I have a 2008 Stock Mini Cooper. Im sure my battery is causing my problems with several different warning symbols to appear on my tach and gauges. So, Im about to go buy a new battery. My question is, will a Walmart or Sears same size battery work in my 2008 Mini or do I have to fork out 160.00 for a official mini battery like the one in the car?

 

Batteries Plus, if you have those out there, will carry it or can order it. Make sure that, if your Mini has an AGM battery, that you order an AGM battery. (Those are fully-sealed and do not vent hydrogen like traditional batteries do).

 

mine must not be a agm because we removed the caps and added distilled water and re-charged it.....but its showing 12.3 volts and someone told me that a fully charged would be 12.7

 

it will start but many warning symbols keep popping up and I was told the defective battery is causing all the warning symbols

 

I replaced my battery with one from Sears and it's been doing fine. Granted mine is a Cooper S, but the battery's should be the same. I'll dig up the info on the battery I'm running. You just need to make sure that the cold cranking amps (CCA) are in the same range as the factory, and something else needs to match. Can't remember what it is, but once I find out, I'll post in here with what I have.

 

"group size" has to do with the physical size of the battery, so it will fit in the mounts

buy the correct group and so far as AMPs - more is always better!

You should be able to get a suitable battery just about any place that sells auto batteries . . .

 

More is not always better in the case of the MINI. Trust me when I say I spent a good two days back and forth with places and dealers about what was required. And the one thing that came apparent, is that too many amps is just as bad for the systems as too few.

Anyway, this is the battery I'm currently running in my Cooper S:

http://www.sears.com/diehard-advance...1&blockType=G1

 

despite having way too many hours of schooling in electrical engineering

I'm not going to begin an argument here

altho I'll mention that I replaced the bat in the 02 twice . . . and in the 79 . . . . .

 

I was thinking the same thing.

Suffice to say this: More cold-crank amps, or more amp-hours, just indicates the LOAD or CAPACITY the battery is capable of. Your car will only ever draw what it NEEDS.

The only thing you would want to avoid is a battery with improper VOLTAGE. Putting an 18- or 24-volt battery in a 12-volt car would be bad. But putting a 900CCA battery in a car that ships with a 300CCA battery won't hurt a thing.

 

Be aware that the battery registration (BMW/Mini) procedure resets the charging system so it can better taylor the needed charge of the battery. It also sends out a "broadcast message" to the modules on the cars network that the battery has been replaced.

Some claim you can skip this, others claim you can't.

Problems can occur and the battery life can be drastically reduced by failure to get it registered.

http://www.thedrivingmachine.com/blo...iq-of-a-genius

That said, if CCA and Ah match to the OEM battery you might not need to do this...

 

The battery I have in my car is 55 Ah 480 CCA. So I should try to find a battery with same numbers?

 

I bought this battery and it seems to work good, but the check engine light comes on when I start it. What do I do now?

 

a few thoughts

- there was a time I trusted SEARS for appliances and auto repairs and tires and batteries .... those days have faded in my rear view mirror

- there was a time I bought AGM batteries believing they were better. That is right next to SEARS in the RVM

- did U install it? Or did the store? If the later, check the connections .... are they tight?

- take the car to a GOOD garage or autopart store and have them check the battery. Would not be the first time someone was sold a "stale" battery.

- Or go back to SEARS and have them read the codes (if they can) to determine if the starting system is the culprit

 

I completely agree about your opinions of Sears and auto services and batteries. However I was in need of a battery and optima doesnt make a battery for the MINI or else I wouldn't have gotten the sears one. As the guy said when he jumped off the Empire State building, "so far so good." Lol

 

optima is the brand I've stopped using . . . .

gone down hill big time

IMO

 

The Sears battery I bought fit perfect and once I filled up my gas tank, all the warnings disappeared and everything is good as I go mini'n down the road again!