key battery dead, how to charge/change?

[JINGLE]

ok so my key has stopped working the central locking

i read on here it charges while you drive so im guessing my battery is knackered, is there any way to check/recharge and then is there anyway to change a new battery over?

 

[Taz]

not sure if it works but i've read that tooth brush chargers can work

or maybe its a trip to bm keys

 

[JINGLE]

not sure if it works but i've read that tooth brush chargers can work

or maybe its a trip to bm keys

yea i want a Bentley flip key and a new diamond shape key (for spare) but its a long way to drive etc just for a key

i read you can post him something that he uses to code from but i have no idea what it is, where it is on the car and how long it would take lol

 

[Taz]

i assume you have tried a big drive?

 

[GMANLAW]

Mine stopped working and I suspected the battery, but I tried the following went for a drive and its worked ever since. Worth a go

1. Working from within the vehicle and with the doors shut
2. Turn ignition to position 1 and back to off within 5 seconds.
3. Remove the key from ignition and press and hold the unlock button for 15 seconds during this time
press the key lock button 3 times within 5 seconds.
4. Release both buttons.
5. Doors will lock and unlock to show correct programming has occurred.

 

[cherrym]

My spare key was repaired for £28.Wish I had not wasted time trying to fix it.
Have a look at the problems page for the firm that did mine.

 

[JINGLE]

its my daily so has about 30mile round trip every day so plenty of time to charge.

had inspection 2 this morning and i mentioned to the service bloke on the desk and he said as it was a sealed unit that you cant just change the battery you need a whole new unit (but then again BMW would say that regardless) and i said just leave it (i was getting a big discount through my friend anyway so didn't wanna push my luck arguing over a cheaper key option considering i want to get a Bentley style flip key anyway)

will try the suggested method above and report back

 

[Ant]

I sent mine off to a place in london, had it back a day later great service.
you can just change the battery, but it needs desoldered/soldered in which is why i sent it off.

http://www.keyfobrepair.co.uk/bmw+diamond+type+e46+e39+etc+keyfob+repair./0_caaa025_caaa009/praa046.htm

no complaints, fast service and key is still working fine

 

[Mangozac]

OK so when I got my latest Zed the previous owner had cut open one of the keys as he'd claimed the battery had stopped charging. I was very surprised by this, as the key in my previous, older Zed had never had any charging issues at all. Furthermore, the main key stopped working after I tried operating the roof remotely a few times.

It seems that when the battery gets fully discharged it loses somehow loses its coding setting (my understanding of the rolling code system was that this wasn't possible but I guess it is), as after recharging for a while I had to re-initialise both keys before the buttons would work again.

So my conclusion is that key battery failures are actually extremely uncommon and more likely is that keys get too discharged from driving only short distances and lots of button presses. Try not using the buttons for a few days (lock and unlock the car using the physical key) and see if it gets charged a bit (as mentioned, it charges when in the ignition).

If you do the key programming sequence make sure you do both keys at the same time as the sequence resets all existing saved keys!

 

[nb67]

Here you go JINGLE, cherrym's post about a replacement key, not flip style btw but it should sort your issues if you can't.

http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=86466

 

[nick_l]

not sure if it works but i've read that tooth brush chargers can work

or maybe its a trip to bm keys

yea i want a Bentley flip key and a new diamond shape key (for spare) but its a long way to drive etc just for a key

i read you can post him something that he uses to code from but i have no idea what it is, where it is on the car and how long it would take lol

When he done me a couple of keys he removed some box from under/around the steering column area. Took him 5 mins to remove. I'd hazard a guess it was some kind of imobiliser box. I'd imagine though the car is unusable while the box is out....

 

[beaststeve]

Mine stopped working and I suspected the battery, but I tried the following went for a drive and its worked ever since. Worth a go

1. Working from within the vehicle and with the doors shut
2. Turn ignition to position 1 and back to off within 5 seconds.
3. Remove the key from ignition and press and hold the unlock button for 15 seconds during this time
press the key lock button 3 times within 5 seconds.
4. Release both buttons.
5. Doors will lock and unlock to show correct programming has occurred.

