E70 Battery Replacement - DIY
 

I recently had to replace the battery on our 2007 E70 3.0 and after doing some research I determined that the best option was to go directly to the manufacturer of my existing battery rather than getting a replacement battery from BMW. There were multiple reasons for this: 1) OEM was cheaper than OE 2) BMW only sold "updated" batteries that would have required reprogramming that I didn't feel like doing, especially if it was going to cost more for the battery anyway (they now recommend a 90AH and a 92AH instead of the 100AH that my X5 was originally equipped with) and 3) There was nothing wrong with the lifespan or reliability of the original battery to begin with.

The battery that our X5 required was a MegaTron Plus/Interstate Battery. MTP-49/H8100 AH. If you call Interstate directly at 1-800-843-0200 they will be able to provide you with a list of dealers in your area and you'll just have to call each one for the best deal and availability. I paid $237 CAD for mine here in Calgary which was substantially less than the $311.65 and the $366.65 that the dealer wanted for replacement ones mentioned above (not including reprogramming cost). You will want to take a look at the type of battery that you have prior to starting this job to see if you can track down the exact same replacement battery unless you don't mind reprogramming.

My battery (no receipt is required for warranty on these as a serial #/code is embedded in the battery):
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSC08741.jpg

This DIY should not take more than 30 minutes and as always I assume no responsibility for injury, death or destruction (to you or your vehicle) - always wear safety glasses when working around batteries!

Our X5 has 3rd-Row seating so I'm not sure if the layout is any different for other models.

1) Flip up the floor in the rear cargo area and undo all of the philips screws that you see (I believe there are 5 in total) and remove the storage/tool tray
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSC08743.jpg

2) Disconnect the terminals on the battery beginning with the negative one as usual (I believe they are either 8 or 10mm nuts)
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSC08744.jpg

3) Once the battery has been fully disconnected you will also need to unscrew the holders for the battery as well as removing the vent tubes. With the battery out I took a minute to clean the terminals with some sandpaper and electrical cleaner and vacuumed out the residue. I ended up putting on some dielectric grease on the terminals to help mitigate future corrosion issues - I swear by this stuff and have eliminated CEL/MIL's simply by using it on MAF"s, etc.

4) Take a look at your new battery and notice where the vents are located and transfer any parts across that need it from the old battery. Install the new battery in the reverse of removal preocedure.

5) Once the new battery has been installed you will need to "register" it with the vehicle so that it knows at what rate to charge it. It is my understanding that our vehicles no longer have a voltage regulator on the alternator so everything is computer controlled ensuring that as a battery gets older it is charged accordingly). If you do not do this step, and I've read varying stories, you may or may not end up with minor or serious, not to mention expensive issues down the road.

What I used to register my battery was INPA (available in a ton of places online and you may have to mix a couple of different version together in order to get the E70 listed as a vehicle - just look for the missing folder where all the models are listed and copy and past it in there) as well as a $30 diag head ordered from China.

6) Plug your laptop into the OBD port under the driver's side panel and open up INPA
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSC08764.jpg

7) Select your vehicle and engine (if you have the wrong one it won't work so just try a different one)
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSC08750.jpg

8) Click "F6" - Status Analog/Digital
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSC08763.jpg

9) Click "F5" - Power Management
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSC08762.jpg

10) Click "F5" - Batterierausch Registrieren
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSC08760.jpg

11) Done!
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSC08761.jpg

It's all pretty basic and I hope this helps someone. :thumbup:

THANK U!!!

can you recommend a source/seller of the inpa software?

I hope it'll work on a win7 64bit system.

Might I opine that anyone that can get INPA up and running will not need a DIY for the battery?

:)

But OP- major kudos for the effort AND for showing those that may never do it, what is really involved. Folks that pay a BMW dealer $300 "for programming" need to see the steps above. ;)

Good timing - have an '08 that I may need to do soon.

Was wondering if there are any warning signs that a battery will go soon. Anytime I need to go out (kid drop off or pick up) I don't have a 2nd car available to jump-start it.

Yeah, I've been asking the same questions. My low battery signal comes on when I've been coding so I was wondering if it was time for replacement. I've also seen it occasionally when I've been washing car etc. I bought a battery tester, as recommended, and it checked out just fine.

My problem may be that I'm not driving the X5 enough...

last time, my 08 would do weird things like roll the window down when i wasn't around. convenient right?...

anyway, dealer said it was low battery, and gave me a new one. since then, haven't had the issue return.. so in short, the car will start doing weird things. Sometimes fire up with a whole bunch of lights on the dash,
strangely enough, i get the high battery drain at times, but not at others.

heizervr6,

You've registered the battery but I wonder you have to code for it too (as you're not using original OEM)? I had read about this need to register + code on some other forum (E90?).

The CAS module has function KLASSE_BATTERIE which is set to 90ah_agm (on my '08 E70 4.8i). I haven't physically checked my battery to see if it matches.

There are Wet Cell standard style of batteries and the newer AGM style of batteries (*_agm).

These settings are available for KLASSE_BATTERIE on E70:
46ah
55ah
70ah
80ah
90ah
110ah
40ah_agm
60ah_agm
70ah_agm
80ah_agm
90ah_agm
105ah_agm
wert_00

No coding required in my case as I used the exact same battery that had been previously installed by the dealer. Had I gone with the updated part directly from BMW, yes coding would have been required which is more involved that the above.

Yeah, you're right. You should be fine.

I should have worded it more as info for anyone else reading this thread and thinking of replacing their battery...

I just want to emphasize with other readers that the distinction between 'registering' and 'coding' is one of semantics: you still need the cable and software, it is just that registering is a single setting/click, whereas coding is a few more steps.

Coding is required if you change the type of battery you are putting in the vehicle. For example if you are going from NON AGM to AGM or if you go from 70ah to 90ah. Then you will need to code the vehicle to tell it the new battery type you have installed.

Registration is required whenever a battery is changed essentially to sync both battery and vehicle.

While everyone will not need to code their new battery (depending on whether or not they change the type), registration is always required.

Some will argue that they do not need to register the battery and their car has been fine for x amount of time, but failing to do so may result in compatibility issues or battery drainage issues.

I have to register a new battery next week. heizervr6's instructions are good and I have an operational INPA. My INPA dialog shows the same options as heizervr6 had showed.

Is it ok if I use "MSV 70.0 for N52" option for registering a battery for my N62 model (the 4.8i)? I don't see anywhere else to register a battery for a N62 model. I was able to use INPA (after selecting "MSV 70.0 for N52") today and get all the way to the battery registration option.

I'm not sure if there's a newer INPA (have v5) or scripts that I need to locate. Selecting "ME 9 for N62" just gives me a error messages in German that I can't make sense of.

(I will be making a coding change too for the increased "ah" of the new battery.)

Thanks

Brian, use Tool32 (Toolset32) for battery registration. INPA doesn't support registration for some models. Additionally, always choose your Engine type if you do use INPA.

Thanks! I see Tool32 in EDIABAS. Going to have to check it out...

Yep, you will find the registration process pretty simple as well.

Googling found me lots of info on registering other BMW batteries. I'm going to have to figure out from these PRG files (CDC_E70h / e70 / me9n62 / me962_2 / n62_tue) which have the STEUERN_BATTERIETAUSCH_REGISTRIEREN function (unless you happen to know :) ).

