E46 M3 OEM vs E46 M3 CSL/Mini vs F80 M3 Li-ion Battery

[pawa_k2001]

How quickly were you going through batteries? The standard batteries have lasted me 7-8 years each, so it seems like it's hard to justify Li-ion money even if longevity is the concern

Not going through batteries fast enough to justify the purchase. I wanted a "stock" battery that weighs less than the stock AGM but without the headache to chargers or having a dead car after a few weeks. I used to have a lightweight race battery, that experience pushed me away from them probably forever.

[terra]

SIs the battery worth it with a $1100 price tag? At the moment it would not be worth it to me but that opinion can change if I find that it has a significantly longer life.

How quickly were you going through batteries? The standard batteries have lasted me 7-8 years each, so it seems like it's hard to justify Li-ion money even if longevity is the concern

$549 bs $1100 for a battery that weighs 6x time more seems like a far better value

Not really a fair comparison though. Obioban's setup is unacceptable for a daily driver (which his coupe no longer is). The battery capacity in that thing is about the same as a portable jump starter. It'll get you started a couple times, but you can't run much off it for very long.

Antigravity batteries are decent middle ground from a weight perspective: https://antigravitybatteries.com/pro...es/automotive/

The 60Ah versions (which is the lowest capacity I'd be comfortable with on a daily driver) is only 18ish lbs, but your cost is pretty close to the F80 battery at that point.

[Dash1]

I've been running a 6 lb Braile GU1R lithium battery in my M3 for 3.5 years now without any issues.

That said, it no longer sees winter use (though it's had a couple <30 degree starts) and I put it on a (lithium specific) trickle charger if I'm parking it for longer than ~2 weeks (... which I did with the stock battery, too).

Because, at 6 lbs, it's not doing anything meaningful for weight distribution, and the battery cable going to the trunk is 6 lbs, I also mounted it under the hood, like the 4 cylinder e46s do. Enabled me to save the weight of the cable and gave me more trunk space!

new battery location (and my super leggera washer tank):







Extra trunk space:



Bonus: I also got extra trunk space on the passenger side

$549 bs $1100 for a battery that weighs 6x time more seems like a far better value

[Obioban]

I've been running a 6 lb Braile GU1R lithium battery in my M3 for 3.5 years now without any issues.

That said, it no longer sees winter use (though it's had a couple <30 degree starts) and I put it on a (lithium specific) trickle charger if I'm parking it for longer than ~2 weeks (... which I did with the stock battery, too).

Because, at 6 lbs, it's not doing anything meaningful for weight distribution, and the battery cable going to the trunk is 6 lbs, I also mounted it under the hood, like the 4 cylinder e46s do. Enabled me to save the weight of the cable and gave me more trunk space!

new battery location (and my super leggera washer tank):







Extra trunk space:



Bonus: I also got extra trunk space on the passenger side

[Obioban]

What is considered a cycle?

One 100-0-100% cycle
or
two 100-50-100% cycles
or
ten 100-90-100% cycles

etc

[Dash1]

Per F80 forum, AGM battery has a life of 350 cycles while Li-ion is at 3000-5000 cycles. Hoping that is what I see, would definitely get another if its true.

What is considered a cycle?

[pawa_k2001]

I’d love to try one out too but damn that’s expensive for a car battery. Any idea how much longer these Li-ion batteries are supposed to last vs standard batteries?

Per F80 forum, AGM battery has a life of 350 cycles while Li-ion is at 3000-5000 cycles. Hoping that is what I see, would definitely get another if its true.

[KhanArt]

Seems promising but at that price too rich for my blood.

[BMWahba]

I think there are some cheaper li-ion batts. There was an awesome thread on m3f about them, and I can't remember the names but they were around $600-700.

[174bpm]

I’d love to try one out too but damn that’s expensive for a car battery. Any idea how much longer these Li-ion batteries are supposed to last vs standard batteries?

[pawa_k2001]

So I stumbled on a deal for a F80 M3 lithium ion battery and decided to give it a try even though my stock battery is only a year old.

I don't have a CSL/Mini battery on hand but pulled up a picture from M3Forum cache.(the image is tiny, sorry)

Specs:
CSL/Mini: 480CCA 34.4lbs
E46 M3 OEM: 640CCA, 45.65lbs
F80 M3 Li-ion: 860CCA, 29.85lbs
E46 M3 Bosch OE: 790CCA, 46.15lbs
i48CX Braille: 1520PCA, 11.15lbs

The F80 M3 Li-ion battery is larger in dimensions compared to the factory AGM E46 M3 battery but it still fits without issues. I did some research previously and per F80 forum, the Li-ion battery has the electronics inside to protect it from overcharging which was my biggest worry. From the limited tested that I did, I have not had any issues. Everyone probably knows but, you can not charge a lithium ion battery with a regular charger so I bought a CTEK charger specifically for lithium ion batteries.

Is the battery worth it with a $1100 price tag? At the moment it would not be worth it to me but that opinion can change if I find that it has a significantly longer life.