Quite a few guides show how to disconnect the negative terminal of the battery but I needed to replace the battery in my 330i and I couldn't find any guides that explained how to remove it so here we are.

I understand that for many people this procedure will be self explanatory but...

scottp9999 - Thanks for this information. I hadn't dug into the BT coding routines yet. I expect my battery to go in a few months.

i just replaced the battery in my '06 last week. i have 65k miles.

i talked to an e60 owner today and he was telling me his experience in changing the battery and having to register it.

had no idea this had to be done.

just to share my experience, i just had the dealer replace my battery.
it was 255 for the battery and another 280 for the labor. the car had to stay overnight to send it to sleep mode or some BS. next time ill be doing this myself thanks to this very good DIY.
ill have the dealer do the reset part. My SA told me to use a battery tender to keep it charged

AND WHEN YOU ALL HAVE REPLACED YOUR BATTERYS...-> GO TO DEALER AND REGISTER BATTERY REPLACEMENT TO GET Engine electronics and alternator work like it should work...and to get IBS (intelligent battery sensor) work properly. If you change bigger battery -> car has to be updated!!

does the dealer charge for that?

dealer normally charge tester use in used hour's-> if bigger battery replaced and same capasity battery replacement normally goes as normal fault code memory read (Finland we have DIS-TEST 140€)

I reluctantly bought my wife a 2-year old 2006 330i for her 65th birthday Nov 2008. Since then, we've had to take it to the BMW shop 3 times (2-days each) to fix idiot lights--one was a loose gas cap!!!
Now that the warranty just went out it wouldnt start (of course). I did not know about this site, and the manuals said nothing about raplacing a battery, or even where it was.
Well I googled to find out where it was and what Advance auto parts -- my neigghborhood parts place ---- had for it. Their "silver" battery was $94--2 years free return and 7 total pro-rated. I bought it and thought it would be simple to put in--like on my Gran Marquis--20 minutes max.
Well 3 hours later and a painful back, the battery's in and the car starts and runs.
It was then original big white BMW battery. Had to figure out how to fit the smaller one in. There are a few threaded holes in the bottom to attach the long clamp bolt, so after connecting all the wires, I just pushed it forward and used the large glavanized clamp/washer in reverse to clamp the new battery down with it's bottom edge-which juts out for that.
There's still a wire---thin 10" cable with one blue and one red wire with very small connector----with no apparent place to go.
But the BMW starts and runs, and the battery will be a whole lot easier to replace next time.
BTW--I just joined this group today and couldnt see any pictures on this thread.

Not sure if you read the entire thread, but you now need to get the car reprogrammed to tell it a new battery is in it. It will not properly charge the new battery if you don't get this done. It sounds like you new to owning a BMW. Take some advice, if you plan on working on it yourself, get a Bently E9X repair manual. BMWs have special procedures even for simple things, like changing the oil, coolant, etc., even the battery. BMWs are way over engineered and have special repair techniques to go along with the engineering. Also, stick with BMW OEM parts. There are many places on the web that sell BMW parts. We all like GetBMWparts.com.

Thanks for the post and pictures which demystified the process significantly.

My car was dead after getting out from lunch at a restaurant. Service truck came and tried to jump start my car, however he could not with his truck battery (this is a big truck!). He had to use that together with an external battery (1600Amps), and my car was started. However, when I got home, could not start it again.

Read your post, went out to Autozone, try to get the two batteried mentioned here, however, one is too big, the other one is about the same size however, not up to original specs. Luckily the manager told me that there is another one that looks exactly like the original but not listed in the computer. I looked at it, sure enough it it basically the same but with higher specs (775 cold cranking amp and 995 regular amp). I bought it and it fits perfectly even the venting hold is at the same location as the original battery.

This one costs me $153, but the warranty is 3 year replacement and 3-8 years pro-rated. The model is 94R-DLG.

After I plugged it in, turned on the ignition everything worked except that all of the malfunction symbols were one. To reset, just drove around the block once and turned it off and on, everything is fine now.

I wrote this to make sure that people know that there is another one that is perfect.

Hope this helps.

