[jasonle89]

Do you know what that means? I got that alert twice within 4 months. When I have that, I turn off and on engine then it do away. Sometime it took couple turn off and on to go away. Any idea guys?

[BMWrules7]

Originally Posted by jasonle89

Do you know what that means? I got that alert twice within 4 months. When I have that, I turn off and on engine then it do away. Sometime it took couple turn off and on to go away. Any idea guys?

It means, in general, that your battery voltage has dropped below the threshold value. The worst thing you can do is to power cycle on/off the engine in this state. You don't want to load up a partially depleted battery with an engine start.

Many factors can cause this. Please respond to the questions below,


1. How long is your average daily commute?
2. How many days per week do you drive?
3. Are you one to be really easy on the brakes?
4. Do you have any foreign devices connected to the electrical system?
5 How old is the car/battery,
6. Have you discovered ASS to no longer be turning off the engine (if not intentionally defeated or you run the tranny mainly in sport mode.). If so, approximately, when did ASS stop working?

If you answer these questions, the team here will give you fantastic advice. And, based on your responses, you may get asked more questions.

[jasonle89]

I drive about 30miles total daily to work (both ways), 5 days a week. Never drive anywhere far since I got the car

Yes, I am easy on brake. I'm actually driving...like an old man

I dont have anything connected to my electrical

The car is 2013. Bought it in Feb, CPO.

I have the dealer set my ASS to same as last use

You have any idea what is the problem? Thanks

[Gilgorm]

There are a number of things that can affect your battery.
Your battery is approx. 2 yrs old so it should be good for a while longer.
Your commute of 30 mi both ways; I have assumed is 15 mi one way. Even if on the highway the battery is not being charged enough. If the miles are city traffic then the battery is definitely not being charged enough.

Suggestion: Take the car for a nice long ride at highway speeds. That should help boost the battery charge.
Since going for a ride every now and then may be a PITA for you I suggest you get a charger and hook it up whenever the message appears again. I have a charger that does both a quick charge and a trickle (slow) charge as well. I typically have to use it once a year (usually in the winter).

I agree with BMWrules7. The last thing you should do is turn the car on and off repeatedly. Thats like giving a drowning man a glass of water.

Its possible you may notice some of your accessories may not function optimally or things like radio presets getting wiped. Thats the car telling you the battery is low.
If the problems persist after charging, then a visit to the dealer may be in order.
Depending on mileage a 2013 should still be covered under the original as well as the CPO warranty. Batteries used to be covered. I had a battery replaced in the last week of warranty on my retired 2008.
BTW, your key fob batteries should also be covered.

[jasonle89]

Thanks for you all input. I thought as long as you drive the car, no matter slow or fast, close or far, the battery will charged as long as you drive. So that is not enough?

[BMWrules7]

Originally Posted by jasonle89

Thanks for you all input. I thought as long as you drive the car, no matter slow or fast, close or far, the battery will charged as long as you drive. So that is not enough?

You are right on the edge of needing a new battery. A 2013 could have been built in 2012. So, your battery could be nearly four years old. That's right around the end of its service life.

I agree with Gilgorm that your commute isn't helping matters here.

The trickle charger might get you another year out of your battery---especially if your car was built in 2013 and not 2012 like I surmised.

But, my visceral reaction is to say it's say it's simply time for a new battery, especially if your car was built in 2012. Let your dealer know by taking the car in, this may be covered or at least you can get a break.

[493263]

Originally Posted by jasonle89

I drive about 30miles total daily to work (both ways), 5 days a week. Never drive anywhere far since I got the car

Yes, I am easy on brake. I'm actually driving...like an old man

I dont have anything connected to my electrical

The car is 2013. Bought it in Feb, CPO.

I have the dealer set my ASS to same as last use

You have any idea what is the problem? Thanks

These are situations when the F10 will recharge the battery:

1. Highway speed
2. Braking
3. Coasting

If you drive like an old man, then it's not going to help you. I would put it in sport mode and coast a lot because I live in DC and it hasn't given me any problem since.

And btw, the dealer who did the CPO usually have to replace the battery. I don't know why they didn't if it was that close to going bad.

[jasonle89]

Due to the traffic during rush hrs, I always avoid the freeway and use local street, driving 40-50mph. I guess I will bring it up when my car due for service. Thanks guys

[E90Fleet]

I look after a number of low mileage per year cars.
Each gets connected to a Ctek 10Amp charger once every week or 2.
No battery problems what so ever.

