Originally Posted by motordavid

I was reading the February issue of Roundel, and in the Tech Talk section, the Tech Ed, Mike Miller, responded to a similar question. His response was remarkably frank, imo:
"Welcome to a brand new world, Alex. We can't replace our own batteries anymore, starting with the current generation of BMWs. Without the BMW service computer, it's back to the dealer at battery-replacement time...
...the entire car needs to be reprogrammed after power is cut. We're one step closer to a world where there is little to no secondary market for a BMW without a warranty."

Maybe a bit of hyperbole, but I get his point, and he is beating this drum with some regularity lately in Roundel.

Re-program something, after a batt swap; the batts on E70s for some owners, have a half-life of less than a year, and if one does a DIY or, has a parts joint do the R&R, it is a trip to Biff&Buffy's BMW Dlr for a few bucks re-load. Or...buy the dlr's ~$300 batt, and maybe or maybe not pay for the re-program. Poifect!

I'm wondering if this is part of the new "Joy" of driving new BMWs...

GL, mD