Battery Suppliers
Before buying an aftermarket battery, ALWAYS check the dimensions of your existing battery against the dimensions of the replacement battery. Also check the polarity of the terminals.
Behind tires, a battery is probably the one high dollar item you're going to buy most often. BMW originally supplied lead acid batteries in our motorcycles, but recently is only offering sealed "Maintenance Free" batteries. Some folks say that the jury is still out on "Maintenance Free" batteries. There is, however, one redeeming feature of "Maintenance Free" batteries: They can be shipped in a "ready to use" configuration, i.e. with the acid already in them and fully charged. If you're ever stuck out in the middle of nowhere, 893 miles from the nearest dealer, consider ordering a "Maintenance Free" battery and having it shipped Fedex or UPS to your current location. The overnight freight might be less than another night or three in the motel.
If you are at home, and it will soon be time for a routine battery change, contact Interstate Batteries and find out their model number for your bike. Many local automotive shops stock Interstate batteries, and one of them might be willing to order you the right battery, to be included with their next routine delivery, thus avoiding paying shipping. A note here. The battery now in my K bike is an Interstate. Called them up, and they listed a battery for my bike. However, the dimensions given are bigger than my existing battery. However, when I got to the Interstate store in Indianapolis, they battery was actually smaller than the stated dimensions, and fits just fine. The Interstate part number is 53030. However, all the web site helps you do is to find the nearest major Interstate dealer.
In some circles, Panasonic is considered a very good manufacturer of batteries. A good source for Panasonic batteries is Battery Web, in Leesburg, Florida. Note that they have special rates for Airhead members and IBMWR members.
Craig Hansen, of Hansen's BMW, in Medford, Oregon, is probably the finest motorcycle dealer in the world. He recommends the Predator battery, made by Black Panther. This is a sealed battery, and can be mailed. (541) 535-3342. My experience is that they don't answer email, so call them. Remember that they're on Pacific time.
Portable Power Systems, Inc, of Denver, Colorado, sells batteries, and offers a discount to Airhead Club members.
Digikey is a catalog house in North Dakota, and has one of the largest collections of electronic parts anywhere. You must have the Adobe Reader installed to download the catalog. You'll probably just want to download Chapter L.
Westco sells batteries directly.
West Coast Batteries has the PC680, which is an almost direct replacement for many BMW models. Look on the left side of the page for right angle adapters to fit BMW cables. You may have to cut the top of the adapter down just a tad to clear in some installations. Their fitment chart shows that two sizes, the PC680 and the PC925L fit almost all BMW models. But the fitment chart shows that the PC680 fits the R60/5 from 1970 on. Unfortunately, those early years /5 had the shorter swingarm, and used a much thinner battery, with a much thinner service life. I changed batteries about as often as I changed rear tires. By the way, if you're on the road, and have a battery failure, this battery is shipped dry and fully charged, and can be shipped by either UPS or FedEx, either ground or air.
I needed a battery on short notice once, and bought a battery from my local Harley Davidson dealer. The battery was possibly 1/4" shorter (left to right) than the stock battery, and about 3/8" taller. The taller is a problem, but it WILL work.
If you have an interesting source for parts, contact the webmaster at tom@wade.name
K Bike Battery Part Numbers
Interstate 53030
Exide Edge Y60-N24AL-B
Panasonic LC-X1228P 28AH, 6.5" x 4.92" x 7.07" LWH
Westco 12V30
Westco 12V20P this is a thinner battery, (3") which fits some K75 models.
Westco 12V17 this is a thinner battery, (3") which fits some K75 models.
Yuasa Yumicron Y60-N24AL-B
Roadster Battery Part Numbers
Panasonic LC-X1220P 20AH 7.13" x 2.99" x 6.57" LWH