Best OEM battery replacement and coding of new battery
03-04-2018, 07:59 AM
#1
AudiWorld Senior Member
Thread Starter
Best OEM battery replacement and coding of new battery
Hello everyone,
I am a new audi owner (2006 Audi A6 3.2 with 109K). Trying to figure out a few things. I'm having battery issues and I don't want to buy the battery from the dealer that I was quoted $480 for but I did purchase a $160 battery from Advance Auto a few weeks ago and it drained completely. It is not an AGM battery. My question's are:
1) What are some good brands that are comparable with the Varta that I removed from the vehicle and where can I get one? I can't seem to buy Varta from anywhere? Would like to keep the price around $200 if possible.
2) Is it absolutely necessary for the battery to be AGM? My assumption is yes because I have read that the AGM technology is needed because of all of the advance electronics these cars have (mine also has the push start/stop and navigation). And seeing that I bought a non-AGM battery and it drained in a few weeks that makes me think that AGM is needed. It is weird that the computer in the Advance Auto parts store showed both an AGM battery and a non-AGM battery as being able to be used in my car but it showed that the non-AGM one was the "direct fit OEM replacement" and the AGM one was an "upgrade". However, that computer doesn't know all of the "extra" electronic stuff on my car so it's probably pointing me to the non-AGM as the "bare minimum". By the way, I am stuck with the $160 battery because the manager said I can't return it. Lucky me. 60 pound desk paper weight I now have. I'm sure I will never be able to sell that on craigslist.
3) Is it necessary to encode the new battery to the energy management control moduleat the dealership (being quoted $156 for it - that's their labor rate for 1 hour) or using VCDS (which I don't have)? From what I have read, encoding erases the old adaptation values in the control unit and replaces them with new adaptation values that meet the requirements of the new battery. The new battery must have the "BEM" tag on it because the BEM tag has all of the information needed for the information required to do the coding.
4) If the answer to #3 is yes, and if the battery I buy doesn't have a BEM sticker that has the information needed to perform the coding, how can I do it (assuming I go ahead and take the plunge and buy the VAG-COM cable / VCDS setup)? I'm not sure if the dealer will code a non-dealer purchased battery, even though that's what I asked the service advisor to give me a quote on (but sometimes those guys are just saying anything that comes to mind). Below is a thread that I found from "AudiZine" forum (didn't even know that existed until yesterday" that shows someone coding a battery that does not have the BEM sticker. The process looks rather exhausting and I didn't even make it all the way through the thread because it is pretty long.
B8 A4 Battery Replacement - Coding
Below are 2 videos that discuss the battery coding that pretty much convinced me that it has to be done.
Please give me your feedback on all of this. I would really appreciate it.
First video uses a non-VCDS system to do the coding.
The video below uses VCDS to do the coding.
I am a new audi owner (2006 Audi A6 3.2 with 109K). Trying to figure out a few things. I'm having battery issues and I don't want to buy the battery from the dealer that I was quoted $480 for but I did purchase a $160 battery from Advance Auto a few weeks ago and it drained completely. It is not an AGM battery. My question's are:
1) What are some good brands that are comparable with the Varta that I removed from the vehicle and where can I get one? I can't seem to buy Varta from anywhere? Would like to keep the price around $200 if possible.
2) Is it absolutely necessary for the battery to be AGM? My assumption is yes because I have read that the AGM technology is needed because of all of the advance electronics these cars have (mine also has the push start/stop and navigation). And seeing that I bought a non-AGM battery and it drained in a few weeks that makes me think that AGM is needed. It is weird that the computer in the Advance Auto parts store showed both an AGM battery and a non-AGM battery as being able to be used in my car but it showed that the non-AGM one was the "direct fit OEM replacement" and the AGM one was an "upgrade". However, that computer doesn't know all of the "extra" electronic stuff on my car so it's probably pointing me to the non-AGM as the "bare minimum". By the way, I am stuck with the $160 battery because the manager said I can't return it. Lucky me. 60 pound desk paper weight I now have. I'm sure I will never be able to sell that on craigslist.
