Battery Problem

[FBMWWINS]

Good to hear things are beginning to and will get sorted out!

[Danny396]

Originally Posted by F06WINS

Good to hear things are beginning to and will get sorted out!

Here’s hoping mate. Car was fine until the Christmas Break. Maybe she doesn’t like being left alone in the cold haha

[Rob1910]

Exactly the same here car was fine then left for two weeks over Xmas in the cold lol so guessing it's in a strop!
Back from dealers egr recall carried out no work required all good.

Had a look at battery issue nothing found,asked if any non BMW of aftermarket parts had been fitted but none.

Car booked in next Thursday for an alloy wheel refurb from when the previous owner ran it with a flat and to fault find the battery drain.

Battery is showing 12.9 every time I switch off and dealer has confirmed battery is fully charged and appears ok.

Plan is to monitor the voltage drop over the weekend and see if the message reappears....fingers crossed it might have settled, I've also changed the key fob battery so don't know if that's a factor?

[2dogs2099]

Hi all,

I replaced my battery two days ago. Had the original in the car which was testing fine but spot on 5 years old. Since the replacement my comfort access problem hasn't reoccurred. Its still early days but thats where it is at.

cheers

2d

[Danny396]

Originally Posted by 2dogs2099

Hi all,

I replaced my battery two days ago. Had the original in the car which was testing fine but spot on 5 years old. Since the replacement my comfort access problem hasn't reoccurred. Its still early days but thats where it is at.

cheers

2d

Here’s hoping bud.

The dealer disabled my comfort access as said was causing the drain, they have ordered new handles which take 6 weeks to come in. Since they have disconnected my comfort access I haven’t had the message so hoping all is good once the new handles are fitted.

[Rob1910]

Mine was in on Friday, battery was looked at and when I picked it up they asked if any 3rd party or non BMW parts were fitted. None were.

They need the car in for 2 days (Next Thurs and Fri) to check and see where the drain is (if there is one).
I asked about the battery needing replaced as it was 5 years old? Dealer said AGM batteries can last for up to 8 years?? so battery is fine?

Would it be worth running the car into a battery centre eg Halfords, ATS, Kwikfit etc...before giving it to the dealer for 2 days? Just to rule the battery out completely?

I don't have an issue replacing the battery at all, but don't want to fit a new one and find it drains?

Mine was 12.9v when I switched off on Fri morning. Started car up and went to shops on Sat 12.8 start up, 12.8 switch off.

Started it up tonight "battery draining when stationary" message came up again, battery at 12.6v at start up? drove to work and it was back up to 12.9v?

Any ideas or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Danny396]

Originally Posted by Rob1910

Mine was in on Friday, battery was looked at and when I picked it up they asked if any 3rd party or non BMW parts were fitted. None were.

They need the car in for 2 days (Next Thurs and Fri) to check and see where the drain is (if there is one).
I asked about the battery needing replaced as it was 5 years old? Dealer said AGM batteries can last for up to 8 years?? so battery is fine?

Would it be worth running the car into a battery centre eg Halfords, ATS, Kwikfit etc...before giving it to the dealer for 2 days? Just to rule the battery out completely?

I don't have an issue replacing the battery at all, but don't want to fit a new one and find it drains?

Mine was 12.9v when I switched off on Fri morning. Started car up and went to shops on Sat 12.8 start up, 12.8 switch off.

Started it up tonight "battery draining when stationary" message came up again, battery at 12.6v at start up? drove to work and it was back up to 12.9v?

Any ideas or advice would be greatly appreciated.

It’s a strange one mate.

Do you have comfort access ?

My battery status said 12.1v (via secret menu)when I started it last night but no warning etc so I’m a bit dubious on the reading it gives.

They kept my car for 2 days and gave me a 1 series manual as a courtesy car

Need to wait 6 weeks and see if it was the comfort access causing mine but I believe it was.

[Rob1910]

Spoke to an indy I know today he explained a lot to me.
The message appears when car is sensing a 0.8mah or above drop and stops extra electrics to ensure s start up.
The cold weather adds to it but he suspects although my battery charger is saying battery is fully charged it could actually have dropped capacity due to age and short distance driving previously.
He says there is a charger they use that can tell me how much charge the battery actually has and suspects it's down to around 60-70% which would indicate battery on its way out.
He recommended a battery change and guaranteed it should fix the message so I'm taking it to him tomorrow to check the battery level

[Danny396]

Originally Posted by Rob1910

Spoke to an indy I know today he explained a lot to me.
The message appears when car is sensing a 0.8mah or above drop and stops extra electrics to ensure s start up.
The cold weather adds to it but he suspects although my battery charger is saying battery is fully charged it could actually have dropped capacity due to age and short distance driving previously.
He says there is a charger they use that can tell me how much charge the battery actually has and suspects it's down to around 60-70% which would indicate battery on its way out.
He recommended a battery change and guaranteed it should fix the message so I'm taking it to him tomorrow to check the battery level

Sounds promising mate.

