Replacement Battery Specs

andreu12qw · 09-21-2020, 01:48 PM

Good afternoon!

Wanted to share some details I uncovered while replacing my battery last week.

I have a 2011 E90 335i with a H7 Lead-acid battery. My stock battery was the white lead-acid Varta battery. It was rated at 90Ah, 160RC and I believe 720 CCA. It finally died as it dipped past the recoverable phase with a charger. Tried charging it overnight and while I could start the car and drive around, it would not start again if I turned the car off.

I did not try to get another BMW battery as I have learned we have a wide range of options for these cars and many other people report to have had good luck with aftermarket option.

First: I needed to get some electronic tools to tackle this job. I went with the VeePeak bluetooth OBDll reader and BimmerLink.

BimmerCode vs. BimmerLink: I downloaded both and initially paid for BimmerLink. After some reading and youtube viewing is seemed that BimmerLink was the one to purchase.

Second: I went with a champion battery. Pepboys was closest to me and I was tired of dealing with a dead battery. I purchased Part# H7-800CHP. This was the same exact size as my battery that came out (we measured with a tape measure) and it was close to the electrical ratings as far as CCA and RC per the Pepboys computer.. NOW, I know you should never really trust what their computers say so I realized I would need to do some more research before this install was complete.

When using BimmerLink I connected the app to the car and ran the registration process. The same "90Ah" rating showed up and it updated the Km for when the battery was replaced. Since I was not sure of the Ah as it was not listed on the battery or PepBoys and Champions website I was a little cautious. I did start the car and it fired right up with no issues. There was a slight rough idle but The car sat for a few days so I didn't think it was a big deal.

When you try to figure out Ah ratings online there are a few websites that say you can use a rule of thumb like you can divide the CCA by 7.25 or what not.. I couldn't not find any consistent methods other than the timing method which I did not try to attempt so I continued the research. I called Champion and they told me that they sold their battery division to PepBoys (ICAHN Automotice Group LLC) but the guy was able to pull up an internal spreadsheet. While he could not email me the data sheet he told me that the battery I purchased was rated for 80Ah. Glad I didn't take that long road trip!

I went back to BimmerLink and saw that there was a small note in BimmerLink that read "only use this for a battery replacement if replacing with same battery."

After seeing this I logged into BimmerCode and saw that I could select the Ah rating but you need to purchase the "full version" for this.. (

) So $60 later I now have the full version of BimmerCode and was able to recode the battery to 80Ah for a lead-acid battery. After getting this coded correctly I fired the car up and it was smooth during idle again.

After getting this all wrapped up I was looking at Autozone and noticed a Duralast Gold battery (Part # H7-DLG) It has the same ratings regarding size and output as the Champion battery. i.e. H7-Size 94R 800 CCA, 140RC and this was also rated at 80Ah. This made me feel better.

Hope this helps and let me know what you guys think.

A321 · 12-09-2020, 05:50 PM

Given that detailed posting, "IF" the dealer has a special to remove & replace for $299 and you're on the road in 60 minutes.....would you do it?

andreu12qw · 12-10-2020, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by A321

Given that detailed posting, "IF" the dealer has a special to remove & replace for $299 and you're on the road in 60 minutes.....would you do it?

If I was standing here today and in that scenario.. No, I would do it myself again.

1. I already have the scanner and can pick up a new battery in 15 minutes and can install and code it in another 10.

2. Even if the dealer was ready to take my car in, I would hesitate to believe they could get me out in an hour. Also, a replacement battery from a pick-your-flavor parts shop is only around $110-$140.

09-21-2020, 01:48 PM	#1
andreu12qw Second Lieutenant 53 Rep 212 Posts Drives: '11 E90 335i MSport Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: SoCal iTrader: (2)	Replacement Battery Specs Good afternoon! Wanted to share some details I uncovered while replacing my battery last week. I have a 2011 E90 335i with a H7 Lead-acid battery. My stock battery was the white lead-acid Varta battery. It was rated at 90Ah, 160RC and I believe 720 CCA. It finally died as it dipped past the recoverable phase with a charger. Tried charging it overnight and while I could start the car and drive around, it would not start again if I turned the car off. I did not try to get another BMW battery as I have learned we have a wide range of options for these cars and many other people report to have had good luck with aftermarket option. First: I needed to get some electronic tools to tackle this job. I went with the VeePeak bluetooth OBDll reader and BimmerLink. BimmerCode vs. BimmerLink: I downloaded both and initially paid for BimmerLink. After some reading and youtube viewing is seemed that BimmerLink was the one to purchase. Second: I went with a champion battery. Pepboys was closest to me and I was tired of dealing with a dead battery. I purchased Part# H7-800CHP. This was the same exact size as my battery that came out (we measured with a tape measure) and it was close to the electrical ratings as far as CCA and RC per the Pepboys computer.. NOW, I know you should never really trust what their computers say so I realized I would need to do some more research before this install was complete. When using BimmerLink I connected the app to the car and ran the registration process. The same "90Ah" rating showed up and it updated the Km for when the battery was replaced. Since I was not sure of the Ah as it was not listed on the battery or PepBoys and Champions website I was a little cautious. I did start the car and it fired right up with no issues. There was a slight rough idle but The car sat for a few days so I didn't think it was a big deal. When you try to figure out Ah ratings online there are a few websites that say you can use a rule of thumb like you can divide the CCA by 7.25 or what not.. I couldn't not find any consistent methods other than the timing method which I did not try to attempt so I continued the research. I called Champion and they told me that they sold their battery division to PepBoys (ICAHN Automotice Group LLC) but the guy was able to pull up an internal spreadsheet. While he could not email me the data sheet he told me that the battery I purchased was rated for 80Ah. Glad I didn't take that long road trip! I went back to BimmerLink and saw that there was a small note in BimmerLink that read "only use this for a battery replacement if replacing with same battery." After seeing this I logged into BimmerCode and saw that I could select the Ah rating but you need to purchase the "full version" for this.. () So $60 later I now have the full version of BimmerCode and was able to recode the battery to 80Ah for a lead-acid battery. After getting this coded correctly I fired the car up and it was smooth during idle again. After getting this all wrapped up I was looking at Autozone and noticed a Duralast Gold battery (Part # H7-DLG) It has the same ratings regarding size and output as the Champion battery. i.e. H7-Size 94R 800 CCA, 140RC and this was also rated at 80Ah. This made me feel better. Hope this helps and let me know what you guys think.
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12-09-2020, 05:50 PM	#2
A321 Private 11 Rep 57 Posts Drives: 2011 E92 Executive Coupe' N51 Join Date: Jun 2020 Location: InBetween iTrader: (0)	Given that detailed posting, "IF" the dealer has a special to remove & replace for $299 and you're on the road in 60 minutes.....would you do it?
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