For those that have gone to the dealer to get the car reprogrammed after replacing the battery yourself, can you let us know the cost?

Just wanted to post and say THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to the original poster and all the additional comments. I followed this and it worked like a charm, although I used the AutoZone 94R-DLG that so many others have mentioned. Not a single issue or idiot light. I didn't even lose my radio presets.

You guys rule!

Cary
2006 325i
SoCal

on my 325i. I actually got my battery at NAPA (BT7548). It is about an 1.5 " shorter than the original battery but, it has the vent hole in the right place plus it has 700 CCA compared to my white BMW 640 CCA. Other than that, it was identical to the original in black.
I did check Walmart and Autozone. They did have the batteries mentioned above but, they were shaped a little different and they had the vent hole in the middle.
Just to let everybody know that there is another choice out there...and I only paid around $100. No issues whatsoever with the replacement. I am not planning to register the battery either. If anything, I will get another battery under warranty...
J.
06 325i

Great guide, thanks

2007 335i

Batteries Plus

Item# SLI94RH7

$163.85

Thanks for this. Just installing a new battery for my brother in law's E90 328i, so these pictures have done wonders! Really appreciate the effort.

Just wanted to 'give back' to this very helpful post with some comments. Hopefully they'll be helpful to some:

- Thanks to this (and similar) threads, I didn't try to replace my 2006 330i battery with the group 48 that almost every reference lists. I looked for a group 94R battery
- Quoted prices: $179 BMW dealer, $142 Pep Boys Bosch 94R, $77 Wal-Mart Everstart Maxx 94R
- I went with the Everstart Maxx. No problems installing, the size appeared to be an exact replacement to my BMW OEM.
- In my car the plastic assembly over the positive terminal is red (it's black in this set of pictures).
- My Bentley manual told me I'd have to reset all kinds of things when replacing the battery - clock, radio, steering angle sensor, power window regulator motors, sunroof and mirror compass. When I did it, though, only the clock/date needed updating. Everything else (radio, compass, etc.) seems fine.
- I had my local (non-dealership) BMW repair shop reset/register the battery code. It took him about 10-15 minutes, only charged $25.02
- BMW price quoted at $307.02 ($179 battery, $110 labor, the rest in tax/battery fees)
- My cost: $105.02 ($77 + $3 battery fee at Wal-Mart, $25.02 code reset)

I just replaced my battery with an OEM replacement. Now I need to register the new battery and/or reset the battery adaption.

I have the Bav Tech tool "enthusiast" version and have the following question.

In the Engine Module/Commands, I see 2 options for battery.

Battery Replacement Adaption
Register Replacement Battery (something like this)

Which option should I use? What's the difference between the two?

Thanks!

Just in case anyone has the same question as myself, I got a response from Owen from Bav Tech. His response is below.

"Thank you for your questions. The entries for the replacement battery registration are redundant; those entries send the same command to the control unit, so it doesn't matter which is used. We'll remove one in a future release to help avoid confusion."

I finished changing out my battery and I also went with Walmart's Everstart Maxx-94R. The battery is probably 1/2 inch longer than the OEM, installed without issue. Car started no problem, happy with the result. I did my price check at Autozone (Duramax, $144 with core exchange), Sam's Club (Energizer, $84 with core exchange) and lastly Walmart. I am happy with my choice.

I used the Walmart Everstart maxx 94R as well, everything is in the same location, except it was 1 1/2 inches shorter (lengthwise) than my OEM battery. this wasn't a big deal becasue the metal screw post with black plastic foam can be moved over this exact amount (there are several predrilled holes for the screw). Battery works great, car runs fine, no errors or codes. Plan to register as soon as I can get a Bav Tool.

Thanks for this DIY, it's just a battery, but on a bmw nothing is "just" anything.

is this all the same with the e92s??

Awesome post, thanks a million. I replaced the battery in my 2006 330i tonight. I went with the Bosch 94R from Pep Boys. almost an exact match to the OEM. just an inch or so shorter but actually made it easier to reinstall. 730CCA and 80A. Now I just need to reset the battery sensor.
Anyone in San Diego area that has a Bav Tech tool, or used a non-dealer shop for this?