Calculating Excess Electrical Capacity - Written by John Swiatek

So exactly how many "gee-whiz" pieces of electronics will your bike power? Well that depends on a few variables. Basically, your bikes excess electrical capacity is the alternators charging output minus the common operating load. Usually these numbers are shown in "watts".

A "watt" is a unit of measure for electrical power (P). In this case, the charging power is the product of the bikes voltage (V) and peak current (I). So P = V * I. What this mean? Simple... if the bikes alternator has a peak rating of 20 amps @ 14 volts then the peak charging output is (20 * 14) or 280 watts.

A motorcycles electrical system consists of three major parts, the alternator, the regulator-rectifier and the battery. The alternator is responsible for producing the power to keep the battery charged and power all of the electrical loads. The regulator-rectifier converts the alternator output from un-useable AC power to useable 14.4 VDC. The battery is used to both start the bike and buffer the power from the alternator.

To calculate your bikes excess electrical capacity, follow these three steps:

STEP #1 – Look up the "charging output" and type of "fuel delivery" from the manufacturer's specification sheet. Typically smaller displacement bikes will have smaller peak charging output.

Table 1 – Peak Charging Output

Make	Model	Year	Fuel Delivery	Peak Charging Output
Buell	Blast	2001	Carbureted	297 watts
BMW	R1150RT	2003	Fuel injected	700 watts
BMW	K1200LT	2003	Fuel injected	840 watts
Ducati	996	2000	Fuel injected	520 watts
Ducati	ST2/ST4	2002	Fuel injected	520 watts
Harley	Heritage	1998	Carbureted	360 watts
Harley	Electra Glide	2002	Fuel injected	585 watts
Honda	Shadow 1100	2002	Carbureted	329 watts
Honda	ST1300	2003	Fuel Injected	740 watts
Honda	Valkyrie	2000	Carbureted	546 watts
Honda	GL1800	2003	Fuel Injected	1100 watts
Kawasaki	Vulcan 1500	2000	Carbureted	377 watts
Kawasaki	Vulcan 1500	2001	Fuel Injected	588 watts
Kawasaki	ZX6R	2001	Carbureted	305 watts
Suzuki	Bandit 1200	1999	Carbureted	405 watts
Suzuki	V-Strom	2002	Fuel Injection	360 watts
Yamaha	FJR1300	2003	Fuel Injected	490 watts

The bikes alternator output will change at various engine RPM’s. Here is an example of how the engine RPM affects alternator output on a Harley-Davidson Ultra Classic Electra-Glide:

380W @ 1000 RPM

578W @ 3000 RPM

598W Peak

STEP #2 – Calculate the common operating load. This is the total all of the electrical devices that are part of the bike and will be in operation during normal riding. Do NOT include items like turning indicators & horns since they are only used occasionally. Exceeding the peak charging output for short periods of time is not a problem. The battery will source the extra power needed. However if the power is needed for a long time, the battery will go dead. For this calculation, do NOT include the aftermarket accessories you will be adding; only include the stock items on the bike.

Table 2 – Common Operating Loads

High Beam	55 watts
Low Beam	55 watts
Number Plate	5 watts
Brake/Tail	21 watts
Instrument Panel	2 watts
Computer	25 watts
Fuel Pump	60 watts
Cooling Fan	60 watts
Electronic Ignition	50 watts

A common operating load for a standard fuel injected bike is about 285 watts.
A common operating load for a standard carbureted bike is about 195 watts.

Some bikes leave the low beam on when the high beam is activated. To conserve power, many bikes automatically turn off the low beam when the high beam is turned on. Many larger bikes have additional lighting and miscellaneous loads like radios make sure you include all of the items that operate continuously while riding. Carbureted bikes require about 85 watts less to operate.

STEP #3 - Subtract the operating load from the charging output; this calculation will approximately predict the excess capacity. Usually the larger displacement bikes will have greater excess capacity, but this is not always true as seen in the following six examples (operating loads are approximate):

Table 3 – Excess Capacity for 2 small, 2 mid, and 2 big bikes

Example	Peak	Operating	Excess Capacity
Buell Blast	297 watts	195 watts	102 watts
Kawasaki ZX6R	305 watts	200 watts	105 watts
Ducati ST2/ST4	520 watts	285 watts	245 watts
Suzuki V-Strom	360 watts	285 watts	75 watts
Honda Valkyrie	546 watts	250 watts	296 watts
Vulcan 1500 FI	588 watts	340 watts	248 watts

What do you plan to operate?

This handy table shows how much power many common appliances draw. Only a few appliances draw high power. These are heated clothing, laptops and auxiliary lighting. Small electronics like cell phones and radar detectors draw very little. You can usually run as many of the smaller items as you wish with little or no worry. To find the total power required for all of the accessories you plan to use, add the power rating (watts) for each device. Ranges are provided based on make & model.

Table 4 – Common Appliances

Appliance	Power Usage
Heated Garments	35 – 77 watts
Aux lights	35 – 100 watts (each)
Laptop	40 – 60 watts
Cell Phone	1 – 3 watts
Radar Detector	1 – 3 watts
GPS	2 – 6 watts
Portable Music	1 – 3 watts

What if I don't have enough power?

Sometimes your favorite bike does not have much excess capacity. For example, the data in STEP #3 shows that V-Strom owners may find that powering several pieces of high power heated clothing kills the battery. There are a few things that can be done to conserve a few precious watts:

1. Replace standard lights with low power LED lighting (where possible).
2. Add a circuit that automatically turns the low beam off when the high beam is activated.
3. A dirty fuel filter can cause the fuel pump to use 120 watts, 60 more than normal. A dirty fuel filter is a common cause for a voltage regulator to fail on a fuel-injected bike.

In Conclusion:

Motorcycle manufacturers have been increasing the alternator output in response to the growing number of electrical appliances available. Most bikes can handle a few 40 watt heated garments without any problems.

According to Widder Canada Inc. “Today’s motorcycles of 500cc or larger can usually handle three (heated) garments together without overtaxing the charging system. Three garments would be equivalent to turning on a 100 watt headlight. Most larger bikes would have no problem riding two-up with both rider and passenger each wearing the full set. Another aspect to consider is that the items will not necessarily be on all the time, or if the thermostat is adjusted to less than full capacity, there will be less draw.”

The Gerbing’s web site states: “…the electrical output of the typical motorcycle continued to increase as motorcycle engineers attempted to satisfy the growing demand for electrical accessories. The result is that all but the smallest bikes can now provide the power needed to generate the needed heat.”