Hi guys!

I have a 2019 1.5 TDI manual Skoda Scala, and my battery is dying. I was wondering to change it by myself but...I got stuck just at the beginning since I'm not able to remove it from the car 😅

A few questions:

1) Does anyone of you can give me some hints regarding the steps to follow?

2) Moreover, there's a sort of box with cables just on top of the battery (see pics) and I can't figure out how to remove it without breaking something..

3) Any suggestions for keeping the car settings or to avoid damages? I read the manuals but I didn't find any particular advise 😐

 

Thank you!

 

I've not got a 2019 Scala, but typically for a VW Group car, you will find that when a box is fitted above the battery, it is only clipped on to the battery and also the battery +VE terminal.

 

You can buy a "memory saver" that typically gets plugged into the OBD2 port/socket in front of the driver's position in the cabin.

 

My maybe sad worry is losing the MPG figures, if losing them does not bother you, then you don't have anything to worry about, when you fit the new battery, there will be warnings, but after driving the car a short distance should allow the electric steering to sort itself out, and operating the electric windows as per the owner's handbook should sort out the window endstop limits.

 

I have a smallish 19AmpHour HillBilly battery that is inside a case that is a jump starter and mobile 12V DC power source, so I connect a suitable lead between the OBD2 socket and that jump starter, switch it on, then remove the car's main battery - making sure that I cover the disconnected +VE terminal to keep it from contacting anything else.

 

A really good plan might be to replace that EFB with an AGM - then soon after doing that, get the new battery coded to the car - do that coding to the car even if replacing a "like for like" battery size and chemistry.

 

Edit:- from memory, pressing down at any clip and fitting a screwdriver into the slot in the clip should force it out and so release it.

Edited 25 April, 20242 yr by rum4mo

@foxdie2635 how much is the battery dying?

 

Rather than replacing have you tried fully recharging the battery with an appropriate battery charger, following the instructions in the car's Owner's Manual and charger's instructions.  A lower amp charger is generally better than a higher amp charger (see Owner's Manual).  If the battery is very low then the recharging could take a long time, many hours, so if you can't fully recharge the battery in one go do it in a couple of goes (or more) as close together as possible.  Time and patience are required, these are sometimes totally out of stock for some.

 

VWSkoda Owner's Manuals free pdf downloads. - https://manual.skoda-auto.com/004/en-com/Models

 

Do you fully know about the requirements with changing a car battery on a start/stop VW car?

 

Car batteries are one of the most over sold car parts and number cause of breakdown call outs, very rarely is the battery the at fault but it's use/abuse/neglect by the car's owner/driver.

 

Sometimes, perhaps often now, the car battery has had too much and/or too often use/abuse/neglect and can't be fully recovered for successful medium and longer term use but obviously I can't know if that's the case for your battery.

 

Good luck with whatever you decide, if you want more info, just ask.

 

Edited 25 April, 20242 yr by nta16
ETA:

Thanks for the suggestions @rum4mo!

Regarding the change from EFB to AGM, I've to admit that I'm a little bit scared of the programming part (I don't have the equipment and I'm scared of screwing everything 😅 ). Anyway, I'll look into that to figure out what's better  

 

@nta16 you got the point. Actually, the battery is not dead, the tension is moving around 12.3 - 12.4 after 3-4 days not using the car. Sometimes it seems like the car has a harder time starting so I decided to solve the problem in two ways:

1) I bought a charger and try to give a little "boost" at the battery. Hopefully, this will solve the issue. I bought the "Bosch C30 3.8 A": a little bit expensive compared to other solution but it seems to be designed also for this new type of battery so...I preferred to spend a little bit more and stay safe. Do you think is a good product for doing the job? Do you suggest me something different?

 

2) looking for the battery replacement in case option 1) doesn't solve the issue. I'm aware of the fact that the start/stop car are using different types of batteries (EFP or AGM), and now, with all the electronics onboard, this part became more important than the engine 😅 so...personally speaking, I hope that a good charge will solve the issue, but I'm preparing myself for the worst case scenario 🙂

 

I found a coupled of websites that gives you the right spare parts depending on your car (for example, autodoc). It seems that my car is using a 70Ah/760A battery (dimensions in cm are 278x175x190), like the Exide EL700. But I wasn't able to check it directly on my car due to that cover on top. Anyway, I'll check it before ordering the spare part (if needed).