Do a file>>load>>MSV80.prg or MSV70.prg under the E70 folderand then under jobs you will find STEUERN_BATTERIETAUSCH_REGISTRIEREN and just run that job. It will tell you OKAY when it is complete.

Thank you :thumbup:

I recently bought an Autozone Duralast H8-AGM battery to replace my original equipment AGM battery.

In the end I decided against the swap because no one at Autozone or the manufacturer of the battery (East Penn Manufacturing) was able to tell me the Amp Hour (AH) rating of the H8-AGM battery (see pics below)...

The AH number is what determines whether or not any coding needs to be performed. The problem with using one of the many formulas available for converting the Reserve Capacity Rating to Amp Hour rating results in values much higher than the 80ah-agm and 90ah-agm settings in Tool32 in EDIABAS. From what I know about AGM batteries, you don't want to over-charge or under-charge the battery ...

There are only 2 batteries I've found that have an AH rating of 92 stamped on the label from the factory. This value is close enough to the 90ah-agm setting and therefor require only registration and not coding (assuming AGM to AGM swap): the East Penn DEKA 9AGM49 ($175 and up) and one made by WorldSourceOne, group 49 AGM (available only through select distributors, $219 and up).

This brings me to my final question: in playing with the registration software, I inadvertently re-registered my old (current battery) ... Is this a problem? I'm told that what I did was just reset the date and mileage, but the alternator current output is still at the appropriate level for the age of the battery ... Anyone?

brian5,

Can you do a write up and post a couple of pics when you do the battery registration using Tool32.

If you happen to do a coding as well, please include.

Thanx!

From the Interstate web-site, it appears that your MTP-49/H8 is a Wet Cell battery and only rated at CCA 720. I saw a MTP-49/H8 battery today that was Wet Cell and rated CCA 900 (with 79 Ah). So I think Interstate has a lot going on with their batteries (and using the same codes) that are adding confusion. So I don't know what yours is...

Based on the Interstate website, it looked like I wanted the MT5-49/H8 (which is AGM and CCA 900). Interstate says they don't sell that yet. The shop spoke to Interstate and is going to get me the MTP-49/H8-A (which is supposedly AGM and has CCA 900). I'll check it out before they install.

Actually found a PDF file that covering registration and coding batteries. You need to register batteries, for engines not covered in INPA, using Tool32. An example is our 4.8i aka N62 engine.

The "ah" values listed in the PDF are not applicable to our 2008 X5 4.8i. I had the correct list posted above which one can get from NCS Dummy.

brian5,

I've asked the SAME question: why do some battery manufacturers not list the Ah value?

The problem in understanding Ah arises when we speak about a battery of a given Ah capacity. If we have a battery rated at 100 Ah, that battery can supply 5 Amps of current for 20 hours. That same battery can't supply 100 Amps for 1 hour, however. In fact, it can only supply 100 Amps for about 1/2 an hour. Why?

The true capacity of a battery is dependent on the rate of discharge. The faster the rate of discharge, the less total Ah capacity can be delivered. This phenomenon was described mathematically back in 1897 by a researcher named Peukert. He formulated the equation:

I(exponent n)T=C

In Peukert's equation, the letter I is the discharge current, letter n is a value related to battery construction, letter T is the duration of discharge, and the letter C is the capacity removed as a result of that discharge. If exponent n is equal to one, then we have the familiar circumstance where 1 Amp for 100 hours is equal to 100 Ah. (I = 1, n = 1, T = 100, so C = 100 Ah.) But, exponent n is never equal to 1, even in the best of batteries. Exponent n has normal values of 1.05 to 2, with about 1.2 being a common value. Lets use n = 1.2 in Peukert's equation with I = 100 Amps. We now find that C = 251 Ah. In other words, if we want to draw 100 Amps for 1 hour, we need a battery of 251 Ah, assuming the battery has a Peukert's exponent n = 1.2. Suppose we have an exponent of 1.1. For 100 Amps, C now equals 159 Ah considerably lower than 251 Ah. As mentioned, exponent n is related to battery construction. The lower the value, the better the battery will supply high currents.

Note that for low values of current, the value of n doesn't have much impact on capacity C. As currents increase, however, the effect of n is significant.

What this demonstrates is the need to measure Ah using Peukert's equation if we really want to stop guessing about battery capacity.

For a battery with an exponent of 1.2, a 2 Amp draw for an hour actually removes 2.3 Amp hours, or about 13% more than a linear measurement indicates. A 20 Amp draw for an hour results in a depletion of 36.4 Ah ...a whopping 45% more than a linear measurement would show!

How accurate is Peukert's equation? Recent tests indicate that errors are in the range of 0.5-1%.

Given that these cars are designed by German engineers, it does not surprise me in the least that they want to make sure that the battery they specify must have the correct Ah value ...

In America it is much more effective to market the battery with Cold Cranking Capacity (CCA), because more must be better, right? However, the CCA value is only part of the equation and says nothing about the draw on the battery by our power hungry cars!

In order to list the Ah value on a battery, it must actually be measured, at least on a sample basis, on the production line ... who's got time for that?

Hope this helps.

OK

It would be interesting to hear Interstate's response.

East Penn Manufacturing, the manufacturer of the Duracell H8-AGM battery I was going to buy, simply said that the do not provide that information!

I wonder why ...

I thought a saw a way to calculate this. If I come across it I will let you know.

Interstate MTP-49/H8-A AGM, CCA 900, Ah 94: those values are a good match to the original equipment battery in our cars. The 94Ah rating could easily be close to the 90Ah value depending on how it was measured by the manufacturer ... As a matter of fact, BMW's replacement recommendation for our discontinued AGM battery is a 92Ah version. Apparently BMW also believes that it can't hurt to have a few extra amps to draw from ...

Let us know if you're going this route. You should be able to get away with registering the battery only, but if you decide to do the coding, please show us pictures of how you used the Tool32.

What price have you been quoted for this battery? Where?

Just bought it and had it installed... Interstate MTP-49/H8A. It is AGM, CCA 900 and the Ah is actually 95 so no coding needed by me. My KLASSE_BATTERIE value is currently "90ah_agm" so that's as close as I can get. I have just completed the registration using Tool32.

The MT5-49/H8 is the newer AGM model but that was not available from the local Interstate distributor yet. Interstate says this is 96AH.

Paid $200 for battery at Firestone Complete Auto Care. $88 for labor (which obviously could have done myself but I figured I was saving so much anyway :) )

Good deal! Thanks for sharing.

I just asked my local garage here who's familiar with BMWs about registering my battery and they can do it for $45, but they said the battery must be bought through a dealer. I can't recall exactly the reason he mentioned but it had to do with MY2008s and onward - their batteries use 4.8(something) and not 4.0(something). He said we can't and shouldn't go to Interstate directly for those.

Aside from the possibility that he's in bed with dealers (doubt it), could there be any truth to this? He has an E46 M3 and mentioned that he dealt with 4 battery replacements before realizing he couldn't get batteries from outside.

I did a LOT of research. I am confident that my Interstate MTP-49/H8A battery is a perfect fit for my X5....

Anybody close to montreal could reprogram it for me ?

Ps... AGM is a battery with a vent ?

AGM batteries do not use vents and do not have vent hoses. Traditional batteries use active vents and vent hoses.

