E39 B10 3.3 Touring #10 - Battery as flat as the proverbial

Toasey · Post by **Toasey** » Sun Mar 04, 2018 11:19 pm

Hi everyone,
So the time has come for me to seek advice on my next move. I've had my B10 Touring since October 2016 and the past three weeks are the only time it has been off the road.

To give a bit of background, the only gripe I've had since I've owned the car is the rear tailgate glass periodically popping open, normally after the water has got into the mechanism or wiring. I'd been meaning to get it fixed at some point but about three weeks ago it went into spasm and flattened the battery overnight. I've charged the battery for three weeks with an Optimate 4 smart charger but to no avail. It really is a gonner.

Now I've changed batteries before on many cars many times but I'm a bit wary of this car, seeing as it is much more electrically complex than any other car I've had. What precautions do I need to take? And what is the best battery I can get?

I promise as soon as I get the car running again I'll get it booked in to have the tailgate switch or wiring fixed.

Toasey · Post by **Toasey** » Sun Mar 04, 2018 11:37 pm

Gratuitous pictures of the old girl on life support, to elicit sympathy:

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B10BRW · Post by **B10BRW** » Mon Mar 05, 2018 2:22 am

I have always replaced the batteries that have died with a more powerful one.
I replaced the battery in my B10 V8 with a Varta H3 100Ah, 830 cold cranking.

Luckily it is a simple job with the B10, although you might get a hernia lifting them in and out.

Because of the age of the vehicle a new battery does not have to be coded to the car.

I have a spare new one, if you are interested, send me a PM.

Toasey · Post by **Toasey** » Mon Mar 05, 2018 3:59 pm

Thanks Brian. So it really is case of out with the old and in with the new and no messing about. That's a relief.
I also like the idea of going with a more powerful battery, especially since there may be a gap between fitting the new battery and getting the tailgate electrics fixed. I will keep the Optimate connected anyway but I'd rather err on the safe side.
I'll send a PM soon.

P.S. I'm only seeing one of my images at a time (using Chrome with one of the Photobucket fix extensions added).
P.P.S. Now sorted. Work computer disabling access to URLs

JASV8S · Post by **JASV8S** » Tue Mar 06, 2018 12:04 am

Toasey, I had a similar issue with my Cetek charger one time my battery was completely flat. It appeared that the charger was not recognising the battery. I started the car with jumper leads and let it run for a while and when I reattached the Cetek charger it recognised the battery and started to go through the charging process.

Toasey · Post by **Toasey** » Wed Mar 07, 2018 11:57 am

Thanks for the info. I wasn't sure whether jump starting was an option because I gather that some modern cars don't like it. I know my B10 isn't modern but I'm not sure where the cut over point is.
I might give it a go while I'm waiting for the truck battery that Brian recommended to arrive.

greenelekta · Post by **greenelekta** » Wed Mar 07, 2018 12:59 pm

If you have an old, less sensitive charger use that to put some charge in and then the Cetek will recognise it. This is what Ive done in the past.

Toasey · Post by **Toasey** » Wed Mar 07, 2018 7:27 pm

That's worth I try. I'm pretty sure I've still got some dumb chargers lying around.

JASV8S · Post by **JASV8S** » Wed Mar 07, 2018 9:18 pm

That crossed my mind at the time to put on an old charger as I thought this might get the level up for the Cetek but I was impatient for a solution at the time.