3) Is it necessary to encode the new battery to the energy management control moduleat the dealership (being quoted $156 for it - that's their labor rate for 1 hour) or using VCDS (which I don't have)? From what I have read, encoding erases the old adaptation values in the control unit and replaces them with new adaptation values that meet the requirements of the new battery. The new battery must have the "BEM" tag on it because the BEM tag has all of the information needed for the information required to do the coding.
4) If the answer to #3 is yes, and if the battery I buy doesn't have a BEM sticker that has the information needed to perform the coding, how can I do it (assuming I go ahead and take the plunge and buy the VAG-COM cable / VCDS setup)? I'm not sure if the dealer will code a non-dealer purchased battery, even though that's what I asked the service advisor to give me a quote on (but sometimes those guys are just saying anything that comes to mind). Below is a thread that I found from "AudiZine" forum (didn't even know that existed until yesterday" that shows someone coding a battery that does not have the BEM sticker. The process looks rather exhausting and I didn't even make it all the way through the thread because it is pretty long.
B8 A4 Battery Replacement - Coding
Below are 2 videos that discuss the battery coding that pretty much convinced me that it has to be done.
Please give me your feedback on all of this. I would really appreciate it.
First video uses a non-VCDS system to do the coding.
03-04-2018, 03:25 PM
#2
The issue you have seems to be some kind of parasitic draw, which is causing your battery to be discharged when the car isn't in use. These kinds of things are near impossible to troubleshoot over the net and you really need to either get someone who understands 12V electrical issues or a good car shop that understands these issues.
As for your questions:
1 - There are sales all over the place, FWIW, my local Audi dealer sold the Audi battery for under $250, installed and coded. Here's a thread on Bosch AGM: https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a6-...eries-2939806/
2 - No it's not absolutely required...AGM are just better
3 - not necessary, but without it your vehicle's computer won't know a new battery was installed and to reset the draw and battery mgmt. to the new batter vs. the existing one.
4 - see point 3
As for your questions:
1 - There are sales all over the place, FWIW, my local Audi dealer sold the Audi battery for under $250, installed and coded. Here's a thread on Bosch AGM: https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a6-...eries-2939806/
2 - No it's not absolutely required...AGM are just better
3 - not necessary, but without it your vehicle's computer won't know a new battery was installed and to reset the draw and battery mgmt. to the new batter vs. the existing one.
4 - see point 3
03-04-2018, 03:37 PM
#3
Hello everyone,
I am a new audi owner (2006 Audi A6 3.2 with 109K). Trying to figure out a few things. I'm having battery issues and I don't want to buy the battery from the dealer that I was quoted $480 for but I did purchase a $160 battery from Advance Auto a few weeks ago and it drained completely. It is not an AGM battery. My question's are:
1) What are some good brands that are comparable with the Varta that I removed from the vehicle and where can I get one? I can't seem to buy Varta from anywhere? Would like to keep the price around $200 if possible.
2) Is it absolutely necessary for the battery to be AGM? My assumption is yes because I have read that the AGM technology is needed because of all of the advance electronics these cars have (mine also has the push start/stop and navigation). And seeing that I bought a non-AGM battery and it drained in a few weeks that makes me think that AGM is needed. It is weird that the computer in the Advance Auto parts store showed both an AGM battery and a non-AGM battery as being able to be used in my car but it showed that the non-AGM one was the "direct fit OEM replacement" and the AGM one was an "upgrade". However, that computer doesn't know all of the "extra" electronic stuff on my car so it's probably pointing me to the non-AGM as the "bare minimum". By the way, I am stuck with the $160 battery because the manager said I can't return it. Lucky me. 60 pound desk paper weight I now have. I'm sure I will never be able to sell that on craigslist.
3) Is it necessary to encode the new battery to the energy management control moduleat the dealership (being quoted $156 for it - that's their labor rate for 1 hour) or using VCDS (which I don't have)? From what I have read, encoding erases the old adaptation values in the control unit and replaces them with new adaptation values that meet the requirements of the new battery. The new battery must have the "BEM" tag on it because the BEM tag has all of the information needed for the information required to do the coding.
