Battery light flashing..

1qkbull · 07-10-2019, 12:24 AM

Hi everyone, this is my first post and I'm hoping someone can help me out with these problems I've been having with my Bull 200

First off I bought it brand new in December 2018. When the dealer I bought it from delivered it to my house, I noticed the battery light on the instrument cluster was flashing. I asked the guy why is this flashing? He said he thinks it will go away.. ok.. it never went away...its still on 7 months later.. also the battery was dying everyday that I used it.. I put a volt meter on it and it shows 14.5 volts while idling no load, as soon as I turn in the lights it dropped down to 13.5 then the high beams 13.2 then use the winch and its down to 12-12.5

So my question is does anyone know what the flashing battery light means?. It also flashes with the key on and engine not running. I replaced the battery and same problem, also replaced the rectifier/regulator which was worse.. did not charge at all so I put the original regulator back on, at least it charges with no load.

Thanks in advance.

Weldangrind · 07-10-2019, 10:17 AM

Welcome!
Was the replacement reg/rec identical to the original?

duck9191 · 07-10-2019, 10:31 AM

Mean the voltage is too high or too low. Where are you measuring voltage at? May want to check at the cluster too.

There isn't a stator that will keep up with a winch, so the voltage will sag during use. It's a common issue with plowing snow that you can kill your battery with extended winch usage. The other voltages look fine, anything over 12.9v will "charge" but not efficiently or fast, mid 14's are ideal.

Biker_Andy · 07-10-2019, 11:26 AM

Sounds like your electrical system is operating perfectly fine. I suspect the issues is that the warning light is not calibrated properly. There may be an adjustment on the back of the cluster if it really bothers you. It shouldn't light up unless the voltage is below 12.5v.

1qkbull · 07-10-2019, 11:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Weldangrind

Welcome!
Was the replacement reg/rec identical to the original?

No it was missing the fins on the side.. but otherwise looked the same. I'm going to return it..

1qkbull · 07-10-2019, 11:58 PM

Mean the voltage is too high or too low. Where are you measuring voltage at? May want to check at the cluster too.

Measuring at the battery,.. the voltage is suppose to stay steady when you put a load on it,.
But I'm beginning to believe you're right it's just too much load for the stator to keep up with. That's too bad cause I wanted to add an led light bar..

A anyone know how or if it's possible to upgrade the charging system so I can run a light bar?.

And yes the flashing battery light does bother me.. that's a good idea I will check it at the cluster to see the voltage there,. Thanks.

duck9191 · 07-11-2019, 12:05 AM

With the tiny battery and a winch pulling up words of 100+ amps the voltage will sag no matter what. Once you stop the voltage should climb back up, possibly slowly with the weak stator in most chines engines. I had a 2013 Polaris sportsman 500 that I used a lot in the winter for plowing, I saw the battery light quite often and it had a larger battery and a 180w charging system. I would just go play around in the snow for a bit to let the battery recover.

Biggest thing that helped me was to use a float charger when it was parked, started off with the battery at 100% not 80-90% if it had been sitting a few days.

1qkbull · 07-11-2019, 12:07 AM

Also the company I bought it from was marketing it and selling it with the plow and winch, advertising it and claiming its good to plow a residential driveway. It's obviously not capable if it dies after 10 mins of use..

1qkbull · 07-11-2019, 12:10 AM

Thanks duck 9191. Yes I had it on a battery tender every time it was parked so it stayed full charged. It's too bad cause it's a nice atv. It sucks that I can't run a light bar, or finish my driveway in 1 shot lol.

duck9191 · 07-11-2019, 12:15 AM

A bigger battery Will help if you can make one fit. A lot of sxs people will use a car battery in the bed while plowing. I would also check the voltage at the cluster and put a load on it, try to see at that voltage it's blinking. It should stop after a minute or two once the voltage regulator has charged the battery back up some.

1qkbull · 07-11-2019, 12:21 AM

I put a larger interstate motorcycle gel battery, I had to cut the plastics to make it fit.. it's much better than the Original Chinese battery, but still dies..
the battery light flashes permanently, key on engine off or engine running doesn't matter never ever seen it stop flashing..

duck9191 · 07-11-2019, 08:05 AM

Yeah definitely check at the cluster harness to see what you get there. off the float charger and running it should be fine, maybe a bit high because of these cheap regulators. Just riding around you should have no issues obviously, maybe try another reg/rec and see if both the original and replacement are bad. The one that came on my storm would show output for like a minute then stop.

07-10-2019, 12:24 AM	#1
1qkbull Join Date: Jul 2019 Posts: 8	Battery light flashing.. Hi everyone, this is my first post and I'm hoping someone can help me out with these problems I've been having with my Bull 200 First off I bought it brand new in December 2018. When the dealer I bought it from delivered it to my house, I noticed the battery light on the instrument cluster was flashing. I asked the guy why is this flashing? He said he thinks it will go away.. ok.. it never went away...its still on 7 months later.. also the battery was dying everyday that I used it.. I put a volt meter on it and it shows 14.5 volts while idling no load, as soon as I turn in the lights it dropped down to 13.5 then the high beams 13.2 then use the winch and its down to 12-12.5 So my question is does anyone know what the flashing battery light means?. It also flashes with the key on and engine not running. I replaced the battery and same problem, also replaced the rectifier/regulator which was worse.. did not charge at all so I put the original regulator back on, at least it charges with no load. Thanks in advance.
	0

