1guitar

I Have a 2010 E350 and the factory battery was spent, after much research I decided to change the battery myself, a very easy job indeed. Nothing good is cheap, a lesson most all of us know. I went with an Oddessey brand model #1220 battery, got it on Amazon for $325. Firstly, it's a very easy job to do, remove the negative cable first and then the positive cable, wrap the cables in rags or just place the battery cable ends in a zip lock bag and zip it closed so it won't short out against the body of the car. Remove the old battery and just drop in the new battery by removing the hold down bolt in the front of the battery, don't forget to remove the tube that allows the battery gases to vent and replace it as the last step after you've replaced the battery terminals.
The Oddessey battery model #1220 is a far superior battery to the standard battery and light years better than the competition 's batteries like the MB battery or Interstate or Bosch, granted it isn't cheap but you really can expect it to last 5-7 years, no other battery comes close. Finally, if you can't find the model #1220 you can use the 1220-A for the 350 "E" or the 1350 for the E550 as the E550 needs more juice. In any case, these batteries are available on Amazon.com and they're well worth the extra money, check 'em out.

Live Oak

"The Oddessey battery model #1220 is a far superior battery to the standard battery and light years better than the competition 's batteries like the MB battery or Interstate or Bosch,"

Question: how do you KNOW that, for sure?

noka

Amazon reviews for the mentioned Oddessey batteries are very few, and one person rated it a '1' (lowest). I wouldn't buy based on Amazon reviews but would look elsewhere for confirmation of quality.

1guitar

live Oak:
As with everything in life, Nothing is for sure, but after much research into how the Oddessey battery is built as well as the components used, ie; actual virgin lead that isn't recycled and the chemistry that makes up the internals of the battery (the battery is an AGM battery or absorbed glass mat which allows more surface area of the battery to come into contact with the gel that is the main component in the chemical reaction that allows the battery to work as well as it does and also allows the battery to sit for as long as 9 months and still start your vehicle without having to be charged and which lead acid batteries will not due, ie; the Bosch brand and while the MB battery claims to also be an AGM battery, the MB battery uses recycled lead and is manufactured by at least two different vendors and I've been driving MB's for over 25 years and not one had a battery that lasted more than 4 years and a month or two. Finally, I have also been using Oddessey batteries in my boats and they have been bullet proof under far more trying conditions than the average car ever undergoes. As I stated, these batteries are not cheap, mainly because they are manufactured in the UK from top quality components, do some research into the battery that comes with your E or any other MB and compare the warranty that comes with an Oddessey battery versus the warranty that comes with the MB battery or any other after market battery and see for yourself.

aquinob

Did you have a backup battery attached while you swapped it out? Were there any issues with the electronics having to be reset afterward?

1guitar

The secondary battery stays in place (just as as FYI, it's a battery that provides power to the gear shift selector stalk and there's no need to remove it unless it's kaput). All you need do is to swap out the old battery with the new one, no special tools and no need to reprogram anything. The only thing you will need to do is reset the power windows and the sunroof, by this I mean you need to roll each window down separately and then backup but that's it.

a4ncar

Is your new battery lighter, heavier or about the the same weight as your OEM MB battery? I always found that German batteries are heavier than what we find in US markets. I assume the lead plates are thicker in OEM batteries.

BTW,you can also get the PC1220 for about the same price from the manufacturer's website with free shipping.

steinjr

The Sears Die Hard Platinum series battery is just a rebranded Oddessy battery. I use them in my other vehicles and they are rock solid. Not sure if they make a model for the W212.

CarolinaBluetec

Mercedes batteries last at least 5-7 years for me. Of course I live in a southern state, I doubt if they would in the frozen tundra.