4) If the answer to #3 is yes, and if the battery I buy doesn't have a BEM sticker that has the information needed to perform the coding, how can I do it (assuming I go ahead and take the plunge and buy the VAG-COM cable / VCDS setup)? I'm not sure if the dealer will code a non-dealer purchased battery, even though that's what I asked the service advisor to give me a quote on (but sometimes those guys are just saying anything that comes to mind). Below is a thread that I found from "AudiZine" forum (didn't even know that existed until yesterday" that shows someone coding a battery that does not have the BEM sticker. The process looks rather exhausting and I didn't even make it all the way through the thread because it is pretty long.
B8 A4 Battery Replacement - Coding
Below are 2 videos that discuss the battery coding that pretty much convinced me that it has to be done.
Please give me your feedback on all of this. I would really appreciate it.
First video uses a non-VCDS system to do the coding.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRQCWNzguic
The video below uses VCDS to do the coding.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJAScg6JrYI
I am a new audi owner (2006 Audi A6 3.2 with 109K). Trying to figure out a few things. I'm having battery issues and I don't want to buy the battery from the dealer that I was quoted $480 for but I did purchase a $160 battery from Advance Auto a few weeks ago and it drained completely. It is not an AGM battery. My question's are:
1) What are some good brands that are comparable with the Varta that I removed from the vehicle and where can I get one? I can't seem to buy Varta from anywhere? Would like to keep the price around $200 if possible.
2) Is it absolutely necessary for the battery to be AGM? My assumption is yes because I have read that the AGM technology is needed because of all of the advance electronics these cars have (mine also has the push start/stop and navigation). And seeing that I bought a non-AGM battery and it drained in a few weeks that makes me think that AGM is needed. It is weird that the computer in the Advance Auto parts store showed both an AGM battery and a non-AGM battery as being able to be used in my car but it showed that the non-AGM one was the "direct fit OEM replacement" and the AGM one was an "upgrade". However, that computer doesn't know all of the "extra" electronic stuff on my car so it's probably pointing me to the non-AGM as the "bare minimum". By the way, I am stuck with the $160 battery because the manager said I can't return it. Lucky me. 60 pound desk paper weight I now have. I'm sure I will never be able to sell that on craigslist.
3) Is it necessary to encode the new battery to the energy management control moduleat the dealership (being quoted $156 for it - that's their labor rate for 1 hour) or using VCDS (which I don't have)? From what I have read, encoding erases the old adaptation values in the control unit and replaces them with new adaptation values that meet the requirements of the new battery. The new battery must have the "BEM" tag on it because the BEM tag has all of the information needed for the information required to do the coding.
4) If the answer to #3 is yes, and if the battery I buy doesn't have a BEM sticker that has the information needed to perform the coding, how can I do it (assuming I go ahead and take the plunge and buy the VAG-COM cable / VCDS setup)? I'm not sure if the dealer will code a non-dealer purchased battery, even though that's what I asked the service advisor to give me a quote on (but sometimes those guys are just saying anything that comes to mind). Below is a thread that I found from "AudiZine" forum (didn't even know that existed until yesterday" that shows someone coding a battery that does not have the BEM sticker. The process looks rather exhausting and I didn't even make it all the way through the thread because it is pretty long.
B8 A4 Battery Replacement - Coding
Below are 2 videos that discuss the battery coding that pretty much convinced me that it has to be done.
Please give me your feedback on all of this. I would really appreciate it.
First video uses a non-VCDS system to do the coding.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRQCWNzguic
The video below uses VCDS to do the coding.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJAScg6JrYI
I got replacement battery from the dealer. I think the dealer price is about the same as any other aftermarket store.
Hence I do not see much point in trying an aftermarket battery if you can simply put new OEM one.
My original battery lasted 10 years/150K miles. After the replacement, I suspect the second battery will outlast the car itself.
