New Battery

[bomber]

It's time to replace the battery in my '03 MCS. Does anyone know of a good aftermarket battery that fits and has the correct vent arrangement? I looked at one, but the vent was oblong with no way to adapt it.

[Minidave]

Is there an Interstate batteries nearby? I think they have the right ones, and I think they're similar to those used on Audi's and VW's.....

[bomber]

Thanks Dave. I think there's one in Springfield. I'll check when I'm in there on Monday.

[davester]

try these retailers----


1. OPTIMA Red Top 34R--Buy at Autobarn ebay store-search autobarn 57 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/ebay
ISAP1.dll--$139.50--$7.50 S&H

2. Optima top post 800 CCA reverse terminal battery. Size--10"L.x6.8"W.x7.8"H--800 amps

3. Autozone Duralst Battery--Sparky14-#H5-DLG/47DL

4. Oreilly-Item 48-72/#700CLA/875CA--$69.00

5. Advanced Auto--Autocraft battery#471/CCA590--$69.88

6. AC DELCO batt--ACD 48191-60 BC148CCA 0420 top post 7. Braille Batterie--no specific info

8. Sears DIE HARD category 47--$119.00

9. Interstate M7-47

[bomber]

Thanks for all the info! I think you've been there before.

[cletus]

I'm a bit late to contribute a whole lot to the battery discussion, but it might interest a few to know that when your battery goes, it doesn't go gently into the night with plenty of advance warning ... it very suddenly drops off the cliff. I wouldn't have believed it could be that sudden, but at 6 years and a month or so the battery in my '03 MCS took a nose dive. I drove home from work without incident, parked for about 5 minutes while I collected the wife and hopped back in to go shopping, and in the 20 minutes between between starting home and starting the shopping trip my OEM battery went from perfectly serviceable to perfectly useless. I pulled up the carpet in the back to see the green "I'm OK 'eye'" mocking me. But all connections were solid, and the area on and around the battery was clean enough to eat off of.

I threw a charger on it overnight to see what would happen, but next morning I got squat for a response. I consulted North American Motoring to verify that it was the battery and not something else, and it appears that when they failed, everyone else's batteries had failed completely and very suddenly as well. Stories abounded about how scarce and expensive #47 replacements were, and lots of people recommended paying the big bux for a top drawer Optima Red Top (#34R for best fit) rather than the same kind of money for a garden variety #47 (if you could even find one).

So I went out searching for an Optima Red Top 34R, expecting to pay two bills, but knowing I'd have an excellent battery that oughtta give me another six years or perhaps longer. Surprisingly, I found that Optimas in general and 34Rs specifically are scarce as hens' teeth. Sam's Club in Council Bluffs used to have a rack full of various Optimas; they were down to 6 batteries on display in two form factors. They had no 34Rs, and weren't even sure there was a 34R in the shipment due in later in the week. The Sam's club a dozen miles away in Omaha didn't even carry Optimas.

I ended up at Standard Battery, a KC company with a location in Omaha, which advertised carrying Optimas. They, too, had no 34Rs, but when I mentioned that I was replacing a 47 in a MINI the guy said he had those by the dozen. I ended up spending 65 bux on an exact replacement for the stock battery, except with 750 CCR instead of 550. It had the vent hole in the proper place and dropped into the battery compartment with no retrofitting necessary. Oh... it also had the holes properly spaced for the old battery's positive terminal protector to fit, and it featured a handy-dandy retractable handle which the old battery didn't have.

Now here's the interesting part. I read an account by one cat on North American Motoring who claimed that the performance of his MINI actually improved after replacing the OEM battery. Now, not being one to believe in voodoo, I dismissed his report out of hand. I mean, by what mechanism could a battery change possibly improve engine performance??? None that I can think of. Yet I would swear that my MCS, which turns into a snail off the line during A/C season, is now taking off from stoplights with no sign of the lugging I'm used to. It's the damnedest thing. The only signs than anything at all changed are that my Check Engine light is on (I assume the code will be something like "you've had a catastrophic electrical problem, but it's OK now") and I had to reset my clock for both time and 12-hour operation.

