New battery recommendations please?
The battery on my 1990 463 lwb left hand drive needs changing. I have searched and people seem to fit 096 batteries? I see the nato version is big money and genuine parts are pricey too. I have an agricultural dealer down the road who has numerous batteries in stock so can I fit something bigger? I thought l read that lefties can take bigger batteries?
Thanks Mud
Up to a point you are right the lefties can take bigger batteries as they have a bigger battery tray. So going on that, you are limited by the tray size.
Begging question is why do want a bigger battery? You will need to consider the output of your alternator - no good fitting a bigger battery if the alternator isn't up to it, otherwise you are wasting your money. If the alternator at maximum output does not fully charge your battery then the battery over time will loose its charging capacity to the alternator out put.
You are better off with matching the battery to the alternator output rate and theoretically, better off having the battery put on a trickle charge monthly to keep it fully topped up and this extends battery life over all. Trickle charging frequency should be increased i.e. reduce time between monthly charges if you do short journeys in particular and lots of stop/start of engine.
The square-footprint, "NATO big battery" is actually only 88Ah of capacity. You should look to fit a Varta Silver series(silver/calcium technology) , which has a long lifetime, similar to factory-fit.
As for the size, you can get an 74Ah, 096 type (about £60)
http://www.tayna.co.uk/Type-096-Varta-Silver-Dynamic-Car-Battery-P3197.html
which is standard-fit, for example, for a 300GE
Or, you can get a 77Ah E44 type, which is about 15mm taller, but will still fit (about £60) :
http://www.tayna.co.uk/E44-Varta-Silver-Car-Battery-577400078-P7726.html
Or if your battery tray is uncluttered by other items, then the longer, 110 version at 85Ah, should fit (315mm long). This is the same length as the NATO battery, except it's not as wide, but has almost the same capacity:
(about £70)
http://www.tayna.co.uk/Type-110-Varta-Silver-Dynamic-F18-585-200-080-P7709.html
You can expect a Varta Silver series to last around 7-years. Cheaper batteries will not last as long and will have inferior construction.
Neither a large nor small capacity battery will fare well with frequent short trips or with the demands of cold weather, but a large battery will not drain as much in these circumstances, and will eventually recover to full charge during a long trip.
if you have 315mm clearance for length (width of tray), I'd go for the 110 type.
The 110 type (315mm) was standard fit on the 463, 300GD, due to the demands of higher cranking current and glow-plugs. I don't think that engine had a higher capacity alternator than the 300GE engine.
Or you could fit twin smaller batteries. The tray on LHD is 15" odd long, so plenty of options.
The RHD is stuck with 096 at 280mm long.
Depends what you use your G for.
I have a Varta Silver think it is rated 820 amps, been very good, must be coming up to 5 years old now, never failed to start on a Diesel,
Read my neighbours BMW 530 D handbook and they expect the battery to outlive the car, think his original 12 years old, so if you can source one of them, would be a good bet
I'm pretty sure Varta (Johnson Controls) is OEM for BMW (and Mercedes and others). The one on our Mini Diesel was changed after 10 years, but old one was still working. However, can't be certain that the OEM ones are exactly the same as the retail ones.
I think the Bosch premium ones are also made by Varta, as both have identical case design and both are made in Spain.( for those sold in Europe).
...The RHD is stuck with 096 at 280mm long.
Yes, but I think that if you remove the two sizing clips at the bottom of the tray, 315mm (12.7") will fit.
My battery tray is in the rear wheelarch so I don't know if it is the same size as yours. The largest battery I could get hold of was the odessey 1500 and can only say that it has never let me down since fitted (about 4 years ago now). They are made in Wales under license.
The Odessey 1500 measures:
Dimensions L x W x H | (10.85 x 6.76 x 7.82) in (275 x 171 x 198) mm |
Arnie,
On my old '92 the tray was approx 12" square and had two mounting brackets along the sides. So the overall size was approx 300 x 180. The two brackets could be removed and the tray would then accommodate the 6TN (12" sq) battery. But you couldn't make it any longer.
My old 290TD - 461 had the large tray and I fittd the Odyssey 2250 which has 1225 amp of crank. It fits like a glove.
In my 300TD - 463 I have fitted an Odyssey 1500. Note: when the 1500 is available with the positive pole being at either end of the battery, depending on application.