Wrong battery for a 2008 Mini?

[lokijoker]

My Dad has a 2008 Mini Cooper S since new. The original battery finally failed and couldn’t be jumped so he had AAA replace it with a new battery on the road. They replaced it with a lead acid battery. He took it in to the dealer for its annual oil change and they told him that it is the wrong battery, that it should only be a AGM battery. They also told him that the battery and any new battery needs to be registered to the car. They are strongly recommending that he replace the battery with a AGM battery at a cost of $350 and register the battery at a cost of $300. They said if he doesn’t change batteries and register the new AGM battery, it will cause major damage to the electrical system. The car seems to be running and driving fine with the lead acid battery in it. His Mini does not have the IBS sensor on the negative battery terminal. So does this sound legit or are they trying to rip him off?

 

[oil pan 4]

Sounds like a way to scam $350 off someone.

 

[Kalle.J]

Stealership, why even go there with a 2008 modelyear?

Yes it probably should have an AGM, and yes its recommended to reset BMS when replacing batteries.
But it should be fine, as long as it has enough juice for the computers and other electrical components (no fault codes or strange behavior).

Change it if you have another car that can use the old Mini battery. But not at the stealership.
If you are worried check charge voltage.

 

[Chris142]

it does have to be programed to the car. That takes sbout 10 minutes. Not a $300 job. I would leave the battery and find someone reasonable to program the car. When that battery fails get the correct one put in.

 

[Kalle.J]

it does have to be programed to the car. That takes sbout 10 minutes. Not a $300 job. I would leave the battery and find someone reasonable to program the car. When that battery fails get the correct one put in.

Clearly not, he drove it in to the dealership...

 

[GMBoy]

The dealership is correct. It should be an AGM and it should be registered/programmed to the car.

But they are twice the price on the battery and way over charging on a 5 min scan tool operation.

Solution? - Do nothing (nothing bad is going to happen) or replace the battery with an AGM and pay a small fee to an indy or someone you know with a scan tool that can do it.

 

[930.engineering]

.
No IBS (and probably no start/stop) = no AGM battery required (and no factory equipped
AGM) and no need for registration.

Even IF your dad's Cooper S had a IBS he could still drive with a conventional battery.
While start/stop and (pseudo-)energy recuperation would impair the battery's life but it
will probably still run for some years.

An AGM for $350 and register of $300? Both utterly overrun.

On a side note: AGMs are lead acid batteries too.
.

 

[ctrcbob]

What does registering do?
Battery is still 12 Volt. Amp hours could be different but that should not matter.

Mini (BMW) and other high end cars
Don’t make it easy for us.

Not “registering”!is not going to hurt a thing. Drive it for an hour and it will “register” itself.

 

[lokijoker]

.
No IBS (and probably no start/stop) = no AGM battery required (and no factory equipped
AGM) and no need for registration.

Even IF your dad's Cooper S had a IBS he could still drive with a conventional battery.
While start/stop and (pseudo-)energy recuperation would impair the battery's life but it
will probably still run for some years.

An AGM for $350 and register of $300? Both utterly overrun.

On a side note: AGMs are lead acid batteries too.
.

It does not have start-stop and does not have IBS. The original battery (Varta brand) was likely AGM but if nothing will be damaged from running a lead acid battery I will tell him to leave it in.

He still brings the car to the dealer for oil changes because they always have oil change specials that are cheaper than most indy shops and even Grease Monkey. It’s a small Mini dealership with a visible service department and you can actually see them working on your car and pouring in the official Mini oil ( whoever makes that) from the quart bottles.

 

[atikovi]

What does registering do?
Battery is still 12 Volt. Amp hours could be different but that should not matter.

Syncs the new battery to the charging system. Otherwise it thinks the old tired battery is still there and will possibly make the alternator overcharge the new one.

 

[lokijoker]

Syncs the new battery to the charging system. Otherwise it thinks the old tired battery is still there and will possibly make the alternator overcharge the new one.

So I’m guessing you have to use a proprietary BMW scan tool or should any mechanic be able to register it? Could we register it ourselves with a scan tool?

 

[atikovi]

Any mid-level scan tool should be able to do it.

 

[f355spider]

What does registering do?
Battery is still 12 Volt. Amp hours could be different but that should not matter.

