Motorcycle Battery Voltage Range

No 12 volt battery will remain at over 14 volts for more than seconds unless it s being charged.

Motorcycle battery voltage range.

A good battery should read between 12 4 to 12 6 volts 12 6v being optimal. Here is a quick breakdown on the spectrum of voltage ranges. The full range of the battery is from just over 14 volts when being charged by the bike running at high rpms down to 10 5 volts under heavy load for example when the lights are on and the bike is being started. Motorbike batteries are made up from a combination of such cells connected in series to give the required voltage.

If the battery begins to hold and then steadily drops in voltage there is a problem. Positive to positive and negative to negative. 5 use a multi meter and test your battery s voltage range. We call this the open cell.

12 volt motorcycle batteries supply useful energy only through a limited voltaic range from over 14 volts when fully charged and rested down to 10 5 volts in use under load this battery is noticed when lights dim or your motorcycle is hard to start. If it reads below those values then your battery is not keeping a full charge. When any 12 volt battery is discharged below 12 4 volts sulfation begins to occur within the battery. The following table shows how battery voltage corresponds with state of charge at 80 degrees f.

A 6v battery is comprised of three cells giving a total voltage across it s terminals of 3 x 2 1v 6 3 volts. Fully charged our redtops including 34m bluetop will read approximately 12 6 12 8 volts and our yellowtops will read approximately 13 0 13 2 volts including bluetops with light gray cases. Likewise a 12v battery is made up of six individual cells giving a total of 6 x 2 1v 12 6 volts. A battery is at a discharge anywhere from 11 9 to way below that range.

Even though you are testing a 12 volt battery you should know that a battery that is truly 12 0 volts is a boat anchor. 12 volt batteries supply useful energy only through a limited range from over 14 volts when fully charged and unrested down to 10 5 volts in use under load when lights dim your motorcycle is hard to start. A healthy 12 volt motorcycle battery should maintain a range from 9 5 10 5 volts under the load for a good 30 seconds straight.