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Battery Going Flat

Technical help for Series one, two and three Lambrettas. Models include the Li, Li Special, TV, SX, GP, Serveta and API/SIL models

Battery Going Flat

Postby KatieW » Sat Jun 20, 2020 6:43 pm

I have a LI150 Series 2. I have upgraded to 12v and fitted a Casatronic Ducati Ignition System which works a treat.
I have connected the wiring as per their instructions and fitted a 12V Battery.
I have found that the Battery is always live and as such drains quickly and gets quite hot.

Any suggestions???
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby missing lynx » Sat Jun 20, 2020 8:14 pm

Put a kill switch on the battery feed
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby MickYork » Sat Jun 20, 2020 8:29 pm

When you say the battery is live, I assume you mean it's drawing power all the time ?

Is going flat after you've driven it or when it's been stood ?
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby KatieW » Sat Jun 20, 2020 8:44 pm

MickYork wrote:When you say the battery is live, I assume you mean it's drawing power all the time ?

Is going flat after you've driven it or when it's been stood ?


Yes it is drawing power all of the time.

When it is stood.
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby MickYork » Sat Jun 20, 2020 8:54 pm

As ML suggests, fit an in-line switch.

You must have some sort of fault to be drawing current all the time and it's probably worth investigating. A good knowledge of electrics would be an advantage.
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby Brash » Sat Jun 20, 2020 9:21 pm

mine did this and it was the horn, and perished horn rubber grommets that caused a leak to earth
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby Warkton Tornado No.1 » Sun Jun 21, 2020 12:10 am

If you know that the electrical system is drawing constant current, you presumably have access to a meter of some type. In which case, you can disconnect individually each connection to the loom, starting with the headset, because the horn is most likely, as has been suggested. Set correctly, your meter should change values, hopefully to zero, with any bad component. So whilst in the headset, check them all if the horn is not @ fault.

Probably, the next likely culprit is the brake light circuit, especially the foot switch. The brake light circuit also has a permanent live supply as with the horn.
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby coaster » Sun Jun 21, 2020 12:44 am

Warkton Tornado No.1 wrote:If you know that the electrical system is drawing constant current, you presumably have access to a meter of some type. In which case, you can disconnect individually each connection to the loom, starting with the headset, because the horn is most likely, as has been suggested. Set correctly, your meter should change values, hopefully to zero, with any bad component. So whilst in the headset, check them all if the horn is not @ fault.

Probably, the next likely culprit is the brake light circuit, especially the foot switch. The brake light circuit also has a permanent live supply as with the horn.


What WT said, something is leaking to earth and the horn and brake light switch are prime suspects, connect your meter and disconnect until the drain stops
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby Fast n Furious » Sun Jun 21, 2020 12:58 pm

If the rectifier/ regulator is duff, then the battery will drain back into the stator coils.
If this proves to be the case then it needs sorting before it burns the stator coils out.
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby CHRIS in MARGATE » Tue Jun 23, 2020 8:47 am

Pop the live side of the battery off. Put your meter on ohms and connect 1 leg to a good earth and the other to the lead you took off the battery.
Should read infinity - no reading
Adjust the meter to read ohms x 100, ohms x 1000 and then to Megohms. Should read nothing.
Swap the leads over and retry in case there is a fault and it is a rectified fault.

If you have any reading on your meter that is your drain so start isolating to localise.
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby CHRIS in MARGATE » Fri Jul 03, 2020 8:34 pm

Any update?
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Re: Battery Going Flat

Postby KatieW » Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:30 am

All sorted, turned out that the connector block I was using was duff. Changed connections and all working as it should. Thank you all for you help.
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