Audi A3 Stop Start Battery replacement

[Nalag46]

Hi,

My car battery is about done and it will need replacing soon. I have found that an exact replacement for the existing Exide Micro Hybrid EL700 would be the Yuasa YBX7096 700a/75ah. Can I change this battery myself without losing/altering the dashboard display settings, and if so, what's the safest method? I have asked at two tyre/service centers and the price is over £200 plus a fitting charge of £27 when I could buy this battery online for just over £120. Any feedback would be most appreciated.

[Magnet]

Hello Tony,

Where are you getting your Yuasa quote from, how many years warranty do you get, and any reason for deciding on Yuasa rather than the OE Exide? 
Although your price sounds competitive, have you had a quote on an Exide from Tayna Batteries?  I’ve bought a couple of competitively priced Exide batteries from them to good effect in recent months. ( no connection with this company). 
Almost certain it will need coding. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Nalag46]

Hi Gareth,

My local tyre centres that also carry out battery replacements are National Tyre and ATSEuromaster. They both offer the Yuasa only as the exact replacement and at the prices quoted above plus the fitting, so I searched Amazon and eBay, and the quotes I got included a 4-year warranty plus free delivery. I haven't been able to trace the Exide but I will try your link. 

My main issue is the coding. If I have to take the car to a garage after fitting the battery myself, it will defeat the object of trying to go to all that bother and having to pay more or less the same price in the end?

Thanks for your input.

Regards,

Tony

[Magnet]

Thanks Tony,

You appear to have done your homework, and you are wise to factor in the coding charge. 
Two remaining questions to complete the homework:- 

Have you checked the coding charge with a local independent?
Have you e-mailed your registration number direct to Tayna Batteries and asked then for a quote for an Exide battery to the same spec. as your OE battery?
Kind regards,

Gareth,  

[Nalag46]

Hi Gareth,

Yes, I have done all of that. I contacted Tayna B. and they were very helpful. They say that by changing my Exide battery with an exactly equal one, all I have to do is use the same code that appears on my battery. I also noted they sell an Exide battery replacement tool but I was told is not needed in this case.

Removing and replacing the battery to its stand location is straightforward. I just do not want to end up with any further complications.

Regards,

Tony

[Magnet]

So what was Tanya’s Exide quote, and how does it compare with your Yuasa quotes? 
Using the same code as on your current battery??
Not sure I would fully understand that, since the ‘intelligent’ system would treat it as it does with your current ailing battery. 
Confirmation/ true story/ quote  lies with a local independent. 
Perhaps you could let us know on the above Tony. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Nalag46]

39 minutes ago, Magnet said:

So what was Tanya’s Exide quote, and how does it compare with your Yuasa quotes? 
Using the same code as on your current battery??
Not sure I would fully understand that, since the ‘intelligent’ system would treat it as it does with your current ailing battery. 
Confirmation/ true story/ quote  lies with a local independent. 
Perhaps you could let us know on the above Tony. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

The Exide (out of stock) is £118 and the Yuasa £105 plus delivery. A big difference in the garage prices, however, I too am not too confident about the coding workings. My Exide battery is 9 years old and still going, just, so the exact model is El700 Micro Hybrid but the Tayna El700 is EFB, all the dimensions etc, are the same. What I find strange is that no one else mentions changing this type of battery on this forum. Am I the only one trying it?

I do not know what to do and that is why I posted it here to find out from someone who has actually carried out this job.

Cheers,

Tony 

[Magnet]

OK Tony, so the Exide is out of stock at this supplier - there are others,  such as Battery Magastore, etc. and which can be found on a Google search. Yuasa? A freelance neighbour mechanic commented some years ago about the predominance of used Yuasa batteries at garages he visited, so he wasn’t impressed, but things may well be different now. 
 

Re. ‘I do not know what to do…..’ ?

I think the forum has given you advice on alternative suppliers for batteries, so you are now armed to decide what you want to buy. 
You have been advised that the new battery is likely to need coding. 
We have suggested that you make contact with a local independent, to confirm that and to quote you for coding. 

As I see it Tony, you are now armed with a plan to enable you to move forward to make a decision - I now don’t know what else we can do. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Nalag46]

Hi Gareth,

I am grateful for the information and advice provided. I will carry on searching for all the info. I still need and then I will decide whether to buy directly from a supplier or go directly to a garage and let them fit it and sort out any problems.

Thanks again,

Best regards,

Tony

[Magnet]

You are very welcome Tony, but you do seem to be making a bit of a complicated job of this - ‘ I will carry on searching…’.

