[bimmeup!]

It's the battery for the key fob sorry if I misled you guys.
It's been only 6month and 9,000 km and I am already getting battery low warning signal everytime I turn on the engine.
I have a C.A so I guess sticking the key in the thingy wouldn't resuscitate the battery if I am correct. I don't know how much it costs but if I have to change the battery every 6month it all adds up(Being BMW nothing is cheap) and more than anythingelse I don't have time to go to the dealer every 6month for that. Any thoughts?

[drwtsn32]

The CA remotes do not have rechargeable batteries, so you need to replace it. It's just a regular coin battery you can buy anywhere. No need to go to the dealer.

[bimmeup!]

Thanks for the quick reply but is it normal to run out in just 6month?

[Flea7]

Really?
I thought it was rechargeable?

[purespin52]

Originally Posted by Flea7

Really?
I thought it was rechargeable?

not if you have CA....the battery is only rechargeable in the fobs that do not have CA

[Artz 330]

They are rechargeable batteries. When we picked up the 335i, there was a little sheet of paper that said to drive with the key fob in the slot every so often to prevent loosing battery charge.

[myfirstbmw335i]

My car has comfort access and it does recharge my key fob. Mine gave me the low battery symbol and got so low my car wouldn't start without putting the key fob in the slot. I drove my car with the key in the dash the next couple of days and it recharged.
No problems since......

[BK]

CA doesn't have a rechargeable battery. The battery in it should last a couple of years, depending on how much you use the buttons. Maybe your battery was partially discharged when you got it?

The replacement battery is a standard button-type battery. I forget the model#, but it is common enough that it can be purchased anywhere (at least in the US) and only costs a couple of bucks. It's easy to open the fob to replace the battery. Check your owner's manual.

[myfirstbmw335i]

Originally Posted by BK

CA doesn't have a rechargeable battery. The battery in it should last a couple of years, depending on how much you use the buttons. Maybe your battery was partially discharged when you got it?

The replacement battery is a standard button-type battery. I forget the model#, but it is common enough that it can be purchased anywhere (at least in the US) and only costs a couple of bucks. It's easy to open the fob to replace the battery. Check your owner's manual.

Like I stated in my last post....Mine DOES ABSOLUTELY recharged my key fob. I asked my service advisor and I was told the CA does recharge and the battery can also be replaced.

My Key Fob went dead (@10k miles) to the point my car wouldn't respond until I put it in the Dash Slot. Then after a couple of days of leaving it in the slot, it WAS RECHARGED and I have not had to replace the battery.....So even if the battery was low when I picked up my car it still recharged while in the dash slot...

So either I am correct or you are and my car is the only 335i in America that has CA and will recharge the Key Fob.

Rob

[AlB]

cr 2032 batteery

[DASHOCKER]

Originally Posted by Artz 330

They are rechargeable batteries. When we picked up the 335i, there was a little sheet of paper that said to drive with the key fob in the slot every so often to prevent loosing battery charge.

This is true. Same for my X3.. Got to drive the car to recharge the key battery

[BK]

Originally Posted by myfirstbmw335i

So either I am correct or you are and my car is the only 335i in America that has CA and will recharge the Key Fob.

This is what I was basing it on (from the manual). Plus, countless posts here that say they are not rechargeable with CA. If they are rechargeable, why make them replaceable for CA but not non-CA?

[Flea7]

hey bimmeup!,
have you tried charging your battery in your fob yet?

[drwtsn32]

Hehe... I can't believe how often this comes up, and how many people INSIST that CA fobs are rechargeable. They are not. Read the manual. Only non CA fobs are rechargeable.

The CA fobs have a user-replaceable battery. And 6 months does sound like a short life, but they are cheap batteries.

[BK]

Originally Posted by drwtsn32

Hehe... I can't believe how often this comes up, and how many people INSIST that CA fobs are rechargeable. They are not. Read the manual. Only non CA fobs are rechargeable.

The CA fobs have a user-replaceable battery. And 6 months does sound like a short life, but they are cheap batteries.

