Changing a battery on a R50 mini.. Now with electric shock treatment..

[Vince70]

Today I got a call from a friend who was stranded with a flat battery on her low mileage 2004 R50 Mini Cooper so I popped round and bought a new battery from the local halfords and away the car went once fitted with the first turn of the key..

 

My concern is that I'm not one for owning cars from this century and I hear some battery's have to be coded to the car these days so it can visit the expensive glass bmw palace for a nice hefty bill and wondered if the R50 was one of these cars..

 

The battery on the car was not the original but was a heavy duty RAC 5 year warranty job which was the right one for the car so I just wondered if without a visit and a play with the software at the local dealership if we would end up with another knackered battery.

[EssDeeWon]

Surely just connect the damn thing, therefore giving power to start the modern?

[SiC]

Pretty sure that age Mini was not stop start, nor the electronics as advanced as more expensive BMWs. So pretty sure it wont be a problem. However if it does decide to kill the battery, its got 5 years on the warranty to take it back on.

 

Did the battery terminal have a big box of gubbins attached to it?

[Dave_Q]

Was about to post that this sounds like a scare story but seems to be true, just not for the R50.

 

http://atlanticmotorcar.com/tech-tip-bmw-and-mini-battery-registration-replacement-2/

 

Also a thing for new vagshite. Can't see what was wrong with just sticking 14v up them myself.

[Vince70]

I didn't see any box of gubbins attached to the car when I changed the battery but when I put the registration in the checker system at Halfords it did say Mini Cooper with stop start technology... but I was hoping it was a mistake on the system as we have never noticed any such button on the car although the car seems to be loaded with every extra imaginable and doesn't cut out when stationary at lights etc.

[Parky]

Didn't ever change the battery in my R50 but had it out a few times for access to other stuff. Always just reconnected as normal afterwards without any issues. Certainly never had to visit the local stealer for recoding or anything like that

[cort16]

What a shitey that idea that smart charging is. There have been generations of cars that haven't had that and they still start up after sitting a couple of weeks and the battery still last years. Pointless.

[Dave_Q]

At a guess they are using smaller and smaller batteries to save weight so have to be careful not to overcharge them, stop/start increases the demands as well.

[SiC]

What a shitey that idea that smart charging is. There have been generations of cars that haven't had that and they still start up after sitting a couple of weeks and the battery still last years. Pointless.

It's a good idea, just badly implemented imo.

 

Basically the main thing about it, is that it tracks how much charge is going in and out of the battery - very much like your mobile phone/laptop does. You can't accurately determine that by battery voltage alone.

 

Its essential for stop-start engines, as you don't want your car stopping the engine at the lights but the battery doesn't have enough charge stored in it to restart it again. Also they take advantage of this where if the battery is weak (from the car sitting around too long, or a failing battery), it'll shut down non-essential electrical systems before it gets too flat and can't start, but also so it can start up easier and charge quicker when it is restarted. Finally it also can tell you when the battery life is poor and that you require a new battery - before the battery is totally kaput.

 

Where its crap, imo, is that despite having a great big fancy colour screen in these cars that tells you everything what's going on, there is no option in that menu system to say you've fitted a new battery. The only way is to go into an expensive dealer, a well-kitted-out independent or some aftermarket diagnostics tool to send the message that it has a new one fitted. That stinks very much of doing it on purpose to generate more revenue for dealers.

[michael1703]

On some moderns I keep them powered up with a slave battery and jump leads 'just in case' and carefully change them without arcing anything.

 

I've had a nightmare with a merc Vito that had a smart alternator,just disconnecting it knackered a lot of settings and auto lights etc but it's cured itself with a months use

[Parky]

When I changed the battery on Mrs P's Fiat 500 (with stop start) it ran fine from the get go.

 

The stop start didn't work, but then it stopped working after the second week we had it anyway.

[Des]

Hope you snagged the old battery, might be worth seeing if the RAC will replace it, otherwise it's 4 or 5 pounds from a recycler.

[Ghosty]

R56 is the one with stop/start - 2007 on.

The system is BMW EfficientDynamics. 

 

Our 60 plate facelift R56 doesn't have stop/start though - it's automatic.

[Vince70]

I got a phone call from my friend with the mini about an hour ago and she now says that every time she opens the car door she gets an electric shock since I changed the battery over.

 

I really can't see what I could of done to turn the car into an electric generator as I just changed the battery over so it's a new one on me...

 

Any suggestions apart from wearing rubber soles and gloves would be much appreciated, I was thinking of going retro and hanging one of those static leads from the plastic bumper to the floor for a joke which were quite common in the 70s and 80s for the retro mini look and telling her that will sort it lol..

[forddeliveryboy]

At a guess they are using smaller and smaller batteries to save weight 

 

 

What, on a bloated machine stuffed full of unnecessary crap like so many modern cars? Pull the other one. 

 

I think a bit of Electric Shock Therapy should be given to the designers.

