Excellent DIY.

 

Nice write-up. Thanks Tahoe!

Matt

 

Nice DIY. Photos on your link.

Question - I see you removed the seat from the seat rails. I normally have just removed the entire assembly as one piece. Was the seat removal required to get full access to the battery well?

 

No I don't think it is necessary. But it seemed easier at the time since I had no instructions to work from. It was more of an explorative process. And the four bolts that attach the entire seat frame are really really torqued down compared to the others attaching the seat to the frame.

In other words, either way would work.

 

Thanks for the write up! I followed it yesterday and, while I cursed the German engineers from start to finish, got it done in about an hour.

I used the Interstate battery from local parts store. $125 with 850cca and 84 month warranty. Not a 100% exact fit but close enough. It came with a vent kit that connected to the Touareg vent pipe.

After doing it I also wondered if I could have simply removed the two bolts under the plastic, just behind the floor mats, and then tilt seat back. Will try that 1st next time which I hope will not be for a long time!

 

Let me get this straight. The battery is under the seat and not under the bonnet or hood where it belongs! &#@$%^&*(. I have been thinking about buying a Tourareg but this could kill the deal. If it is not under the bonnet it is not easy to jump start from the battery.
Carl

 

There are jump start terminals under the hood...so the battery being under the seat makes no difference for jump starts.

 

Yep, as NickM said, you can easily jump from the under-bonnet terminals.

However I have to say there are advantages to being in the cabin under seat - the battery is less 'in the element'; and access to direct power for high power accessories like audio and Ham Radio is easy - no firewall routing issues.

 

Better!. Sometimes I need to start a water pump and the batteries are usually dead.
I am still planning on getting a new car in the next 30 to 60 days. Chevy dealers are advertising Tahoes for $19,000 but I don't like driving boats. One has to use the highway to get to the dirtroad so you might as well enjoy it.


My first car, a 1936 Plymouth, had the battery in a box underneath the passenger footwell. You didn't need to open the door to jump start it though, it came with a hand crank.

 

Thank you!

Thanks so much for this write up! I was able to follow the instructions and change out my battery with very little fuss. Although I didn't take any pictures, I just wanted to add a few pointers to this great write-up. If you're planning on doing the battery change out yourself, print out Tahoe's write up but skim through this before you start...

First off, it seems like Tahoe has a V-8 Touareg and the battery area is just a little bit different on my 2004 V-6 Touareg. Here's a few of the things I did differently:

1) Once I tilted the seat back, I used the rear seat belt and attached it to the headrest of the front seat. This kept the seat back and out of my way.

2) I only removed the front 2 bolts for the seat rails (not the seat... I removed all 4 bolts on that and moved it out of my way). This allowed the rails to get out of my way just enough to get to everything.

3) Be very careful removing the front two (2) plastic things on the floor in front of the seat rails. I broke the clip on one of them when I was putting it back. It still stays in place, but just a word of caution to be careful with them.

4) Once the seat, the 2 bolts for the seat rails, the 2 plastic pieces and the piece of rug at the front of the seat rails covering part of the battery were removed, I found there was a vent of some sort with a bolt attached to the battery cover. This is not visible in any of Tahoe's pictures. I needed a small Torx bit to remove it. Honestly I can't tell you the size because of how disorganized my Torx bits are. Sorry. It was VERY easy to remove, but just be aware that you'll need some Torx bits or screwdrivers to get this out of the way.

5) ALL of the bolts I came across on or near the battery were 10mm. One 10mm wrench and a 10mm socket and I was good to go.

6) Like Tahoe's write-up says, there are 2 points securing the battery. The first is obvious on the top left and can be removed with a wrench. The second looks complicated but all you need is a 10mm socket. It looks like an allen wrench sticking up from the bottom of the battery compartment. Unscrew it with the socket and it'll come right out.

