Lithium Battery

I did a search on lithium batteries and only came up with ancient threads. Does anybody have a recommendation for a good lithium battery for the WRR? Does anyone use one and is it worth it? I know you save about 4-5 lbs but do they last long or should I just stick with stock?

Unlike ktm's the wrr has a powerful long lasting battery stock so not many people upgrade them.
If you want to save a few pounds get a lithium one they work and last like stock.

I will go to one when mine finally crap`s but who knows how long that will be, my son put one in his Husky, loves it, way smaller and lighter.

Saves weight, gives planety of CCA, but tend to be not as good in cold temperatures. I have a Shido. Would recommend.

I have a Shorai. It was installed on my SV650, moved it to the WRx when I bought it. It is probably 5 or 6 years old now. Never had a single hiccup or issue with it. Feels like it weighs about as much as 2 AA batteries. Never had a tender or anything on it. My bike can sit for a month or two in the winter and still fire up first crank. Highly recommend.

Now that I said that, I will probably be stranded at work when I go to leave this afternoon...

Hey thanks for the all of the replies. I live in a cold wether state and ride in the winter as log as the streets are clear, down to 35 degrees. Will I have problem starting the bike up in cold weather.
Honestly, I'd hate to get rid of a perfectly good battery but it would be nice to save 5 lbs. Maybe I'll just keep the stock battery on a tender and then use it in the winter.

I have no personal experience if lithium during winter. But it's where it's not optimal. Pre-loading the battery by letting the light stay on some time before starting is claimed to help. I would not recommend lithium for winter usage, although on this tiny engine it would probably cope ok. Personally I would give it a try, but keep the stock battery in shape. AGM or traditional lead acid is better suited for winter use if temperatures are low. Yausa is good shit.

DS123 wrote:

Hey thanks for the all of the replies. I live in a cold wether state and ride in the winter as log as the streets are clear, down to 35 degrees. Will I have problem starting the bike up in cold weather.
Honestly, I'd hate to get rid of a perfectly good battery but it would be nice to save 5 lbs. Maybe I'll just keep the stock battery on a tender and then use it in the winter.

I've ridden mine down to about 25 deg F and the Shorai fired right up with no hesitation. Our little 250 is not a challenge to turn over for the battery. You can get different cranking amps, mine is way overkill for the WR, but I bought it for my SV650 originally. I store my bike in my garage, but it is unheated and can get pretty cold in the winter. Like I said, I've had this battery for at least 5 years now and it's still going strong. Plus it only cost a few $ more than the Yuasa lead acid, so it was a no-brainer when my old battery died.

Theres a lot of different brands and types of Lithium batteries. In general, the bigger they are in capacity (not Pb equavalkent, og CCA but real capacity) the better they are in the cold.

I got one from JMT with my bike, that battery is unable to start the bike at temperetatures under 40-45ish, without putting a load on the battery first, like setting the blinkers on for a minute or simular, so to me its kinda useless....I'd look like a complete moron every morning commute, and I'd stand there with my blinkers on, hoping the bike will eventually start before the small capacity of the battery is drained to the point where it wont start, and/or the lithiumbattery is dead because of low voltage.

The actual capacity of this battery is under 2amps as i recall, the usable capacity is less than that which brings me to the next problem for me. I like some spare capacity for extra cranking, for charging my phone/gps, inflating airmatress ect, without the bike turned on. Its just easier that way (for me)

Its hard to beat the reliability of a decent PB battery.

DS123 wrote:

Hey thanks for the all of the replies. I live in a cold wether state and ride in the winter as log as the streets are clear, down to 35 degrees. Will I have problem starting the bike up in cold weather.
Honestly, I'd hate to get rid of a perfectly good battery but it would be nice to save 5 lbs. Maybe I'll just keep the stock battery on a tender and then use it in the winter.

There are more than one type of lithium iron batteries as I understand it.  The most common I believe is LiFePO4 which is very safe (the earlier lithium iron batteries had a tendency to catch fire)

I've had a Battery Tender LiFePO4 battery in my BMW r1150r for two winters here in Philadelphia.  It starts the bike fine down to 20F (I seldom ride below that).  It does struggle to start the bike but it always starts.  

Pro tip for LiFePO4: they actually work better with a little drain so when it's cold "prime" the battery by turning on your lights as you get on your helmet and gloves, it will provide a little more power.

Also check your charger: basic chargers work fine with LiFePO4 but if they have fancy modes (desulfation?) they can damage the battery.  Battery Tender now sells a specific lithium charger but their Battery Tender Jr chargers work just fine.

-morgan

I have had a shorai in mine for about 4years now. Have done nothing to maintain it. I have not done the stator recall yet, plan to in the near future. It is an 08 and has a little over 20k on it. Berwyn

Had a Shorai for my WRF. Crazy light. No issues at all. If bike sat for weeks it fired right up.