further information on
this topic, please pop into our store here in Sydenham and speak with us to
determine the best battery for your motorcycle or application/use.
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this blog has been put forward in good
faith and is issued as part of product information. Picture Me Rollin can accept no liability for
any event arising from its use or interpretation. Users agree that use of this information does
not entitle them to make any claims against Picture Me Rollin or its staff
members.
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