jgbmw

I'm in need of a new battery. I've been unable to get an exact quote, but it appears it will be around $450- $500 for the battery and installation. Apparently the battery is around $260. Why does the installation cost just as much as the part?

Persian_535i

OEM battery = overpriced and on top of that they charge a fee to program it to your vehicle.
Some members claim that a aftermarket battery from Auto Zone will do just fine, however others have said that it may cause an issue. So it's really up to you which route to take.

luigi524td

Installation involves more than removing a couple of clamps and swapping the battery. That said, a good indy with the right tech tools and know-how might be able to get you set up for a few dollars less.

pcy

Go to BMW parts counter, buy a new BMW battery (exactly same battery as the one your car currently has) for around $220. Install it yourself. That's it.

tonyb635

Not sure if this is true or not... I was told by someone that if you buy the battery from the stealerdship and they do not install it, there is no warranty...? The said that if the battery is not properly programmed it will not be recharged correctly and lead to premature failure so they warranty is voided. I purchased mine exact replacment Ah and cca from autozone and so far it's been perfect. I figured with the huge warranty they provided it will just be replaced it it premaurely fails.

tonyb635

Not sure if this is true or not... I was told by someone that if you buy the battery from the stealerdship and they do not install it, there is no warranty...? The said that if the battery is not properly programmed it will not be recharged correctly and lead to premature failure so the warranty is voided. I purchased mine, exact replacment Ah and cca from autozone and so far it's been perfect. I figured with the huge warranty they provided it will just be replaced if it prematurely fails.

SilberGrauE60

If you decide to do your own battery intall, I found it useful to have a second set of hands to hold the cables out of the way when lifting the old one out and placing the new one back in. The battery is very heavy and the area is cramped. Also, don't forget about the drain tube located on the positive (+) end of the battery. The fitting twists out, remaining attached to the plastic hose. Finally, it was very useful to remove the negative cable from the chassis attach point to give even more clearance when putting the new battery back in place. I chose not to have the "programming" done, and hope it won't have any long term effects-fingers crossed. So far, it's only been two months, so cannot say much about that. I bought the battery from Batteries Plus, an exact physical match for the OEM.

Sublime

I bought an OEM battery from the dealership - my car wouldn't start when I tried to leave so I replaced it in the parking lot in 20 minutes. Programmed it when I got home. No problems since. You can easily do this yourself.

jgbmw

I ended up buying an Interstate battery and it was registered with the computer just fine. (half the price from the dealership - installed)

also, my ventilation system high-fan setting hasn't worked in about 6 months. Now it works perfectly. it appears that the i-drive starts up faster, but i don't see why that would be!

Big Tap

I just got a call from the dealership that mine is probably going to need to be replaced. He said it wasn't technically bad, but the readings on it were low. I'd almost rather just have it done and not have to worry about it. $500 though blows.

The main problem though is my IVM module (I think that's what he called it) being bad and needing to be replaced. Anyone know much about that part? He mentioned that it basically was a voltage meter that communicated with the computer to tell it how much and where to send voltage. It should be covered under warranty but was just looking for additional info.