Evening All,

 

Looking for a bit of advice and support please. I bought a second hand Fabia (2016 plate) earlier this year for my partner. Recently, due to various factors, the car wasn't used for a couple of weeks and the battery died. I called the AA out and they got the car going again, and they also tested the battery and advised that it had failed their checks as it wasn't holding a charge properly. Given I think it was the original battery the car came with it wasn't a surprise to hear this.                      

 

I bought an EFB start/stop battery from Halfords last week and they came to fit it on my driveway. The car has worked absolutely fine since, including the start/stop system. 

 

The car has gone in to my local Skoda dealer today to have something else looked at. On the vehicle health check they have flagged the battery as 'Red - Urgent' saying that it needs to be replaced as it is 'non-genuine and will need coding to the system as it has a battery monitoring unit'.        

 

Given Halfords make a point of recommending using their services so that the battery can be registered with the cars system, along with the fact that the car has been absolutely fine over the last week and systems such as the start/stop have been operating as normal, it suggests to me that the new battery has already been coded and is working as it should? Are Skoda having me on here, or is it actually going to be an issue having a 'non-genuine' battery in the car?                  

 

Given I spent £156 on a new battery last week, I'm not all that keen on paying the £340 they have quoted me to put a 'genuine' battery in. 

 

Thanks in advance for any responses. 

I'd think that it would be a good plan to get Halfords to code that battery to your car.

 

Seeing any aftermarket parts on a car must put dealership's noses out of joint - "how dare you" sort of thing.

One thing though, could you let us know the model of the battery that Halfords sold you, and the engine type and output of your Fabia, just in case Halford sold you the wrong battery.

 

Edit:- also, as you are now a Halfords customer, do they not offer a preferential rate/cost for them to code that battery to your car at their premises?

 

Another Edit:- so they charge £30 for coding the battery to the car, seems fair enough if you don't have the means to do it yourself.

 

I will not bother commenting on the cost of batteries from Halford as that choice has already been made, I'm surprised that the AA did not push to supply fit and code one of their choice which is Bosch.

Edited 2 August, 20241 yr by rum4mo

Whenever I've changed a Skoda stop/start battery then the factory serial number of the battery in the BMS is something like 11111111, so if it's still that value then that is a red flag that it wasn't coded. Did the Skoda garage tell you what that current value was ?

If your car is working fine, including stop/start, then I wouldn't be too worried. Especially if your new battery type i.e. EFB and Ah rating is the same.

I always set the BMS battery serial number to the date I put the battery in i.e. 03082024 if today, it is just having a changed serial number that resets the charging profile. Having it set as the battery change date means I can always read that value if I forget and wonder the battery age.

I'd hate to think a garage would try to encourage unnecessary work and expenses but that Skoda garage worries me 

ETA: unable to post when typed as I had to help a drunk get home, care in the community. 😃

 

Hi welcome,

 

The car may not have been driven enough for the computer program to pick up the car now has a (hopefully) fully charged battery.  Perhaps, though I've never been able to test this idea of mine, if you connect up an appropriate battery charger maintainer, but first read the Fabia's 'Owner's Manual' and the instructions for the charger before doing so to make sure you're doing it right then the computer program will see the battery is being charged and  then is up to full charge.  Charge slowly with lower amps (see instructions) not a quick fast charge and up to fully charged then you know your starting point of the battery's state of charge (and health).

 

You are best to get the battery 'coded' then you have reassurance, and at the same time any error codes that are in the computers can be deleted.  There are members on here with the correct level scan tool that can give you a full scan report, delete error codes and  'coded' the battery, many for beer tokens, though not all some are professionals, as was done for me, - Briskoda VCDS Owners Map (click me)

 

It is important that the 'coding' is done correctly for the type of battery (EFB) and the Ah figure (or very close) and to change the digit or characters on the "serial number" to show a change of battery the manufacture and actual serial number is no longer of any consequence (as long as it's 10 characters long and different from previous).  As merely an example see below from when mine was 'coded' by a Briskoda member from EFB to AGM ("fleece" to VW).

 

 

 

The car battery state of charge and health is very important to the car, especially if start/stop is used at the required point preventative charging by suitable distance driving or better still fully recharging slowly as above with a suitable charger maintainer will help particularly if the car does lots of short journeys and periods of lack of use.  The computer programs do not like the battery in a low state of charge and will throw up all sorts of unexpected issues and unseen error codes and perhaps warning messages and lights and this can be before the battery warning and the engine still starts and the lights seem bright enough.

 

Even though your battery is new it's still just a store and with the right amount of use / abuse / neglect the store can be depleted, it will be restored better and quicker when new(er) but is still slightly diminish from going too low.  Notes for future if you want them. - 

• Best check your car battery now - (why?) - https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/506654-best-check-your-car-battery-now-why/#comment-5688832
• Now - is the time to check and recharge your car battery - https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/499686-now-is-the-time-to-check-and-recharge-your-car-battery/#comment-5607056

 

Edited 2 August, 20241 yr by nta16
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