Our good friend UK Paul recently posted the above to his Twitter stream.
Have you called around for this yet? If not, be prepared to be shocked. No kidding. This is something that we have been discussing on the show quite a bit lately, including Chad giving us the full skinny on aftermarket batteries.
Here is what you can do. First of all, you need to know that replacing your battery is 100% DIY. In fact, there is a tool in the kit that came with your MINI that is the exact size needed to loosen the cables from the battery terminals. Once the cables are loose, you can remove them, pull the battery out of the box (Cooper or MCS, doesn’t matter) and set it aside. Then, place the new battery in it’s place. No kidding gang, start to finish should be well under 10 minutes. You girls out there in the audience having a hard time lifting the battery (it’s fairly heavy) might want to get some help.
As far as procuring the battery, from the dealer (if you are hardcore and have to have OEM parts in your MINI) really shouldn’t cost more than $150 at the parts counter. Work the club discount if you can. It’s a 24 or 36 month battery, so the value isn’t quite there.
What you can do instead is give a call to your local Napa part house. They will sell you the 7547, which is an exact fit for the MINI, for $100 – $130.
The take away here is that there is no reason to pay the dealer for a battery installation. Save the $150 and get yourself something nice.
Maybe I should find out how expensive the GP battery is (I believe it’s different / smaller) … though the battery conditioner I keep GPMINI connected to in Florida seems to do the trick so far :)
How long should a battery last? I’m still on my original one, 4 years and 95k miles later.
My first lasted until about 140K miles if I remember. My latest last much less than that however.
I jut replaced mine at 67,000 miles, it’s the original, on my ’04 S. MINI wanted $350 for battery and install. I used my resale # and installed it myself for $207. I called around to battery houses and they wanted $199+ if they didn’t install plus I would have had to wait a week to get it. Pep Boys suggested they could “Fit something in there!” for $150.
Paul batteries can last from 2 – 5 or more years.
Well I just had to join the ranks of people having to replace my battery after six years and 73,000 miles. The battery that I got was a Continental Supreme 47-72. The cost was $84.48 from Garnett Auto Supply. Its got 550 cca and a two year free replacement and the rest of the 72 month is prorated. The battery fit fine with no shimming and I could use the same bracket to hold it in place.
I think the old battery only had 480 cca.
Mine is an 03 non S Mini. Sure is a lot better than $350.
Good article, especially about the special tool needed on the connections. The battery on my wife’s ’07 failed to start recently so I’m getting ready to change
Replacing my ’09 Cooper S at 57,000K miles at 6 years – AAA Battery Service came to my door within 30 minutes of a phone call. Free install and 6-year warranty. $148. Well worth my membership!!
Sorry, you must get a funkinhosin to complete the job otherwise it won’t work properly. BMW rep.
Same here.Called AAA there in 15 min quoted me $249.00 to install. Bought one at NAPA for $120.00 installed it myself in 15 min. I’d say that’s a win. $$$$$$$
I need to replace the battery on my 2007 Clubman and was told i still have to go to the dealer to reset my electrical settings? Is this true?
This would depend on the kind of battery you have in your MINI. 2007 probably uses a standard battery. You’re dealer could tell you for sure.