8ball-mb

What would you recommend? (all prices taxes included, please check the LINKS!!!)
Feel free to suggest anything else that you've had good experience with!

1) Called the Mercedes dealer and they said $471 CDN.

2) NAPA LEGEND IMPORT LINK!!! at 900 CCA at 0F and 1105 CCA at 32F, 185 reserve capacity minutes, around $370 CDN... (seems like a good deal and seems decently powerful)

3) Canadian tire LINK!!! (otherwise known as Crappy Tire) wants $294 CDN for their Motormaster Eliminator Ultra AGM. (but they don't list CCA or anything else about it, so I'm skeptical).

I wanted to try to get an Optima Yellow top but it won't fit the stock compartment, so NO BUENO, won't be going for that, but the specs look good!!!! Price is $450 CDN. LINK!!!

Car starts noticeably weaker the past few weeks (I know it's getting colder but car sits in a relatively warmish garage 99% of the time).

Sitting voltage is 11.8, while starting it goes down to 8.9, then while at initial idle is at 13.8, then goes to 14.1 to 14.4 while driving after that.

PS - I *think* I have all service records for this car, but cannot find anything showing that the battery was replaced since new... Is it possible that this is the original MB battery from 2005 (12 years old!!!!?!!?!?!?)

Thanks for your time!!

8ball-mb

I ended up calling Partsource and they only carry (1) "brand" of battery called "MagnaPower"

All in it was $200 CDN, TAX IN (including core return).

Car starts so much better now. It has 850 CCA and 975 CA, which is about the same rating as the stock battery...

This battery is a direct replacement, being an AGM battery fitting the stock vent hose, the terminals both reach perfectly, and it fits the stock mounts exactly (it is the exact same shape as stock).

I will monitor the performance of this battery, but at less than half the price of the dealer, so far so good!

rapidoxidation

Got mine from Sam's Club last year. Changed it out in their parking lot so I could bring back the core. Easy peasy!

You might also check the auxiliary battery under your cabin air filter under the hood (passenger side corner by the firewall). Chances are it's still the original also. Mine was last year.

kajtek1

The deals on batteries come and go.
In last years the best I got was Bosch battery at PepBoys
I bought one like 3 years ago for about $90 and 96 months warranty.

PSDCampervan

Curious to know if disconnecting main battery on w211 will cause comand unit to demand pin when reconnected like my w124 did. My cold start voltage has been dropping to 12.0 & starter sounds starved on 1st start-up so know next cold snap will probably push it over the edge. Will I need an uninterruptable power source to backfeed thru OBDII when swapping batteries or safe for car to lose ALL power w/o triggering control units to demand resyncing or something when power restored?

rapidoxidation

I didn't have any issue with mine. Didn't even lose the station presets.

konigstiger

No PIN, see attachments.

kajtek1

I had all my cars sitting with batteries disconnect whole summer, when I drove truck/camper across the country.
R129 did require window reset and radio code, but remember garage opener code.
W212 remember everything, or did not need resetting. I think I had to reset sunroof on W211, but now don't even remember as I usually do those things while driving.

8ball-mb

COMMAND did NOT require any pin after the swap.
Each individual window and the sunroof did require reprogramming for auto-up and auto-down to work (easy, just go down and up with each and it learned the positions).
The most trouble I had was with the clock in the instrument cluster which was set to be synced with the COMMAND GPS time. The GPS time was 2 hrs off and would only let me set the time in 10 minute intervals or something like that.
After a lot of messing around in the steering wheel menus I determined that the easiest way was to just deal with it and after driving around for a bit the time went back to normal.
Funny thing is that the maps worked immediately and the position was accurate but the time was off.

All is good now after driving around for a bit.

Car starts great!

Pmarino

If you want Optima yellow top performance, stick with an AGM battery. The OEM (Varta) and yellow top are both AGM type batteries.

kajtek1

OEM wasn't AGM.
AGMs don't last 13 years.

Pmarino

The OP wanted a Optima yellow top (AGM) battery. Hence the suggestion to find a AGM type battery. You're probably right if you go through Mercedes. If you go to the Varta web site they reccomend their silver top (AGM) as a replacement. Personally never had any car battery last 13 years wet cell or AGM.