Battery

I have used Yusa and Interstate batteries. They a good batteries. I scored Interstate for $19.99 and Yuasa for $36 from a battery supply store back in Harrisburg, PA. They cost near $50 where I am now, so I opted for the $25 Walmart battery. Note: for the battery kits (where you charge them) that you need a battery charger. I own a Battery Tender Junior.

The secret to maintaining and extending the life of your battery is to ride frequently and often or use a "float" charger, because float charger turn off and do not over charge.

The batteries which work for your Bajaj are:

Generic battery: 12N9-4B-1 9Ah

Yuasa: Yb9b

Parts Unlimited: rcb-9b

Exide: 12MX9-B

For more information visit Retro Bajaj.

I've heard many times the starter eats up a lot of battery juice; hence it is recommended you use the kick start instead.

If you are not riding at least three times per week, you will find the battery is not being recharged quickly enough, which will result in a short life. To combat this it is wise for you to invest in a "float" charger (shuts off automatically and does not overcharge like a "trickle" charger does, which could also destroy your battery). I have owned three and am the most happy with the "Battery Tender Jr.", which I bought via Amazon for the best price I could find.

If you are riding often, it's a good idea to plug into the charger once per month and fully recharge your battery. A quality $50 battery should last 3-5 years and with a float charger used properly, definitely 5 years.

Battery Care

During the winter I ALWAYS store my battery in the basement, where it is dry and the temperature does not fluctuate (it stays about 70 degrees) hooked up to a float charger. This will add to my battery's life span.
Battery care is pretty simple for scooters, whether you're riding a P-Series Vespa, Stella, or Bajaj. Scoots don't have alternators, like cars, and their batteries don't fair well when the scooter is not ridden daily. Say you're a weekend rider only -- the best thing to do is disconnect your battery Monday through Friday. But if you're like me and ride as often as the weather will let you . . .
you should invest in a "float charger," which will NOT overcharge your battery like a trickle charger will. Float chargers will give juice as needed and shut off when not. They cost about $30 at your local scoot shop, but you can buy then on sale for $5.48 at Harbor Freight Tools (available online). They go on sale several times per year. Run the float charger when ever you are not riding.

I purchased my Parts Unlimited RCB9-B battery at a local motorcycle shop for $19.99. I would recommend looking for your local "battery warehouse"-like distributor for the best deal. Battery Warehouse, where I live, charges $36 for a Yuasa YB9B battery, which is a premium battery. Scoot shops charge $55-60 for this battery. The two brands and model numbers I gave you will work on the Bajaj Chetak, Stella, and Vespa P-Series bikes.

Expect three to five years for the average life of a battery. The Yuasa will give you five if you care for it.

When the charged liquid gets low in one or more of your battery cells, add distilled water. This will increase the life of your battery.

Dead battery?

Own a 2002 Chetak? Battery keep dying super duper fast? My wife owns a 2002 Butter Yellow Bajaj Chetak and I went camping with a buddy and used her scoot as I loaned mine to my friend. From riding just one full day the battery was dead. This bothered me, because I was scooter camping for the weekend and had to run the bike without the batt/front light on dark forest rodes. Not the safest way to ride. I went out and bought another. And it happened again on our second scooter camping weekend. It killed my brand new battery too. They don't recover well from a full discharge like a car batt does. I eventually found the fix, replace the $110 rectifier. Luckily it was under warranty as a "recall."

When I removed the old rectifier I could see it was melted a little. No wonder it was dead. The rectifier sits behind the battery on the opposite side of the battery compartment -- closest to the frame.