SurgeSi

My battery keeps dying on my 05 e-class
i tried charging it, but it still dies in a few days
not sure why?
I want to buy a new battery, im just wondering if anyone replaced
theirs yet, and would like to recommend a brand that they like or a type
of battery that works best.
you know what i mean.
any info would be greatly appreciated.
thanks

RyRoRyan

If you can charge it via an external charger but then it dies a few days later, it might be your alternator.

merctech08

Does the car sit those few days and then the battery dies or do you drive it?

MARK CUMMINS

Is The car still under warranty if so call the 800# for roadside
have them change the battery..

Could be several things
defective battery
defective alternator
draw in system ..lots of items in a W211 that can drain a battery if they do Not shut down ..Door control units,sam,list is long

SurgeSi

thanks for all the info guys.
i didnt drive the car for 3 days and the battery totally died.
but when i was driving it, if i drove in low rmps like coasting, sometimes it would just shut off (the car) everything would just die.
i talked to a local mechanic and he said that it could be the battery or alternator. Im leaning more towards the battery but ill just have to take it in to MB and get it check.
if i were to replace the battery anyone know of any good ones?
and does anyone have an oem alternator for sale?

seahonu

Had this happen to me once, under warranty. Took it in to MB service and found out that the voltage regulator was set to low, something like 13.4V and should have been 14.4V to fully charge battery.

Barry45RPM

Just buying a battery on a "hunch" could turn out to be a waste of money. There are tests & instruments that can pinpoint your problem in very short order. Don't witch hunt.

Clinton Horn

It would probably make us all sick to know how many perfectly good batteries are replaced in error because of charging system problems. If you have a simple volt meter (Radio Shack) you should be able to get a 13.5 -14.5 volts arcoss the battery terminals with the engine idling. With no load and the engine off, the reading should drop down to 12. Sometimes batteries drop a cell intermittently. This can be very annoying and difficult to catch. If the battery is 3 years old or more, the constant deep discharging such as you are experiencing may finish it off anyway. The symptoms that you describe sound more like a charging problem. In older vehicles with lighter electrical draws, simply getting the engine to idle would keep everything cooking without any battery life at all. The new stuff is so voltage sensitive that I cannot be sure that a bad battery would not produce these symptoms, but I doubt it.

pfphipps

Mark is right--if the car is under warranty, for sure call the dealer. I had a battery replaced on my 2003 E320 while the car was under warranty. Mine just completely died one day. They came to the house and replaced the battery under warranty. This is the first time I have ever seen a battery covered by the warranty but it was. You get the right battery at the right price (nothing) and if that is not the problem, everything else that might cause a problem is under warranty as well (again, assuming you are still under warranty).

ohlord

vr or alternator was bad your check battery light would be on.Call mb roadside.It is a free lifetime service to mb owners,not those that are still on warranty.They will come out check the charging system and install a new battery battery charge only no labor.It is cheaper that way than going to the dealer.
shucks kraggens autozone etc. will test your charging system for free also.

w211 had a tsb issued for battery drain,so you might check to see if it is a recall.

TPAbnz

See the post from konigstiger on this, he posted the service bulletin my dealer was not aware of.

expat5

My 04 CDI battery seemed weak from the first cold morning. It lasted 4 years, but frequently during cold mornings during winter would give me the dreaded "Low Battery...Convienence Functions Temporarily Disabled" message. 2 minutes later in normal driving, everything would be back to normal.

Had the system checked, and had the recall items checked at the dealer, all to no avail. It never left me stranded but I got nervous and finally changed out the stock MB battery for a larger stock MB battery used in the G class, which fit. I replaced the aux battery at the same time.

That was 2 winters ago, and I have yet to see the "Low Battery" message since. Take it for what it is worth....

harkgar

I envy you guys south of the border. The Canadian government would only allow MB Canada certify grey market cars. It is expensive and difficult to do for late model MB cars.

Mackhack

Where is that?

Diesel Benz

You must have seen the sticky at the top of the forum. If you find one applicable for your car from the title and the basic identification (VIN range etc.), he might send you a copy if you ask politely by PM. I guess some are already posted as a full pdf copy, cannot help locating any unfortunately.

Mackhack

Do you mean the recall sticky?

Diesel Benz

Yes, it has more info than just recalls.

SurgeSi

I charged the battery and the car has been running perfectly for over 2 weeks now.

phlylilazn

So the roadside assistance is for the life of the car? and replacing the battery is covered under which warranty?

SAguirre

That is interesting. I am still on both my original batteries in my 2004, I am certain that the batteries are about 5 years old since my build date for the car is 3 of 2004. They have never gone dead and I have never gotten any warning, but I am not expecting them to hit 6 years of life. I leave my car parked in my garage for weeks at a time, but I sometimes plug in a little 1 amp battery maintainer. I think that it has done well for me.

So what you say is interesting to me since putting a little stronger battery in the car would make it function at an equivalent of full-capacity (needed for the car) even if the bigger battery is a bit weak. Do you know how many Ah the upgraded battery was? I am almost sure that my E’s primary battery is a 95 Ah. What I understand is that it is a higher Ah rating but it is still the same physical size?

Anyone get more than six years out of their batteries? I usually only have had about 5.5 years of life out of mine in all of my past Benzes and Audi cars.

Steve

rickyfanmdr

I bought my car new in 2003 and am still on my original battery. I've had no problems at all. It will be six years next month.

mcleantmw

Hope someone can answer the question whether the vehicle batteries are covered under the MB Warranty?

bigben320e

I got six years out of my 98 E320 battery, and got a new one in back in 04. It was doing great until I left my lights on one day. I called AAA, and they sent some idiot out that claimed no battery lasts over three years. Being that the E is my daily driver I went ahead and let him replace the battery after the charge did not hold the first time due to the car would not unlock by remote, I turned the car off, and it would not restart. What I should have done was left the car on let it run and charge, and later messed with the remote. (This cost me $126, never again!) MB batteries have excellent life, and usually will give 5+ years. Don't let anyone tell you different.

MB211

4yr/50k miles