Anyone else experience any changes in performance after replacing a battery? Or am I imagining things?

[Minidave]

When I replaced the 10 year old battery in my Lexus it underwent a profound change - it started !

[cletus]

Well..... yeah, that too. I was seriously checking to be sure my A/C hadn't blown a fuse, but it's obviously working. Moreover, the Check Engine light reset itself this morning. Oh well, I'll just motor on 'til the next time the battery drops. But I think at around year 5 I'll be keeping a spare battery in the boot 'cause it wouldn't have been fun to have been caught in the middle of nowhere.

[ragtopday Johnna]

My battery died last night and like other reports, there was no warning. It wouldn't start hooked up to an electric battery charger or with a jump start. I had driven about 5 miles, turned the car off for about 5 minutes and then it would not re-start. The headlights did some funky flashing thing but that was it, which also meant no power to the top. Ugh.

John called Standard battery this morning and they said they had the battery in stock, however after we drove there and they checked in both of their buildings, they did not have the battery. Please keep that in mind if you are considering driving to the West Bottoms in search of a battery.

I ended up with a battery from O-Reilly and it fits mostly fine except the negative terminal connection seems a little lower, so the connection isn't ideal. I think a small notch will have to be cut out of the battery box to make it perfect.

Back on the road...

[Minidave]

The reason they quit like this is they get sulfated, the schmutz builds up in the bottom of the battery till it shorts out the plates, then no amount of persuasion will bring it back again. I'm a little surprised it wouldn't go with a jumper, and in fact it might have had you disconnected the bad battery at the positive cable and just used the jumper, but then it also might have destroyed your alternator trying to charge up a shorted battery too. Who knows, maybe our MINIs are just protecting themselves when they won't start with a bad battery? At any rate, you should be good to go for another 5 years then........

[davester]

"I ended up at Standard Battery, a KC company with a location in Omaha, which advertised carrying Optimas. They, too, had no 34Rs, but when I mentioned that I was replacing a 47 in a MINI the guy said he had those by the dozen. I ended up spending 65 bux on an exact replacement for the stock battery, except with 750 CCR instead of 550. It had the vent hole in the proper place and dropped into the battery compartment with no retrofitting necessary. Oh... it also had the holes properly spaced for the old battery's positive terminal protector to fit, and it featured a handy-dandy retractable handle which the old battery didn't have."

Both Frank (Blugoose) and I purchased batteries at Standard Battery at 1616 Wyoming KC,MO 816-421-8118. My car is five years(84500 miles) old and Frank's is four. I wanted to replace the battery before winter set in so I wouldn't be stranded somewhere. The group 47 is a direct replacement for the OE battery in our R53. Same dimensions with the vent hole in the proper place. Be sure to remove the red positive post protector and install on new battery. Everything fits perfectly and the price installed with tax was $68. They did a very good job of installation--- Just make sure they have it in stock before you go.
By the way, the battery has 750 CA with 600 Cold Cranking Amps. This surpasses all OE specs.

[BLUGOOSE]

DITTO!!!!! Dave

[boxer]

Hello all. I just replaced the battery in Boxer, an '03 MCS. What a difference it made. The car has never started as easily as it did with the new battery. Purchased an Optima 34R from Advance Auto Parts on 95st at I-35 in Overland Park. The car used to have a sluggish feel when starting to move and thru shifts. Not anymore. What a difference. When idling at a traffic light, could not believe how smooth it was. Might be one the best upgrades a MINI Cooper S could receive. The battery I removed was the original which had 450CCA. The Optima Redtop has 800CCA. Might be the only battery I will have to purchase for the car.

[kabootist]

Optima batteries are very good, you made a wise choice...800CCA is a LOT! you could start a diesel engine on a very cold morning with that

A bunch of the BMW riders use the motorcycle optima batteries as they hold up alot better than the OEMs for all the heated clothing and GPS and etc.

[LiLReD1]

Optima is the only way I go... especially if yer running more accessories than what's stock.

[Minidave]

I'm headed down to Std battery this am to pick one of these up for my '03, thanks for the tip!