A couple more questions
 

1. My OE battery that came with the car says its sealed - I assume it's AGM. The white sticker covered all the traditional caps on the top. YET on the side of the positive half, it is attached to a vent hose and tubing venting out through the bottom of the car? I shook the battery a bit, no slushing liquid sound like when I shake a wet battery. I suppose they install they attached the tubing in case you buy a non-AGM battery? (Without reading the forum, I did purchase a wet one from Batteries Plus for 139.00, I am returning that now) I didn't realize how complicated and that I needed to consult this forum until I couldn't find the battery. Different than my previous e39. The batteries plus one wet one slushes, and the top caps are not sticker sealed. Their AGM had to be special ordered and it was 189. So am I right that ours is an AGM battery?
2. What if I don't register? I still don't get it about registering... Register meaning to tell my car there is a brand new battery? So charge at a different rate as oppose to an older battery? I would go buy that tool32 and some kind of OBD tool - but really? It was 200 bucks after 5 years plus with the original one, should I really care? Am I looking at potentially costing more than 200 dollars for another battery replacement or you think my car will have some expensive electronic issues if I don't register the darn thing?? Thanks guys.

When did cars get so complicated?

Today after I shut off the engine and left the radio on while waiting for my wife to pick something up in the store, the idrive shut itself off after only 2-3 minutes. Usually it's closer to 15-20 mins. The car is 5 years old now and I knew the battery is on its last legs. I hit start/stop to turn the radio on again and immediately it shut idrive off. Then a minute later the dash showed a battery icon. This is actually good, I know for certain what the issue is. I was afraid I would have random errors and I'd have to guess when my battery is going, but this is good, though I've never seen someone here ever say the battery icon shows up on the dash like that.

Anyway, I started the car up just fine, and had to get gas (shut off and back on again just fine). So it appears this is a nice early-warning for me.

I gotta risk driving to Brooklyn tonight with it, but at least the highway miles will give it a nice charge for a change.

^ Yes. I just read up on another forum with the same question about registering and it has to do with rate of charge, and people were contemplating not doing it because their new battery is cheap enough anyway). But I'd suggest you find an independent shop BMW Repair Shops - Find a BMW Mechanic | BimmerShops.com to do it for you for < $60 and avoid the headache.

Battery Replaced This Evening
 

Alright- thought I share. My X5 is now 5 years old, love the power, hate the poor gas milage and hate the 20" RFT tire going loud after 10K. The point is I still take good care of it, but don't want to put any more money in it if I don't have to - most likely trade it for something else in the next 18 mo. So after I returned the non-AGM battery back to Batteries Plus, their AGM battery which was not in stock, was $189, but the CCA was only in the 800 Range. So I decided to drive down to Firestone to buy an Interstate AGM battery as everyone had suggusted. The manager mentioned they only stock the standard Wet Cell/Non AGM in all Firestone shops as normal stock ($199). He can order me the AGM one tomorrow (Monday).
I agreed and since I had more time in the afternoon, I looked up the price, it's around $290 listed on Interstate. I was fine with that, just a little annoyed that I was ready to install a new one today since I had remove the old one earlier in the day. So I started browing since I had time and found the below battery from Advanced Auto Parts which had all the matching criteria as the OE one. It was only $162 with 3 year full warranty (yes not 6 years) and prorate after 3 til 7 years. I thought I'd give it a shot and search on various other forums. The only complaint I saw was "plastic casing damaged during shipping." (well of course, these things are heavy!) Long story short, even got a tip to use an online $40 off coupon. (PC4U123)
Final total out of pocket: Final price was 132.70 with tax (122+10.70). I don't think you can find a better price. I thought I'd share (rh71 - hopefully this helps with your dying battery)

I don't see the the value of the $290 battery... Now that I spent even less than I expected on this battery, I don't know if I should bother to go to a indie shop to get this battery registered...

(BTW, the garage door spring snapped after all said and done and looks like the money I saved will be going to the Garage Door man tomorrow)

Good luck everyone.

AutoCraft Gold AGM Battery, Group Size H8, 900 CCA

http://www.xoutpost.com/members/zoic...9-battery2.jpg

http://www.xoutpost.com/members/zoic...70-battery.jpg

^ thanks. I just called 2 Firestones (before reading your post Zoich) and neither of them were able to register the battery (one didn't even know what that meant). The battery was not available either and it would take 2 days. But since they can't register, I'm not going with them. I called a local place I usually use who still recommends a dealer original battery for $320 out the door. I may also go the Advanced Auto Parts route but then I'd feel more comfortable if I could get it registered.

rh71,

The Firestone shop that I dealt with had no knowledge of battery registration either. Didn't bother me though as I was going to register it myself anyway.

Buy a new spring and pop it in! 30 minutes. Waiting for the garage door man to show up and be there while he does the work is more time than the fix should take.

But people do get freaked out by the red warning label on it!:thumbup:

so I wound up doing the Autocraft battery (manufactured by Johnson Controls like a lot of other batteries - I seem to have bought the very last one on all of Long Island says their website) and got it put in. Battery $148 + install & registration by a local indy $125 = $273. They also mentioned they had to reset the sunroof module as part of the process. Anyway, this was more a stay-away-from-the-dealer more than a DIY, but hey, still cheaper. Thanks for advice in this thread.

There's a good reason people should be careful when changing garage door springs. On my double, heavy wooden door, a lot of torque is required on the springs. If you use incorrect tools or you don't know how to position yourself when torquing each spring, you risk serious injury:

I used these instructions and got the parts from Amazon, including the correct bars:

How to Replace Garage Door Torsion Springs

It took some reading and probably over an hour of actual work. Disassembling and loosening the old springs took a considerable part of the time.

Yay! Awesome! Yup there was only one store here in STL had the battery, tho i think they had more than one. Did you dispose your battery at Advanced Auto Parts to recover the $15 core charges? Should bring that total down another 15...

thanks for info everyone

yes thanks for the reminder - I did get that back the next day... still works great so far.

Any updates on the Autocraft battery?

The website says its 850cc, however the product picture shows 900cca. I guess I won't know until I pick up the battery and check the label.

This is my order and I'll pick it up locally.

AutoCraft Gold AGM Battery, Group Size H8, 850 CCA
Part No: H8-AGM

Warranty: 3 YR FREE REPLACEMENT


$181.99
Core Charges: $18.00
Discount: -$50.00
$149.99

^ no updates (which is a good thing) ;)

The Autocraft Gold battery is labelled 900cc.

If you order online with a coupon, order the H8 AGM that says 850cc and verify it's 900cc when you pick it up.

Wait, what? How?

If regestering "just resets the mileage" and the output is still appropriate, then why would you EVER need to register???

Either registering does something that impacts how the battery is charged or it doesnt....

IMO

shoot. sorry... OLD post, my bad. Mobile device.

:(

Exactly. From what I've read elsewhere it sounds like charging and usage profiles are tied into a complex hysteresis that starts with the car knowing when the battery is fresh. This plays a role in the energy management system shutting down various loads in order to preserve the battery for at least one engine start with some safety margin as the battery ages. But to what degree charging behavior is modified, and to the degree that it actually affects the life of a new battery being treated as an old one, well, it’s not clear to me it’s anything appreciable. It seems to me like a highly over engineered system.

And with the car being so smart about the battery state, you'd think they would include the battery as a Condition Based Service (CBS) item so the car would show the driver when the battery was due for replacement. The dealers would get more proactive battery sales, at least from the people that dutifully visit the dealer when the car tells them to. And assuming a nominal battery age of 4+ years, BMW would probably avoid having to replace most of the batteries under warranty. Of course the CBS items are also relatively easily reset by an end-user, and we wouldn't want that! Yet it's OK to reset the oil change, brake fluid, vehicle check, and other items via the instrument cluster’s service menu.

