MY16 GTI Keyfob battery type

[Ralfi]

(Couldn't find a thread which I thought I'd spotted with below info).

Been getting the 'replace keyfob battery' message on the MFD for a few weeks now.

Dealer quoted $8 for battery.

How do you access the battery in the keyfob? Does it just pull apart like older ones did?

What type of battery's needed & where's the best place to get one from? Jaycar?

Thanks!

[Lucas_R]

Id be curious as to why a car that's so new needs to have its battery changed already?

You can use a thin object (like a 10c coin or similar) to pop open the battery compartment and it uses a CR2025 battery - although some people have reported that you can fit a larger (thicker) battery in there (CR2032) which will give a longer battery life. These are standard batteries you can get almost anywhere - including Jaycar but even the supermarkets and post offices have some of these batteries these days.

https://youtu.be/ZzLwq2fzQmc

[The_Hawk]

It's just a standard CR2025 which you can pick up in lots of places.

Just be careful that you're not getting the CR2032 (which is far more common), it's the same diameter so looks the same but it's thicker (2.5mm vs 3.2mm) and wont fit.

edit: or it might according to Lucas post. If you want to test, the Apple TV remote uses CR2032 as does many other small remotes. If you have a 3D TV that uses active glasses lots of them use CR2025's too

[Hillbilly]

Usually about $5 for a 2 pack at Woolies

[Ralfi]

Thanks guys.

Id be curious as to why a car that's so new needs to have its battery changed already?

I was wondering that too, though the car was picked up September last year, so ~8 months... Maybe washing the car with the Kessy key in pocket & constantly (accidentally) swiping the door handle did it!

Oh that YT video's perfect. Cheers again.

[sillygogo]

CR2025 - Replaced mine last week. The original battery lasted about 8 months. I think it is because of the constant pinging with the car to see it it is still around. Because if the car is running and you take the key out..the system detects it. Got pack of 5 Maxcell for $4 delivered, Japanese made battery instead of the original Panasonic from Indonesia. Maxell CR2025 Button Coin Cell Lithium Battery 3V 5pcs Pack | eBay

[Ralfi]

Up for replacement again (although this may have been for the spare keyfob... Can't remember). Anyway, this particular battery lasted 10 months.

This time I tried a 2032. It wanted to spring out but after clipping the keyfob cover back on it seemed to squeeze into place without any issues.

Looking at it from the side, the keyfob has a hairs-thickness raise on one side compared to my spare keyfob with a 2025 battery in there. I don't see it as an issue.

Needed to re-sync the keyfob with the car after changing battery. Did this by inserting the key into the small hole under the drivers side door handle. That seemed to do the trick despite the manual saying the door handle cover needed to be removed before inserting the key into the lock & pressing/holding the unlock keyfob button. ��

So I've got a PB of 10 months to beat....curious to see how the 2032 goes...

[Umai Naa!!]

I replaced a customer's one for the first time only a month ago.

And that car was one of the first GTIs delivered, way back when.

[DV52]

Hmm.... been reading the posts above and it begs the question of what is the difference between a 2025 button battery and a 2032 button battery?

Well... As already mentioned they both have the same diameter (20mm) and they both have the same voltage (3V) but the 2032 is 3.2 mm thick -therefore 7 mm thicker than the 2025's 2.5 mm housing.

It's this difference that is important because it means that the 2032 can accommodate more "stuff" internally which results in its greater electrical capacity. And the increased "stuff" that's packed into the battery means that the 2032 is physically heavier @ 3.2 grams versus the 2025's weight of 2.6 grams (not that this is important for the Key-fob application)

The capacity of the two batteries is nominally as follows (according to a couple of data-sheets that I managed to pull from the web):

• 2025 = 150 mAh (on continuous discharge at 20℃ under 15kW load to 2.0V end-voltage)
• 2032 = 210 mAh (on continuous discharge at 20℃ under 15kW load to 2.0V end-voltage)

This means that the 2032 packs an increased 180 mWatts of electrical power, which is 40% increase over then 2025

So, if the 2032 can physically fit into the fob - it will be my choice come time to change the battery,

Don

PS: Of course, the numbers above are only applicable to Brand-name button batteries

[Ralfi]

^Thanks heaps for the clarification, DV52.

Yeah I'd read up a while ago that the larger battery crammed more power & should theoretically last longer.

I'd forgotten I had a spare 2032 in the house, so instead of the 2025 I knew I had lying around which I'd originally planned to replace the flat battery with, I went with the big boy.

Here's that difference in keyfob casing I was referring to earlier....very, very slight raise of the battery compartment lid containing the 2032 on the right, compared to the 2025 on the left. Feels secure though.