[Barry Cade]

Teh Volver had a smaller 2nd battery hidden behind the bumper to run the electrics whilst switched off at the lights. Smart charge took care of them both and fired the car up if you switched on the heated windscreen or something. I prefer keeping jump leads in the boot.

[twosmoke300]

That is what's known in the trade as a "since you "

Since you serviced my car my chimney leaks or since you changed my brake pads my dog has been sick - it must be something you have done . FUCK OFF!

 

Tell the mini driver not to wear a jumper which makes so much static and leave you alone .

[wuvvum]

Was about to post that this sounds like a scare story but seems to be true, just not for the R50.

 

http://atlanticmotorcar.com/tech-tip-bmw-and-mini-battery-registration-replacement-2/

 

What the actual fuck is an Absorbent Glass Mat battery?

[Dave_Q]

What the actual fuck is an Absorbent Glass Mat battery?

 

AGM is like a normal lead acid battery, but instead of the acid being in a bath type situation, the battery is filled with a fibreglass or similar mat which has the acid soaked into it.

 

This allows the acid to touch the plates, move about and do it's thing but not pour out if the battery gets smashed, upside down etc.

 

Hence they are common in motorbikes.

[Station]

R50 doesn't have any special battery stuff, just put the new battery in.

[Parky]

I think if there was some sort of battery related issue with the electric shock, a car battery would probably give her quite a jolt!

 

Tell her to touch the car when the engine is running - if she wakes up with no hair in a neighbours hedge, there might be a problem with the fitting. Otherwise she might be wearing something which generates static.

 

Ask what sort of knickers she is wearing? I cannot foresee any circumstances how that question could be misconstrued and will definitely, definitely not get you beaten up by her family

[twosmoke300]

You don't get a shock off 12v Dc . Not unless it's charged up a big capacitor . You could get burnt tho from a wire that's been shorted

[Noel Tidybeard]

AGM is like a normal lead acid battery, but instead of the acid being in a bath type situation, the battery is filled with a fibreglass or similar mat which has the acid soaked into it.

 

This allows the acid to touch the plates, move about and do it's thing but not pour out if the battery gets smashed, upside down etc.

 

Hence they are common in motorbikes.

otherwise known as a BSB- bub safety battery

 

 

 

i'll get my coat

[steve_earwig]

I occasionally get a shock off a car (wrong jumper maybe?) but the only time I got persistent shocks the regulator blew up soon after. No shocks after fitting a new one either. It may have been coincidence but it would tie-in with battery death.

[castros_bro]

You don't get a shock off 12v Dc . Not unless it's charged up a big capacitor . You could get burnt tho from a wire that's been shorted

 

 

Sir sir sir!!!  if you charged a capacitor with 12vDC then the capacitor will have ............................................................**no shock horror** 12vDC on it's terminals same as yer battery.

[twosmoke300]

Trust me if you charge a condensor/ capacitor and grab hold you will get a shock

[castros_bro]

12 of your earth volts going in  

 

12 of your earth volts going out   

 

   No shock

Transformation complete  

[scaryoldcortina]

Now connect that capacitor across a large inductance, charge that to 12v, disconnect the supply and touch the cap.

 

 

I bet you don't feel so brave then!

[noseypoke]

I've got a R50 (at the mo) 2003,no stop f/n start,no special batt req.

Them robbing Main Stealers (BMW) also tell their customers that gearbox oil should "never" be changed as it is a lifelong oil?  load of shit,that's what it looks like when you drain aswell

When I got my Mini One,first thing I did was a full service,and first of all the tranny fluid.

More VITAL than worrying what batt to fit.

                                                                 

MY next Mini will be the original Austin/Morris,commonly known as the Autoshite rustbox no computer controlled cars for me again.

[Vince70]

I've got a R50 (at the mo) 2003,no stop f/n start,no special batt req.

Them robbing Main Stealers (BMW) also tell their customers that gearbox oil should "never" be changed as it is a lifelong oil? load of shit,that's what it looks like when you drain aswell

When I got my Mini One,first thing I did was a full service,and first of all the tranny fluid.

More VITAL than worrying what batt to fit.

 

MY next Mini will be the original Austin/Morris,commonly known as the Autoshite rustbox no computer controlled cars for me again.

I got Lesley to do exactly the same thing with her mini, the car had only done 40 odd thousand miles and when the gearbox drain plug was taken out it looked like a hedgehog as it was covered in swarf and now it's going to get a gearbox oil change about every 20000 that's why a lot of them have gearbox failure with the midland box at relatively low mileage.

 

At least with the Mini one you don't get those terrible run flats that was the first thing that was binned when the car was bought and it has transformed the ride..

 

The funny thing is I suggested she changed her shoes as she only started getting the electric shocks from the car when she bought a new pair ( I didn't risk asking about her knickers lol) the other day but I told her to bring the old battery over to check the plates are OK and I will put it on a slow charge to see if it holds up OK as it could always do someone for a spare if they need it.