[x77md]

Hi all,

Quick question really, on two occasions over the last 2 weeks I've had the error message about increased battery discharge occurring on start up & having to reset the time & date.

The first occasion occurred when starting the car up after 3 days so I initially put it down to the car being left out in the cold for some time (unusual as it is my daily). Now the second time was after work when I had already driven the car that morning.

Additionally, I've noticed that despite the lighting settings being on automatic, when I unlock the car, the taillights or headlights don't light up anymore which is odd.

Now I'm thinking it may be time for a new battery but I'm taking it down to the local Indy next week for diagnosis as the chap there says it can be anything to do with the electrics.

Anybody had anything similar happen to them; if so, what did it turn out to be in the end?

[therealdb1]

Sounds like the battery could well be on its last legs.

You don't say what year your car is but if it has the fancy battery charging controller it will shut down stuff it deems unnecessary like clocks and lighting to save the charge to start the car.

Batteries are not cheap items but with all of the electrical items on an E9x you need a good one otherwise all sorts of strange issues raise their heads.

So if you have no evidence that the battery has been replaced AND correctly registered to your car within the last few years a new battery would be my first port of call.

[x77md]

Originally Posted by therealdb1

Sounds like the battery could well be on its last legs.

You don't say what year your car is but if it has the fancy battery charging controller it will shut down stuff it deems unnecessary like clocks and lighting to save the charge to start the car.

Batteries are not cheap items but with all of the electrical items on an E9x you need a good one otherwise all sorts of strange issues raise their heads.

So if you have no evidence that the battery has been replaced AND correctly registered to your car within the last few years a new battery would be my first port of call.

Sorry - car is a 2008 model.

The car is currently on 73k miles and as far as I'm aware the car didn't have a battery replacement when I purchased it from the previous owner (@68k miles in 2018)

I can't stand having any more issues with this car lol I will definitely avoid cheaping out on the battery! Cheers

[Diawal91]

Originally Posted by therealdb1

Sounds like the battery could well be on its last legs.

You don't say what year your car is but if it has the fancy battery charging controller it will shut down stuff it deems unnecessary like clocks and lighting to save the charge to start the car.

Batteries are not cheap items but with all of the electrical items on an E9x you need a good one otherwise all sorts of strange issues raise their heads.

So if you have no evidence that the battery has been replaced AND correctly registered to your car within the last few years a new battery would be my first port of call.

+1

[Tambohamilton]

Yep, new battery time. As above, don't cheap out.

And you need to register the battery to tell the IBS that it has a new battery if you replace like for like (same AH and same type). You need to code the change if you replace with a different spec of battery (different AH and/or type)

[nomiS330d]

Your symptoms are the same as I had with my 2006 car. When I registered the new one with Carly I noticed the old battery was the original!!
I bought a higher AH Bosch off ECP vía eBay for £100! Worth a look to see if they are still doing that because it was a bargain! Relatively speaking of coarse.