I parked my '07 530xi last Friday, December 17th and the snows came to New Jersey. For almost 10 days it sat in the driveway - most of that time covered in more than a foot of snow. Daytime temps rarely rose above 30 degrees until yesterday. Evening temps were in the teens for several days. When it started to warm up and the snow began to melt the roads were still a sloppy mess.

So, the car stayed parked in the driveway ... until this afternoon [The Roadster is in the garage with a battery tender standing guard ]

This afternoon, with fear and trepidation, I got in the car ... and was prepared for the dreaded "Battery Warning"! After all, in the past year the only other time I had not driven the car at least 10 miles a day was back in June when I took a 10 day vacation. But it was warm ... and I know that cold weather can be tougher on a battery.

But, this afternoon, the car cranked smartly and started quickly. So I gleefully took it for a 30 minute run over the cleanest streets I could find in our fair city.

Maybe I'm just living a charmed life ... and the Battery Angels were watching over me

 

What the.... ?

My car often stays a week in cold temps (-20?/-4?F) and never had a problem with the battery. I understand if you have had problems with your battery earlier, but when a battery is in ok condition it stands the cold pretty well.

 

My battery was replaced under warranty about 2 years ago. The forum has had many posts about e60s having battery failures due to "unfavorable driving profile"*. So, given the unusually cold weather (for this part of the United States) and not driving my car for 10 days I was a bit anxious about the state of the battery. I haven't actually put a tester to it but don't think it'll be a problem for me since I usually drive it a minimum 100 miles per week and take an extended drive at least once monthly.

(* A BMW diagnostic issue)

 

SOunds like your car's software is running good... it properly shut down all its electronics.

 

I live in frigid Minneapolis and if my 2006 530i sits for even 3-4 days at the airport in zero to below zero temps the battery is dead for sure.

 

I agree. I hate to say it but I think the "unfavorable driving profile" excuse is just that...an excuse. I believe it's one of those things where BMW, due to the complex nature of the car's software and it's many modules, can't easily find out the source of the power drain so instead of doing so, they just point the finger back at the driver and his "unfavorable profile".

My car can sit for weeks and start right up when I attempt to do so. Conversely, if my car sits and I access it (wake it up) a few times without starting it, I'll have the "increased battery discharge" warning when I finally go to start it. After that, the clock will need resetting and the date will be stuck on the date that the battery message was logged.

Bottom line -- if the battery is relatively healthy and the car is working properly, I don't think there's any reason to worry about the car sitting for a prolonged period of time...

 

Sounds like your car is not sleeping properly. Either that, or your batt'ry (as they say north of you) is original and thus probably end of life.