It turns out I was cheated by the dealer. The battery is almost die. I can not start the engine without a battery booster.
Many Mini Cooper and BMW has IBS installed to manage the car battery. With an IBS, it is very complicated to replace a battery. You must buy hardware($50) and software($39) to calibrate the battery after install. Otherwise the battery could be overcharged. And car electronics such as head light, window auto-scroll may malfunction.
For my MINI Cooper Countryman, it is not equipped with an IBS. How I find out this?
No.1 From some documents:
MINI Cooper Countryman (2011 – 2016)
- MINI Cooper Countryman JCW ALL4 Hatchback (2013-16)
- MINI Cooper Countryman, Cooper Countryman S and Cooper Countryman S ALL4 Hatchback (2011-16) Note: For cars with Brake Energy Regeneration (S1CDA) or Navigation System Business (S606A) or Navigation System Professional (S609A) or Radio MINI Visual Boost (S6FPA) or MINI Navigation System (S6UMA) or Auto Start/Stop function (S1CCA).
Which means,
- if your countryman is ‘S’, it is equipped with an IBS.
- if your countryman is low end trim, you are lucky, no IBS, no calibration required.
This is why different YouTuber use different way to change their battery. Some of the cars have IBS, some do not.
No.2 From observation
There is no IBS module on the end of my negative cable by the battery.
You can tell if your car has the IBS (Intelligent battery system) by looking for the electronics pack on the end of the negative cable by the battery. If it’s just a cable, you can replace with lead acid or go AGM, just make sure you obv use the right size and CCA (cold cranking amps). If you have IBS, you either need someone who has the ability to plug into the ECU to register there’s a new battery, or head to a dealer.
Will it run if you don’t register, yes. Might it shorten battery life because the ECU will treat it like an old battery, I’ve heard yes and no. Automotive engineers are smarter than me so I register as instructed.
身体力行地体会北美人为什么自己修车自己保养。换个电池要700刀，你敢信？
在北美，一切减少人力、坚固耐用的产品，应该都能算好产品。
那么，数据库呢？在北美，什么样的数据库能成为好数据库？