So jsut for the fun of it today I went to the warehouse and looked at the two sleeping motorcycles. They're not in a heated room and I havent pulled thee batteries ... yet. Maintenance willl happen before spring. Changing oils on the Gold Wing is a snap. The Guzzi 1100 is a bit different. it's a pain. a REAL pain to change the oil. but anyhow....

So the bikes are out of the wind and it was a little warmer in their parking spot than outside and I thought. hmmm lets see what happens. I hit the key on the Wing and all lit up. I turned the choke on and it grunted a couple times on a compression and locked.

I then went to the Guzzi and with no choke it made a couple snerks and fired right off. I lightly rapped the throttle a couple times and it settles right into idle.

If Id been dressed better I would have taken it around the block.

Odd thing is, that both bikes are 1100's, the wing is a 4 cyl and the Goose is a V-twin. a two of the same displacement is harder to roll over than a four which tells me the battery inn the wing is headed south. I thought that was the case this fall before it turned cold. The battery is a year and a half old, and IMO isn't much especially when you pay a premium for a wet cell. But n that bike I may go lithium. a lot of money but it will be the end of dead batteries.

Now the Guzzi? I installed the finest lawn tractor battery that Walmart had to offer. a whole 29 bucks worth. And it rolled and started the bike like brand new at approx +20 degrees f.

BTW right before I left, I hit the wings starter button one more time. Same grunt, same disappointment. Oh well. March isn't that far away. but Ill pull the battery so it doesn't freeze and throw acid. but this case tells that what costs more isn't always better...