BMW e46 m3 (2002) battery/ alternator problem, HELP PLEASE

[Django x2]

Yeah cool. That's the reason I asked about the satnav. Your car is the right age for the MK4/5 sat nav computer which used to have a flid over time and wouldn't shutdown properly. As it's in the boot, you didn't hear it moaning. It would drain the battery in a short space of time.

 

[[TW]Fox]

Yeah cool. That's the reason I asked about the satnav. Your car is the right age for the MK4/5 sat nav computer which used to have a flid over time and wouldn't shutdown properly. As it's in the boot, you didn't hear it moaning. It would drain the battery in a short space of time.

There is no mk5 Nav computer and his car is too old to have had a mk4 factory fitted.

 

[PeterNem]

I'd replace the battery and go from there. I had similar issues with my e39 M5. Had to jump it if it was left for more than a day or so or if I used any electrical accessories while the car was off. (was a real pain to jump start too - the AA man needed to connect his van and a jump pack at the same time).

The AA guy swore until he was blue in the face that the battery was fine and the car was "broken" despite me challenging him. His testing machine also said the battery was fine.

I ignored them both and went and got a new battery, and all my issues went away. Shame as my AA cover should have covered the price of a new battery.

 

[[TW]Fox]

Worst case scenario is you replace a 9 year old battery with a nice fresh one. This is probably a prudent thing to do anyway so its not as if it'll be a waste of money if it doesnt fix it.

 

[Iceman]

I would be wanting to check nothing is draining your battery before putting a new one on. If you do have an electrical drain then it wont take long to drain a new battery.