^^ This is what I'm saying. But given that myfirstbmw335i is convinced his key was recharged -- and he has good reason to believe it really was -- I started wondering about this again. I re-read the manual. Could it be that our (CA) fobs have a rechargeable CR2025 battery in them? There is such a thing, but that would be unusual.

If you read the manual, it's a little ambiguous on the whole thing. First it says, "Each remote control contains a rechargeable Battery." Next, it says, "In cars equipped with convenient access, the remote control contains a replaceable battery."

If we read that literally, CA fobs are rechargeable, but the battery is replaceable. I don't think they meant it that way. I think they meant that CA fobs are different, that they contain a replaceable battery that does not recharge. Nevertheless, myfirstbmw335i's experience piques my interest.

If there is a rechargeable battery in the fob, I would be pissed because I threw out my original battery and replaced it with a standard CR2025. Never got a battery low warning or anything, I just felt like mixing it up a bit. Cheap mod.

[bimmeup!]

I'm so confused!
Sorry I re-ignited the chargable/non-chargable debate again. And it's still going on.
Hey Flea 7 I'll drive for a few days with the key in the slot and will let you know.

[Flea7]

Thanks bimmerup!
Got my fingers crossed that it is!

Like BK said, myfirstbmw335i post has me scratching my head.

[myfirstbmw335i]

Originally Posted by BK

^^ This is what I'm saying. But given that myfirstbmw335i is convinced his key was recharged -- and he has good reason to believe it really was -- I started wondering about this again. I re-read the manual. Could it be that our (CA) fobs have a rechargeable CR2025 battery in them? There is such a thing, but that would be unusual.

If you read the manual, it's a little ambiguous on the whole thing. First it says, "Each remote control contains a rechargeable Battery." Next, it says, "In cars equipped with convenient access, the remote control contains a replaceable battery."

If we read that literally, CA fobs are rechargeable, but the battery is replaceable. I don't think they meant it that way. I think they meant that CA fobs are different, that they contain a replaceable battery that does not recharge. Nevertheless, myfirstbmw335i's experience piques my interest.

If there is a rechargeable battery in the fob, I would be pissed because I threw out my original battery and replaced it with a standard CR2025. Never got a battery low warning or anything, I just felt like mixing it up a bit. Cheap mod.

Well, this discussion has definitely gotten interesting. I was at the dealer today picking my car up from service. So I asked again and was told the same thing. That the battery is both rechargeable and replaceable.

This makes perfect sense. All rechargeable batteries will eventually need replacing. Even a lithium rechargeable will eventually stop taking a charge...

Like I said in my previous post. My remote died to the point I had to stick it in the dash slot to start the car. After a couple of days driving with it in the slot, I have not had a problem since. So every couple of months since, I have put it in the slot for a day or two of driving to recharge.


Rob

[raleedy]

I think there's one thing we cal all agree on: the Owner's Manual DOES NOT SAY that the CA fob's battery is not rechargeable. It just says it's replaceable, whereas the non-CA battery is not replaceable.

[raleedy]

I think there's one thing that is clear: the Owner's Manual DOES NOT SAY that the CA fob's battery is not rechargeable. What it says is that the battery is replaceable, whereas the non-CA battery is not replaceable.

[BK]

Can someone who still has the OEM battery in his fob take a look at what it says on the battery, so we can look it up and see if it is rechargeable? See my post above for how to open it (or look in the manual).

Frankly, I'm skeptical that it is. This discussion has been beat to death here, with all of us know-it-alls saying it is definitely NOT rechargeable, that it is a standard CR2025 replaceable battery. But I'm open to having my mind changed.

Unfortunately, as I said above, I threw out my original battery and replaced it with a regular CR2025.

[wrickem]

WOW, if it is rechargable with CA, I sure feel like an ass. That was the main reason I didn't get CA when I'd ordered my car (other than I don't think I can ride in my car with an empty key hole in my dash because of my mild case of OCD so I'd have to stick it in the slot anyway). From everything I've ever read here and from what my SA told me, I always thought they weren't rechargable but now I wonder.