inamik75 wrote

I have been just been schooled by Lotus, thanks

Yep. It's a "power hungry" world we live in.
Starve your X3 and it will get its revenge one way or another.

Lotus is the man -- thanks again, good sir!

Lotus,

So I got took the car to the dealer and got everything checked out - and it's good!

I also bought a trickle charger from them as such below and also included a pic of under my hood and want to know how to properly hook this up w/o frying my battery. LOL!

The positive (red) lead clips on the battery post under the red plastic cover that flips up. The negative (black) lead clips on to any ground (the bolt head in your pix on the suspension strut top is fine. Plug the charger into any regular electrical outlet.

Doing this from memory so someone else please verify.

Yep, that's it exactly. All will be well.

Dave Marien wrote

Yep, that's it exactly. All will be well.

As such as shown below?

Do I plug the clamps on first, then plug the wall outlet in, and then let the charger do its work?

Is there a sequence I need to follow?

flash3 - yep, as you show in your pix. I always clip on the batt/ground leads first, then plug in; but I doubt it matters. If plugged in, just don't touch the leads together.

TY. Is there a way to check the batt level % somewhere on the car itself - i.e. idrive?

I haven't been able to find it

Lotus7 wrote

A "smart" charger like the Battery Tender (mentioned above), the CTEC
http://www.amazon.com/CTEK-Multi-Smart-Battery-Charger/dp/B000FQBWCY/ref=sr_1_1?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1306082851&sr=1-1

or the Griot's Garage Maintainer
http://www.griotsgarage.com/product/car+maintenance/battery+care/3-in-1+battery+charger+maintainer+tester.do?search=basic&keyword=Battery+Charger&sortby=newArrivals&page=1

is an especially good idea for the X3. Unlike most cars, where the battery is usually kept at about 90% of full charge, the X3 battery can drop down to 50% because of the way the BER (Brake Energy Recovery) system sometimes operates. Additionally, the X3 electronic systems create a substantial battery drain when the vehicle is parked.

One thing to keep in mind: Charging the X3 battery must be done via the "jumper" terminals under the hood. The 12 Volt accessory sockets in the passenger compartment are relay controlled and are disconnected from the battery after the car has been left for 15 minutes. A charger connected via the socket(s) will do no good.

Is there similar device that will work off an external battery? I'm thinking of a situation where you have to park somewhere where no outlet is available, say like at the airport.

flash3 wrote

TY. Is there a way to check the batt level % somewhere on the car itself - i.e. idrive?

I haven't been able to find it

Not via iDrive. The battery voltage can be measured directly at the charging post or one of the accessory sockets, but because of the switched charging system (BER) and the constant electrical load on the system when the car is "off". the measured voltage is not a good indicator of the state level until the battery has been charging for a while. Also, you need a accurate digital voltmeter, because small voltage differences translate to large charge level differences.

The battery voltage IS available via a digital query of the OBD-II port, (I've confirmed that it works) but that requires a specialized "CAN-protocol port reader" and is not something the average owner ever needs to get involved with.

If you didn't know your X3 had a "OBD-II" port and if you've never heard of CAN protocols, please forget you ever read the above.

I noticed there's one that u can even plug into the cig lighter instead of into the battery -- is that better and easier to use?

509trooper wrote

Is there similar device that will work off an external battery? I'm thinking of a situation where you have to park somewhere where no outlet is available, say like at the airport.

There are solar powered "chargers" that will work if you can park in the sun. Also there are many "Car starters" that contain a lead-acid gel cell that will hold a charge for 6 months or more that can be used to start the car. However if you left one connected, it would just be run down like the main car battery.

The car starters work well for a completely discharged battery, but won't help retain the computer memory settings if the main battery completely dies.

see:http://www.amazon.com/Schumacher-IP-125-Instant-Starter-Battery/dp/B000TD6S9U/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1307999642&sr=8-11

Lotus7 wrote

There are solar powered "chargers" that will work if you can park in the sun. Also there are many "Car starters" that contain a lead-acid gel cell that will hold a charge for 6 months or more that can be used to start the car. However if you left one connected, it would just be run down like the main car battery.

The car starters work well for a completely discharged battery, but won't help retain the computer memory settings if the main battery completely dies.

see:http://www.amazon.com/Schumacher-IP-125-Instant-Starter-Battery/dp/B000TD6S9U/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1307999642&sr=8-11

Thanks Lotus, I knew you'd be the one to answer this!

flash3 wrote

I noticed there's one that u can even plug into the cig lighter instead of into the battery -- is that better and easier to use?

No.