This worked great. Thanks

 

[Simon_P]

not sure if it works but i've read that tooth brush chargers can work

or maybe its a trip to bm keys

yea i want a Bentley flip key and a new diamond shape key (for spare) but its a long way to drive etc just for a key

i read you can post him something that he uses to code from but i have no idea what it is, where it is on the car and how long it would take lol

When he done me a couple of keys he removed some box from under/around the steering column area. Took him 5 mins to remove. I'd hazard a guess it was some kind of imobiliser box. I'd imagine though the car is unusable while the box is out....

Ben has coded and sold to me a new "BMW" key and more recently the new style Bently flip. Top bloke

 

[JINGLE]

yea i want a Bentley flip key and a new diamond shape key (for spare) but its a long way to drive etc just for a key

i read you can post him something that he uses to code from but i have no idea what it is, where it is on the car and how long it would take lol

When he done me a couple of keys he removed some box from under/around the steering column area. Took him 5 mins to remove. I'd hazard a guess it was some kind of imobiliser box. I'd imagine though the car is unusable while the box is out....

Ben has coded and sold to me a new "BMW" key and more recently the new style Bently flip. Top bloke

i need to pull my finger out, what part do i need to send him? or if not ill have to take a drive down on a Saturday when im not at work, does he have access to code/cut them at home or just at work as i cant really get down during the week due to work

 

[Simon_P]

When he done me a couple of keys he removed some box from under/around the steering column area. Took him 5 mins to remove. I'd hazard a guess it was some kind of imobiliser box. I'd imagine though the car is unusable while the box is out....

Ben has coded and sold to me a new "BMW" key and more recently the new style Bently flip. Top bloke

i need to pull my finger out, what part do i need to send him? or if not ill have to take a drive down on a Saturday when im not at work, does he have access to code/cut them at home or just at work as i cant really get down during the week due to work

Hi! Just give him a call to see when he is around and/or the part details he is quite flexible. I have been to his house and his warehouse/shop. It takes less than 15 minutes to code and cut the key once he has checked the box under the steering column. He now has his own key cutting tool. Funny story I stupidly took my Bentley key to bmw not even thinking (would have been upset if they had dropped it!) the guy said what is this, it's not a bmw key. I said its a personal one. He said mate that won't work here, I said I'm sure it will be fine. He came back and said where did you get that from it works perfectly and we read all the car details from it. He wanted one for his car.

 

[rawpilot]

not sure if it works but i've read that tooth brush chargers can work

Has anyone tried this ?
I'm a bit worried if I leave the spare key to do nothing for months on end it will completely discharge.

 

[Vijay]

not sure if it works but i've read that tooth brush chargers can work

Has anyone tried this ?
I'm a bit worried if I leave the spare key to do nothing for months on end it will completely discharge.

Works for me when I use my tooth brush charger!

That said, my spare key unlocks the doors but doesn't seem to able to lock them. Dunno why! My normal key works fine.
Perhaps someone can help on this...?

 

[Zulu4]

not sure if it works but i've read that tooth brush chargers can work

Has anyone tried this ?
I'm a bit worried if I leave the spare key to do nothing for months on end it will completely discharge.

Works for me when I use my tooth brush charger!

That said, my spare key unlocks the doors but doesn't seem to able to lock them. Dunno why! My normal key works fine.
Perhaps someone can help on this...?

Thank you. I'll have to get the manual toothbrush out for a bit while I charge my key.!

 

[Argyll Andy]

not sure if it works but i've read that tooth brush chargers can work

Has anyone tried this ?
I'm a bit worried if I leave the spare key to do nothing for months on end it will completely discharge.

Definitely works. I left mine on it overnight

 

[Zulu4]

I've tried it now; sad there is no obvious way to tell if it's fully charged up.

Out of curiosity, if the spare key is left unused for many months and the battery becomes completely flat, can it just be recharged again, or does it lose its memory and need recoding ?