Hello all:
I did ask WWYD, so lots of opinions and discussion is perfectly valid and welcome. I'm going to clear up a couple of things though. The question posed was whether folks thought THIS battery was bad enough to warrant doing something I don't want to do (e.g. buy a brand I don't want, pay a ridiculous amount, or shop in the US and void my battery warranty) or just keep on driving until prices normalize.
1/ $550, $780 and other such prices for a car battery ARE completely ridiculous. I agree with you. That is one of the whole points causing me not to have an obvious path forward. Nevertheless those are the prices being asked in my market whether you think them ridiculous or not. Nowhere am I arguing that East Penn is worth $780, or that BMW batteries are great.
2/ Other than the fact that the current battery was installed under warranty for $0, nowhere have I said I want a BMW battery, ever go to the BMW dealer for anything, or feel that BMW batteries are special. Does my original post, or any of my other posts, sound like I'm a "take it to the dealer for everything" kind of guy? No sure what painted this picture that keeps coming up.
3/ I have no issue with battery registration, re-coding to change the capacity or anything like that. In my opinion, every DIYer's toolbox needs some electronic tools these days or they simply don't have a complete toolbox. I see far too many posts where people are going to extraordinary lengths to avoid using a laptop or smartphone with a $3 cable to do something properly. Complaining about change has been the same generation after generation. If forums existed at the time there would be people grumbling about port fuel injection and how we should have kept carbs. Now port injection is the good old days. Lather, rinse and repeat for every tehnological advance. This stuff doesn't phase me, but I'm not paying someone else to do it for me either. I have (mostly) accumulated the right tech and know-how and none of this factors into the price.
Based on what I know, I bet that the BMW IBS system (and those like it) have saved hundreds of thousands or millions of people from no-start stranding because of leaving the interior light on, faulty modules or whatever other reason. The Internet is full of people posting how "this" happened, now "suddenly" every start there's this error message "discharging while stopped" etc...etc... Lots of these folks were just saved from needing a boost or permanently killing their battery and they don't know it, they're just annoyed by the error message.
4/ East Penn. Yes, I am specifically looking for East Penn, just like droves of other people do here too. I have a lifetime of issues with non-East Penn batteries and I'm shopping with intent. In the 90s I had no choice but to buy a battery from a parts store close to where I broke down - I bought the best they had with the best warranty and had to replace it every year because I'd come out of a store and one cell would be shorted. I think it was an Exide under the label. Threw it out eventually, warranty and all. Another car I put JCI/Interstate in liked to leak in the trunk and caused damage. I got a replacement and it leaked too. I started finding similar stories online about Interstate MTPs. Got an East Penn - no more leaks. Charging system was fine.
This forum is full of threads on finding East Penn, how to pick East Penns out at big box stores by serial number codes or the way the plastic caps are shaped. I'm not the only one shopping for something specific. Remember this is a forum full of people searching for the best POE-based oil to lubricate their cup holders. I know it's also full of people who buy a car for $100 and keep it going for 12 years with tie-wraps and duct tape with one working brake. Sure, I'm exaggerating on both counts, but I'm shopping for what I'm shopping for. And there's lots of people who have had "no problems" with other brands too - I get it.
5/ I'm not shopping based on warranty - I'd rather not need it at all in the routine lifetime of the battery. If I am in dire need of a replacement, then I might need to bend on my brand choice from East Penn, to something that "might be" East Penn. I would like a warranty to cover true manufacturing defects and infant mortality. I am not seeking an "insurance policy" style warranty for 84 months or similar. I would like to buy quality and take good care of it, not pay just for longer warranties. My Exide from the 90s had a fantastic warranty and died annually.
6/
@FZ1 To clarify: 85% was state of HEALTH, not state of CHARGE. The BA9 asks you to enter the rated CCA of the battery before performing the test and does a cheesy SoH calculation. In that test I quoted SoC was 95% and SoH was calculated at 85% (720 CCA measured / 850 rated)
7/
@BMWTurboDzl The BST is in the positive terminal so not a factor in battery shopping. Interesting you heard the dealer network's batteries were EP, but I see no way to confirm that. They used to be Douglas once upon a time. They're a different colour, have no specific markings, and don't seem to share the same cap style. Plus, I can't just walk into a dealer and browse at the shelf. Maybe I'll ask if they have them in the shop and they aren't "special order", but I bet their price is terrible too. This isn't a personal attack, but lots of people seem to "think" this label or that label is actually East Penn. In most cases I've found that what's under the label changes from time to time and at one time in the past it was "probably" an East Penn but now it's something else. I talked with someone else who thinks Canadian Tire batteries are East Penn right now. I went and looked at one and there's no indication (like there is at Walmart in the US with the serial numbers).
8/ Absolutely - a road trip to the US to buy a battery over the counter is one of my possibilities, and EXACTLY what I was entertaining doing if I decided to get one right now. One catch is - I will have NO warranty unless I drive back down there to claim. Not preferable, but they are a lot cheaper down there.