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MB dealer in Lebanon make an offer for MB OEM battery 15% discount with free replacement. The cost before offer was around 340$ include VAT and labor so with this offer it will be around 250$. My car was imported to Lebanon and its battery didn't replace yet. My battery is AUTOCRAFT Platinum H8-AGM 850CCA 95AH with label Made in Germany and the code is A9VTB,so manufacture date January 2019 and the service paper shows that it was installed in May 2020 in USA keep note that the car was stopped from 3 2022 to 10 2022 until arrived Lebanon. It is working fine and no issues. Do you suggest to replace the battery with OEM one using dealer offer or not, what you will do in my situation.
Looking forward for your comments.
Note: I have W220 car too and its battery was replaced from January 2020(100AH).
Last edited by redaotrosh; Sep 9, 2023 at 11:50 AM.
Batteries do not expire by date, so that should not be an issue.
Now the brand of the current battery. I understand Autocraft makes: platinum, gold, and silver. I assume it is a Platinum
Get someone to "load test" your battery to find out how much CCA is left from the specifications. That is also called the "health of the battery". If it is healthy, changing it would only be to have with the MB sticker on it (even though MB does not make batteries)
Yes you are right it is Platinum, I have updated the thread as it was mis typing.
How can I do the health test, do I need to remove the battery from car.
Take the car to the mechanic with the instrument/device. Disconnect BOTH terminals from the battery, i.e. the battery is NOT connected to the car's electrical system.
No need to take the battery out of the car, but be careful not to test it connected to the car. On the W212 it is easy because it is up front, remove the AC box, and disconnect the terminals. On others MB it is below the passenger seat
My car came will a fairly good service history from the previous owner. I noticed there had been 3 new MB branded batteries in a 12 month period. Forums had mentioned a rash of defective units. So, I ordered a fresh new Interstate battery to replace the 2 month old MB unit as soon as the car hit the driveway.
Yes you are right it is Platinum, I have updated the thread as it was mis typing.
How can I do the health test, do I need to remove the battery from car.
Battery testing can be tricky as you are measuring condition of chemistry by measuring voltage.
I do have load tester and Solar gizmo, who electronically estimates CA. Between the 2 I can tell general battery state.
Sometimes battery can hold the voltage, but will not have capacity. Sometimes it has slow discharge capacity, but will not have cranking amps.
Quick test is to display battery voltage on cluster (engine off) and then turn all the headlights and blower on. Big voltage drop indicate battery going down.