 

Thank for the suggestions guys!

 

 

If you're an RAC member they will come to you and fit on the driveway including coding
(NB they will also do non members but price goes up by £45)

Other On the Drive fitting services may be available

https://www.racshop.co.uk/bosch-agm-battery-115-80ah-800-cca-l315-x-w175-x-h190-01-b13.html



https://www.rac.co.uk/batteryfittingservice

 

Edited 25 April, 20242 yr by Winston_Woof

2 hours ago, foxdie2635 said:

Regarding the change from EFB to AGM, I've to admit that I'm a little bit scared of the programming part

That's easy, we can deal with that if required later.  It depends on a number of things to say if an AGM battery would be that much better than an EFB if you do preventative recharges and maintenance  with an appropriate charger.

 

The charger you have bought should do a good job of recharging a battery provided you select the correct mode, as often happens the writing in the instructions is slightly ambiguous.  Personally I'd not bother spending that much but if it's what you prefer it's money well spent particularly if it does the job well for many years (preferably decades) and you will need the charger in future even if you replace the battery or change cars (unless a much older car).

 

3.8A is a good level of amps for the charger but it does mean it can take many overs (overnight or more) to fully (or "fully") recharge the battery particularly if still fitted to the car.   70Ah = 7 amp by the VWSkoda Owner's manual formula, so 3.8A is well within (and better). 

 

Modern batteries are often fully sealed so you can't  look inside the 6 cells to look at the electrolyte ('water') level in each cell and see the state (at their top at least) of the plates so with modern chargers they can show fully recharged, and it is but not as when the battery was in good condition of health.  So you are in some respects working blind and having to fully trust electronics which isn't always a good idea.  Take little notice of the magic eye on a battery.  - https://batteryworld.varta-automotive.com/en-gb/battery-glossary

 

2 hours ago, foxdie2635 said:

12.3 - 12.4 after 3-4 days not using the car.

This depending on what you are using to take this measurement, from where and when.  12.4v wouldn't be too bad on a battery at 4-5 years of use if you considered the measurement taken on the car with possibly 0.2-0.3v of the car's computers still running.  If you have some constant drain like "See me home" (or whatever it's called, to me totally unnecessary KESSY keys, something added to the car at long or constant drain then these could be very good readings.

 

Diesel engines take more from the battery to start so usually have a bigger battery to allow for this but are you sure it's the battery that is the cause of the harder starts as a battery that has got to the point of harder starts on a modern VW diesel car would be more difficult to fully recover and most likely nearer to being in terminal health and if left in this state of more difficult starts for a while next to proper "dead".

 

What is the service history of the car, has it had timely engine oil and filter changes, engine air filter changed ever, any other cleaning if required?  Any other faults or issues with the car?

 

As you are prepared to pay more to get more, if you are in the UK I would suggest you use something like Shell V-Power diesel fuel regularly (does not have to be every fill up) and at least a tankful before/during a service and/or MoT and a second tankful after/during a service and/or MoT , this of course would be in addition to all servicing maintenance.

 

I'm not a big fan of Autodoc for spares as they list too many options and ALL databases, including manufacturers have errors and omissions so ALL sources of information including manufacturers and posters on forums need to be checked and cross referenced against if possible two (hopefully) reliable other sources of information.

 

2 hours ago, foxdie2635 said:

It seems that my car is using a 70Ah/760A battery (dimensions in cm are 278x175x190),

That is not enough information to tell if the Exide EL700 is the correct battery for your model (it's 720A (EN rating)). - https://cdn.tayna.com/datasheets/Exide Light Vehicle Batteries 2023 Brochure.pdf

 

ETA: do you know if the Exide battery fitted to your car was the one fitted to the car when it left the factory or did it replace the original factory battery and if so do you know why?

 

If you give more information like the engine you have and your location we can pin things down more and be more accurate, as it is the Exide EL700 is what we in UK would mostly call a 096 EFB battery.  The N70 VARTA BLUE DYNAMIC EFB START-STOP CAR BATTERY 12V 70AH (570500076) TYPE 096 would be my personal choice (£117.81 inc P&P) which as you can see make the RAC price seem very high.  The RAC are also far too quick to sell new batteries when they are sometimes probably not needed.  115 AGM batteries - https://www.tayna.co.uk/car-batteries/types/115-agm/

 

This is just an example of info, with yours you could put actual year or registration plate year if UK (19/69).