Have you disconnected the battery from your car and left it a day or so to see if it drops voltage?

[Rob1910]

Hi Danny

Just got a call from BMW. Source of drain found to be the car's tracker system! I wasn't even aware a tracker was fitted!
Disconnected and all appears ok.
How are the handles coming along? Any word on a date for them?

Rob

[Danny396]

Originally Posted by Rob1910

Hi Danny

Just got a call from BMW. Source of drain found to be the car's tracker system! I wasn't even aware a tracker was fitted!
Disconnected and all appears ok.
How are the handles coming along? Any word on a date for them?

Rob

Hi Rob,

Happy days, at least they have found an issue. Are they replacing the tracker or just disconnecting it.

They said 6 weeks for them to come in so just gotta hang on.

My car has sat for 2 days, just checked voltage there through the secret menu and it said 11.9v but no discharge message and started fine so not gonna pay attention to that menu.

[Rob1910]

Hi Danny the tracker has been disconnected as they think there could be a fault with it as it's drawing slight current and hasn't been used in years! But delighted they found something and again confirmed the battery is in good health.
I spoke to an indy I know and he said the hidden menu shows the voltage but not the battery level so said not to pay too much attention to it.

[Jsin357]

I have a 2016 650i Gran Coupe and I don't drive it that much, but went to crank it this morning and it was slow about starting. I'm getting all kind of malfunction messages also

[hugo_nz]

+1 on the car tracking hardware. I had that in both my 645ci and 740i. The tracker has a backup battery which it is meant to run from when the car is off. If that battery is dead the unit draws power from the main battery. This vampire power draw kills the main battery which leads to errors on startup and plenty of phantom codes.

[ezmaass]

Originally Posted by Jsin357

I have a 2016 650i Gran Coupe and I don't drive it that much, but went to crank it this morning and it was slow about starting. I'm getting all kind of malfunction messages also

How long do you let it sit? I'd say if it's going to be longer than about 3 weeks (with a healthy battery), I'd hook it to a battery maintainer.

I'd also check your battery health - the aforementioned battery maintainer can help there, too. On both my previous 550 and now 650, BMW replaced the battery after only two years. Both were under warranty, and neither time did I request it or see/have any signs of battery issue. So, BMW definitely feels the need to proactively replace these batteries - even though batteries should be able to easily go 5 years or more.

[Jsin357]

Originally Posted by ezmaass

How long do you let it sit? I'd say if it's going to be longer than about 3 weeks (with a healthy battery), I'd hook it to a battery maintainer.

I'd also check your battery health - the aforementioned battery maintainer can help there, too. On both my previous 550 and now 650, BMW replaced the battery after only two years. Both were under warranty, and neither time did I request it or see/have any signs of battery issue. So, BMW definitely feels the need to proactively replace these batteries - even though batteries should be able to easily go 5 years or more.

Originally Posted by ezmaass

How long do you let it sit? I'd say if it's going to be longer than about 3 weeks (with a healthy battery), I'd hook it to a battery maintainer.

I'd also check your battery health - the aforementioned battery maintainer can help there, too. On both my previous 550 and now 650, BMW replaced the battery after only two years. Both were under warranty, and neither time did I request it or see/have any signs of battery issue. So, BMW definitely feels the need to proactively replace these batteries - even though batteries should be able to easily go 5 years or more.

Thanks I'm gonna just buy a new one. It's a 2016 production date. Appreciate the advice

[Taheemr]

My car has had door handles replaced, battery replaced, CAS unit replaced, starter motor and alternator all replaced under warranty, drain issue still present, I can only put dow to the tracker, I had the same issue on all of my previous BMWs all of which were fitted with a tracker.

I have now given, I wont have my car butchered anymore

[arucano]

[QUOTE=Taheemr;25794240] I had the same issue on all of my previous BMWs all of which were fitted with a tracker.

Are you talking about the BMW "tracker", since modern BMWs have GPS location "built in" or a third party tracker.

[Taheemr]

3rd party tracker, fitted by dealer approvee installer

[Havy]

Does someone have the measurements of the AGM 92Ah battery? I have found one but I ‘m not sure. Length 315mm, width 175mm; hight 190mm. Positive on the right side?

[Qsilver7]

Originally Posted by Havy

Does someone have the measurements of the AGM 92Ah battery? I have found one but I ‘m not sure. Length 315mm, width 175mm; hight 190mm. Positive on the right side?

Sometimes things may be slightly different in the European market vs the North American market...but you can probably get a good idea of the battery's measurements using the East Penn battery chart below.

In the North American market...most medium/large size BMW vehicles use a 49/H8 or 95R/H9 battery class size....the smaller 1/2/3/4 series may use the 94R/H7 battery class size (but don't quote me on that one). Every BMW I've owned except my 1985 e30 325e has used either the 49/H8 or 95R/H9.

[Havy]

Thank you Qsilver7,
I found a supplier and the measurements.