what is battery registry?

[monterey]

Yeah so ehat the heck is this?

[roastbeef]

its a thing you have to do so the car recognizes the battery. not sure why the car actually needs it, but it does.

[jphughan]

It's called battery registration, not a battery registry, but as roastbeef said, it's important to do. There's an official detailed explanation as to what exactly it does, but basically the car's electronics adapt their operation based on how old they know that the battery is, so when you replace it, you have to register it so those components change their operation accordingly to take advantage of a fresh battery. My wife's Mini once wouldn't close the sunroof properly when the engine wasn't running, which was a symptom of a weak battery. Replaced the battery and no change. Registered that battery, and presto it started working correctly. So while it's not the case that your car won't be able to use a new battery at all until it's registered, it might not work quite right until it is.

[bsd damon]

I just got my battery replaced (2011 E92) last week and the car needed 4+ hours with the new battery (after it was registered) to re-learn the systems - error codes, comfort access, etc.

[monterey]

Will having a battery tender effect the registration?

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by monterey

Will having a battery tender effect the registration?

No. Keeping a battery topped up has nothing to do with what happens when a battery is replaced.

[Beemdog]

It has to do with the so-called "smart" charging system (which allows the alternator to charge the battery as required at times when it is most efficient to do so). The age and past history of the battery is taken into consideration to determine max charging rates, priority to charge Vs. conserving alternator load, and other considerations. There are times when BMW goes overboard on snazzy features and I'm sure many would prefer an old-fashioned "dumb" charging system without the added complexity and cost. IMO, a truly smart charging system should be able to figure out the state of health of the battery in the act of charging it and monitoring voltage rise, as many intelligent chargers do these days for maintaining R/C hobby battery packs. If BMW had finished the firmware for its charge management, they could have made "battery registration" unnecessary-- or at worst requiring a user operable Reset command from the I-Drive (especially given a new battery installation with the same amp-hour capacity).

[nholmes]

From the internetz:

The electrical system in late-model BMWs is so sophisticated that it tailors charging as closely as possible to both the type and age of the battery. There’s a computer that controls the alternator. When you replace a battery, this computer really needs to know if you’ve replaced the battery or updated the vehicle from a conventional Lead Acid battery to an Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM) type; it charges the AGM differently than a traditional battery.
This process of updating the alternator-control computer is called Battery Registration. Ignoring the registration process after replacing a battery won’t necessarily trigger a Diagnostic Trouble Code or Malfunction Indicator Lamp (‘Check Engine’ or ‘Service Engine Soon’ light). However, be warned that skipping the battery registration process can dramatically shorten the life of a battery in these vehicles and- worse yet- damage components within the entire electrical system.
We have diagnosed some BMWs with failing batteries installed less than a year simply due to failing to have the battery registered! The charging system often shortens the life of an unregistered battery by charging it too aggressively, especially when it is cold, and sometimes damaging other control units. More than once, we have replaced an alternator that failed prematurely because battery registration was not performed when the vehicle’s battery was replaced.

Battery Registration informs the vehicle that the battery has been replaced. It completes the following operations:
· Battery capacity is set to 80%
· Current Odometer reading are stored
· Stored battery statistics (current, voltage, battery charge level) are deleted
· Stored temperature statistics are deleted

The following late-model vehicles require battery registration:
· 2002 and newer 7-Series E65/E66 chassis
· 2003 and newer 6-Series E54/E63 chassis
· 2004 and newer 5-Series E60/E61 chassis
· 2006 and newer 3-Series E90/E91/E92/E93 chassis
· 2005 and newer X5 E53 chassis with N62 engine
· 2007 and newer X5 E70 chassis
· 2008 and newer X6 E71 chassis

[TWiTCHY]

Sorry to revive an old thread. Is there a way I can check to see whether the previous owner registered the battery?

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by TWiTCHY

Sorry to revive an old thread. Is there a way I can check to see whether the previous owner registered the battery?

No, I haven't seen a way to check when the last battery registration occurred, and I wouldn't do it on a battery that's not particularly new anymore. If the car works fine right now, leave it alone.

[TWiTCHY]

Originally Posted by jphughan

No, I haven't seen a way to check when the last battery registration occurred, and I wouldn't do it on a battery that's not particularly new anymore. If the car works fine right now, leave it alone.

Carly showed that no previous registration was made on the battery, and it was an AGM type that was supposedly installed no more than 3 months ago, so I went ahead and registered it since I was having issues with the electronic steering wheel shift lights and oil temp display. The only thing that would fix them was disconnecting the battery. Maybe the battery registration will prevent them from going out again :

[RickP]

HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Battery\