 

HTH.

Edited 25 April, 20242 yr by nta16
ETA:

31 minutes ago, nta16 said:

 

 

If you give more information like the engine you have and your location we can pin things down more and be more accurate, as it is the Exide EL700 is what we in UK would mostly call a 096 EFB battery.  The N70 VARTA BLUE DYNAMIC EFB START-STOP CAR BATTERY 12V 70AH (570500076) TYPE 096 would be my personal choice (£117.81 inc P&P) which as you can see make the RAC price seem very high.  The RAC are also far too quick to sell new batteries when they are sometimes probably not needed.  115 AGM batteries - https://www.tayna.co.uk/car-batteries/types/115-agm/

 

 

 

HTH.

Neve suggested the RAC price was the best, merely pointing out it is one option which includes fitting at home with coding as required. There are many other places offering similar services which some people may be happy to pay for. (and if you're proactively buying a battery from say the RAC then they are hardly forcing a new one on you are they?)

NB the exact same battery from Tanya tha the RAC is selling is £1454 inc delivery

https://www.tayna.co.uk/car-batteries/bosch/s5a11/

4 hours ago, Winston_Woof said:

Neve suggested the RAC price was the best, merely pointing out it is one option which includes fitting at home with coding as required. There are many other places offering similar services which some people may be happy to pay for. (and if you're proactively buying a battery from say the RAC then they are hardly forcing a new one on you are they?)

NB the exact same battery from Tanya tha the RAC is selling is £1454 inc delivery

https://www.tayna.co.uk/car-batteries/bosch/s5a11/

Sorry I wasn't suggesting you were I thought exactly as you put that it was an option available and one that might appeal and be good for some.  I got interrupted a few times whilst typing the post and missed this bit out.

 

No one is forced to take up RAC offers of sale and installation but when the RAC are called out to breakdowns they do offer their batteries and installations as "distress purchases" rather than sometimes suggesting that the battery could be recovered successfully by fully recharging the battery with an appropriate battery charger maintainer, following the instructions in the car's Owner's Manual and charger's instructions.  I've known a couple of case of this one was with a mate of mine, a story I've put on this site a few times at least now.  He should have known better as I'd told him about batteries before.  He declined the RAC battery and installation (not a stop/start or VW vehicle) and bought and fitted a new battery himself.  When I found out I offered to take the previous battery away and was confident of recharging it for successful use and he could keep it for use with the other vehicles in his fleet and/or as a 12v supply in his garage or sheds, which je did when I returned it.  It recharged very easily and confirmed a good state of health and drop testing.  Another battery that had been replaced prematurely.

 

Years earlier his IIRC 14 year old Toyota Supra at the time had to be jump started several times on a tour exhibition run day in France by my 37 year old MG Midget, no one would believe the MG was being used to jump started the Toyota and not the other way round.  Mind he left the Supra running that afternoon for about 3 hours on the road just in front of the cafe where they sat and it never missed a beat or overheated even thought the day was very hot.  He still had to buy a (very marginal, cheap) new battery at high cost that late afternoon at a local supermarket type place.  He blamed the previous Italian battery fitted to the Japanese car.  🙂

 

I spotted the (£1454 !) £154 (inc P&P) Tayna battery you linked to and it's included in the link I put up for 115 batteries on Tayna - but they are physically bigger batteries, 315 mm long against the 096 at around 280 mm long based on foxdie2635's given dimensions and the Exide EL700, I have no idea what battery tray space is available, or if 096 or 115 are appropriate batteries types for the Scala foxdie2635 has as I put there insufficient info for me at least to tell.

 

Edited 25 April, 20242 yr by nta16

You need to code a new battery if it is a different type. For me it's like this:
What type - EFB+ (StrongPRO EFB+)
Capacity 70Ah

 

Edited 16 May, 20242 yr by pawel70

Just curious.

 

Did you not also change the battery serial number from presumably factory setting (or scan tool data) of 1111111111 to 1111111112?