Takes a couple hours to fully charge the battery. You can leave it overnight if your car is locked away safely and its done long before morning
They are fully automatic chargers and just need to be connected to the 2 terminals under the hood.
Couldnt be easier to avoid any battery problems.

The chargers are easy to get from places like amazon.

[jasonle89]

I dont have any issue buying charger. But I just wonder, so this issue that you have to manually charge the battery...is it a common thing for bmw? I didnt have to do this with my lexus or even my toyota

[BMWrules7]

Originally Posted by jasonle89

I dont have any issue buying charger. But I just wonder, so this issue that you have to manually charge the battery...is it a common thing for bmw? I didnt have to do this with my lexus or even my toyota

Well, to be sure, your battery could be creeping up on four years. So, it's time.

Nevertheless, this board is replete with BMW owners that baby their bimmer to the extent that they drive short distances. Some in this category have complained about having battery problems similar to yours. Worse, and quite surprisingly, BMW was none too sympathetic.

This was the first time in my 20 years of bimmerhood where the customers were blamed for dead batteries---where the cars were varied from low mileage garage queens to average folks with short commutes.

In general, your battery charges only during a regeneration event. Unless, the voltage drops too low, then the battery preservation logic kicks in.

Customers with low mileage have been advised to trickle charge their vehicles.

Question for the team: Has anyone heard of our teammates installing a quick release connector between the bonnet's battery posts? This way, you could connect the battery without relying on alligator clips.

I liked this idea because I hated having the hood up. My 2003 745Li had all kinds of electrical issues. So, I had to trickle charge it. (The darn thing actually had a slide switch in the rear fuse box to shed some parasitic comfort access loads during extended parking). Keeping the hood up was a nuisance.

But, have a quick disconnect plug configured could lead to trouble: having the hood up reminds you to unhook the charger. It might be too easy to forget if you use a quick connect plug so you can close the hood. That's a disaster waiting to happen! Um, strike that last thought.

[E90Fleet]

Originally Posted by jasonle89

I dont have any issue buying charger. But I just wonder, so this issue that you have to manually charge the battery...is it a common thing for bmw? I didnt have to do this with my lexus or even my toyota

All makes with modern models that are heavily laden with electronics and after shutdown turbo cooling and other features have battery discharge problems on low mileage cars.

Automotive battery technology hasnt changed for a long time and is becoming a problem.

[jasonle89]

What does it mean when u all refer to "low mileage" car? Like cars which hasn't been driving much? If so I dont know what to do lol. Since go work and go home is my most distance, I dont have much places to go

[Gilgorm]

We all assume the mileage on your car is relatively low due to the amount of driving you do. As I stated in post#4, if driving once in a while for a long distance is a PITA, then get a charger for sure and hook it up whenever the car tells you the battery is low (discharged).
I have owned my 2012 535i from new and only have 26,000 km (16,000 mi) and have had the message only a few times. My charger takes care of the problem. It doesn't take long to charge (a few hours) and I'm good to go. The car is only driven 7 km (4 mi) each way three-four times a week. About once a month we go for a one hour drive on the highway.
These cars are more laden with tech than any Toyota and it all requires battery power to function.

[jasonle89]

Understand now. Thanks guy. But could you link me to which charger to buy? Thanks again

[Gilgorm]

My charger is a private label brand called Motomaster and is only sold in Canada by Canadian Tire. I don't know who actually makes it for them.
It is a combo charger with 100Amp, 15Amp and 2Amp settings.
100A=emergency start for a stone-dead battery. Fortunately, I've never had to use this.
15A=normal charging of a partially discharged battery. This is what I have used on occasion over the last three years to fully charge my battery.
2A=trickle charge to maintain a battery in a fully charged state. I have used this twice to top up my battery after the car sat for a week or more.

The last two settings have automatic shutoff to prevent frying the battery.
You do NOT have to remove the battery or charge it directly. Use the two +- connections under the hood.

The following are the 'features' from the CanadianTire.ca website; product number 11-1505

15/2A Automatic and Manual Battery Charger with 100A Engine Start has a time tested transformer based design which delivers a constant rate of charge throughout the duration of the charge cycle
15A fast charge and 2A slow charge rates
100A engine start feature gets you back on the road quickly
Automatically shuts off when charging is complete
Suitable for all 6 and 12V conventional, deep cycle and AGM batteries
6' (1.8 m) power cord and output cables for up to 12' (3.7 m) of reach
Cost is $139.99 Canadian which should be a lot less in the U.S.

You could also get a Battery Tender Plus which only has a 1.25Amp trickle charge. Many members have installed the connections permanently in their cars.