# Cold Weather Killing my 745Li



## RWByers (Feb 15, 2007)

Even'n all. I recently bought a 2003 745LI will 12K miles while stationed in sunny California. 

As luck would have it I was sent back east to a remote location for some schooling in between commands and the nearest BMW dealership is over 45 minutes away (Im in upper VA)

Recently the cold weather has caused my car to die. I get normal electrical indications when inserting the key. Radio, nav, indicators are all working. However engine just clicks sounds like it's about to start and then fades off clicking.

Now ive been researching and Im under the impression that the 745 series runs on two different batteries; 1 for electronics and 1 for the starting system.

I have always been a do it yourself joe on minor repairs, but when something is supposed to be covered by warranty Im concerned.

Problem is the car will start with a jump. I take it for a long drive in the country. However a few hours later say 3 or 4 it's dead again. Using a portal jumpstarter and a meter the battery looks like it's charging. Ive had zero problems with it until the weather went south.

Am I the only one experiencing this with the cold weather? Is it simply a battery with low CCA, or is their potentially a more severe problem.

Thanks for putting up with the novella.


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## BmW745On19's (Aug 12, 2005)

Battery probably just needs to be replaced. Dealer should replace it for free, or I'd make them do it since they are about $140 for an OEM battery, but some guy on this forum found a battery as sears for $40 that was the same thing.


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## Willow808 (Nov 9, 2006)

It's definitely going to be the battery. I had the exact same problem a few weeks ago and my dealer took care of it rather quickly. You should be good to go after they replace it.


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## bimmer dot info (Jul 13, 2006)

You can try charging it out of the car somewhere thats a bit warmer. You will probably have to replace it though.


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## asci01 (Jun 1, 2006)

Cold weather can make a weak battery fail completely. It slows down the chemical reaction inside the battery to the point that is not enough to start the car but enough perhaps for radio and stuff. So you should be fine after getting a new battery.

BTW, I'm not aware of a 745 with two separate batteries. There's only one in the trunk even though you jump start it with the extended terminals in the engine compartment. Maybe this is what has caused the misconception of two batteries :dunno:

Congrats on your new bimmer !


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## mvallido (Feb 2, 2006)

It's definately the battery. Had a few cold nights here in San Diego and my battery just died. Took it autozone, got it charged and tested and NO GOOD so I got a replacement for free.


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