Upgrading Starter Battery - how to guide

[Grim Reaper]

My van (April 2017 T28) is fitted with a Moll battery.
I am experiencing some issues with it not starting after a few days sitting on the drive. Now this could be due to the tracker I have fitted draining it but I doubt it, I'll do some drain current tests before taking the plunge.
If I were to change the battery myself, could I replace it with a larger capacity one (eg a 95Ah 850A G14 Varta AGM which should just fit in the battery tray) instead of the standard 70Ah 700A Moll?
Is there anything I need to do to let the van know it has a different battery fitted? (I have VCDS if needed)

 

[Bryn23]

I just changed mine to a larger Silver dynamic Varta in the last two weeks or there abouts after having issues with my Moll battery, i didn't even think of getting a new one in warranty.

It fits, has more CCA and it holds charge.

580 901 080 | Varta Automotive

I do think that the larger model will just fit, although i have cables in the way that i'd have to re route if i was to fit the bigger model.

but you should be able to get your Moll replaced under warranty

 

[Dellmassive]

You should be able to get it replaced for a varta under warranty.

But if you change it your self you can add the new battery via VCDS in the energy management module.

Make, model serial, capacity.

And do basic settings to relearn all stored settings.

 

[Bryn23]

I didn’t realise you had to change the settings for a new battery...

I do have the euro 5 engine 132kw, if that makes a difference

 

[Dellmassive]

Battery coding is important for EU6 engines with stop/start because the system monitors the battery state for capacity, SOH, SOC, etc...

Not needed on a Eu5 non-stop/start.

Although I have noticed that the system (Eu6) goes info what I think is a self learning state for around 10 start cycles after the battery has been disconnected........ I noticed odd stop/start and charging behaviours.

 

[Bryn23]

Cheers Dell,

I've learnt something new today.

 

[mmi]

My van (April 2017 T28) is fitted with a Moll battery.
I am experiencing some issues with it not starting after a few days sitting on the drive. Now this could be due to the tracker I have fitted draining it but I doubt it, I'll do some drain current tests before taking the plunge.
If I were to change the battery myself, could I replace it with a larger capacity one (eg a 95Ah 850A G14 Varta AGM which should just fit in the battery tray) instead of the standard 70Ah 700A Moll?
Is there anything I need to do to let the van know it has a different battery fitted? (I have VCDS if needed)

The battery can be replaced with a new one with different capacity and even different type. Just let the van know by using the VCDS.

VCDS - Module 61 - (Long) Adaptations - Channel 04. Hover the mouse over data fields to get the instructions what to type in (screenshot below).


Battery Type is defined in the Codings - Byte 02:

 

[sam wildcat]

hi got my battery replaced for a varta under warranty, now i have a stop start fault error. AA has been out and the new battery wastnt sett up right, but still couldnt clear the fault, so now its going into vw garage tomorrow, hopefully will get sorted as im leaving for holland on wednesday

 

[Pauly]

It’s not critical, the van will function fine with an S/S fault just won’t turn off

 

[sam wildcat]

thanks pauly got van back but needs to go back in again for a Battery Monitoring Control Moduley. the van was in at 8am aswell you would think a vw commerical dealer would have them in stock

 

[Grim Reaper]

Just ordered a Bosch S5 A13 95Ah Battery off Tayna on their ebay site with 20% off using the code 'PARTY' £143.99 delivered next day.
Bosch batteries are apparently made by Varta but come with a 5 year guarantee over the Varta's 4 years.

 

[Loz]

Don't forget you will need to program in your new battery capacity.

 

[Grim Reaper]

Yes, That's tomorrow's job

 

[Loz]

this might help Battery Replacement - Ross-Tech Wiki

 

[Grim Reaper]

Some more information that might be useful to anyone doing a similar thing..
The battery may or may not have a BEM sticker on it (Tayna told me that it is unlikely to have one) and it is this BEM code that you need to put in via VCDS to let the Battery management system know what type and capacity of 'reservoir' it has to fill up and draw from.
Since Bosch batteries are made by Varta it should be a simple case of using the BEM code off the Varta equivalent to write into the BMS.
So I'm going to use the BEM off the Varta 3D0 915 105 G (DIN 595 901 085) as this is the equivalent of the Bosch S5 A13 12V AGM 95Ah 850A

It should be possible to use a code for a battery of the same capacity and use the first/last 10 digits of the barcode as the serial number (if you were replacing like for like it would be the change of serial number that lets the BMS know that a different battery has been installed, apparently you could just change one digit of the existing serial number to have the same effect, it doesn't use this information to get any technical data at all)

 

[Grim Reaper]

Battery in position and all the wiring reconnected, I'm just charging it up from my CTEK MXS10 charger before I program it in with VCDS.


Edit to add:

Length	353 mm
Width	175 mm
Height inc. terminals	190 mm
Weight	26.4 KG

It's a bit of a squeeze but the battery tray is big enough and the existing bolt down bracket at the front sits in the centre indent in the battery moulding so it's not going anywhere.

 

[Grim Reaper]

Programming the battery..
The existing unit is a Moll 70Ah 700A EFB+.
The new unit is a Bosch 95Ah 850A AGM.
In VCDS, going into 'Select Control Module' Choosing '61-Battery Regul.' then 'Coding' and using the long coding helper, I have changed the bits 4-7 in byte 2 from 70 EFB to 10 AGM.
In the 'Long Adaptation' of the same 61 module, choosing 'Battery Information/Replacement' from the drop down menu, I have changed it from 070 MLA 1111111111 to 095 VA0 7025244367 (the last 10 digits of the barcode on the battery)
All looks OK so far..

 

[Dellmassive]

for reference:

.

 

[nickg77]

Any members on here that are VCDS users around the Rugby/Warwickshire area? Still having battery issues.

 

[Ads_Essex]

Programming the battery..
The existing unit is a Moll 70Ah 700A EFB+.
The new unit is a Bosch 95Ah 850A AGM.
In VCDS, going into 'Select Control Module' Choosing '61-Battery Regul.' then 'Coding' and using the long coding helper, I have changed the bits 4-7 in byte 2 from 70 EFB to 10 AGM.
In the 'Long Adaptation' of the same 61 module, choosing 'Battery Information/Replacement' from the drop down menu, I have changed it from 070 MLA 1111111111 to 095 VA0 7025244367 (the last 10 digits of the barcode on the battery)
All looks OK so far..

@Grim Reaper i have changed battery and had a go at coding it- I couldn’t find how to change the 4-7 bits but did manage to change the barcode element. It was a CAN VCDS cable that I used.
I guess I’ll have to see how I go