[E92 Jak]

Hello All,

First of all, apologies, I know this is a well trodden topic. I have researched it thoroughly using search but feel like I'm going mad.

Halfords replaced the battery in my E92 330i (08) today. They fitted an https://www.halfords.com/motoring/ba...ee-710859.html 115AGM which is like for like the same values (ah/cca) as the BMW battery they removed.

Having researched on this forum, I was aware that the new battery had to be registered. The guy said that it is only start/stop batteries that need registering. I said that any battery with IBS needs to be registered (just repeating what I had read, no expertise). He disagreed and sent me to the Halfords Auto Center up the road.

When I got there I explained the situation. He said it didn't need registering but hooked up his equipment. He said to me there is no option to register the battery as new. He also said that he had fitted a lot of these to E9X's and you only need to register Start/Stop. Is this correct?

I only had the knowledge I'd researched here to argue with him, but gave up and went home.

Thank you

[therealdb1]

No they are wrong!
You need to tell the car the battery is new otherwise the charging will not be correct.
If they don't have the equipment to fit and register or code (if necessary) the new battery to your car they should not be offering the service!
Go back to them and speak with someone higher up the ladder.

[Phil325i]

+1 Without registering, the car will think the battery is still the old one and will as likely overcharge it.

[0l0dom0l0]

It needs registering. Where are you? It is a 2 second job. Can do it if you are local to Oxford.

[ppointer]

+1. If you were in South FL I would do it for you.

[E92 Jak]

Thanks for your replies, I really appreciate it.

I knew they were wrong!

0l0dom0l0 I really appreciate the offer, Thank you. I'm currently in Surrey, so it's a bit of a way.

ppointer I wish I was in South Florida mate, It's freezing here!

What's the best thing now? Should I take it to a main dealer/specialist to be registered or should I buy the equipment to do it myself? Can you recommend?

Sorry for all the questions, I've only had the car a couple months so have a massive knowledge gap.

Thank you.

[therealdb1]

As I said Halfords have supposedly "fitted" it for you so the first port of call should be them but speak to someone more senior than the technician who cannot find out how to register the battery on the car.

If you get no joy there and there are no kind offers to do it for you from more local forum members, see if you can find a local independent garage that knows what they are doing with BMW's because a main stealer will charge you an arm and a leg just to do that 5 minute job so you may as well have got the battery from them in the first place.

However, if you plan on keeping the car for a length of time investing in diagnostic equipment of your own is a wise move and it will pay for itself several times over. I would guess that what you would pay a garage just to register your battery would buy you INPA!

I have always been an advocate of INPA, or ISTA as it is now, since if you already have a laptop (XP or later is good enough it doesn't need to be anything special) it is dirt cheap to acquire and can do virtually anything you are ever likely to want to do on your car.
There are, however, other apps or stand alone communicators available such as Carly or Foxwell for just two examples that people on here successfully use. They tend to be a bit more expensive to start with but in truth are probably more easy and convenient to use since you don't need a computer to make them work. It's what you feel most comfortable with.

[E92 Jak]

therealdb1 Thanks mate. I agree. The problem is Halfords clearly have no idea - a lesson learnt!

I took it down to a local independent and he registered the battery for me for £20. I was happy with the result and as I say - learnt a lot along the way!

I'm planning on keeping the car for as long as possible (only 59k on it, so I'm hoping I have a fair amount of miles to do!). Probably worth the investment for the equipment?

Thank you all very much for you comments, very much appreciated.

[-claw-]

Typical... Halfrauds strike again!!

Pleased you got it sorted, sounds like your local independant may be worth using in the future for other jobs if your not into DIY.
I have an e92 330i as well, and many jobs can be done by yourself with all the help available on here.

[Silver Streek]

Your first mistake ...... Using Halfords. Never let them touch your car, they have no idea and just don't care about you or your car. Their customer service stinks too.

Although I like their pro tool sets they are nice quality and a good price what you catch their discounts.

[E92 Jak]

@-claw- Thanks mate. You wouldn't believe it, he's retiring in February! He recommended another specialist close to me who I'll use. I want to fit a modern head unit with a screen next, but from what I'm reading it looks like a bit of a headache!

@Silver Streek - absolutely! A valuable lesson.

[therealdb1]

Originally Posted by E92 Jak

@-claw- You wouldn't believe it, he's retiring in February! He recommended another specialist close to me who I'll use. I want to fit a modern head unit with a screen next, but from what I'm reading it looks like a bit of a headache!

You'll have your own diagnostics by then and be able to do your own coding

[Cloverdale]

No need to go mad over this because our new batteries are under warranty (mine's from Costco) and we can return them if they fail prematurely due to a bit of over charging! I have INPA and NCS Expert which are required to register (easy) and code (quite a drawn out process which I likely won't bother attempting) but haven't experienced a battery related charging issue and doubt you will either.

[E92 Jak]

therealdb1 I need to get on that!

Cloverdale yes for sure, it's under 5 year warranty. I was worried about the damaging the alternator? But all's well that ends well. I haven't had the car long and wanted to do everything right from the outset to prolong its life!