Can I change my E550's main battery myself?
 

Everyone is scaring me not to change the battery myself on my E550. They say I will lose a lot of settings and it's even possible that the car will not start. Any truth to this? Do I have go to the dealer and get ripped off?

I found some local mechanics who work on German cars. My plan was to take it to one of them, but they never mentioned anything about resetting electronic settings..

Don't listen to them. I just replaced mine last week and had to reset my clock. That was it.
Autozone Duralast H8 AGM- $175.00; 900 CCA beast
Remove the battery hold down bolt and pull out the metal hold down plate. Loosen and remove the negative cable. Place a rag around it so it doesn't touch anything and pull t out of the way. Remove the positive cable and pull it back out of the way. Pull up the handles on the battery and yank it out. Pick up the new 50 lb. battery and carefully place it onto the battery tray if your back doesn't give out. Put positive cable back. Carefully slip the negative back on (it may spark, briefly). Put the battery hold down back into place and insert the bolt and tighten. You are done. Start the car and reset your clock. Roll your windows down and up (hold for 1 second) and your sunroof/pano as a precaution. I did not have to reset mine. It is easy and don't let anyone scare you or force you to spend $300 for a new battery.

Wow, that's great news. Do you know what tool (i.e. nut driver) I need to remove the hold down bolt? I know I need one that is long for sure to reach down therel, but what about the size of the nut (13mm, etc)? I can maybe buy it in Home Depot or whatever. Thanks.

Yes 13mm socket and extension for the hold down bolt. 10mm for the cable connections. Remember to push up on the hood past its normal height to give you more room to work. The battery cover is held in by 3 simple clips. The center clip pulls straight up and can be removed from the firewall so you don't lose it. Have fun!

I didn't know the hood can be pushed up further. I just let it go up automatically and leave it at the height it stops. But, I'll try to push it up more. Thanks for the specs.

easy 10-15 min job , no lost setting. 550 luv

for 550s battery is in the trunk , easy to access with right tools , also you might want to remove the spare tire to access it easier , unplug both cables put a new battery in plug the cables back in and you ready to roll.

So you guys have the battery under the hood. I drive this 2010 E550 but my battery is in the trunk.

Wonder when they changed this and why?

Do you have 4Matic?

aNo 4Magic. Why would that make a difference? I would understand that the diesel add blue tank in the trunk takes the space and that could be behind the change...?

Can I change my E550's main battery myself?
 

I have never changed mine but one time my battery ran out and Benz roadside came and changed it for me free under warranty.

When he changed mine, he asked me to turn my steering wheel fully to the right and then fully to the left while car was on. What was that for?

I think I remember doing that on my C32 AMG. Maybe to reset the Navi in the COMMAND. I am not exactly sure.

Also to Arrie, I thought the non-4Matic battery was in the trunk for weight distribution. The thing is like having a 50-60# bag of salt in the trunk.

I though the car had two batteries. One under the hood and second one in the trunk.

Only if you have the ECO start/stop on newer models do you have that extra battery in the trunk.

I don't think it is for weight balance as if it was then they would have positioned it in the middle in the trunk, but it is on the right side.


I'm thinking it was put in the trunk for saving space under hood for the big engine. They probably had a different body between E350 and E550?


Is there anybody in the forum with a 2010 E350 with the battery in the trunk?


Later they then came to realize that it does not make sense to have two different body styles in the E-class and made them the same, i.e. E550 got the battery under the hood too.


My car probably is half 211 as it was made in June 20009. The light switch, for example, is different from what the car's manual shows.

I guess that is possible. In my 2010 550 there is plenty of room for the battery where it is positioned on the passenger side of the engine bay. What do you have in that area?
You still have the jumper posts there, right?

Yes,

I have the jumper posts that I was planning to use if I change the battery myself, i.e. connect battery from the other car to these posts when I remove the battery from the trunk. Keeps car powered up and no need for resetting anything at all.

But I let the dealer do it at the end of it Cost me about $150 more than me buying the battery somewhere else and then doing it. Did it to keep good relationship with the SA I have and because the car is under warranty. If any electrical issues surface they cannot blame it to the wrongly done battery change as they did it.

I disconnected my battery for charging and didn't lose any settings other than the clock just like KEY08 described. I had thought about using the jump points to connect to my second car like Arrie described but I was in a rush and forgot that step. I wouldn't hesitate in replacing the battery myself.

I'll be changing the battery out this Saturday. I have a mechanic doing the install for free, so why not. He said, as a precaution, he will connect 12V to the battery as a backup while doing the job. I guess this makes sense. And, yes the battery in my 2010 E550 is under the hood. I have the 4matic.

Bosch battery for $210 including install for 850CCA. The mechanic said that our original "Mercedes" batteries are made by Bosch/Varta anyway.

They are Varta and that is a good price, but I think they carry the 2 year warranty. Free install so what's not to like? Should be 15 minute job and you will be set.

Yep! I'll post back when it's all said and done.

I thought 550s have batteries in the trunk only? never seen one with the battery under the hood:nix:

Early 2010 models had it in the trunk and then later it moved to under the hood. Not sure exactly when. My 2011 E550 has it under the hood just under the climate air intake.

As pointed out since the beginning of this thread, that is not so.

The interesting thing is, my 2011 E550 has it up front, but the battery tray is still in the trunk.

now i wonder which location is better lol