How To: Replace BMW F700GS Battery

The BMW F700GS comes from factory with a lot of electronics, sensors, and plastics. Unless you know where to look, you might be a little puzzled wondering where the battery is on your motorcycle. The battery’s location isn’t under the seat, as is the case on many motorcycles. Accessing the battery on a BMW F700GS is still easy, but you’ll need is a T-25 Torx if you want to replace the battery on a BMW F700GS.

BMW first released the F700GS in 2013, but I’m showing you the battery location on a 2017 model and it should be essentially the same for the whole F700GS motorcycles. Fun fact: The engine in the BMW F700GS is the same displacement as the F800GS. Both have 798cc, but the F800 GS produces about 10 horsepower more.

Alright, now let’s get started and talk about the battery. F700GS owners will need to be able to get to their batteries either for maintenance purposes or to replace the battery completely. Let’s look at both options.

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Accessing your BMW F700GS battery for maintenance

Most people who need to access the battery on a BMW F700GS are because the battery has gone flat, meaning the motorcycle is dead / not currently starting. With a little luck, charging your battery overnight on a trickle charger made for motorcycle batteries will be all it takes to get you up and running again in the morning. Assuming that your bike does fire up the next morning, the only question left is whether or not your battery’s overall health is still strong enough that it won’t leave you stranded again.

Batteries don’t like neglect or being discharged, it can damage their overall health and longevity. A top quality F700GS battery like this one from Yuasa can be killed and brought back to life many times. Yuasa’s the only brand of battery I use or will sell to any of my customers. I don’t have any stock in the company or anything like that, they’re just the best and most resilient. On the other hand, cheap batteries, or batteries more then five years old, sometimes can’t recover completely from being drained completely, and they might have enough juice to get your bike started, only to leave you stranded later on that day.

Ideally, you’re going to want to give your battery a full charge, and then test it. If you don’t know how to test the F700GS battery, no problem! I created an article and video on two ways to test if your motorcycle battery is still good, or if it needs replacement. It’s a free step-by-step guide that will either save you cost of buying a new battery you don’t need, or save you the hassle of finding yourself stranded with a dead battery again.

Accessing your battery for replacement

The first thing you should do is test your motorcycle battery to make sure it needs to be replaced. Next, you’ll want to properly prepare and charge a new motorcycle battery. Now you might be wondering, “How do I replace the battery on my BMW F700GS?”

You’ll need to take the two top plastic covers off that are directly in front of the rider: one piece around where the key goes into the bike, the other just between that piece and the rider. See the video for what I mean. To remove these pieces all you’ll need is a Torx-25 (sometimes called T-25, or Star head 25). They’re common on German and American motorcycles, so if you don’t have them I suggest you get yourself a set. They aren’t expensive at all and Amazon can deliver them to you tomorrow.

How to Replace the Battery on a BMW F700GS

When I had to look up where the battery is on a BMW F700GS, all I could find was a ten minute long video. What a waste of time. That’s why I created the video above, to show you guys the F700GS’ battery location in about one minute, because you guys don’t deserve to have your time wasted.

However, some of you have told me that you hate video and prefer my old style of articles. I hear you! Here are some traditional step-by-step text-based instructions:

Step 1) Remove the front center piece directly in front of the rider’s seat

• BMW calls this piece “COVERING CENTER” – awful name, but blame them, not me
• 4 very obvious screws hold this in place
• Remove them by using a T-25 torx key or bit T-25 bit
• You cannot take this piece out until Step 2 is complete

Step 2) Remove the shroud that wraps around where your key goes into the bike

• Directly in front of “Covering Center” is the key switch housing shroud
• Look down the steering column from the side of the bike and you will find one more T-25 screw on each side
• Remove them by using a T-25 torx key or bit T-25 bit
• Try not to lose these either, duh

Step 3) Disconnect the negative first, and reconnect the positive first

• Now that you can see your BMW F700GS battery, disconnect the negative (black) ground cable first
• Then you can disconnect the positive (red) cable second
• When reinstalling, connect the red cable first, then the ground cable

Pro tip: When I’m going to have bolts out of my motorcycle for more than a couple hours and might forget, I always put them in a clear ziplock bag. I write on the bag with marker which bike they’re from, and what parts they are for. It’s a great way to keep things organized and not lose track of loose ends.

Oil and filter change, or a new exhaust, anyone?

If you want to do an oil change, the right way, like a dealer would, but want to save some money by doing it yourself, here’s how to change the oil and filter on a BMW F700GS. I list every tool and every torque specification that you need. You’ll see all of the steps to get it done from straight out of the service manual. You’ll also find pictures and videos to show you easily and step by step how to do it right.

I’ve also got an article on the Akrapovic exhaust for the BMW F700GS, where I show you how to remove the stock exhaust, install the new one, and do a sound comparison of the two. I’ll be honest, I didn’t like it too much, so I got rid of it and got a MIVV exhaust instead, and I’m keeping this one.

I’ve also improved the visibility and overall look by installing a LED headlight on the F700GS. It’s literally made a night and day difference and makes the bike look ten years newer.

COMMENTS: What do you think about the F800R? Was getting to your battery easy?

Please leave a comment and let me know. I’d also love to hear if this page and the video were helpful for you. Thanks!