The battery on our XB12X was completely flat after 3 days. Kind of bizarre.

It also proved impossible to keep the bike going once started with a battery pack. As soon as the extra battery was unplugged, the bike would stop.

It does seem that the alternator is not charging at all, and that it has been happening for a while. That last trip was the final straw drawing on the battery.

I did not expect to have the bike on the back of an AA truck after 1 month of ownership. Not only that, but it was at the dealer 2 weeks ago for the 5000miles service (Apart from this issue, I also noticed 1 bolt missing from the belt tensioner. What do they do when they service bikes?!).

We had an issue with the fuel pump fuse blowing up before the service, I wonder whether the 2 are not related.

Anyway, are alternators prone to failure on those bikes?

Stator, voltage regulator and '77' connector are all potential suspects on the earlier 12X's.

This was a recent post on the topic:
viewtopic.php?f=8&t=2542

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2009 XB12XT
2006 XB12X
2000 ZX12
1942WM20

Had the same trouble, a man who knows a lot more than me has never had a regulator rectifier fail on an xb (thanks maz) i hard wired the 77 connector at the front pulley, the one with the 2 wires, and this sorted it.

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ever see a duck that couldn't swim? quack quack

I'll check this 77 connector, but it would be quite surprising as the bike is quite pristine, has just 5000 miles and is an 08 model!

It feels like a fried regulator as there is absolutely no charging once the bike runs.

Good thing it is under warranty.

Seems like american electrics are no better than italian ones (although the latter never actually left me stranded away from home!)

Your '08 has a different wiring setup that earlier models. The "77" connector seems to have been an issue more with the older bikes. I don't know if the '08 connection has the same tendency to fry.

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2006 XB12Ss..... 1998 S1W..... 1996 S2T
We do not need the help of our friends so much as confidence that they will help us when we need it. –Epicurus

The bike uses parts from Jap, Ger and Italy among others. The ignition switch is Italian for a start.

The pre-2008 vregs were american indeed, I can't tell anymore which brand exactly, maybe it's buried somewhere in the archive. I tried to find a replacement, but didn't succeed to find one capable of handling 500+ watts. So it seems the OEM part is the only one that might do.

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"It is often said that before you die your life passes before your eyes. It is in fact true. It's called living."
Terry Pratchett

Well, I've reconditioned the battery, and installed this battery bug contraption I had lying around.

The bike started without trouble, and it seems the charging is fine...

Sooooo....the suspicion is falling on the rider (my wife) and I am suspecting that when she locked the steering, she turned the key that little bit more and switched on the parking lights...3 days like that, and the battery would be dead.

That would explain everything, and sorry to say, exactly what a woman would do!