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Pictures of Size 49D Battery Installation Dinan E46
Compliments of KeithS @ www.bimmerfest.com
For 'most' of our cars the factory battery is size 94. This is a very expensive battery, running from $120-$180 depending on where you get it.
But it has also been discussed that a size 49 battery will fit in most E46 cars (not convertables to my knowledge), and is half the price of the OEM size battery. I got to test this first hand today as my OEM battery failed after 6 years and 2 months (never did any maintenance on it).
Picked up an Autozone Duralast 49-DL for $60, with a 7 year warrenty. The size 49 is more powerful than the OEM 94, but is a different size. It is about 1" longer and 1/2" not as tall. In most cars the battery tray is already designed to accept the longer battery.
The First picture is the old OEM size 94 battery. You may notice the extra space to the right of the battery.
The Second picture is the battery tray (battery removed) and on the right side you can see a while plastic spacer/stop. Remove this and you now can use the full size of the battery tray.
The only other issue is the hold down which is a clamp on top of the battery. In the third picture you can see where I used a 3/4" piece of plywood attached to the underside of the clamp. 1/2" would work as well. There already were 3 holes in the clamp I used to iinstalled 3 small screws to keep the wood from slipping (probably not ciritical). Make sure they are shorter than the thickness of the wood. If you car holds the battery from the bottom flange, this step is likely not necessary.
In the final picture is the 49 battery installed ready to go. The OEM battery has the vent tube attached near the + terminal, on the Duralast it is in the center of the battery (top of picture just under clamp). Connects right up using the kit that's included.
Hope this has been helpful.