Also, I've heard that disconnecting the battery sometimes results in the car needing to be recoded due to various modules losing their coding, not just a window one-touch or steering wheel easy exit feature needing to be reactivated by the flick of a switch or two while standing on one’s head. Shouldn’t all of the module coding be in nonvolatile memory? Will simply disconnecting and reconnecting the battery result in any modules needing recoding by the dealer in order to function properly?

I’m about ready to replace my battery, so any clarity on this would be appreciated.

Agree.

One reason for NOT having the battery show up in CBS, is then BMW will have to pay for it under the maintenance plan.... but thats just me being cynical

A healthy dose of cynicism seems obligatory when it comes to this stuff. But on that note, and my comment about nominal battery life, if the typical battery lasts long enough to exceed the 4 year/50k mile threshold then the Maintenance Program would not apply.

I don’t know how much thought BMW put into it, but maybe they were not comfortable with the projected number of batteries that would fail prior to 4 years/50k miles. Or maybe they felt too many customers would complain about healthy batteries being in CBS and showing a projected replacement interval that was beyond the Maintenance Program coverage period. It just seems to me that the battery is a prime example of something that should be in a CBS type display, regardless of it being due in or out of warranty.

Alternatively, if it’s so important to register the battery, they could allow the battery to be registered/reset similar to the way the TPMS is reset by a user. While not ideal due to lack of CBS estimated replacement duration, not to mention the increased likelihood of accidental/improper reset (reset via CBS service menu is a bit more protected), I’d be satisfied with at least this ability to reset upon replacement.

I think it comes down to consistency in design philosophy and implementation, as there are makes with models that don’t allow you to swap TPMS sensors without using a special hardware/software tool. Thankfully BMW doesn’t do that, but they failed in applying the same philosophy to the vehicle’s battery.

^ Remember they sell a 6/100 maintenance extension. Covering a battery would almost surely add $300+ to that plan. At a minimum. So cars will need batteries sooner due to BMWs silly charging algorithms. Actually BMW has a 'driving distance histogram' that dealers can call up in order to deny warranty claims/blame the owner. They even cover their legal bases on this specific issue with a curious little advisory in the manual. I expect they have put quite a bit of thought into this....

And why would they make the battery change user resettable?! There is absoultely nothing in it for them to make these cars less 'mysterious'...read through the manual, it is nothing but a litany of "go to your SAV center" for EVERYTHING. "Dont open the hood- its a special BMW that is only serviceable by the BMW priests"

And making it harder to swap TPMS sensors, DON'T give them any new ideas....

Right. I was just addressing what the car comes with and working within those parameters. I’m sure BMW would adjust the program extension price to maintain the desired profit margins.

Yup, clearly BMW wants the vehicle back to dealers for service. As much as I dislike this notion, BMW is not alone in this endeavor. Every time I turn around I see another car maker implementing a feature in a way that arbitrarily requires dealer service. That doesn’t change my observations about inconsistencies in design and how BMW could or should do things, in my opinion. One can always dream, right? Also, there are instances where if enough people complain, and are clear on what they want, the manufacturer actually makes a change.

To your earlier point, I'm sure BMW has given this thought as well. But they decided that being able to do seasonal tire/wheel changes using a second set of mounted sensors or being able to replace the sensors when the embedded battery dies is not something that should require a dealer visit. That's the type of logic that makes me want to buy a given car vs. looking for something else. Of course at some point you have to compromise because there is no vehicle that scores perfectly in the design for serviceability category. At any rate, this BMW battery silliness definitely goes in the con column for me.

Another angle manufacturers are using, the more simple tasks that require dealer service, the more chance they have in putting your butt into a newer model that they want you to trade up to.

In effect, an unwanted test drive of a new BMW, and the CEO saying I WANT!!!

For the N63 vehicles, they are under the revised maintenance but you need to be under the initial 4/50k.

Newbie here, trying to be helpful. Would not volatile memory loss be prevented by use of a charge maintainer, a low current 12 nominal VDC supply across the battery terminal leads?

Why not just use the charging points under the hood? Far safer and the charging cables won't be in the way. BMW also doesn't want you to charge the battery the way you described...RTFM.

hello need a little help I got the same battery for my e70 MegaTron Plus/Interstate Battery. MTP-49/H8100 AH registering all the same steps and I get this error can someone help

error_ecu_conditions_not_correct_or_request_sequen ce_error

I can't believe it's this 'hard' to change a freaking battery! all my life it's just swap out the old in put in the new and voila you're in business

anyways, I bought the Carly adapter and the BMW What app for iOS so I can register the new battery, my wife's new to us X5 is a 2008 3.0si still on the original battery and I want to get it swapped out before the cold of NJ winters sets in. I don't have experience with AGM batteries other than putting one meant for snowmobiles into my e36 M3 track car since it's tiny and ultra lightweight. How can I tell which battery to buy AGM or not? I took a look in the trunk and I see the current battery does have a vent and it says 900cca on it, can I tell AGM or not without removing it and seeing if it has water in it? I want to make sure I buy the correct battery since replacing the battery in these cars is not as straightforward as my experiences with e30s/e36s/e39s/e46s and non-BMW cars

Is there any chance of the modules flaking out while unplugged? I'm also going to be replacing front right passenger seat belt receptacle while the battery is unplugged since it 'exploded' likely in the accident the car was in previously

Major battery manufacturers/retailers often have battery selection dialogues that will take your vehicle description and return the proper battery.

Yes, I believe that some modules will flake-out, that's why BMW says NOT to disconnect the battery for troubleshooting charging issues, the evidence that the modules might retain will be lost.

It is the Twenty-first Century, not much is as it was.

Yes, take a picture of it and post it.

It should look like this: black case with a BMW sticker. The most important parameter of the battery that you should match is the Amp Hour (Ah) rating. It should be about 90Ah.

Problem is that most, if not all batteries that you can find in the retail stores, do not list the Ah number. Only if you have the store manager call the manufacturer, can they sometimes provide you with the Ah number.

You can calculate an approximate Ah number based off of the Reserve Capacity rating:

Amp/Hours = (Reserve Capacity / 2) plus 16.

But this is ONLY an approximation. If you want something more precise, you have to use Peukert's law (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peukert%27s_law).

If you used the above rule on the RC rating of the battery in the picture below, you'd get 96Ah, yet the label says it is 90Ah ...

After you install your new battery and register it, the alternator is programmed to charge the battery at the Ah capacity of the old battery.

If you install a battery with higher Ah rating, you need to code (program) the car and tell it that you have a battery of higher Ah rating. e70 X5's build prior to 10/2011 have the following set points only:

KLASSE_BATTERIE:
46ah
55ah
70ah
80ah
90ah
110ah
40ah_agm
60ah_agm
70ah_agm
80ah_agm
90ah_agm

In other words, you cannot install a battery with an Ah rating grater than 90. If you do, the battery will be constantly undercharged, and you'll compain that you have a "bad" battery ...

GL

thanks! those sites said the AGM but I wanted to make sure

ugh about the modules and how annoying tech can be sometimes (and amazing/great all the other times hehe)




understood thanks, I took a picture but it turns out the label matches 100% with the pic you attached to your post

checking PN 61217551331 it appears it's the AGM battery, 90ah... don't know why I didn't think of searching the PN yesterday but thanks very much for your help

No need to buy BMW OE.