Mini (BMW) and other high end cars
Don’t make it easy for us.

Not “registering”!is not going to hurt a thing. Drive it for an hour and it will “register” itself.

Assuming this car required it (appears it does not) it resets the Intelligent Battery Sensor (IBS) to a charging profile for the size (amp hour) of battery installed and for a "new" battery. The charging system on many newer cars modifies the charging profile as the battery ages to compensate for the lower capacity of an older, aged battery. I believe the idea is to not over charge a battery when newer (less drag on the engine, presumably to save fuel), but also to extend battery life by charging it appropriately when aged. There are claims an IBS can extend battery life by 10 to 20%. (search google)

The downfall of not registering is that it may overcharge a newer battery, shortening its life...and you may get a very slight decrease in fuel efficiency.

 

[lokijoker]

Assuming this car required it (appears it does not) it resets the Intelligent Battery Sensor (IBS) to a charging profile for the size (amp hour) of battery installed and for a "new" battery. The charging system on many newer cars modifies the charging profile as the battery ages to compensate for the lower capacity of an older, aged battery. I believe the idea is to not over charge a battery when newer (less drag on the engine, presumably to save fuel), but also to extend battery life by charging it appropriately when aged. There are claims an IBS can extend battery life by 10 to 20%. (search google)

The downfall of not registering is that it may overcharge a newer battery, shortening its life...and you may get a very slight decrease in fuel efficiency.

So since it doesn’t have a IBS it can’t be registered? Or can it still be registered within the Mini’s computer?

 

[f355spider]

So since it doesn’t have a IBS it can’t be registered? Or can it still be registered within the Mini’s computer?

Assuming it does not have IBS, then there is nothing to do.
As the owner, it would be prudent to confirm whether it does or does not. I would recommend to pull out the owners manual and do some research, rather than counting on the accuracy of information in this thread.

 

[lokijoker]

Assuming it does not have IBS, then there is nothing to do.
As the owner, it would be prudent to confirm whether it does or does not. I would recommend to pull out the owners manual and do some research, rather than counting on the accuracy of information in this thread.

We have confirmed that my Dad’s 2008 Clubman does not have a IBS. But the dealer and some Indy shops are saying that the battery still needs to be registered even though it doesn’t have an IBS. I guess that was one of my original questions: Are they just trying to get money out of my Dad, telling him he needs to register the battery even though it has no IBS?

 

[f355spider]

We have confirmed that my Dad’s 2008 Clubman does not have a IBS. But the dealer and some Indy shops are saying that the battery still needs to be registered even though it doesn’t have an IBS. I guess that was one of my original questions: Are they just trying to get money out of my Dad, telling him he needs to register the battery even though it has no IBS?

Check the owners manual, it should have specifics about battery replacement. My BMWs do...I am sure the Mini Cooper manual does as well.

 

[lokijoker]

Check the owners manual, it should have specifics about battery replacement. My BMWs do...I am sure the Mini Cooper manual does as well.

The owners manual only says to have any work done or battery replacement done only by a Mini dealer service or authorized independent Mini service.

 

[f355spider]

The owners manual only says to have any work done or battery replacement done only by a Mini dealer service or authorized independent Mini service.

I would join a Mini Cooper forum and seek shared owners advice. From my cursory search online, it was mixed information...It appears early cars did not, and later cars do have IBS. Whether the early cars require a "reset" or something I could not reliably determine.

 

[lokijoker]

I would join a Mini Cooper forum and seek shared owners advice. From my cursory search online, it was mixed information...It appears early cars did not, and later cars do have IBS. Whether the early cars require a "reset" or something I could not reliably determine.

I have posted on a Mini forum and haven’t gotten concrete answers either. I’ve gotten mixed advice from the 2 dealers in my area as well. The dealer he bought it from and where he still goes for oil changes tells him he needs to register it whether it has an IBS or not or risk damage to his electrical system. The other dealer which is in the northern part of our state says he doesn’t if it doesn’t have an IBS. Almost all the Indy shops I’ve called say it needs to be registered. Very confusing. We’re not so worried about reduced battery life since this current battery was somewhat cheap, but he doesn’t want to cause possible damage to the car.