1MavRick

I've had the car for about a month, now. When I bought it, the remote battery was dead and needed to be replaced. Which, of course, I did. About 10-14 days later...I get the the 'battery low' warning on the dash. A day or so later...its dead. No problem...bad battery. I install a new one, week before last, and I'm getting the same warning on the dash, today. Obviously, this isnt normal.

Can someone point me to what may be the cause? I'd really appreciate it. I cant go back to the turning the key to start the car life. And I'm not trying to keep a stock of CR2025's on hand, either...

THXETHAMG

I'm in the same boat. Would love for someone to chime in

Johnny Rad

1MavRick

that first note is interesting because i can lock/unlock the car from my office. does that mean that they are constantly communicating? i can also do the same at home down to the garage. and here i was thinking this was a good thing.

also...i use energizer batteries. are those still considered 'good'? does it nullify their goodness if i got them at a great price off amazon? hahahaha

thanx for the response!!!

Rehabguy

I too had this issue when I got my car. ~3 wks after I brought the car home... I got that message. Went to CVS and picked up a replacement. Couple of weeks later... AGAIN!
So, on my third battery, I decided to keep my key in my bedroom (second floor and car is in the garage in, practically, the basement) instead of the key holder in the 1st floor (Directly above garage). Knock on wood.... haven't had that issue since (it's been a ~ year). Also, I only drive my car 1-2X's/wk. YMMV.

1MavRick

you know what...as i think about it...i usually keep my key in my car when i park it at home. its actually in the front seat, as we speak. will have to change that...

Rehabguy

Or you can get a custom lead lined ashtray and put the key in there!

1MavRick

there's always that. hahahahaha

cetialpha5

Check the voltage of the batteries, could be weak fake ones. I usually have luck with the energizer ones, but I usually get them on eBay, I try to get the ones that expire the latest. New ones are usually in the 3.30-3.35 range. I notice that I get a battery low warning message when they drop down to 3.06. Get a $10 meter and see what the voltage is on those batteries.

And yes, they might be communicating too much with the car. If you hit the lock button twice, it's supposed to stop it from communicating, but then you need to hit it to wake it up.

PeterUbers

cetialpha5

Well a faraday cage would block the signal. You just need to put it inside the metal box.

Fredmatic

Bought my E63s about a week ago. 1 remote was dead.

Noticed the car does a lot of noises when parked in the garage, figured constant remote communicating.

I got these off Amazon.

1MavRick

Fredmatic

Your probably correct. Also got these pouches for theft prevention

cetialpha5

Any metal box that closes would have worked.

PeterUbers

Kelvin Bellrose

I wonder if a chain mail glove would do the same?

1MavRick

5soko

I found the remote is very sensitive to the type of battery you use, go oem from the dealer, use a cloth to insert the battery, keep it clean and free of fingerprint and hand grease. Esp the side the battery has the protective flim on.

Energizer worked for me btw.

Jan AMG

hahaha

1MavRick

cetialpha5

The Energizers are about $3.54 for a 10 pack on eBay. Strangely the 20 packs are over $8.

As for the chain mail glove, it depends on the frequency. The holes may allow some frequencies to get through while a solid enclosure is more likely to block the signal.

JimFE

Hi Folks:
Resurrecting an old thread. I have had this problem with the original remote that came with the car. Interestingly, I don't think you can blame it on storing it too close to the car, because the second remote is stored in the same place, and I haven't yet had to change the battery in that one. I did just start using some Amazon Basics CR2025s; i've had good luck with AB batteries in the past, but as folks noted above, MB cars are notoriously sensitive to battery performance (of all types, not just keyfob remotes).

Anyone else have this issue and possible cause?

Thanks,

Jim

cetialpha5

Well I just buy them on eBay, it's free shipping all the time on those as they just send it 1st class mail. Tried all different brands. Energizers seem to be a bit more now. Using Panasonic now which I think might be OEM. The voltage isn't that high though. I don't know why no one else who has a problem doesn't have a meter, you can get them for about $10 so you can check the voltage of a battery. I use mine all the time to check various 9v, AA, AAA etc batteries. It basically boils down to how fresh the batteries are when you buy them and the meter is the only way to tell. The Energizers I bought were anywhere from 3.3-3.35 volts and were the highest. Better than Duracell, Sony, Panasonic etc. The last batch of Panasonic's I got were in the 3.28 range. I toss them when they're down to 3, they seem to trigger a warning when they go down to 3.06. I have keyless go though so I guess that's probably why mine don't last that long, usually just 4-6 months and I always use the keyless go function.

kenneyd

Never had a single issue with my silver '14.
but with my new red '16 was having constant low battery warnings and a few "no fob detected"errors.
I ordered a bunch of cheap knockoff 2025 from Amazon... Each seemed to last a week.

I did two things to fix mine.
First gentle pry the 4 prongs up slightly. I found they get smashed down over time losing contact with the battery.
2. Clean all the metal contacts with a q-tip and 91% iso.
3 use a brand name battery, I bought a 10 pack of energizers

Since this, I haven't had one error in the last 60 days