Let us know what equivalent you get. Be of interest for the next victim.

I replaced my E90 335i battery with the same CCA and such from Interstate Battery. No coding or anything and it was all fine for about a month i drove. Car was in at an indy shop for service and asked the tech to program it, he tried and it didnt work for some reason but he did say as long as its the same or better than OEM it will be fine, he said he never codes his new batteries. This is a very known local European car shop, so i left it uncoded and nothing happened.

I also replaced the battery in my E90 335i w same one from the dealer myself with no coding, it's been 4 years already...no issues.

Price shopping:

Looks like Walmart would be the best deal (cheapest + longest warranty if you count the prorated 24 months as well) if it was stocked anywhere, but the AH is unknown. Of the known AH batteries the Duracell from Batteries Plus may be the best for me since it has an extra year warranty for $7 more than Autozone, will the 92ah vs stock 90ah matter?



Known AH batteries:

Batteries Plus Duracell Ultra battery - 92AH, $196 after tax and core refund using coupon CDP10011, 48 month warranty = https://www.batteriesplus.com/productdetails/sli49agm

Autozone Duralast battery - 92AH, $189 after tax and core refund, 36 month warranty = Duralast Platinum/Battery H8-AGM - Read 6 Reviews on Duralast Platinum #H8-AGM

BMW East Penn battery - 90AH, $193-257 before tax depending on battery amperage (quick price quote from friend at dealer before I knew 90AH), unknown warranty


Unknown AH batteries:

Walmart EverStart battery - unknown AH, $150 after tax and after unknown core charge, 36 month warranty + 24 month proration = EverStart Platinum AGM Battery, Group Size H8 - Walmart.com (unfortunately it does not appear to be in stock anywhere)

Pep Boys Bosch battery - unknown AH, $189 after tax and core refund using coupon ALLTIME20, 48 month warranty = http://www.pepboys.com/product/details/838838/446/

Advanced Auto Autocraft battery - unknown AH, $200 after tax and core charge using coupon L52, 36 month warranty = AutoCraft Platinum AGM Battery, Group Size H8, 900 CCA H8-AGM: Advance Auto Parts

Napa Legend Premium battery - unknown AH, $214 after tax and core charge, 24 month warranty = NAPA AUTO PARTS

Interstate - unknown AH, $249 before tax, 30 month warranty = local dealers only

East Penn - unknown AH, unknown price and not any local dealers, unknown warranty

You cannot replace a (modern) BMW battery based on CCA rating ... PERIOD.

(Well, you can, but you will run into problems later, if the Ah don't match)

No, 90Ah vs 92Ah is does not matter. Either will work. Don't go higher than 5% from stock, i.e. 94Ah to 95Ah (although I don't think they are available).

Buy the one with the longest warranty for the best price. And remember that it also needs to have an external vent!

It's hilarious that battery manufacturers will not disclose an important parameter like Ah. How deep did you dig to try and get an answer?

thanks! I'll prob go with the batteries plus one then

I didn't dig very hard as I didn't even bother to call or stop by any place, I only listed info that was readily available and found online in the links I provided

Do some more research on the Werker AGM batteries (private brand supplier of AGM batteries to BatteriesPlus) ...

BatteriesPlus just announced that they are transitioning AWAY from that supplier. There must be a reason. They may now offer that Werker AGM at an attractive discount.

They're switching to Duracell Ultra AGM. I would insist on one of those.

The AGM technology is constantly evolving ... the latest and greatest is usually the best.

Often the full name of an AGM battery is a Valve Regulated Lead Acid Absorbed Glass Mat - VRLA-AGM. The regulating valve is the case pressure relief valve that relieves excess case pressure out the vent tube.

Thank you for that post. Battery was include tax and coupon $190.

Now the best part, this battery is identical to the OEM BMW battery in my 2011 35d X5.

No registration was required, plug & play. :thumbup:

Edit: I read core charge? I have the old battery sitting in my garage.

you're welcome and glad it helped! yeah there should be a core charge you can get refunded when you bring the old battery back to the store

Technically even the precise same battery requires 'registration'

Registration is resetting the charging adaptation algorithm to tell the car "this is a new battery- start from time T=0"

+1

Without registration of a new battery with higher capacity than the old battery, the IBS/charging system will leave the headroom appropriate to not overcharging your OLD battery.

The BMW charging system will not fully charge its battery to avoid the risk of damage due to overcharging. The technical data available to me/us does not specify how much capacity headroom is reserved.

Anyone try the Exide batteries from Home Depot? Edge L5/49/H8 Auto AGM Battery-FP-AGML5/49DS - The Home Depot

This is very similar to the OEM one and I read that Exide makes the OEM batteries for BMW. Price is similar to the other brands at Advance Auto Parts and Auto Zone without coupons.

I wanted to directly address the issue raised by some about not registering / coding their batteries, and the explanation stated here which several posters seem to have missed or ignored.... Because I had the same thought at first but am second-guessing myself now...

At first I did the math...
If the dealer is charging $200-$300 to "register" the battery, and that makes the battery last 20% longer [say 5 years instead of 4 yrs], it would be more economical to NOT pay to have it registered if you just need replace your battery at 4 yrs instead of 5. (since 20% of new battery cost is less than the Register fee)

HOWEVER at least two posters have called out the additional risk of having your electronics potentially incur damage, and other various problems down the road by choosing NOT to register the battery. Just because you didn't register, and its been fine for 4 years, doesn't mean you are not at risk. I would argue that now after 4 years will be exactly WHEN you MIGHT start to see issues.
Or not; who knows. You take your chances.

Same thing goes for Coding your car for a diff type / capacity battery. Double in fact.

So the best route would seem to be to DO the registration (& coding if needed) but finding an indy shop that can do it cheaper than dealer.

All that said, I guess it due to the mysterious sound of "some electronics may incur damage" that most folks dismiss it out of hand. Would be nice to have something a bit more concrete.

you can easily do it on your own, plenty of DIY write-ups around. i'd always choose a wired connection instead of bluetooth or wifi, if/when your wireless connection goes bad while writing "some electronics *will* incur damage". there's a reason why the guys who do it for a living plug in instead of using some fancy smartphone app.

Just wanted to thank everyone for the information here.

I specifically registered to let everyone know of another option (maybe already listed and I missed) at Advance Auto
AutoCraft Platinum AGM Battery, Group Size H8, 900 CCA H8-AGM: Advance Auto Parts
$185.99
"AutoCraft Platinum AGM Battery, Group Size H8, 900 CCA"

Questions/Answers section does say its 92AH

When you're on the site it pops up with a 20% off coupon (have to give them an email address, if you're on gmail just use [email protected])


Now to find the coding software and get the correct cable for an 09 e70 3.0i

Thanks again for all the info!

Does anyone know if the recommended factory procedure would be to apply 12v to the system prior to disconnecting the main battery? To prevent E/EPROM issues and reset sensors, etc?

I know this could make for an easy short situation in the trunk...

I can only imagine the charging post under the hood directly is a direct path to the battery (or alternator, either way) so no charging electronics "between" the jump battery and the vehicle battery.

I think there's more risk with trying to keep the car powered during the swap. The only odd thing I found after a battery swap was a steering error that reset after I turned the wheel lock to lock. As far as I recall, all settings were retained.