Just pick up the phone on Monday, ring a local independent and ask for a cost to code in a new battery. ‘Thimble’ as our little stand up beings would say! 
‘A garage to supply and fit…’? They will fit the best-deal-to-them-motor factor battery. Would you be happy with that? 
Anyway, this is getting a bit repetitive. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Darryl Hill]

Unless you have VCDS or equivalent to recode the battery details into the correct blocks you will have all sorts of problems throw up on the dash, RING an independent garage and get them to quote to fit it for you, I wouldn't use either of the 2 tyre centres you have had quotes from nor Halfords, as none of them know how to correctly code the battery in, and as Gareth has said, a garage will supply and fit what they get from the local motor factors, unless of course you ask for a certain battery, also garages like shops have to mark up their prices to RRP to make a living, before we had the internet you would only get garage prices, unless you knew where to go to get a better deal, now you can get prices less than RRP online

[Nalag46]

2 minutes ago, Darryl Hill said:

Unless you have VCDS or equivalent to recode the battery details into the correct blocks you will have all sorts of problems throw up on the dash, RING an independent garage and get them to quote to fit it for you, I wouldn't use either of the 2 tyre centres you have had quotes from nor Halfords, as none of them know how to correctly code the battery in, and as Gareth has said, a garage will supply and fit what they get from the local motor factors, unless of course you ask for a certain battery, also garages like shops have to mark up their prices to RRP to make a living, before we had the internet you would only get garage prices, unless you knew where to go to get a better deal, now you can get prices less than RRP online

I appreciate your comments and I think you are right, I have no confidence either in any of the contacts I made and I will look up a garage with trained mechanics for a quote. Thanks again.

[Magnet]

Hello Tony,

I feel I’m getting to the point of keeping on here, and it could just be me, but ‘……I will look up a garage with trained mechanics…. ‘ 

You must obviously chose to go wherever you want, but trying to qualify your statement - if it were mine, it would read ‘…..I will look up an independent VAG specialist ……’.

As has been said ‘….garage with trained mechanics ….’ is likely to result in them fitting the best-deal-to-them battery. 
Good luck with this Tony.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Nalag46]

2 hours ago, Magnet said:

Hello Tony,

I feel I’m getting to the point of keeping on here, and it could just be me, but ‘……I will look up a garage with trained mechanics…. ‘ 

You must obviously chose to go wherever you want, but trying to qualify your statement - if it were mine, it would read ‘…..I will look up an independent VAG specialist ……’.

As has been said ‘….garage with trained mechanics ….’ is likely to result in them fitting the best-deal-to-them battery. 
Good luck with this Tony.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

Hi Gareth,

I get what you are saying but the fact is, where I live, there is very little if any choice of the type of specialists you mention. Also, what I meant was, that I'll look up a garage with trained personnel to ask if they will fit the battery of my choice that I'll be purchasing from a reputable supplier. Whether that would be accepted or not I can only find out by asking. It can't be that difficult to recode the damned thing with the correct coding tool, surely?

Anyway, I'll see what I find out and take it from there.

Regards,

Tony

Anyway, I'll see what happens and I'll take it from there.

[Magnet]

Sincere apologies Tony - overlooked the Isle of Wight bit! 
Are Westridge a full blown dealership ( where things might be over expensive!) or largish independents? 
Worth a call? 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Nalag46]

17 hours ago, Magnet said:

Sincere apologies Tony - overlooked the Isle of Wight bit! 
Are Westridge a full blown dealership ( where things might be over expensive!) or largish independents? 
Worth a call? 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

Gareth, Westridge Garage is the main dealer for Skoda and Mitsubishi and they will be the same price as the others. The original Audi main dealer, where I bought my car brand new from, is Esplanade Garage. They dropped the Audi dealership a few years ago after an argument with Audi but they are still dealing with VW, Mercedes, and more, but I wouldn't go back there after the way they treated all of us loyal customers, apart from that, they will be 100% more expensive than anyone else.

I'll make some enquiries and I'll post back if I get a positive result.

Thanks

Tony

[Nalag46]

Hi again Gareth,

I have found a reliable local garage that can carry out the battery installation.

I have to apologize but my existing Audi-installed battery, which is enclosed in a soft material case, turns out to be a German-made MLA MOLL 680a 69ah type. I have never had any trouble with this battery until now so I never checked the type properly, but I do have a written note in my owner's manual that a replacement should be the Exide EL700 720ah 70a, except I cannot remember where it comes from or who recommended it?

Are you acquainted with the MLA-MOLL? I cannot find it in any search so I assume it's no longer manufactured and, before I order the Exide, do you think it's the best option up there?

Thanks again,

Tony

[Magnet]

Heel Tony,

Moll are German made batteries and were (as you now know) were, and still may be, OE suppliers to VAG. Having said that, I recall there were some within-warranty issues with some of them some 3 to 4 years ago, so yours has done remarkably well to last 10 years. 
As you probably know, the 69aH value denotes the battery’s capacity, and the 680amp, is the current it is able to generate under cold cranking conditions - it’s CCA rating. Upshot - you are looking for a replacement where the values match or exceed these values. Type will be AGM or EFB. 
If you are going to buy from Tayna, it might be worth going back to them and ask for confirmation that the Exide they supply will be equal to or better than your current Moll. 
‘Reliable garage to carryout the installation’…….I take it that will include coding the battery to the car, as opposed to just fitting. 

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[jamesW]

Autodoc website can give you all alternative exact match batteries based on the OEM code of your current one. Apparently OEM code guarantees exactly same specification.

Here is an example for OEM MOLL battery 6RO 915 105 B in my A3 where I have exactly the same problem of just needing the 'coding' to be done if I self-fit. 

I've been quoted £409 by local Audi for supply, fit & code where I can get the battery for £140 or less!!

https://www.autodoc.co.uk/car-parts/oem/6r0915105b