07-10-2019, 10:17 AM	#2
Weldangrind Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Sardis, BC, Canada Posts: 25,977	Welcome! Was the replacement reg/rec identical to the original? __________________ Weldangrind "I figure I'm well-prepared for coping with a bike that comes from the factory with unresolved issues and that rewards the self-reliant owner." - Buccaneer
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07-10-2019, 10:31 AM	#3
duck9191 Join Date: May 2019 Location: Port Huron, Michigan Posts: 637	Mean the voltage is too high or too low. Where are you measuring voltage at? May want to check at the cluster too. There isn't a stator that will keep up with a winch, so the voltage will sag during use. It's a common issue with plowing snow that you can kill your battery with extended winch usage. The other voltages look fine, anything over 12.9v will "charge" but not efficiently or fast, mid 14's are ideal. __________________ 2020 Triumph Tiger 900 rally. 2018 Bashan Storm 250. pz30b, digital cluster + gear indicator, unifilter and car customs full exhaust. 2019 Taotao 110b boulder atv. The "arm breaker" lol 2007 Honda VTX 1300R. 1974 Suzuki tm125, work in progress 2001 Suzuki Drz 400s.
	0

07-10-2019, 11:26 AM	#4
Biker_Andy Join Date: Oct 2016 Posts: 347	Sounds like your electrical system is operating perfectly fine. I suspect the issues is that the warning light is not calibrated properly. There may be an adjustment on the back of the cluster if it really bothers you. It shouldn't light up unless the voltage is below 12.5v. __________________ Electrician & Electronics Tech 2014 Honda CB500XA 2016 CSC TT250 1976 Honda CJ360T 2022 Honda Navi
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07-11-2019, 12:05 AM	#7
duck9191 Join Date: May 2019 Location: Port Huron, Michigan Posts: 637	With the tiny battery and a winch pulling up words of 100+ amps the voltage will sag no matter what. Once you stop the voltage should climb back up, possibly slowly with the weak stator in most chines engines. I had a 2013 Polaris sportsman 500 that I used a lot in the winter for plowing, I saw the battery light quite often and it had a larger battery and a 180w charging system. I would just go play around in the snow for a bit to let the battery recover. Biggest thing that helped me was to use a float charger when it was parked, started off with the battery at 100% not 80-90% if it had been sitting a few days. __________________ 2020 Triumph Tiger 900 rally. 2018 Bashan Storm 250. pz30b, digital cluster + gear indicator, unifilter and car customs full exhaust. 2019 Taotao 110b boulder atv. The "arm breaker" lol 2007 Honda VTX 1300R. 1974 Suzuki tm125, work in progress 2001 Suzuki Drz 400s.
	0

07-10-2019, 11:58 PM	#6
1qkbull Join Date: Jul 2019 Posts: 8	Mean the voltage is too high or too low. Where are you measuring voltage at? May want to check at the cluster too. Measuring at the battery,.. the voltage is suppose to stay steady when you put a load on it,. But I'm beginning to believe you're right it's just too much load for the stator to keep up with. That's too bad cause I wanted to add an led light bar.. A anyone know how or if it's possible to upgrade the charging system so I can run a light bar?. And yes the flashing battery light does bother me.. that's a good idea I will check it at the cluster to see the voltage there,. Thanks.
	0

07-11-2019, 12:07 AM	#8
1qkbull Join Date: Jul 2019 Posts: 8	Also the company I bought it from was marketing it and selling it with the plow and winch, advertising it and claiming its good to plow a residential driveway. It's obviously not capable if it dies after 10 mins of use..
	0

07-11-2019, 12:10 AM	#9
1qkbull Join Date: Jul 2019 Posts: 8	Thanks duck 9191. Yes I had it on a battery tender every time it was parked so it stayed full charged. It's too bad cause it's a nice atv. It sucks that I can't run a light bar, or finish my driveway in 1 shot lol.
	0

07-11-2019, 12:15 AM	#10
duck9191 Join Date: May 2019 Location: Port Huron, Michigan Posts: 637	A bigger battery Will help if you can make one fit. A lot of sxs people will use a car battery in the bed while plowing. I would also check the voltage at the cluster and put a load on it, try to see at that voltage it's blinking. It should stop after a minute or two once the voltage regulator has charged the battery back up some. __________________ 2020 Triumph Tiger 900 rally. 2018 Bashan Storm 250. pz30b, digital cluster + gear indicator, unifilter and car customs full exhaust. 2019 Taotao 110b boulder atv. The "arm breaker" lol 2007 Honda VTX 1300R. 1974 Suzuki tm125, work in progress 2001 Suzuki Drz 400s.
	0

07-11-2019, 12:21 AM	#11
1qkbull Join Date: Jul 2019 Posts: 8	I put a larger interstate motorcycle gel battery, I had to cut the plastics to make it fit.. it's much better than the Original Chinese battery, but still dies.. the battery light flashes permanently, key on engine off or engine running doesn't matter never ever seen it stop flashing..
	0

07-11-2019, 08:05 AM	#12
duck9191 Join Date: May 2019 Location: Port Huron, Michigan Posts: 637	Yeah definitely check at the cluster harness to see what you get there. off the float charger and running it should be fine, maybe a bit high because of these cheap regulators. Just riding around you should have no issues obviously, maybe try another reg/rec and see if both the original and replacement are bad. The one that came on my storm would show output for like a minute then stop. __________________ 2020 Triumph Tiger 900 rally. 2018 Bashan Storm 250. pz30b, digital cluster + gear indicator, unifilter and car customs full exhaust. 2019 Taotao 110b boulder atv. The "arm breaker" lol 2007 Honda VTX 1300R. 1974 Suzuki tm125, work in progress 2001 Suzuki Drz 400s.
	0