Changing my car battery questions...

[mackeroni]

Sorry if my questions have been answered somewhere. I have searched for awhile and learned a lot. But not much about these specific questions...

1. Can I connect my Battery Tender to the under-hood charging connectors while I am changing out the battery in the trunk? Is there any advantage to doing this? Will it keep me from resetting anything besides the calendar, the clock and the radio? Will every molecule in my body explode at the speed of light if I attempt to change the battery while a charger is connected?

2. The new battery is very similar to the old battery. Old is 80Ah and 640CCA, new is 70Ah and 760 CCA. Both are AGM. Will it hurt the new battery to drive around a day or two before I register it to the car using Carly?

Thanks folks.

[Mach1er]

1) I doubt very much that you'll be able to save anything using a battery tender. Probably not enough juice to keep anything powered up.

2) You'll be completely fine.

[mackeroni]

Originally Posted by Mach1er

1) I doubt very much that you'll be able to save anything using a battery tender. Probably not enough juice to keep anything powered up.

2) You'll be completely fine.

Hey Mach1er, in spite of your fine advice, I used my Battery Tender during the change anyway. I am pleased to report that the only thing I lost was the time setting on the clock. All other settings, options, and radio presets seemed to have survived intact. Even the date was correct. Interesting that just the clock would be affected. Hmmm.

Now, as soon as Carly arrives tomorrow, I will take care of the registration.

[Mr Gasser]

https://www.carcarekiosk.com/video/2...eplace_battery

So what is this registration stuff????

[mackeroni]

Originally Posted by Mr Gasser

https://www.carcarekiosk.com/video/2...eplace_battery

So what is this registration stuff????

When a new battery is installed in your 135i, you need to register your battery to the car. This is done via the OBD (On Board Diagnostics) port inside the driver's door frame using one of the various tools that are available. I will be using the Carly for BMW. See: http://www.mycarly.com/product/bmw-app/ There are other tools available, but I am not familiar with them.

The registration is necessary to ensure that your car charges the new battery properly. I think you have to enter the Cold Cranking Amps (CCA), Battery group (48, or 94 or other?), maybe the Capacity (Amp hours) and the date of installation. If the registration (aka recoding) is not done, your new battery may experienced shortened life because your car will be charging it according to the specs of your tired old battery.

Hope this helps. Others certainly know more than me. I just started researching this stuff a couple of days ago.

[mr.fabulous]

I replaced my battery with no additional charge and lost no settings. Nothing, everything latched (I believe many settings are retained in your key).

I replaced my battery with the factory equivalent (no change in physical parameters). I did register the fact I'd replaced the thing, but didn't change anything else.

Lead acid here (no AGM).

[Mach1er]

Your radio presets, EQ settings, door unlock settings etc are stored in non-volatile memory and coded to your key. They wouldn't be lost in a battery change. A clock needs constant power to "keep-up" time. There aren't many volatile settings like the clock on our cars.

[mackeroni]

Originally Posted by Mach1er

Your radio presets, EQ settings, door unlock settings etc are stored in non-volatile memory and coded to your key. They wouldn't be lost in a battery change. A clock needs constant power to "keep-up" time. There aren't many volatile settings like the clock on our cars.

Interesting. I have two keys which I use interchangeably. I know that my seat memory settings are stored on the keys because they are slightly different.

By the way, why does my BMW Service Advisor always want to see my key when I sit down to discuss my latest service requirements? He sticks it into a slot and looks at his computer. What does my key tell him?