Been to the dealer today - here is the outcome:-

- Coolant leak - new radiator - I am posted out in Middle East and temp hitting 51C during day - so you can imagine that over a shorter period of time the plastics crack/break/become fragile. The radiator was leaking from the top - it was as if someone had drilled 4 tiny holes into the plastic....
- Battery was only at 18% capacity. Alternator OK as it held charge whilst driving. New battery (gel type) here costs around $500 with 2 yr warranty - compared to my last one also from the dealer that was a more reasonable $250 (water type).

As mentioned the service manager is a friend so he offered to charge the battery overnight and see if it increases its capacity. He was happy that the engine was cranking first time around to start. He felt sorry for me , bearing in mind I just had 2 rear tyres fitted recently, ebc redstuff brakes all round, skimmed rotors, control arm bush replacement, now the radiator and of course poss battery replacement - OUCH.

He did say that one of the reasons the battery was probably on its way out was that I do not drive the car enough. On average, for the last 6 months I drive 50-80km a week - so having the car sitting in the drive also leads to poor battery life. SO by leaving the internal light on for 24 hrs it killed the battery.

Fingers crossed lets see what happens tomorrow.

buy a ctek 3300 to keep that batt maintained when not being driven!!!

Ditto...a float charger or battery maintainer will keep your new battery from going into states of deep discharge...which will shorten the life of the battery. You want a device that will stop charging the battery when it has reached charging capacity. A regular charger will continue on to "overcharge" the battery...which is not good for it either. A float charger is the most inexpensive way to go...with the battery maintainer/tender costing a bit more. But a float charger only keeps a charged battery charged...it doesn't have the capacity to recharge a depleted battery. The slightly more expensive battery maintainer/tender can recharge a depleted battery then turn off when its charged. And you can use the jump start terminals in the engine bay to use either of these devices...if they have alligator clips. If they have a 12 volt cigarette lighter plug...then you know how to handle that. :)

If you do look into getting a float charger or battery maintainer...make sure that it works with an AGM battery if that's what you'll be installing in the vehicle.

Also, if you're going to use OBC TEST 9 to check the battery's voltage...make sure that you wait at least 2-3 hours after running the engine so that all surface charge has been removed.

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My e38 doesn't get driven that much in the winter months...so I purchased a simple (and inexpensive) float charger ($3.99 on sale) back sometime around 2004...and it has worked perfectly. I got it when I replaced the battery (2004)...and it kept that battery going until Jan/2010 when I replaced it. I still use it on the new battery and that battery is still going strong 4 yrs later.

Thank you guys. Picked up the car from the dealer and tested the HID fog lights issue - all seemed OK. My service manager friend sais the battery had charged overnight well enough not to need a new battery - so $500 saved...or so I thought...

...took car for a spin tonight 4 hours after returning from dealer - switched on HID Fogs - same issue occurred (hazards flashing and inside light on - no other warning lights etc.) Drove the car around like normal - OBC showing 13.5V with all lights/radio/AC etc on.

As soon as I stopped the car - locked it - within 5 mins I started it again and switch on HID fogs - no issues or lights blinking. It seems to me that the only time the fog HIDs trigger the hazards/inside light is if I switch them on after the car has been parked for 10 minutes or more...

...so my question is that do we still think the battery is the issue or something else?. I don't really want to spend $500 on a new battery and apart form the HID fogs issue everything else is ok - but would this cause problems to other components down the line? Point to note is that the battery and alternator were replaced 2.5 years ago at the dealer, and only use my car on average 1-2 times/week covering 30-50km.

If it was the voltage regulator/alternator what would be the warning signs?

I might just invest in that Ctek charger...

Grateful for your insights...

Search blower motor resister. They go bad and drain your battery 100%. They look like a porcupine....I'm sure other guys can tell you the part number and how to test it.

BMW make loads of money here from servicing....temp does reach 50c here but surely a normal BMW battery could be sufficient..i am just learning to live with this new characteristic as the car drives and functionsok?. I have ordered the ctek charger.

The hazards are tripped only at the initial ON for the fogs.....if i switched on/off consecutively after initial ON nothing happens....

I'm not willing to change the battery...well not yet....:yikes: