E90 LCi Battery drain

[trinomic]

Hi all,

About a month ago I got this warning....

• CC-ID 415 – Battery Discharge Rate High

It disappeared after about 2 start ups and then popped up again yesterday and its disappeared again now. I dont have a multimeter to test but I've used the hidden menu options to monitor the voltage.

At cold startup this morning: 14.8v
Testing turning on lights, radio, ac dropped this slightly to about 14.4v

Driving for about 20 mins with radio and lights on it fluctuated between 14.0 and 14.5v

At my destination i switched off and it slowly dropped to around 12.1v.

Does it seem like time to replace the battery or should i be investigating what could be causing the high discharge rate?

Lastly, this is the battery currently installed. I am not sure when last this has been replaced. Can anyone confirm whether this is fitted with the IBS?

Thanks

 

[StrollingCoal]

I had the same error code within the 1st week of ownership, the dealership advised that the battery needed "charging" and that a long trip would fix the issue...800 km later and the problem persisted so they replaced the battery. If I remember correctly it costed them R1600 at the time. this was roughly a year ago.

 

[MR_Y]

An older tracking device, pulling charge while the car is off, could be to blame.

 

[Kish2604]

Your voltages look to be at the upper end of the normal range, i actually dont think it is the battery yet, i would get my hands on a multi-meter and test the amp drain on the battery. i suspect it could a module or a device that is causing drain. With the car locked and the various modules gone to sleep after 15min the drain should be below 0.1amps per hour.

You could throw a battery at it and it will just mask the problem for the short term.

 

[Danny2]

Def get a multimeter on the car and check for battery drain as suggested

Im in edenvale if you want to come around and ill check it for you

 

[trinomic]

thanks for the advice guys. I'll get myself a multimeter, they are surprisingly cheap. Is there any specific steps to follow? Should I test it on the negative charging point in the engine bay or on the battery itself?

Any comment on whether my battery has the intelligent sensor or not? Doesnt look like anything fancy is connected to the negative terminal but im not sure.

@Danny, thanks for the offer but Im in CPT.

 

[Danny2]

well sorry you down in cape town

https://www.wikihow.com/Find-a-Parasitic-Battery-Drain

 

[maxxis]

thanks for the advice guys. I'll get myself a multimeter, they are surprisingly cheap. Is there any specific steps to follow? Should I test it on the negative charging point in the engine bay or on the battery itself?

Any comment on whether my battery has the intelligent sensor or not? Doesnt look like anything fancy is connected to the negative terminal but im not sure.

@Danny, thanks for the offer but Im in CPT.

Test directly on the battery + and -
Red to + and black to -

I’ve always know batteries to float or sit idle at 12.6 with engine off but apparently that isn’t the car with BMW. My new battery shows 12.1v which I guess is normal.

Your charge voltage is spot on.

If you don’t know how old the battery is there should be a date visible on the top of the battery.

The OEM battery is made by Varta so a suitable replacement isn’t hard to find. Deltec supplies it and the last time I bought one was from them directly.

Then just find someone to fit and code it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Kish2604]

well sorry you down in cape town

https://www.wikihow.com/Find-a-Parasitic-Battery-Drain

You wont find an easier DIY than this... nice post...

 

[trinomic]

well sorry you down in cape town

https://www.wikihow.com/Find-a-Parasitic-Battery-Drain

You wont find an easier DIY than this... nice post...

Yeah thanks a lot for that link Danny :thumbs: