I never said BMW certified techs....as far as I'm concerned they can take their computerized proprietary knowledge bank and rob someone else. I said 'familiar' with BMW's. My local dealer is a high end dealer...maserati, bmw, audi, porsche, vw, hummer, land rover, buggati...occasionally theres a lamborghini and a ferarri on hand. SO one would think they have the 'ALL KNOWLEDGABLE' techs....guess again. I have yet to meet a tech that knows everything and/or is willing to learn. Half the time they makeup shit. How do I know? Because I know the head man of the inside ring.

I would use a non BMW battery because it's better. It's not generic, it's a Johnson Controls battery. I'm sure you've heard of them. I agree with you. But I'd put my cards on it....it's the first and SIMPLEST thing besides looking at the fuses. 10 years of BMW bullshit.
Do not believe a battery that lights up all your lights and even starts your car repeatedly. Happened to me on E39 and E46. Same thing. E46 battery was replaced under warranty. I sold the car and wanted the new battery for my other E46...9 months later it COMPLETELY died beyond re-charging repair due to me leaving the interior light on overnight. They wouldn't replace because I needed to bring the battery in with the car. Car was gone. New battery was less than a tow...on top of me not having the original car. Sure I jumped it. It held a charge for restarting after driving it for an hour....threw DSC errors and quit working. Voltage was ok. My entire car started going Christmas tree until i said let me try another battery. Voila. 5 weeks ago E39 did the same thing..Easy fix. I have a lot of stories throughout the years with these cars and the "almighty" BMW certified techs....and yes, that was sarcasm.

I'm sick of seeing people get ripped off like it's a luxury. These cars are not rocket science they just make you believe that. We've been indoctrinated since we were young......... Honestly I'm looking for a nice 2005 Corolla stick shift with no power windows or seats. lol. I need A/C but that's it. No radio nothing. That's the last piece of the puzzle before I start my garden and quit my job. I guess I could quit now....but i enjoy typing, watching movies and running my side businesses while this multi billion dollar company pays me top dollar because they're just that damn stupid.

Sorry bro just one of those weeks. Sick of seeing everything fall to shit around me. I'm smart so it doesn't affect me but I do feel for the others. But then again...they vote, support and bring about their own demise so how sorry can you feel?

Anyway OP let us know and hope it all works out for you. I learned a lot from this forum. A LOT....and I'm thankful. Just trying to give back.
The first rule of BMW is: Check fuses
The second rule of BMW is: Do not believe a battery that appears to be perfect.

 

 

In the U.S., Douglas Battery is the OEM manufacturer/supplier to BMW. If you really want OEM, then find a battery supplier that sells Douglas Batteries and you'll probably be able to get it cheaper than what the dealer sells it for.

Not to further beat the dead horse, but Johnson Controls manufactures OEM batteries (just not BMW) as well as private label batteries: http://www.themanufacturer.com/us/pr...hnson_Controls

My choice for my Johnson Controls battery is AutoZone, mostly because I personally disagree with Wal-Mart. Not to mention, there is an AutoZone very close to me. :-)

Michael.

 

hahahahhahaah i couldn't but help dieeeeee laughing at the tow job and for 50$ lmfao sry ok, um ya i work at bmw in NJ and to be honest with something like that you coulda got a free loner, while its fixed lol oh and depending on circumstances a actual tow truck not um a pickup truck btw always remember...rearwheel tow...!

EDIT: on the talk of batterys from bmw or not lol working at bmw for 6 years i can tell you that when buying a bmw battery 100$ of it is just that your buying from bmw so in short AchtungE60 isn't really wrong but i still wouldn't buy a 70$ battery maybe shoot for a higher end, also your lights switches etc. could come on with a bad battery, the problems your speaking of though ive seen pop into garage but usual problems are the starter 100% everytime someone rolls in with car not starting but everything turns on its starter and also its actual more common for a bad starter with push to start as funny as that is !

 

This is the first time i've ever gotten my car towed plus im not really car inclined.. if i had known better i would definitely have looked around for better towing companies, it was a spur of the moment decision which screwed me over . Where in NJ do you work, and what do you do there? Maybe you could hoook it up with some discounts for a fellow 5er

I didn't get to do anything on the car today, it was raining like hell here in philly and i was pretty busy most of the day. Will update this thread soon enough. Thanks for all the suggestions everyone!

 

Well said!

AchtungE60,

I hear what you are saying and agree to an extent. I know BMW does not make batteries. I also know they mark up their parts to to turn a pretty profit. It does not have to be a BMW Battery. I never said I got mine from the stealer. I just mentioned what they quoted me price wise. My battery is an Interstate Battery. OEM Spec. and size. I had both batteries side by side and they were identical both in appearance and specs. That is what I was concerned with. It has been almost two and a half years with no issues. I didn't like the Duralast or equivalent batteries partially due to their size. I wanted the battery to fit the battery box like the OEM one did. It doesn't really matter who makes the battery as much as it matters on the specs i.e Cold Cranking AMPS etc.

I still don't feel it is the battery. Based on my own experience, when my battery was starting to go, I was getting errors in my I-Drive warning me of low battery condition and battery drain. The OP would have certainly noticed those messages. Also, it would not be hard to test the battery. Assuming the mechanic knows what he is doing. He mentioned the battery was fine.

OP, please keep us updated and good luck!

 

I don't think it's a common occurrence but then again it doesn't rule it out. With my issue, the starter would work and just kept turning over but the engine wouldn't engage (once they told me that the car had shut off fuel delivery to the engine this made a lot of sense). If you're starting the car and it's either making no sound or it's making a click-click-click noise I would wager that it's not the same issue I had.

 

Read...... http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...ht=61366901469

Hyper_545i - You may or may not get warnings in the iDrive menu...this really depends. I know that this has happened to me and several people on SEVERAL occasions so we'll see the outcome. I don't think that many people understand that the battery is constantly driving the car and that this car is extremely sensitive. If he had ruled out the battery with a confirmed brand new battery with plenty of CCA's then I'd look elsewhere....like i said. fuses first..battery second... But actually it could be a compounded problem and I've sen them before....several stupid issues at one time.

Best thing to do is get a white board and start your process of elimination. You'll look like the guy from Numb3rs but it works. lol

 

y would u let something like that tow ur e60.... :thumbsdown:

 

Seems to be getting off track talking about batteries. If the car was turning over no problem then it is not the battery. It could be dozens of things. If you have an engine warning light on then it defo needs a computer. It also needs a dealer or an independent who has a computer. Small shops do things like change the battery just for the sake of it. Try a starter, try something else. Plugged into diagnostics the fault is read in minutes.

My best advice, ask the garage what diagnostics they have if they have none move it to the dealers. Or find another garage that work on bmw and they will have diagnostics.

I keep my e60s for very high mileage or untill i kill them and i bought a gt1. It has saved me a packet.


When my battery died the car would not turn over

When my starter died it had a newish battery and plenty power going in from alternator. So it was the starter.

It will most probably be a sensor or a module.

Let us know the outcome

Good Luck.

ps always remember that you can have bmw diagnose the fault they dont have to fix it.


fraseman