 

Also the JCB (Johnson Controls batteries(?)) labelled as Moll batteries confuses me as I thought sometime before 2020 VW went over to Banner batteries - or does this relate to a different car than the 2020 1.6 Scala your name badge thingy shows?

 

I read such values from obdeleven. I never changed...

44 minutes ago, pawel70 said:

I read such values from obdeleven. I never changed...

Fair enough, perhaps it's just best to change the "serial" number just to show the battery had been changed and wasn't the original one from the factory.

 

Below was from when a Briskoda member changed the 'coding' on my wife's car using OBDeleven, we didn't bother with a three character code for the battery manufacturer, I was told the Bosch battery is a Varta anyway (VA0).

 

So your car is less than 5 years old and had the battery replaced, another instance of how common this is.  When required use an appropriate battery charger maintainer, best in a proactive preventative way and certainly better than a a late reactive way and then you should see a much longer life to your EFB+ battery.

 

 

Edited 16 May, 20242 yr by nta16

That is battery type Fleece, more commonly known as AGM.

What is EFB+ anyway ?  I obviously know of EFB, but not EFB+

EFB+ is an enhancement of the enhanced EFB (enhanced flooded battery).  AGM is Absorbed Glass Mat and not flooded as such, VW call AGM "Fleece".

 

EFB+ never, or hasn't, caught on for cars. 

 

MY wife's car came with the factory EFB battery (EFB are cheap for VW to buy, I decided to swap it for AGM to give the type a try as the car does at least two very short drives each workday and possibly no more sometimes (depending on social calendar) and despite what some think the alternator would not keep the battery well enough for this use medium and long term.

 

There's lots of info on the www about EFB and AGM batteries but not much on EFB+ but it is on there if you want to confirm things for yourself (as much as you can on the internet).

 

 

On a quick search (Google Chrome doesn't recognise "EFB+") this is about it and I got this by an on-site search of Tayna Batteries. -

 

"STRONGPRO EFB+

Exide’s Strong battery is now “EFB+”. Exide’s StrongPRO battery range is now stronger than ever. A new carbon-based formula of negative active mass enhances the rechargeability and charge acceptance of StrongPRO EFB+ battery.  Additionally, the HVR® (highvibration-resistant) technology enables StrongPRO EFB+ to pass the extreme vibration tests under the new European V4 standard (EN 50342-1:2015).

A more robust and more lasting battery means reduced total service cost for fleet owners and truck drivers, allowing less replacements over vehicle’s service life and minimized risk of unexpected and premature battery failure." - https://cdn.tayna.com/datasheets/Exide Commercial Batteries 2023 Brochure (1).pdf

 

I just installed a new battery. I chose the S5 A08 Bosch AGM. Coding with obdeleven. No problems.
The old one is EXIDE EFB+

Is that a downgrade?

I fitted the Tosch labelled (I'm told it's a Varta)  S5 A05, 60Ah, type 027, AGM to my wife's 2015 Fabia over 4 years ago now and it's been very good despite the very short journeys she normally does on workdays.  We're old so she's not on the phone too much, don't  have Twa*Nav or cameras and I have, when required done a very few preventative charges with an appropriate battery charger maintainer, to fully charged, and did read the instructions on this in the car's Owner's Manual and chargers instructions.

 

Edited 6 August, 20241 yr by nta16

49 minutes ago, Blue8793841 said:

Is that a downgrade?

No it's an upgrade, though the AGM batteries are supposed to be more insulated from engine bay heat because of their position in the car.  My wife's car didn't come with the felt type folding lid it should have had with the factory fitted Moll EFB battery let alone the additional under insulation for AGM batteries and I've not bothered getting either.  Who knows the heat might shorten the battery life but I'm sure I can keep the battery giving good service for long years regardless.

 

Hi, my 2021 scala have problem with low battery warnning on the dashboard. Car is riding on short distances, but battery seems to be in good health by idle voltage messurement. About 12,4V after few days off, and above 14 when engine is running, so charging is working well. Is to possible that 3 years old battery is poor ? Car was using start-stop at previous user. I have also messeges at infotaingment says: low battery 12V, need to charge when engine is running, high power consumption etc. Car is starting whitout any problem so far, but winter is comming, and I wondering shoud I change battery.