7) Once you undo the 2 things securing the battery, you'll notice the battery still doesn't want to come out. Slide the battery towards the rear of the car and it'll be all set to come out. Just tilt it so you can get it out like Tahoe said. The bar going across the front of the seat rails won't interfere. The battery IS heavy, so make sure you eat your Wheaties before pulling it out.

8. I used the OEM battery from the stealership ($150 + tax at Gunther VW in Ft. Lauderdale, FL) and of course it fit in perfectly, but it didn't seem to "lock" in when I slid it forward like the original battery did. It was no big deal, since the other 2 points secured it nicely.

9) This is kind of common sense, but I'll mention it anyway.. When you put the new battery in, leave the plastic covers over the terminals so it doesn't spark against anything when you're tilting and turning it to get it back in its home.

10) Finally, I took the lazy way and never plugged in a battery charger or jumper cables to the terminals, so when I unplugged the battery, there was no juice going to the car. When I plugged the new battery in, there was a pretty big spark and a little bit of smoke. Freaked me out for a sec, but all was good. When I started the car, the ESP "hazard" light in the instrument cluster stayed lit. Again, I freaked but once I drove the car about 50 feet out of my driveway, the light went away.

Like Tahoe said, it took me about an hour. The one thing I want to stress is the advice that Tahoe gives about pushing down on the bolts at a 90-degree angle. I limp-wristed the first bolt and almost stripped it. I pushed down nice & hard on the rest and didn't have a problem.

Once again, thanks to Tahoe and his excellent write-up. I wouldn't even have attempted this without that piece of paper to go by!

 

I have a few pictures of the V10 battery swap that might help also Touareg V10 Front Battery Swap

If possible, get someone with a VAG-COM to clear all the error codes that are created from a battery disconnection.

 

Thanks for the extra info Elkhound. There are multiple ways to accomplish the task and you have posted a much needed insight.

As far as the fault codes and warning lights. Its best to avoid that by simply hooking up a battery charger or jump start pack. Or you can even hook jumper cables from another car to your battery post under the hood during the disconnect. Saves you the headache of "freaking" out or should I say the Touareg 'freaking" out

 

Fortunately that was the only warning light that popped up. Even more fortunate (since I don't have a VAG-COM) it cleared itself as soon as I drove literally about 50 feet.

But like Tahoe said, I strongly recommend you heed his advice to leave some sort of power connected to the terminals so nothing gets reset.

Thanks again Tahoe!

 

Great article. My batteries due for a change (04 Touareg), however since I live in MN I'm hoping it will hold out until it warms up .. should be sometime in July ... lol

 

lexamk, we also live in Stillwater. If you see a red V10 driving around, that's us. If you need any help with the battery, come out to our shop in Elk River and we'll get it squared away. Take care, stay warm. Peace.

 

Thank-You Sir. Didn't really comprehend/understand/need all the mumbo-jumbo details that were laid out step by step in the instructions (not trying to be criticle or dis-respectful). But I am grateful for your help, knowledge, and insight. Again, Thank-You and all who participate in this fourum.

 

I tend to get ummm diarrhea of the fingers when I get going on describing something I did. Sorry! I was just hoping to save someone from any surprises when they get in there and finally do it themselves.

Really, the most difficult thing for me was getting a hold of the right tool to remove the seat. The rest was gravy

 

Thanks for the write up! Just swapped mine out with your help in about 25 minutes. Joel

 

Tahoe, I used your write up to replace my battery today. The hardest bolts to remove were the two 10mm triple square floor bolts.

The other (4) seats bolts were a lot easier. Thinking about it later, I did the replacement about an hour after the car had been out in freezing weather all night. The floor bolts may have come loose easier if I heated them with a hair dryer.

Not a hard job to replace the battery using your instructions; just labor intensive. I did replace the bolts VW recommends and I torque them to 45 newton-meter’s as per VW. I used a VW OEM battery for my replacement.

Thanks again for your write up.