I've been having low battery charge problems on and off since last December on my 2007 X5 3.0i, which was about 3 years after I had the battery replaced at my BMW dealer. I didn't think it could be a bad battery after only three years, esp being the BMW OEM battery. But last week I was having the water pump replaced at an independent shop, they also did some other checkout of the car, and said that no battery had been registered to the car since it was originally sold in 2007. In other words, the dealer did not do ANY registration or coding when they replaced the battery in 2012, but still charged me $600!

So rather than go to the dealer again, I ordered the Interstate MT5-49H8 battery from a local shop and installed it this weekend. Took all of 10 minutes, if that. I haven't registered it yet though. Should I really register it, given that the car thinks the original battery is still there, going 9 years old?

Also I have a USB K-DCAN cable I ordered off Amazon, it came with a disc that appears to have INPA software, but I'm not sure it is installing correctly on my Windows 10 laptop. I was wondering, the Carly app looks more user-friendly and claims it can do registration. Can the Carly app for Android work with the USB cable if I connect the cable to my Android phone with a USB OTG adapter? Or could the Carly app work with a Bluetooth OBDII adapter (I use one with Torque app)? Or does Carly ONLY work with their Bluetooth dongle or USB cable that they sell?

Yes You should really register it

also, neither EPROMs nor EEPROMs lose their state when powered down. an EPROM would require UV light to be de/reprogrammed and an EEPROM needs field electrons applied in a specific manner for the same purpose. both are non-volatile memory, the hint is in the ROM-part.

Have used Carly app with USB K-DCAN on my nexus 5. Actually works better than my generic Bluetooth dongle. I have not used the battery registration though. But I don't think it should be a problem.

Thanks.
 

Great instructions by the OP. Had low battery warnings and increased battery discharge warnings in past month as it's been getting colder in 2011 X5 with original battery.

Just got a perfect fit 92Ah Duracell AGM battery from my 35d from BatteriesPlus.com (10% off coupon code) for $200 and installed without a glitch. Make sure you get the same battery size and type (AGM vs flooded lead acid) as what you had before--mine was group 49 AGM. All you need are a couple of standard metric sockets, socket extensions, and a Phillips screwdriver to remove the old harnesses and brackets--took about 30 minutes taking my sweet time.

After I followed the instructions using BMW's INPA software for battery REGISTRATION (takes about 2 minutes going over the menus carefully as posted by OP), I was good to go. The BMW INPA software I got eBay for about $30 shipped with a OBDII KCAN-DCAN BMW USB cable (obdinnovations.com)--which you can use to code your car as well for other feature options (although a bit finicky to set up).

How reliable is the Low Battery warning message? I have a 2007 4.8i and I can definitely hear a difference in starting with the cold weather.

I knew battery was low, 577a after charging all night, but Sunday morning convinced me to get a new one. It almost didn't start. No warnings though. I barely drive the thing. Picked up a Bosch 92ah from Pep Boys. Waiting til I can find time to get it coded to put it in though.

I installed that exact battery today. Pretty much the same battery down to the indentations. OE was rated @ 900 CCA, Exide is 850 CCA at 0 F. Wouldn't make any difference here in southeast TX. Both 90Ah, and 160 RC. OE was also an Exide.

Used ISTA to register it. Highly recommend it. I got it for $159 shipped from Rural King. It comes with free replacement for 4 years.

Strong work,
I really don't understand why some people wait until they have electrical issues or get stranded before deciding to change a 5+ year old battery. I went ahead and changed mine a little early to help me sleep better at night especially during winter!

Hi, everyone, I'm coming from e90post and used to own a 335xi. Just changed the battery on my 08 x5 3.0 and compare it to 335xi, it was a breeze (too much contortion needed to replace battery in 3 series' small trunk). I bought the battery from advance auto parts and registered it using Bavarian Technic cable. Works great.

Were they running a special at the time? Listed at $213 shipped now, Amazon has it for $225.

Yes it was 25% off right around good Friday.

Just changed the battery on our 2011 x35i (with navigation, heated seats). I came across this thread and thought I should add my information here to help others who may find it useful in future.

The car was on its original battery, close to 6 years old, and even though there were no significant signs of stress on the battery, I wanted to change the battery as I had previously been stranded once in my old E53 X5 and didn't want to be surprised again.

I went with the BMW original battery. I called the local dealership and was given the replacement battery part number 61-21-2-353-812 and was quoted a good price what came out to $265 tax included. (included a 10% discount and $15 core charge that I will get back after returning the old one.)

Although changing the battery was pretty simple and I have done it many times on various cars including Mercedes and BMW, since I still wanted it registered I took it to my indy shop that quoted me $80 for registering it or $120 for install/register. For that $40 difference I just had them do the work while I was standing there and $120 later the new battery was installed and registered.

Some notes:

The mechanic unplugged all connectors before taking off the red distribution panel. I asked why, he said if the wires stay plugged in the connectors or the panel can break and cause issues. If I had done the work at home I would have kept everything connected as it was, but he took them off and put them back in afterwards.

After registering the battery and computer still connected to the car, we got a 'passenger restraining system / air bag malfunction' and the airbag red light on dashboard that was not there before. He checked and then unplugged and replugged the small black connector with two black/yellow wires which took care of the problem. (see picture below, the wires that appear just to the right of the + terminal of the battery, the far right end of the picture, connector not clearly shown in the picture but you can see the black/yellow wires).

I will be taking the old battery back to the dealership to get back the $15 core charge. Things look good now after a total cost of $395.

Below are pictures of:

- screenshot of the registration

- My old battery (interestingly enough, the part numbers do not exist in BMWs systems... I provided them to the dealership parts dept and they couldn't find them.)

- My new battery

I just replaced mine a week ago.

Did it in the auto store parking lot, so I didnt have to mess with the core. Used jumper cables to ensure there was always a 12V connection to prevent loss of any volatile settings. About 15 minutes.

Then registered with Carly.

Cost $209.

No other issues, no seat belt issues, no nothing.

Bosch battery. I assume private label from one of the 2 battery manufacturers in the USA. One of which also makes the BMW battery. Looks pretty similar actually, but I didnt take a picture

Good recap of your experience. :thumbup:

I don't have Carly, and given the stories I have read with the FRM footwell module being bricked during programming etc. I don't see myself fooling around too much with programming, so at this time I have no intention of getting Carly or similar.

My belt / restraint system error has been something that has been there for a while, (car showing erroneously that a passenger is sitting on the seat and should have the seatbelt on, during hot days with no passenger on the seat.) BMW couldn't find a fault code so they didn't do much about it. I have a feeling that the black/yellow wire connector that I mentioned above might have been loose to begin with and caused those errors/problems , and showed similar issue now. But after it was unplugged and replugged, the error went away and my wife tells me that she is not needing to put the passenger seatbelt on (with no passengers) in the last two days, so that is (so far) good news.

Lets not confuse the issues: nobody has ever reported a 'bricking' of the FRM with Carly when registering a battery. (If you know of any such events it would be good to post it.)

Carly is- at the most simple use- a code reader. You can add a battery registration, and you can do programming- if you want. You dont need to 'do programming' if all youi want is to register the battery.


Interesting that the seat belt drama was some other existing condition....could be related to low battery charge, cud be related to this black and yellow wire (im too lazy to pull up a schematic to see what they are for,,,,)

:thumbup:

Didn't mean to suggest battery registering would cause FRM issues. Just mentioning why I shy away from any type of programming / registering myself with my limited knowledge in the area, fearing the worst.