Won't work on the 2011 X3 (F25) because 15 minutes after you shut down the car, the lighter (accessory outlet) is disconnected from the electrical system. No connection-no charge possibility

Lotus7 wrote

No.

Won't work on the 2011 X3 (F25) because 15 minutes after you shut down the car, the lighter (accessory outlet) is disconnected from the electrical system. No connection-no charge possibility

I see. Then I guess I will use the one I have later this week.

So Lotus, in the pic I provided above (with the arrows), do you have the same set up too? And is that the right set up on how to "plug" things in?

flash3 wrote

I see. Then I guess I will use the one I have later this week.

So Lotus, in the pic I provided above (with the arrows), do you have the same set up too? And is that the right set up on how to "plug" things in?

Yes, the terminals circled in the pic are the place to connect a charger or jumper cables if you ever have to jump-start the vehicle. The RED one is Positive and connects directly to the battery (which is buried under the cargo floor). The post on the body is the "Ground" or negative terminal.

Remember to snap the red plastic cover back in place after use.

If you do have access to a digital voltmeter, you can monitor the charging process by measuring the voltage at the actual terminals mentioned above while the battery is on charge. With a "smart" charger like the Battery Tender (same as the BMW charger) charging at 1.25 Amps, the battery will be at approximately 90% when the voltage reaches 14.5 V. @ 75 deg. F.

With the small CTEK charger at 2.0 Amps, the charger will cut off at approximately 14.6 Volts.

The "smart" chargers do have status lights to let you know when the battery is charged.

Thanks a bunch, Lotus. I'll test it out this weekend maybe.

flash3, interesting carpet. White background and combo of details is unusual. Where was it made?

Thanks. It's a Persian carpet that I've had since I was a child. I can't tell you where it's made/bought though lol

I'm not using the car much either... it's been two weeks and only around 200km on it.
It is mostly in the garage...when I brought it straight from the dealership after pick up, I didn't drive it for 5 days and thought I'd have battery problems if I want to turn it on. But on the 6th day everything worked like a clock...

Lotus7 wrote

flash3 wrote

I see. Then I guess I will use the one I have later this week.

So Lotus, in the pic I provided above (with the arrows), do you have the same set up too? And is that the right set up on how to "plug" things in?

Yes, the terminals circled in the pic are the place to connect a charger or jumper cables if you ever have to jump-start the vehicle. The RED one is Positive and connects directly to the battery (which is buried under the cargo floor). The post on the body is the "Ground" or negative terminal.

Remember to snap the red plastic cover back in place after use.

If you do have access to a digital voltmeter, you can monitor the charging process by measuring the voltage at the actual terminals mentioned above while the battery is on charge. With a "smart" charger like the Battery Tender (same as the BMW charger) charging at 1.25 Amps, the battery will be at approximately 90% when the voltage reaches 14.5 V. @ 75 deg. F.

With the small CTEK charger at 2.0 Amps, the charger will cut off at approximately 14.6 Volts.

The "smart" chargers do have status lights to let you know when the battery is charged.

lotus, didn't get the chance last week to test the charger but will next week

To confirm, red clamp on red circle in my pic and the the other clamp can go on the black circle in my pic?

flash3 wrote

lotus, didn't get the chance last week to test the charger but will next week

To confirm, red clamp on red circle in my pic and the the other clamp can go on the black circle in my pic?

Yes. Flip the red cover up and connect the red clip there. Connect the black clip to the plain post (in the black circle on your photo). Then plug the charger in and let it charge. If you have a digital voltmeter, you can monitor the charge at the posts.

Depending on the amount of remaining charge in the battery, it will read something like 12.0 to 12.6 Volts when you start charging. It will slowly climb to as much as 14.7 Volts and than the smart charger will switch to a "trickle mode" and you will see something like a steady 13.5 Volts. If the charger has a "battery type" switch, it should be set to "AGM". If not, just connect it, plug it in and don't worry anymore. With a small 1.25 A Battery Tender or the 2 Amp CTEC, it may take 12 to 24 hours to fully charge the battery if the car has been sitting for a week or more.

When you're ready to drive the X3, first unplug the charger from the wall outlet, and then disconnect the to clips (although that sequence is really not critical because of the remote battery location).

Remember to flip the red plastic cover back in place when you disconnect the charger and keep any metal tools away from the red post.

If you really want to get the battery conditioned and up to a 100% charge, you should always start the charging cycle at midnight on any night that has a full moon. Before plugging the charger in, you should walk around the car (important Clockwise only in the Northern Hemisphere and Counter-clockwise if you're south of the equator) three full times chanting "BMW. BMW, BMW, Charge, Charge, Charge, BMW, BMW, BMW--- etc.