In terms of codding, people stated that you simply need to change the serial number by one. This will make the system to think that you get new battery.
03-04-2018, 07:24 PM
#4
AudiWorld Senior Member
Thread Starter
The issue you have seems to be some kind of parasitic draw, which is causing your battery to be discharged when the car isn't in use. These kinds of things are near impossible to troubleshoot over the net and you really need to either get someone who understands 12V electrical issues or a good car shop that understands these issues.
As for your questions:
1 - There are sales all over the place, FWIW, my local Audi dealer sold the Audi battery for under $250, installed and coded. Here's a thread on Bosch AGM: https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a6-...eries-2939806/
2 - No it's not absolutely required...AGM are just better
3 - not necessary, but without it your vehicle's computer won't know a new battery was installed and to reset the draw and battery mgmt. to the new batter vs. the existing one.
4 - see point 3
As for your questions:
1 - There are sales all over the place, FWIW, my local Audi dealer sold the Audi battery for under $250, installed and coded. Here's a thread on Bosch AGM: https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a6-...eries-2939806/
2 - No it's not absolutely required...AGM are just better
3 - not necessary, but without it your vehicle's computer won't know a new battery was installed and to reset the draw and battery mgmt. to the new batter vs. the existing one.
4 - see point 3
03-04-2018, 07:26 PM
#5
AudiWorld Senior Member
Thread Starter
I got replacement battery from the dealer. I think the dealer price is about the same as any other aftermarket store.
Hence I do not see much point in trying an aftermarket battery if you can simply put new OEM one.
My original battery lasted 10 years/150K miles. After the replacement, I suspect the second battery will outlast the car itself.
In terms of codding, people stated that you simply need to change the serial number by one. This will make the system to think that you get new battery.
Hence I do not see much point in trying an aftermarket battery if you can simply put new OEM one.
My original battery lasted 10 years/150K miles. After the replacement, I suspect the second battery will outlast the car itself.
In terms of codding, people stated that you simply need to change the serial number by one. This will make the system to think that you get new battery.
03-04-2018, 10:21 PM
#6
AudiWorld Super User
I replaced the original OEM battery in my 2006 A6 Avant (late 2005 build date) with an OEM battery from the dealer for $220, which included a 10% discount for being an Audi NA Club member. No issue whatsoever.
03-05-2018, 01:29 PM
#7
AudiWorld Senior Member
Thread Starter
A6 Gary, if the price I was being quoted was $220 I would go and buy it. But I just can't make myself buy a $480 battery. Any recommendations on a battery that might have a BEM code sticker on it? Or any advice in general regarding this fiasco? Thanks.
Last edited by akingzkid; 03-05-2018 at 05:47 PM.
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03-05-2018, 02:20 PM
#8
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I was having battery issues with my S6 with two separate batteries, either not starting in extreme cold or tough (or no) starting after sitting for a few days - not sure if my fairly short commute to work had anything to do with it (not fully charging the battery)....anyway, got the biggest CCA rated AGM battery from O'Reilly's and haven't had a problem since - starts like a charm every time no matter what......battery was $207 with tax, installed myself in about 5-10 minutes
03-05-2018, 05:50 PM
#9
AudiWorld Senior Member
Thread Starter
I was having battery issues with my S6 with two separate batteries, either not starting in extreme cold or tough (or no) starting after sitting for a few days - not sure if my fairly short commute to work had anything to do with it (not fully charging the battery)....anyway, got the biggest CCA rated AGM battery from O'Reilly's and haven't had a problem since - starts like a charm every time no matter what......battery was $207 with tax, installed myself in about 5-10 minutes
Thanks.
03-06-2018, 06:31 AM
#10
AudiWorld Member
FWIW, I replaced my battery last year with a non-AGM battery from Autozone (around $160-$180). Didn't have it registered/coded to my car (2006 A6 Avant) and it's been working just fine. Whether that means I'll get a shorter life out of it or not, is too soon to tell. It'll probably outlast the car itself, with 165K miles on it.