Isn't that how people sell their product/service to you? Scare you into thinking you cant/shouldn't do it yourself so you can spend the money on them. I'm pretty much scared too but after thorough research from forum members, I've learned to code myself using the laptop software and with carly also.

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

Why should the battery be registered? Sorry I'm sure it's been answered before. What happenes if it's not registered? Does it lead to more problems?

Someone more knowledgeable may provide a better answer. My understanding is that as the battery ages, the capacity lowers (let's say 1/2). The car's computer adjusts for the lower capacity by recharging until that lowered capacity is reached and not anymore. Since the new battery is at full capacity, the car's computer will continue to recharge until 1/2 of the new batteries capacity is reached. You can certainly not register the battery, you may be shortening the life of the new battery by not registering it.

Could a low charge battery lead to electrical problems? I currently have no radio, comfort access, bluetooth, PDC after letting the vehicle sit for a week. It's a 2011 and original battery

Certainly can. When the original battery on our 2012 was starting to go out, the Comfort Access was one first functions I noticed to stop working.

Interesting, I'll have the stealership look into it. It would seem weird to have a faulty amp when they replaced it 1 day before I picked it up. Could very well be the battery is on it's way out. I would assume a new battery through the dealer will be expensive

give them a call for a battery replacement/register quote. my dealer wanted "around $500".

i bought a battery from auto zone for $195, and also bought Carly software and wifi dongle to register it myself. total is less than $500 and I now have a Carly I can use for other purposes

Guy on here earlier posted it was around $325 or so. $250 for battery and installation/registration

You used Carly to register/code your new battery ?
I looked into buying Carly, I didn't see battery registration/coding in the list of features. I sent them a email asking if battery registration/coding could be done with Carly and they replied saying it was not supported.

Because of that reply I didn't buy it.

Maybe I got bad information ?

Here is what you need to know:

Battery Reset | Carly

If you buy Carly, they will extort another 9.95 for the battery coding, as I recall

Yup. I did it. :iagree:I've used it to register a new battery for a few of my friends.

I just purchased a Carly about 3 weeks ago, I also purchased the new "subscription based" Full Porgram. Yeah thats right, Carly only works for a year now and you get to buy it again. Anyway, yes you can register a battery with it (I had to do ours).

Just looked at my battery and it is a CarQuest 94R70

PART NO: 94R70
CCA @ 0*F: 765
20 AH RATE: 80

Does this battery suck or what? Looking to replace it sometime this week...

My two choices are:

Bosch Part#: 49-850BAGM

AutoCraft Part No: H8-AGM

Both are around the same price... Any suggestions?

Thanks!

I found a great deal on a couple of batteries in H9 size, however, both exceed my stock battery 105 AH rating - they are both at 110 AH.

The subject has been casually covered in this and other threads, but wanted to revisit all pros and cons of getting a batter with a bit higher AH rating.

I was in the opposite situation. The AGM H8 battery I found was listed at C/20 95Ah. The AGM battery options cover 90 and 105Ah. I consulted with the battery manufacturer and they recommended I choose the 105Ah option, assuming of course that the BMW capacities are indeed C/20 capacities. Given the options and the relative standard use of such capacities throughout the industry, this seems very likely.

Not knowing exactly how the BMW IBS works and the exact strategies used, mathematically, at worst, using a battery with a higher capacity than the system expects means your battery will be chronically undercharged and that would certainly lead to a shorter life span. Likewise, a battery that is of a lower capacity than the system is set up for - as in my case - may experience a shorter lifespan but for the opposite reason. Ultimately, the actual effects will depend on the battery design and construction.

ETA: I find it interesting that the OP replaced his battery with a Interstate MTP-49/H8 100Ah battery and stated that it was the same type that the dealer had installed in the past. 100Ah is not an option so I wonder what the dealer did? Probably nothing special or extra and just picked the closest value.

ETA2: I looked in Carly and the battery capacity options are the same as those in the first couple of posts of the thread. Another interesting facet is a note in the battery registration window in Carly that says to choose the next lowest capacity if your exact battery capacity is not shown. I'm not sure of the source for that guidance. The Ah value is probably used to help determine state of charge (SOC) more than define precise charging profiles. I'd hope that an INTELLIGENT Battery Sensor would use voltage, temperature and current indications to determine when the battery needed charging and when to terminate that charge. For that reason, I'm probably going to choose the 90Ah option for use with my 95Ah rated battery.

Just an FYI (sorry if this mystery was solved further in the thread...I haven't read all the way through it yet)...but the chart below shows the AH rating of EAST PENN batteries...regular "wet" lead/acid and AGM type batteries:

Battery
 

I went with the AutoCraft. check out this video to see how to get the LOWEST effective price.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37L_tM2Mps0&t=1s



This video might also help you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lwtzry962Ps&t=306s

Just replaced mine with an Autocraft Platinum from Advance Auto Parts. Came out to $143 after a core refund. Programmed with Carly.

Our 2012 E70 just passed 100k miles today and got error P0890 "Traction Control Module (TCM) Power Relay Sense Circuit Low" several times and couldn't switch gear, the error cleared up after a few restarts of engine.

Searched online and suspected the battery(original) could be issue, measured voltge of the battery at 12.36v/14.8v(engine off/on). The off voltge seems low

Went with Autocraft Platinum from Advance Auto Parts, paid $130 + tax after 25% off and 8% topcashback.

Called dealership, they offered original battery at $400+, but $300 other 95ah battery with lifetime warranty.

Thanks this thread, Autocraft Platinum is exact fit according to AAP website although 95ah vs 90ah, and the dimension is identical.

Registered with INPA. It was a very easy swap and coding.

Reading some of the posts above I think there are some misconceptions.
The Amp Hours are important so you have reserve capacity, these cars draw a lot of power and can drain a lesser battery.
The charging system as far as I know will charge any battery till it registers a full charge. This is controlled by the voltage reading not AH reading.

So if your system finds your battery less than 12.6V it will charge till you are at 12.6V.
Running the voltage is always higher than engine off so 13.9V may be common + or - a little.

My 08 4.8L came with an AGM, this technology was new to me at that time. I installed a 950 CCA wet cel battery. It did not work properly in this car.
After having a no start condition every time the car parked for more than 5 days I went and bought the AGM from Sams Club and the car has worked fine ever since.
I would need to look to see exactly what my CCA and AH are but it has worked now since 2012 so I am happy it has outlasted the OEM at this point.
The Wet Cel battery might have worked if I went to the dealer and had the car programmed for a Wet Cel but it was cheaper and faster to just buy a new AGM battery. I will confess I also found the car was receiving a signal from the passenger side mirror stating that it had an issue. The computer would not go to sleep because it kept getting this bad feedback from the mirror. The mirror worked perfectly this entire time. I pulled it apart and removed and cleaned the electrical connections and the mirror motor parts. Put it all back together and it has worked perfectly since and does not have any codes showing.
Any simple code error like I had with the mirror will cause rapid battery drain. Even with this bad code reading the AGM lasted days longer than the Wet Cel I removed even though both had similar CCA ratings. The factory program will keep running system checks till the battery dies even if something simple like the passenger side rear view mirror is the cause. This is stupid programming in my opinion but it is the way it is.
I believe the AGM's at Sams are made by Johnson Controls, they build very good batteries and also build all Optima batteries.