Edited 2 October, 20241 yr by radoszczak

Voltage sounds good but the car's computers are telling you otherwise.  I suggest you buy an appropriate battery charger maintainer and fully recharge the battery.

On 25/04/2024 at 12:29, nta16 said:

Rather than replacing have you tried fully recharging the battery with an appropriate battery charger, following the instructions in the car's Owner's Manual and charger's instructions.  A lower amp charger is generally better than a higher amp charger (see Owner's Manual).  If the battery is very low then the recharging could take a long time, many hours, so if you can't fully recharge the battery in one go do it in a couple of goes (or more) as close together as possible.  Time and patience are required, these are sometimes totally out of stock for some.

 

VWSkoda Owner's Manuals free pdf downloads. - https://manual.skoda-auto.com/004/en-com/Models

 

Or if you prefer just replace the battery with a new one to be sure during the upcoming winter, see above for replacement battery 'coding'..

 

If you have owned the car from new perhaps it is your use of the car and battery or perhaps you have added something to the car with constant drain,

 

You could check to see if there re any VWŠkoda recall on your car perhaps for battery management issues, there was one for my wife's 2015 Fabia.

 

Otherwise something has caused a lower state of health of your battery, or perhaps the battery itself was a wrong one but that would be very uncommon, usually just used as a scapegoat excuse.

 

Let us know how you get on.

 

 

 

8 hours ago, radoszczak said:

Car is starting whitout any problem so far,

Another quick thought - check the battery terminal connections are secure and that the main live an earth cables connections and wires are all clean, secure and protected.   Even if the engine starts and the lights seem bright enough the state of charge of the battery can still be too low for the computers, by the time the battery is unable to start the car it has been severely weakened and will take a lot more to revive it and it may not fully recover.

 

Reply to comments: I have checked battery connectors, there are fine. I have charged battery with charger that shows my percentage of power in battery at 85%.

After few hours of charging meter shows 90%. Wife is driving car about week and half, and low battery warning  wasn't show. 

 

Previous car was seat ibiza 6j from 2009 without so many electronics, and at the same driveways battery was good without charging. I think newer cars just need to be charged from time to time when it runs short distances.

 

On my skoda octavia 2014, I have newer charged battery since 2 years when I bought car. But my road to work is approx. 20 km, and back 20 km. So it can be charged well at that distance. 

 

By the way. Start stop was turned off since we bought scala. 

6 hours ago, radoszczak said:

I think newer cars just need to be charged from time to time when it runs short distances.

I've been trying to promote the idea of preventative charging but some insist it's not required and the alternator can take care of things by itself, despite statistics and lots of info and users' experience often showing otherwise.  I like to charge the battery to fully charged on the charger regardless of what VW have things det up for.  VW had to changed the battery at previously 5 years and now I believe 4 years, personally I think this id wasting materials and continuing to make the car 12v battery one of, if not the, most oversold car part with it premature replacement.  There's also the finical cost to the owner of the expensive battery and the 'coding'.  I would hope to double VW's battery life expectance by the simple, easy, clean-hands very occasional when required preventative use of a battery charger maintainer when the car is parked up and not used and I can do any other than farting about with a car.

 

The battery charge is not just about journey length it is also about the use of electric consumers on the car whilst driving and particular when the engine is not  (thus alternator is not working) and when parked up.  Some users/drivers use more electric than others meaning more battery power is used up.  In Poland when it is cold I expect you take advantage of all the electric heating devises on the car and possibly the air conditioning then some may use added devices to the car in addition to what the car has available, the power for these has to come from somewhere.  Bit like those not paying the electric bills at home leaving lights on (inside and out) unnecessarily, fridge and freezer doors open too long, (over) heating rooms they are not using or left and not returning to, etc., etc.. 🙃

 

6 hours ago, radoszczak said:

By the way. Start stop was turned off since we bought scala. 

Does that mean you have disconnected the battery monitor connector at the negative battery terminal, done some sort of 'coding'/setting with a scan tool or just push the deactivate button every time?

 

I have bought special connector and plug it in between stock cable and button. It works automaticly, when I turn ignition it pushes the button like I would do it manually. It is the most harmlees solution for s/s disable. 

 

If it is allowed here I put link. If it is now allowed I will delete it.

 

https://a.aliexpress.com/_ExcNuYV

Edited 10 October, 20241 yr by radoszczak