The car was difficult to start this morning. There didn't seem to be enough life in the battery. Well it did start but after a couple of miles I got a warning on the "Comand Screen" stating unsufficient battery power to start the car. Comand will shut down in 3 minutes. As the car was already running I continued my trip to work. When parking, at work, reverse was difficult to select on CVT box. Then a transmission warning light came on within the instrument cluster. I'm told, over the phone, that the most likley cause is a battery failure. Mercedes are on the way to fix the problem. I'm also told that the battery will not be covered under the warranty as its a wearing part.
IMHO batteries should last longer than that.
Has anybody else had battery issues??
Cheers all.
Ross.
__________________ Any luxury car can make you look like your going places, but with a Mercedes Benz you have already arrived.
Last edited by norfolk.enchance : 06-04-2008 at 01:51 AM.
Reason: Typo
Ebay are selling the Genuine replacement Battery for the B I think it is about £ 69. I agree it ought to last longer than yours did. Usually (in UK) you get well over 5 years from the genuine makers battery it's the cheapie replacements that only seem to last a couple of years.
By the time you read this you probably have already paid for some sort of repair, but let us know.
It seems to me that if you have lost voltage while running the alternator is to blame unless the battery has short circuited internally.
Some cars eat batteries due to the large loads on modern cars and the fact that manufactures use the smallest battery to save on weight and room in engine compartment. My SAAB draws 85 amps to power everything yet has a micro sized battery tray, as a result I change my battery more times than some people change oil
I tried to get a spiral ( or similar ) battery like BeeClass suggested but they would not fit because of hight restrictions. With the B's battery's location I hope to get a spiral battery to fit when the time comes.
As Robert said, the spiral is the way to go if it's a perfect fit.
I've added some electrolyte (distilled water) to my battery and it performs normally.
Do not overfill the battery.
With a screwdriver, remove the 6 caps and add distilled water and just cover the plates and never higher than the lower white plastic cup that can be seen when looking in. Be careful!!
Battery electrolyte is very corrosive, so wear safety glasses if inspecting and working around the battery. The vapor is also explosive, so no smoking please.
12.7 volts off and 14.3 volts when in normal charging operation. You never know with a battery, they can crap out anytime. At least it's not in the dead of winter.
You'd expect a quality battery to last at least 7 years but the CAA recommends that you change it after 4 years.
Good Luck, Derek
Thank you for your replies. Merc Assist came out to look at my car and reckon that the alternator is faulty. The car has been sent to the local dealer on the back of a recovery truck. Mercedes also took the trouble to hire me a replacement car for the duration of the repair, at their expense.
Interestingly the car only had its "C" service three weeks ago at the same dealership. When the guy from Merc did his original diagnostics on his mobile Star equipment it brought up a series of faults that have occurred since the service. None of which have shown up on my cars display.
Hope to get the car back later this week, but I'm more than happy driving the R Class replacement. In fact I've not stopped smiling all day and I'm taking tomorrow off work to play with that great 3 litre V6 diesel. I'll post again if they try and charge me for anything. Oh, a new battery from mercedes is £90.40
Ross
Glad you found the problem at least it should be covered by MB. The faults picked up by the mobile Star equipment could just be spikes in voltage caused by the alternator's last hurrah. The computer is looking at voltages put out by various sensors and a low supply voltage or a high supply voltage can put the reading out of acceptable range. Sometimes it does not take much for an electrical failure to happen.
Let's hope the repairs take a long time and you can enjoy the R class and impress all your neighbours.
I would get a spiral battery.
and impress all your neighbours. 
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