An AGM has the ability to give you full starting ability right up to the point where the battery is nearly dead. Wet Cel batteries can't do that, when the wet cel battery is getting drained the voltage available drops off considerably. I used to know the numbers but with 50% charge a wet cel would only give you around 12V while a 50% charged AGM will still give you 12.6 which helps your system work correctly at full voltage.

The AGM's can take a much faster rate of charge without damage so the car's computer needs to know what type battery is on board to offer the correct rate of charge.
In Heavy Duty Trucking the battery buyers don't care about AH, they want to know CCA and RC, Reserve Capacity. How long a battery can last before needing a charge.

Hope this helps someone.

After a full day driving with new battery, measured the voltage again.
when engine off/on

New battery:
12.7v/14.1v

Comparing old battery replaced:
12.36v/14.8v

It appears when battery ages, the battery capacity drops with voltage decreasing and the car adaptively increases the charging voltage to compensate that; If the holding voltage dropped to certain level, it doesn't meet the minimum requirement of some component, computer can throw errors, P0890 for our E70.

If the new battery is not registered after installed, it will be charged at high voltage than necessary and could shorten the life? It seems important to register battery to reset those charging adaptation values.

I am sure not professional in battery, just throw some thoughts here.

12.7 to 12.9 is common with a new battery. The battery has 6 cells inside. Each is supposed to provide 2.1 V. 2.1 x 6 + 12.6V. That is why they say 12.6 is a fully charged battery. In fact as noted a good battery will be a little higher.
You are supposed to let it sit for 30 minutes after the charge to check true voltage.
Even an old battery will read high if you check right after charging.

For the guys worrying if the system will notice if your batter does not have the right amount of reserve capacity or Amp Hours, you do know you can install two batteries in your system and your car will charge both just fine. The only limitation is the car will only charge till your weaker battery is fully charged. That is why they say if you want to install two batteries you need them both to be brand new and equal in size otherwise your stronger battery will never reach full charge.

I replaced my battery to Autocraft 95AH a year ago and registered it according to this thread. Now the battery seems to be underchanged everyday. If I don't drive the car for one day and two nights. The battery is dead.

Can anyone help? Link of details:
https://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sh....php?t=1358913

One year old battery
 

If I encountered the situation you have described, and you've look for the obvious, namely stuff plugged into cigarette lighters, dome and courtesy lights the next thing I would do is take the battery to where I bought it and have it charged and load tested. This might help eliminate defective battery or charging system or narrow down areas of concentration. It is one of the easier things to do that will give you good information. Good luck.

E70 go through batteries fast if they aint driven a decent amount daily.

Problem is they only charge the battery when its stopped or coasting. Do what I did and code it to always charge the battery when running.

If N55, go into the 63BMO ECU and set IGR_CODIERUNG_MEV to nicht_aktiv
If N63, go into the 82BMO/83BMO/84BMO ECU and set IGRCODIERUNG to nicht_aktiv

4 years on this battery of mine instead of every year or year and half changing them out.

E70 Battery Replacement - DIY
 

[emoji848] very cool - might look in to this thanks man!

I just put a 95aH Varta in my N63 X5 but couldnt code 95aH - the only options were 90 or 105 - tried editing the trace file but ncsexpert flagged it so I just left it at 90 and registered via Ista+. Any experience trying to add a non-bmw battery of a rating not natively supported? Sorry if this thread is not appropriate to ask :)

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I had the same issue. I just bought the 105ah AGM battery at the dealer. It was the same price ($200) as the lesser AH at the auto parts stores.

All US N63 engines now use the 105ah. https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/20...53642-9999.pdf

Thanks for the feedback/info. I will assume that the battery wont reach full charge and so will trickle charge it once a month or so to be on the safe side.


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A capacity rating without a discharge rate is useless. How does BMW measure the battery capacity? Is it 90, 105, etc. Ahs? At a 20A discharge rate? 15A? 25A? We don't know.

How does the battery manufacturer you choose measure their capacity? At what discharge rate? Capacities of batteries change at different discharge rates. The industry standard is capacity measured at a 20A duschsrge rate. This capacity is called the C/20 capacity.

Please read post #115 in this very thread.

Thanks for the direction - seems a bit more complicated than just matching a number.


2012 E70 5.0iX

Thanks for sharing the link for the sib. Mine is a 2007 X5 4.8i. Just bought a 105ah agm battery from the dealer, and registered and coded myself using ista d/ista p.
In this sib, it says that E70/E71 models before 09/2010 although can fit a 105ah, we decided not to take this risk, because vehicle integrity could be compromised in an accident. So what are they saying exactly? But after I programmed and encoded a larger size using ista p, I went back to check if all was registered correctly in ista d- it said the current battery registered is 80 ah? I don’t get it. Or does the dme need some time to fully register the new battery rating correctly?
Sure the trey was too small, but I can just move the holding bracket few inches to the right. There’s a drain hole (larger than 10mm bolt), maybe 12 mm will fit there just fine, plus some drilling of the bracket would be required.
I guess my question is, has anyone here replaced their factory 92ah agm battery to an oem 105ah on their E70 X5s successfully and has been a happy camper?
Thanks!

Here's my DIY guide:

https://youtu.be/sFIW61jRP4k

Hope it helps!

Watching this and your use of a tripod to prop open the cargo floor door reminded me how much I appreciated my 2007 E70 having a gas strut for this and how disappointed/annoyed I was to see BMW cheap out in later model years.

The kit is available for the later E70s. Holes are there and everything. It does make them seem pretty cheap.

I was searching for some kind of strap/clip like what exists on the E53 lol. Now I know what my next upgrade is going to be!

Yep, bought it for ours. Was ~$30 if memory serves. Hilarious BMW didn't include it in all E70s. Bean counters...

Love posting here, always learn something new from you guys!

Real OEM diagram:

https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/sho...diagId=51_6347

Pressurized Spring (Strut): 51479149120 $63.99

Bracket: 51479138212 $34.19

Screws: 07129903027 $1.89 X4

Total: $105.74

You can get a much cheaper equivalent strut on Amazon to bring total cost down to about half that. :thumbup:

Time to replace my battery again. Last time I used an Odyssey PC1350 49 H8. It was a Dec 2017.production, installed in June or so 2018. Lasted a little longer than the original BMW 8/2011 battery. Can't really complain for $320. Now Odyssey has a ODP-AGM49 H8 L5 and it's $430 at Napa. I used Carly to register it before as a 105Ah battery even though it was C/20 95Ah. That's what Odyssey recommended at the time.

Bonus! Napa had a 20% code so it was only $346! Subtract the core charge and it's about thr same price as the one in 2018. I also bought the Odyssey/Ctek OBC-25A charger to supplement the legacy OBC-20A I've had for years. I'll charge the new one for a week or few days to ensure it's topped off prior to installation.

Replaced it last night after eight hours of conditioning and 14 hours of maintaining. Registered fine but my CAS isn't updated and only has a maximum of 90Ah AGM. That's what I coded the last 95Ah battery for and I got seven years and seven months so I'm not concerned. That's nine more months than the original factory battery lasted. Two batteries in 14+ years isn't too bad.

Only until recently did I come to learn how much I don't know about today's type batteries. And there charging. So much has changed and to the favor of the consumer.
But please what ever you do...install the proper fit for the car!
Just made a run to the bone yard recently...there was a x3 07 there where the trunk was
burnt out only due to a small battery from Walmart.

(Walmart batteries are some of the best on the market)

I Couldn't make out the amps due to the char. But it was small say maybe H6?
Apply the proper fit/size.
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