Battery Life?

ShoeDog · #1 11-19-2005, 07:50 PM

Hey everyone,

Brand new to posting on the forum, though I've been lurking for a few months.

Back in August I bought an 3.0i X5 ..year '02. It's been a great ride thus far.

My question is...how long should the battery last? I ask because today I was washing and waxing it and while waxing I had the stereo on and a few of the doors open ... for about an hour to hour and a half. I went to move the car and the engine wouldn't kick over ... just tick, tick, tick. Although some of the interior lights still worked.

Everything was running smooth and dandy up to that point. Is it normal that the battery would go dead that quickly?

Thanks!
ShoeDog

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PersonaNonGrata · #2 11-19-2005, 08:40 PM

:welcome: to X5world. Another lurker comes out from the shadows.

We had a thread recently about battery life. the original battery in my '02 (03/02 production) just went dead at about 49,000 miles. I live in a very hot climate so batteries tend to die very quickly so I think I got a very long life out of mine. The same week, SuperGreg's battery died on his '02 (~10/02 production) and his only had about 16,000 miles. Then KewlX5's battery died on his '01 with 125,000 miles.

I think it could well be time for your battery to die. Do a search and you should find the thread where there were some very good recommendations for replacement batteries. You do not need to buy OEM BMW from your dealer. You will save bucks DIY.

Good luck!

ShoeDog · #3 11-19-2005, 09:57 PM

Thanks for the input. My friend came over and we did a "jump" and all is good. I forgot to mention that I have 37,000 miles ... if it's the original battery it could be getting close, but that still seems a bit soon.

Has anyone use a battery charger connected overnight? My friend brought one over that runs at 6 or 12 amps. I'm not sure about using it as I don't want to do any damage to the battery overnight ... any fears of that?

Thanks again
ShoeDog

dkl · #4 11-20-2005, 01:37 AM

3-4 years are the life expectancy of most batteries. I swap out the battery on all my cars every 4 years regardless.

adrian.b · #5 11-20-2005, 02:17 AM

When I bought my X3 a few months ago, the salesperson warned me that if I`m sat in the X5 or doing things aroung it with the TV or DVD`s or radio on for any amount of time, I should leave it running because they are very heavy on the battery. So I dont think there`s anything wrong with your battery, you just ran it down. If the ignition is on, then so are most of the electrics.

eddieboy2 · #6 11-20-2005, 02:26 AM

my battery died after 3 years and 3500km on the clock.

AutoXer · #7 11-20-2005, 02:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShoeDog

Thanks for the input. My friend came over and we did a "jump" and all is good. I forgot to mention that I have 37,000 miles ... if it's the original battery it could be getting close, but that still seems a bit soon.

Has anyone use a battery charger connected overnight? My friend brought one over that runs at 6 or 12 amps. I'm not sure about using it as I don't want to do any damage to the battery overnight ... any fears of that?

Thanks again
ShoeDog

Just charge it and see what happens. If your battery is no good anyways, it won't cause additional damage. Or take it to an Autozone or something, and they can check your battery and charging system for free. If battery is bad, I think they carry Duralast and can install it for you for free. Good luck.

powers1 · #8 11-20-2005, 06:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShoeDog

Thanks for the input. My friend came over and we did a "jump" and all is good. I forgot to mention that I have 37,000 miles ... if it's the original battery it could be getting close, but that still seems a bit soon.

Has anyone use a battery charger connected overnight? My friend brought one over that runs at 6 or 12 amps. I'm not sure about using it as I don't want to do any damage to the battery overnight ... any fears of that?

Thanks again
ShoeDog

You have to use the battery charger overnight!Your oem battery is 90AH It will take mathematically ,using your 6 amps charger ,15 hours for a full charge,but all batteries are optimistic with their charging outputs, so a 24 hour charge would just about do it.Its best to charge battery at a lower amp(6 amps).You will know when your battery is charged once the window viewer on the oem battery turns green!
I ALWAYS disconnect my battery when charging it and its best also to open the acid plugs to let your battery breath better under charging.

UCrewX5 · #9 11-20-2005, 09:41 AM

I am not as familiar with the climate for this time of year in Oregon, but I for one would not want to go into the winter months here in Michigan with a weak battery. I say change it out for a new one and don't look back.

See http://www.xoutpost.com/showarticle-25.html for sources other than the BMW dealer for a suitable replacement.

motordavid · #10 11-20-2005, 11:25 AM

I'd suspect that "hour to an hour and a half" of radio playing wore your batt. down. As to whether it has/will recovered enough to not be a prob. in the near future is impossible to predict. My '01 orig batt is still chugging along, though I suspect its life span is now geriatric at this point, lol!

Regardless of brand you get to replace, I'd rec'd a long, slow charge by you, before install. Many batts come "charged" but discharge on the shelf. Some joints give them a "hot shot" before they sell it...that high amp zap is not what you want. Thus, if you can do it logistically, the best method is to buy the replacement and slow charge at home for a day or two, three or...

That slow charge will bring the batt to nearly its full potential before the install.
My 2Cts.
GL,md

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