1guitar

I didn't weigh it so I don't know if it's lighter or heavier than the oem battery. One thing that is noticeable is that the car clearly starts with no hesitation versus the oem battery, comparing it to the oem when it was new of course. I didn't know you can get the Oddessey right from the manufacturer and free shipping to boot, sounds like a good deal. One thing worth noting is that even if one battery has thicker plates than another's doesn't mean that much, more importantly is the purity of the metal, as I mentioned Oddessey uses virgin lead in their batteries, I doubt that MB has that same spec. for their batteries which are made for them. One really nice feature of the Oddessey batteries is that you can tell when they need replacing as they will gradually show their inability to hold a charge, ie; it will get harder and harder to start your car versus the pen battery that will work and then one day just crap out. For me, that one thing alone makes the Oddessey battery a better choice for me, I live in the NE part of the USA and the last thing you want is to get stuck with a dead battery in the middle of winter here. In the end it all comes down to choice but knowing and understanding the chemistry of how batteries work makes the choice easier for me.

1guitar

The W212 takes a Group 48 battery.

noka

I thought I read somewhere that mine used group 49.

1guitar

If you have the 3.5 liter engine it calls for a Group 48, if you have the 5.5 liter engine than it calls for a Group 49. The battery tray will hold either size battery but the Group 48 is the recommended size.

noka

Thanks for the info.

KEY08

That Odyssey 1350 group 49 battery for an E550 is $389 +tax, which would be like $425 to me. That is beyond a nutty price for an AGM battery no matter how much virgin lead it's packing.

El Cid

The MB battery sold by MB dealers is warranted ONLY for two years and costs about $300. This was confirmed by dealer and MBUSA both.
BTW, I never purchase anything from Amazon.

DerekACS

However, the OEM batteries supplied for Canadian MB are warranted for 4 years or 80,000 km ! This warranty is not pro-rated, which makes me wonder if the OEM batteries supplied for Canadian production are better performing than the ones supplied for the US ?

El Cid

These are not the original batteries that come in the cars when new, but the replacements you purchase when OEM dies.
The OEM is warranted for four years and not pro-rated. If it dies at 3 years and 364 days, you get a new battery at no cost. If it dies at 4 years and one week, you get nothing. The replacement MB batteries from dealerships in U.S. are warranted for two years and I assume are not pro-rated either.

CarolinaBluetec

I had a battery fail the "load test"during routine service on my former 2008 E320, they replaced FOC under warranty.

mleskovar

AGM and GEL are still "lead acid" batteries but yes AGM holds a charge longer. In general AGM are a superior battery for several reasons and they do cost more.

El Cid

For me, the issue is still why doesn't the "official" replacement battery sold and installed by MB dealers have a warranty longer than just two years? MBUSA also states it has only a two year warranty and is their battery.

1guitar

MB is not unlike any other company, they're never going to warranty anything they know probably won't last as long as the warranty itself, also the MB dealer if they're honest, will tell you that MB batteries as well as other remanufactured parts use remanufactured internal parts, ie; reuse of lead materials inside their batteries. MB is famous for going all out on the things you can see and just the opposite on what you can't see. IMO MB just isn't what they used to be and it's starting to show. One very telling thing to me is the building of the CLA, why is a car company known for building first class cars now building cars that are on par with Toyotas and Hondas, one thing is for sure, with the world economy being in the tank the way it is I'm sure sales of S and E class cars have fallen off so making a cheap "every mans car" is one way to prop up the bottom line, even if you have to sell your companys reputation to do it!

El Cid

1. Toyotas and Hondas are superior to MB's for reliability and cost to own.
2. Don't know where you are, but the economy is NOT in the tank in U.S., except for the people on factory floors and in service industry. People who were buying high priced MB's can still afford them. Probably the same in much of the world.

homeofstone

Actually heat is the biggest enemy of batteries.

Alex.currie44

I have a 14 yr old car with its second battery as far as the records show and it is an Interstate and it is fine.
I have had 7 MB cars in my lifetime and the oldest a W124 1993 had 300000km on the odometer when it left me at 8 yr of age and it still had the OEM Varta battery in it. Every time it was load tested it passed and it never failed me in the coldest -20 degrees C days in southern Ontario.
Sorry but I ain't buying the idea that a battery costing over double what a quality battery costs is better in some way.