trouble starting 749s
 

cant start my bike this morning. the voltage of the battery is flashing 12, and after i try starting goes down to 11.8 and stays there.
can i run with it really quickly, engage it into gear and start it like that? or how do i jump start it from another battery? can i do that from my cars battery?
also whats the procedure for starting it when its really cold? in the manual it says choke should be full out, while everyone on this forum disagrees, whats the best way?
cheers
megalite
ps pictures to follow soon

[Edited on 28-1-2006 by megalite]

battery?

that was quick ducnow, u managed to reply before i could post it! :)

well also, i did try rolling it and starting it from gear, but then the engine light switched on each time, so i stopped doing that... hope i didnt damage anything. it doesnt light on anymore though. better call the AA

If you have a battery charger put it on that for a couple of hours or use jump leads. You need to take of left fairing then you will see battery just conect Red to Red, Black to Black, make sure leads ends do not touch each other or any other metal or you will short them out.

Congrats..followed your on-site offers/negotiations with much amusement..glad you found something in the end - I'm on my 10th ducati and, without fail, have always made it the priority modification to immediately (cos it then starts) fit an Optimate lead to the battery, having firsty purchased said Optimate (trickle charger that turns itself off once battery charged) - obtainable from any of the bike mail-order retailers - about £45 incl post...both my current bikes live, and therefore start in this slightly less than italian bike-friendly environment we choose to live in, permanantly plugged into such devices. Except of course when I unplug them. Keeps the batteries fully juiced without frying them, meaning that starting is rrrarely if ever a drama, even on the coldest mornings...like tomorrow, I hope!

Of course, you might know all this..?

Congrats..followed your on-site offers/negotiations with much amusement..glad you found something in the end - I'm on my 10th ducati and, without fail, have always made it the priority modification to immediately (cos it then starts) fit an Optimate lead to the battery, having firsty purchased said Optimate (trickle charger that turns itself off once battery charged) - obtainable from any of the bike mail-order retailers - about £45 incl post...both my current bikes live, and therefore start in this slightly less than italian bike-friendly environment we choose to live in, permanantly plugged into such devices. Except of course when I unplug them. Keeps the batteries fully juiced without frying them, meaning that starting is rrrarely if ever a drama, even on the coldest mornings...like tomorrow, I hope!

Of course, you might know all this..?

:lol::lol::lol:

yeah thanks ricco. i got one of those. last nite i left it outside on the streets of london... so i couldnt exactly get a really really really long power extension cord to plug the optimate in.

Said it before,and I'll say it again,the gel batteries fitted to some modern Dukes are rubbish.The pile of warranty claim batteries at my dealer confirms this.
Best thing to do is charge the thing up and monitor the volt drop.(You will need a multimeter to do this.)You should not be losing more than 1% of the batteries voltage per day.
BTW,you really need 12.5-13volts at the terminals to turn over the 749.
Bump starting,(ie running along and dumping the clutch) is an option,but you really need a steep hill and a mate to help you get going.