This is my wife's car. I was out of town and she called one morning after dropping my son at school while it was extremely cold outside and said that the car would not start after she got home and she was trying to straighten out while parking. Few minutes later, she called back and said that the car started and she was able to park correctly. Later that afternoon, I advised her to take the other car to pick up my son from school. Following morning, when she tried to start the car, the FOB key kept popping out so I thought perhaps the key needed to be reprogrammed. Anyways, when I got back in town on Sunday and checked on the car, I realized that the FOB was popping out due to the fact that the brand new battery in the car was DEAD. How is that possible? Please advise.
faulty alternator perhaps...
'93 850Ci - Mineralweiß Metallic
2001 740iL - Titansilber
ALPINA B7 -Alpinweiß III
...the price of cool ain't cheap!
was your brand new battery installed by BMW or a shop that deals with BMW's if not they may have not registered the new battery. I had the same problem with my 750iL. The new battery that was in the car when I purchased the car used wouldn't keep charged. I later found out that if you replace the battery without registering the new battery with the cars software, the alternator doesn't fully charge the battery. As the old battery ages and will not hold a charge, the computer compensates and doesn't send out the full voltage since the battery can't use it. Once I had the battery registered, no more problems. Initially if I sat for even a short time with the dash light and radio on but the car not running I would get a battery low warning.
This BMW did the same thing in April where all of a sudden the battery was dead and it would not do anything. I called an indy and they asked to have the car towed to them. I received a call from them stating that the battery needed to be replaced and that it would be $300+ for battery and installation. I had them do the project. But I noted, after picking up the car, that the remote feature of my key stopped working, and I had to manually lock and unlock the car after that. After driving for few weeks, the same thing has happened where the battery is dead again.
Last edited by AhmerShah1; 11-13-2017 at 12:03 PM.
You need to have the new battery "registered" with the cars computer. There are several different sized batteries (90Ah, 95Ah, 100Ah, 110Ah). If you do not program it correctly, you are destined for failure.
'93 850Ci - Mineralweiß Metallic
2001 740iL - Titansilber
ALPINA B7 -Alpinweiß III
...the price of cool ain't cheap!
Ok..so I bought a car battery charger and connected the negative and positive under the hood. I was pleased to find out that it charged the battery. So I went back to the indy who sold the battery to me. I asked him if he registered my battery as it was not holding charge. He said there is no registering, you just install the battery and press a button and it self programs. What the heck? I also asked as to why my fob remote had stopped working after he installed my battery. He said something is wrong with your fob. what the hell? I did manage to have him connect the tester to see if my alternator was working and he said that tester indicated that alternator was fine. I asked him to check the battery and he said battery was good with 12.41 volt but low on charge and needed to be charged. I must tell you, the mechanics in Georgia are not the most professional. I received a far better and much more professional service from the mechanics in Alabama. Please advise
Just got a call from my wife, while I am out of town, that the car is not starting while she is at my son's therapy. This is after leaving the battery charger connected to the terminal last night...Now she is waiting for the towing service to give the car a jump. What in the heck
Have you checked if there are any error codes stored in the computer?
'93 850Ci - Mineralweiß Metallic
2001 740iL - Titansilber
ALPINA B7 -Alpinweiß III
...the price of cool ain't cheap!
I had the indy who installed the new battery check for codes, battery, and the alternator. Alternator check came out fine, battery check showed good battery with low voltage 12.41 volts. Error code was one 200 miles back for alternator but he said it could be random error as alternator was testing fine when he checked it on monday
same guy that didn't know you had to register the battery with the car's computer??
'93 850Ci - Mineralweiß Metallic
2001 740iL - Titansilber
ALPINA B7 -Alpinweiß III
...the price of cool ain't cheap!
Yes. Holcombe Automotive in Alpharetta/Roswell Georgia
I guess you didn't catch the slight sarcasm. I would take it to an authorized BMW dealer (BMW of South Atlanta is good), and have them hook it up to their diagnostic equipment. Should cost you less than $200, but you will at least get the answers you are looking for. My experience with Indys is that they do not have the extensive knowledge as the dealer (there are some exceptions though).
'93 850Ci - Mineralweiß Metallic
2001 740iL - Titansilber
ALPINA B7 -Alpinweiß III
...the price of cool ain't cheap!
Ah...Yes...I totally missed the pun...What are your thoughts on the potential issue(s) causing the malfunction? This car has been a total nightmare.
I guess you already know this but, do not take your car to this mechanic. He is beyond stupid!! Find yourself a BMW dealer or an indy who specializes in BMW's and has the correct equipment and knowledge. Just wow!
I would take the car down to the dealer to get them to diagnose it. Costs about $120-$150 - well worth it! After they document what is "wrong" you can most likely fix it yourself. It might just be as simple as correctly registering the battery to the vehicles computer (but we already discussed that). They will also be able to tell you if you just happened to get a battery that will only hold a surface charge (has been known to happen with brand new batteries). Either way, you will get an answer a lot quicker than having this forum keep guessing for you, not that there is anything wrong with that, but it definitely is not the quickest way to a solution.
Let us know what you find out though, so it can be of benefit to everyone else.
Good Luck!
'93 850Ci - Mineralweiß Metallic
2001 740iL - Titansilber
ALPINA B7 -Alpinweiß III
...the price of cool ain't cheap!
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