audi of brookline, mass quoted me $348 for a battery this morning
(before tax)!!
i am 2nd owner and don't have my codes
should i have a bad feeling about sears, autozone, nbt, etc. ?

 

That sounds exorbitant. I happened to buy my A4 battery (same one as the one in my A6) from my indie shop who also installed, all for about $150. I would have no problem buying from Autozone. You may want to buy the little gizmo that plugs into the cigarette lighter to power the system while the battery is removed -- this will keep the radio from locking out. Autozone also sells these.

 

I just replaced the battery in my 2003 3.0 A6. Very easy to do and took my less than 30 minutes. The battery only cost about $150 from autozone (160 something with tax and everything).

When I changed my battery, the radio code did not reset. The windows reset, but that is no big deal.

 

x2

Jeff

 

lol what do you mean by your windows reset?

 

I buy from walmart for $ 75 a year ago and is better than I had before..A6 2.7T 01

 

sorry, the automatic "one-touch" windows reset where you had to put them all the way down and then all the way up again to have the "one touch" work again

 

Batteries are batteries and are made by 3 different companies (maybe only 2 now).. they are all the same except for warranty.

 

Close but not quite.

Yes. there are only a few companies making batteries, so the name on the sticker doesn't make much difference. (I think that is what you are saying and it is true.)

The differences deal with construction (flat plate/spiral plate, wet, gel or something else... ) and how the case is constructed.

One difference that applies to Audi's is the venting of the case. This is due to the location of the battery, behind the firewall -- technically in the passenger compartment.

So, for safety, legal and acid control reasons, the Audi approved batteries will have a little tube to vent the battery under the car. (Or be totally sealed.) As not many cars require this, it pushes the price of these batteries way up.

Will a "normal" battery 'work'? -- YES. Can Audi recommend one? -- NO.

So even knowing this, I have an Optima battery. (While not a wet cell, it DOES have a vent without a tube connection.) It has better life than the "approved batteries" I have bought.

 

I appreciate the insight and advice...