Key low battery

There are different types of CR2032 , it needs to be a high capacity type & you will see letters after the Cr2032 like "HC" or "EC". They have a higher amperage capability .
Depending what they are used for some devices won't work at all unless it's a HC \EC type.
I know because I had a jaguar car and tried several different makes and the voltage measured fine on them but they wouldn't open the car. Bought a HC type and it worked.
It could possibly be a fault with the bike but go to your dealer and they may even give you a new battery for the remote first to rule it out.
That would make sense, but I can’t find any info on these different types. I struggle to believe it’s only one specific manufacturer but maybe it’s a rare type? I’ll call dealer and ask.
 
Just changed battery for the second time since April 2021 on my 1250GS - I use Duracell Lithum CR2032. I like others also keep my key in a tin.
 
Interesting. A Google search only threw up the H version which is apparently a high discharge type (and not relevant in this use case). Do you have a source for the HC/EC CR2032? Standard Varta or Panasonic CR2032 don't have this and work fine (eg years).
Don't think there's any standardization for the codes used, some just say high capacity in the description & different codes on the batteries eg, HC EC, SC, etc
Why do you say "not relevant in this use case" ??.
I don't know why they have these variations I know that some have a higher milliamp output capacity & some vehicles need this in the remote.

This is one example :--
 
My OEM key battery lasted about 9 months. The key is well out of range of the bike at home.

I had a spare coffee tin: I put the key in that.
 
The ones I bought have “high capacity” in the name, so clearly thats not enough. No code on them. I’ll see what the stealer says
 
Don't think there's any standardization for the codes used, some just say high capacity in the description & different codes on the batteries eg, HC EC, SC, etc
Why do you say "not relevant in this use case" ??.
I don't know why they have these variations I know that some have a higher milliamp output capacity & some vehicles need this in the remote.

This is one example :--
So these are 240mAh, which seems to be the highest you can get for a CR2032.. the ones I bought apparently are also.. Nothing else should matter except the type of battery and the output, so maybe I have either a duff key or a duff set of Chinese fake batteries. Either is possible so will try a different set of batteries first.
 
Gone down a rabbit hole now lol… a few videos on YouTube on the topic. Shelf life, max current draw and other things make a difference, so its probably a case of finding a high quality one and just buying from a reputable source, as a lot of Chinese fakes on amazon. I’m going to try and reputable one from a dedicated battery website and see how they fare.

 
The price hardly matters as you only need to replace them once a year (ish), so just get a Duracell and job's a good 'un :)
 
Duracell on Amazon are mostly copies that don't last.
Buy them from a supermarket and they last ages, mine last well over a year, sometimes 2.
other brands are fine too, just use the one you prefer, just make sure you buy from a reputable seller.

That all said, even the cheap Chinese crap batteries will last more than a few weeks, something is wrong with yours definitely.
 
Duracell on Amazon are mostly copies that don't last.
Buy them from a supermarket and they last ages, mine last well over a year, sometimes 2.
other brands are fine too, just use the one you prefer, just make sure you buy from a reputable seller.

That all said, even the cheap Chinese crap batteries will last more than a few weeks, something is wrong with yours definitely.
Yeah feels that way. Same batteries last months in other devices.
 
Mine had the original battery in the key from December 2023 to about November last year and 9000 miles use and popped up with the warning the key battery was at 50% so I changed it anyway. I used to keep it in a pouch but haven’t done for a while now.
 
Because AFAICT a key fob isn't a high draw device so doesn't require a battery capable of providing a high current (ie the ones with the H suffix). But I could be wrong.
Only speaking from personal experience. Weirdest one was with my Jaguar car. It was saying low battery in key fob. Changed it for 2 different new CR2032 batteries and neither would open the car at all. Put the old battery back in and it opened. Searched the forms and it mentioned needing the high capacity amperage to work. Bought 2 different makes (one of which happened to be a Varta) both saying high capacity. The Varta words it as "up to 70% more energy" on the pack.
Both new makes worked fine
Also had a mate with an 1000xr who bike kept saying "key not in range" , he changed them a few times for new CR2032s he had , they lasted a couple of months before the same error messages came back. I gave him one of the spare CR2032 high energy ones I had and his bike has been fine for the last year.
So, not all CR2032 batteries are the same & not all vehicles are the same in what they will work correctly with.
 
Ordered some Varta and some Procell Intense and will see how long they last!
 
I had a "key battery at 50%" warning come up last week on my 1250GSA.

Odd I thought as I hadn't long fitted a new Varta CR3032 lithium coin cell.

Started the bike fine today, pulled away and "Key not detected, unable to restart engine" came up then cleared after about ten seconds...... Odd again as the key was in the front of my tank bag as normal, close to the TFT and keyless ignition button.

Got to work, measured a brand new Varta coin cell with my calibrated Fluke 179 multimeter at 3.262V and fitted it.

The old coin cell was at 3.030V so only dropped by 232 mV, hardly like it was failing.

I now wonder if the way BMW has set the software level warning for the battery level is a bit too strict ?

ALWAYS CARRY A SPARE NEW CR2032 COIN BATTERY !!!!
 
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