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05-14-2009, 03:21 AM | #24 |
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Brief update. I'm fairly certain I got a bad battery from Braille/HP.
Despite being 12 V nominal the M3 battery is supposed to be in the range of 12.5-12.8 VDC (or something close to that, don't recall the exact spec). My OEM battery is 12.7-12.8. My Braille is running 12.3. The problems that have ramped up steadily since my install are varied and troublesome. They include: 1. A lift icon on startup. Apparently some generic warning that you need service. An exclamation point in the center screen speedo/odo area that one you cycle through the stalk display options it tell you low battery. Now to really offer maximum redundancy I also get the terrible English warning of "increased battery discharge". "Low battery" or "low battery voltage" would have been a much better English translation . 2. Comfort acccess one touch entry usually fails. 3. Car does not remember time/date and trip odometer reading after shut off completely. Not having a clock in your dash/iDrive = major annoyance 4. Safety lighting feature works intermittently. (The one where you can blast your high beams for 10 seconds or so after you kill the engine to light up an area in front on you). The helpful folks at Braille confirmed that their battery FULLY meets BMW specs of 12.5-12.8 and should ideally be right around 12.8 just like the OEM battery. They took my credit card as a deposit to return the current battery once the new one arrives, which is convenient. Unfortunately I actually caught them out of stock which seemed a bit odd. It is quite surprising how sensitve this car is to a 0.5 V change and being just a few tenths below below spec. Seems a bit like bad design - it certainly is not robust design. I realize you need a specification and the spec is typically driven by certain component requirements. Nonetheless, it simply doesn't seem impossible nor difficult to make the car work fine with anything from say 12.5+/-0.5. I greatly look forward to a bug free electrical system very soon. |
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05-14-2009, 06:47 AM | #25 |
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Thanks for the update. I was about to ask for one actually. My battery has been sitting on my desk for the best few weeks as I didn't have time to install it. Do these things come fully charged? Also, anyone else have an update on long term usage?
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05-14-2009, 10:04 AM | #26 |
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I did not have similar problems except for "Low Battery" warning ... Harold also had to replace it with the new one. It is sitting in the box right now ...
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05-14-2009, 12:42 PM | #27 |
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Pretty sure it comes fully charged. Check its output and if less than 12.5 I'd call Braille.
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05-14-2009, 12:43 PM | #28 |
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05-14-2009, 01:45 PM | #29 |
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What's going on. 2 out of the 2 batteries which were shipped to forum members (known cases) were defective? Am I getting this straight? I'll check the voltage on mine and let you guys know...
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05-14-2009, 02:05 PM | #30 |
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05-14-2009, 02:11 PM | #31 | |
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In addtion, if the car is only drive a few miles a day, that is not enough to keep the battery charged. We have seen cars driven on city street coming in for service that only have a charge level of 70% |
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05-14-2009, 04:47 PM | #32 | |
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05-14-2009, 05:40 PM | #33 |
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Errr, not looking good Lucid.
Didn't know the CA drew that much current. Is it on all the time actively trying to search for a transponder? I thought once you touch the door it turns on then I would think it looks for the right electronic key. |
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05-14-2009, 05:42 PM | #34 |
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Yes a big +2 on the question. The Braile guy I talked to said their 3121 battery is perfectly suited to the E9X M3. I mentioned problems I had with Comfort Access but I suppose it could hav escaped him that I said that. I sure hope the answer is not yes...
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05-14-2009, 05:45 PM | #35 |
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These kinds of systems go into some kind of power save mode, but they are, by definition, still active, scanning for a signal. So yes, CA will draw a small amount of current. However, I have had my car sit for 2 weeks (with stock battery), and I had no problems cranking the car after I got back. So, I don't see how CA is able to draw enough current from the Braille battery over a couple of days or so to cause problems...
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05-14-2009, 05:46 PM | #36 | |
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Are you sure CA takes that much power, ~1 watt? The system should be an RFID system that consumes truly 0 power until it has to reply. If it will drain the Braille in a few hours it would certainly drain the OEM battery in a few days, which it doesn't. |
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05-14-2009, 05:46 PM | #37 | |
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The Braille battery sitting on my desk: 12.74 Volts.
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05-14-2009, 05:48 PM | #38 |
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You sure about this? I did a consulting project for a lock company, and we talked about these systems with them a little, and I was told they draw power when the ignition is turned off...
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05-14-2009, 05:49 PM | #39 | |
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05-14-2009, 05:52 PM | #40 | |
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Swamp, Doba, what is the longest period of time your car was parked?
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05-14-2009, 06:17 PM | #41 | ||
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The receive side of an RFID system can be made truly non consumptive while not receiving. I do think this is the norm. These clever little buggers actually wake on receive and then extract the small power they need to process and send a reply signal from the signal sent to them! |
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05-14-2009, 07:15 PM | #43 |
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Well, we don't know what the CA system is drawing when in sleep mode. If it's more than 40-50 milliamps, we may advice not use any battery with less reserve capacity than the oem BMW.
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05-14-2009, 07:29 PM | #44 |
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OK, so this helps. Sounds like Braille might have some serious quality control issues. How long have you been using the third one?
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