Guys - my service manual and my owners manual both specify a 14ah battery, which apparently nobody is using. 10ah, 16.5ah... 10.5 lbs, 11 lbs... Does it really matter?
Amp-Hour rating effects several things ...
- if your engine is off and yo are running something like lights/stereo/sandwich toaster it determines how long before eventually you run the battery flat
- if your engine fails to start and you keep cranking it, AH determine how long before you eventually run the battery flat
- if you are riding slow in traffic with headlights on and there are not enough amps from your alternator to keep battery topped up AH determine how long before you eventually run the battery flat
In terms of cold weather starting its the CCA that matters not AH.
The other thing to consider with gel batteries etc is they often hold charge better. Conventional lead acid batteries lose something crazy like 10% of their charge a month. Other types can hold almost full charge right through winter. On the downside many alternative batteries do not like being run flat.