hi bmw x5 3i 04 owner and dont have a scoobie mines struggling to turn over ,testing batterie ,

[jakeberetta]

yes so am having problems getting it turning over it flew through mot last month , suspect something draining the battery starts ok with a trickle charger from mains but not great, guessing jump from leads cold will tell me if it's the battery or not?> thanks in advance

[Sandy5454]

A lot of BMW have quite a high battery drain just sitting still. My current X3 wont go more than about 14 days before I have to put on my smart battery charger. First step is check the battery voltage with a meter. If you cant do that just charge your battery, and if you think the battery is on its way out most garages will do a battery load test for you ( for free). Modern batteries seem only good for about 5 years. I just had to replace mine.

[X5Sport]

Also worth getting a current draw check done for the starter motor. There was an issue with cars on the 2003-2005 age bracket with faulty starter motors. It should draw no more than 180A when cranking. More than that it’s toast and needs replacing. Some draw so much current that the battery cannot cope and goes flat after a couple of attempts.

[Leslie]

If its not being used much the battery will go flat quite quickly ,sitting any time flat severely reduces how long they last too . No point going to get it tested if its near flat as that won't prove anything other than its flat. how old is it as they don't seem to last as well these days ?