[RedDevil]

Hey everyone. Please have patience as I am still new, and not the most mechanically inclined.

I have a 2008 GL and was looking into getting some heated gear for the SO. I know that on other bikes (BMWS etc) there are several 12v ports for the clothing. I was wondering how people have been hooking up their heated gear? Are you connecting it to the battery? Purchasing a separate external battery pack sold by the company? If I connect several pieces of heated gear to the bikes battery, will I have to upgrade the alternator to help? If so which ones?

Thanks everyone for any help! As I said, this is the first TRUE touring bike I have had and its my baby...so I want to make sure Im doing everything correct!

 

[fossil92]

RedDevil, 1st Welcome to the site. I have a combination of Gerbing/Firstgear for the wife & myself. Here is a link to wingstuffs gear.

http://wingstuff.com/pgroup_list/apparel/444_goldwing_Electric_Clothing/des/

While I have a 1500 with an Upgraded Compufire alternator. I do not think there were any issues with the 1800 alternators & that as long as you wire things correctly the alternator should take the load. Maybe one of the 1800 guys here can shed some more light on that. Another thing I did was wire in an auxilary fuse panel w/relay from http://www.electricalconnection.com/ & have it that it de-energizes when I start the bike. There are some good ideas out there so do some research. Good luck.

 

[Two Wheel Wing]

The alternator on your 08 should be fine. My 09 has the heated grips and seat and the same alternator you have. Fossil gave you some good advice on the hook up. I have a 12v outlet in the left front pocket that I use to power my GPS and I know others have installed 12v outlets in their trunk as well. Also, what I do is I hook my bike to a battery tender when in the garage. That way the battery stays charged at all times. Stay warm and ride safe..

 

[Thrasherg]

The 02-10 models have a 1100watt alternator, you should not have any trouble running heated gear on a GL1800!!