 

Tahoe, I used your write up to replace my battery today. The hardest bolts to remove were the two 10mm triple square floor bolts.

Using an impact wrench it takes 3 seconds a bolt. Even if you don't have an impact wrench take the triple square socket along with a 3/8 to 1/2 drive adaptor to a local service station/repair shop you do business with and ask if one of their guys with an impact wrench can remove them.

The other (4) seats bolts were a lot easier. Thinking about it later, I did the replacement about an hour after the car had been out in freezing weather all night. The floor bolts may have come loose easier if I heated them with a hair dryer.

What other (4) seats bolts? Once you remove the 2 front triple square bolts the whole seat assembly tilts back to access the battery. Fiddle with the recline and forward/backaward switches to get more room.

I replaced the main battery in my V10 today and got a AC Delco group 49 for $90. Fits perfect and the vent hole is in the same place as the original battery.

 

Thanks atikovi on the updates to an aftermarket battery with vents that fit. It is nice to know that we have an alternate option to the $180 stock version.

Looks like you might have a little more room in the box. Is your Delco battery a bit smaller?

 

After several messages about a bad link in our post above to the V10 battery swap out, I guess the only way to fix a post is to edit it within a few minutes.


Anyways, for the V10 front battery swap:

Touareg V10 Front Battery Swap


For the V10 rear battery swap:

Touareg V10 Rear Battery Swap

Thanks to all for your inquiry. Apologies for the bad link.

 

The Delco battery is a group 49 and they are 1 1/2 inches shorter in length and 1/2 inch in height. Its rated at 825 CCA vs the the original Varta battery which has 850 CCA and should be enough for most any climate.

 

Power Pack for Touareg

Any recommendation on minimum Amps for a Power pack to be used for a Touareg V8? I need to buy one for charging my RC planes batteries but I rather buy one that I can use for a jump start in case I need.


Thanks

 

Any recommendation on minimum Amps for a Power pack to be used for a Touareg V8? I need to buy one for charging my RC planes batteries but I rather buy one that I can use for a jump start in case I need.


Thanks

I don't know the specific amps, but any on the market these days can handle the Touareg. I really like the Black and Decker "Start It". The smaller one without the air pump. I use it all the time for things and it has a cigarette outlet for charging RC batteries. I used it on a big jet-fuel tanker once and it started that big truck no problem.

 

Thank you Tahoe for great instructions. They were really helpful.

The only thing I hesitated about was whether or not to close the small hole near the negative terminal with the blue plug that came with the battery. In the end I used small tube (which was already there) that connects that hole with outside.

One tip that I found useful was the order for connecting cables to terminals of the battery. You should connect positive terminal first.

One odd thing that happened to my after my batteries died on me was that now when I open the doors my trunk remains closed. The only way to open it is to use 'trunk open' button - unlocking the car is not enough. Is there any way to reset it to the original way, ie. when I use the keys to open the car all doors open including the trunk?

 

One odd thing that happened to my after my batteries died on me was that now when I open the doors my trunk remains closed. The only way to open it is to use 'trunk open' button - unlocking the car is not enough. Is there any way to reset it to the original way, ie. when I use the keys to open the car all doors open including the trunk?

I believe there is a setting in the MFI that allows you to unlock all doors vs. only the driver's side door, as well as the rear hatch with one push of the remote button.

 

Few questions: The first for Tahoe and the others for anyone?

1.) Tahoe: Is there a way you can fix the link to your original post because I keep on getting an error message.

2.) The 10 mm triple square bit... By any chance, is this the same bit that Geoff from Alretta, sells you when you buy his front brake kit. I got a bit from him. My tools are in storage so that is why I am asking here.

3.) Does anyone know roughly what VW charges to do this?

4.) Keeping the battery charged: I have a thing in my toolbox that I have yet to use. You plug it into your cigarette lighter and you plug a 9volt battery onto the other end. Would something like this work? Or should I use jumper cables and connect to my other car?