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Am I missing something in terms of awareness regarding the new E-class vehicles, i.e. Notification from MercedesMe of critical start battery condition?
I just purchased a/my brand new 2019 E4504S wagon on 09/20/19 and dropped it off the same day with all of 30 miles on it to an Auto Detail shop I use for paint correction, installation of XPEL clear bra and Ceramic Coating while I am out of the country traveling overseas. Since then, i.e for the majority of the past 2-weeks the car has remained indoors inside their shop, locked up.
Today, I received the following email message from no-reply@Mercedes.me informing me of the following;
[quote] Dear Mr. XXXXXXX, The starter battery charge status of the vehicle WDDZH6JB6KAXXXXX is critical. To ensure that the vehicle is able to start, please connect a battery charger or drive the vehicle for 30 to 60 minutes. When using the battery charger, please observe the notes in Operator's Manual in your vehicle. Best regards, Mercedes me connect [end quote]
Upon receipt of the message I called the shop that has my car and they advised that they have as well encountered this same issue with other late model MB vehicles and as a result will place a trickle charger on the cranking battery.
Question for the Forum....is it considered normal for the cranking battery to discharge when the car is left garaged for such a short time, i.e. 2-weeks?
Have any other fellow E-Class Owner/Forum Members here encountered this and Is this normal on late model MB vehicles, i.e. 2018-2019 Models?
Thanks in advance for any sharing of similar experience (or otherwise).
Strangely, I had a similar experience a few weeks ago. I picked up a 2020 E450 sedan from the dealer (that I had ordered in May) and immediately drove it to a detailer for a paint correction, XPEL bra across the entire front of the car (up to the windshield), and ceramic coating (five coats). It was indoors there, for four days. When I picked the car up I got a warning message in the main display that showed a large yellow outline of a battery and some sort of warning about the battery. However, the car started up fine. I had not yet set up my MercedesMe account so I didn't get any message. There have been no problems since then. I've periodically driven it with the voltage information showing and seen nothing abnormal (Vehicle -> Dynamic Select -> Engine Data). I viewed it as a one-off error.
Last edited by Turbocharged; 10-04-2019 at 04:57 PM.
Yes, im gathering now that it's the result a number of quick starts, short moveabouts and shutdowns within the shop where it is being bra'd & coated. Spoke to the shop owner earlier today and he said it started right up and they were going to let it run for 20-30 mins. and will check it again tomorrow. Im still at least a week away from getting back there to pick up the car as we agreed he would keep it as to allow curing time for the ceramic and since i'm presently out of the country.
Mine is good for about ten days with the car unlocked before it goes critical. Every time it has started right up in critical. I know in Critical mode the mercedes App will not work as the hermes communication module goes down in the car. Not really sure how long it would take in critical mode for the battery not to have enough to start the car but I suspect it would be another ten days or maybe a little bit more as when it goes into this mode some functions shut down to save the remaining battery life. I've heard when the car is locked and especially the lock button held the car will go longer before it hits the critical mode as the car goes into more of a sleep mode when locked.
These cars are in constant radio communication with the server when "off." That's why there's a Standby mode if you leave the car. Do yourself a favor and get a quality AGM charger/tender and hang it on the battery now and then (it needs 24-48 hours to fully charge the battery.) I got this one and the problem is no longer.
These cars are in constant radio communication with the server when "off." That's why there's a Standby mode if you leave the car. Do yourself a favor and get a quality AGM charger/tender and hang it on the battery now and then (it needs 24-48 hours to fully charge the battery.) I got this one and the problem is no longer. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I get it, lots of technology and communication, etc, including terrestrial power draws in these cars but all the same, I can park my new 19' Ford SD F250 FX4 Limited for 3-months at a time and never have a battery issue, nor need for a trickle charger to be connected. Same goes for vintage 88' 560SL roadster that sits for even longer periods these days. I'll learn to live with it but reminding my wife the car is sometimes tethered to a trickle charger before she launches the garage doors open and backs out is a whole different matter.
I get it, lots of technology and communication, etc, including terrestrial power draws in these cars but all the same, I can park my new 19' Ford SD F250 FX4 Limited for 3-months at a time and never have a battery issue, nor need for a trickle charger to be connected. Same goes for vintage 88' 560SL roadster that sits for even longer periods these days. I'll learn to live with it but reminding my wife the car is sometimes tethered to a trickle charger before she launches the garage doors open and backs out is a whole different matter.
I'm not saying it doesn't suck, just that it's the way these cars are. I hear you about the wife. Mine backed our C55 out of the garage with a rear door open. Took out the car door and the garage door frame. Farmers: "Are you filing an auto or homeowners claim?" Me: "Both." Oh well, I had wanted a C63 anyway.
I remember asking her why she didn't see the door-open warning on the dash? "I look at the rear-view mirror when backing up. Taking your eye off the mirror is unsafe."
The problem already exists for a long time (also in pre-facelift W222/C217/A217 cars) and seems that the battery is not really that low, but the software thinks that it is.
The are reasons to believe it has (also) to do with (charging) the start/stop system, at least on german car fora this was mentioned (for S class cars).
I'd be curious to know when it hits critical how long the car has before it won't start. Every time mine has hit critical it has turned over fine although the most I've left the car is like 3 or 4 days after it hits critical. So who knows maybe the car would go a month or more once it hits critical status? I do know that once it does hit critical the app stops working and you cant remote lock/start, etc.