K1300S Hot start issues

[stxman4]

Hey guys,

I know this was discussed many times on i-bmw but I wanted to get some current opinions. My daughter and I just had a lovely ride to Luckenbach, TX and back today (social distancing is in place in TX, no "lockdown" like NYC). Everything was great until I accidentally stalled my bike while waiting our turn to pass through a one lane construction site. We probably idled for 10-15 minutes before I stalled it. I choose not to shut the bike off as I didn't know how long it was going to take and I've had hot start issues in the past. Well, it stalled and it took over almost an hour to cool off and turn over. I was actually on the phone with roadside assistance when I gave it one more try and it fired up (I'll save the no jumper cables on any of the TX DOT road construction trucks topic for another thread).

The battery is only a year old maybe a bit more and is an aftermarket AGM (Odyssey I think). I did not have it on a trickle charger from our last ride (about a month) but it fired up fine when we left and again after we left Luckenbach (we hung out for about 30 mins). I know there is a BMW "hot start" service bulletin and parts fix but from what I remember it takes a fair bit of work to install and is expensive. This leads me to my next question: Lithium Ion Batteries. I see that they have come down in price and I remember reading that they aren't as susceptible as AGM batteries to "heat sink/hot start issues". Is this true? How many have had tried Lithium Ion batteries? What has been your experience? Anyone have a recommendation/link for a Lithium Ion battery for a K1300S? Thanks!

Emma's first time in Luckenbach!

[Flyboy]

My 2001 or 2004 never experienced that issue....

[justjoe]

Humor me. I had this "hot start" issue for many years on my 2000 K1200RS. I don't know how to explain it but this definitely works for me. When hot the bike will act as if the battery is weak. At this point I can hold the throttle wide open and with my other hand, cause my thumb will not reach in this position, hit the starter and the bike will fire right up, every time! I posted this in the past on another site and got little reaction. Again, this works every time for me on this particular motorcycle.

I'm sure people smarter than I already commented regarding the throttle position sensor and this problem. Isn't that what would be triggered with a WOT?

[jargon]

Come again, Pete?

[Pete_Tallahassee]

My 2000 K1200RS is also a cable throttle. I bought a new battery and that did not change a thing. Nobody can explain why holding the throttle wide open works for me but it does!

[stxman4]

Pete, thanks, I'll have to give that a try. My K1300S is "old tech" and still has a throttle cable instead of ride by wire. I am also getting a Shorai lithium ion battery to see if that helps any. If I still get the same issue then I'll go down the extra grounding wire road.

[Pete_Tallahassee]

Humor me. I had this "hot start" issue for many years on my 2000 K1200RS. I don't know how to explain it but this definitely works for me. When hot the bike will act as if the battery is weak. At this point I can hold the throttle wide open and with my other hand, cause my thumb will not reach in this position, hit the starter and the bike will fire right up, every time! I posted this in the past on another site and got little reaction. Again, this works every time for me on this particular motorcycle.

[Lee]

I was thinking that it was at the cafe at Deckers, and Debbie went off and left you surrounded by all of those cruisers! :-)

That's right. I pressed the start button and had nothing. After running to catch Debbie before she pulled onto the road I went inside the cafe for ice water.
Poured the cold water on the switch and it started right up.
Debbie was impressed
I also had trouble with the left switch on the trip.
The switch recall replaced both switches on both bikes.

[Captain Howdy]

If you have room it might be a good idea to carry a jump pack.
https://antigravitybatteries.com/pro...hoCXRAQAvD_BwE
This last year I bought a XP-1
If you don't want to carry the clamps they sell a battery harness.
https://antigravitybatteries.com/pro...newer-xp1-xp3/

Good looking daughter
I looked at the picture before reading and my first thought was oh, oh, new girl friend

[cabnfvr]

[Susan]

I was thinking that it was at the cafe at Deckers, and Debbie went off and left you surrounded by all of those cruisers! :-)

[beech]

And while you are doing the hot start wire harness job you will be looking at your starter and alternator under the fuel tank. Crowded in there so keep your wire work neat. But pull the starter and do a clean and lube job. This is easy and a good thing to do as it is so deep in the bike and seldom considered. Eyeball your brush length in there for estimated life.

[beech]

Yes, right hand switch should be replaced. Its failure has not much to do with the wire harness fix. Two issues that sometimes get combined. My bike had both. I replaced the switch (free from bmw). I first replaced it myself, then the recall came. I asked if they would give me the old switch (new by me) if they put theirs in. NO. So I re installed the bad switch and let them replace that one, keeping the slightly used new one on the shelf. This condition manifested itself in no start whether the bike was hot (mostly) or if it was the first start of the day. This switch group fixed my almost every day not starting issue, bad enough I was afraid of long trips.
The wire harness issue, once again I came late to the party and just had to buy my own harness for about 150$. It includes new relay and heavier cable that goes in parallel with the stock wiring. Takes about 4 hours to install and fairly easy but routing the wire and dealing with the relay are both pesky issues. This fixed the not start at gas stations and other stops when the bike was hot.
About your battery thoughts. The way you describe things, I think you have a low capacity battery due to sulfation. This is hard to spot unless you do a load test. But mentioning you let the bike set for over two weeks at a time with out charging and not knowing precisely how old it is. I suggest you get yourself a new fill it yourself with acid Yuasa AGM. These are usually about 75$ from Attbat but seem to be on sale right now.
https://www.atbatt.com/yuasa-ytx14-b...ports-battery/
Cheap enough to put one on the shelf. They are good for a year or more because you don't add acid and pre charge until you need it. So if your battery (readers) is two years old or more I'd pick one of these up.

[cabnfvr]

Might have been Debbie's bike. You poured cold water (I'm sure it wasn't beer) over the switch and it cranked.

[Capnrip]

There were 2 problems, one, the kill switch, was a recall. The other, the extra battery wire, I believe was a service bulletin. Had them both done to my K 13 for $0.