Does e-golf have to be coded to a new 12v battery?

[uscpsycho]

I just replaced the 12v battery on my 2019 SEL with a higher capacity AGM battery. VW's service told me that a new battery has to be coded, and so I assumed that was true. But someone on the e-golf subreddit just said that you only need to code batteries on ICE Golfs because coding is only needed for cars with stop start engines. Wouldn't surprise me in the least if the VW service advisor was misinformed about this.

Can someone confirm that I don't need to code the new battery for e-golf?

[f1geek]

I suspect “only” is incorrect.

Your 2019 e-Golf 12 V battery didn’t last very long. I wonder why? Maybe by not coding the new battery you will also reduce the lifespan of the new 12 V battery.

My 2017 e-Golf with 52,000 miles has its original 12 V battery. In addition to normal driving I have also jump started four ICE vehicles over the years.

[uscpsycho]

I suspect “only” is incorrect.

Your 2019 e-Golf 12 V battery didn’t last very long. I wonder why? Maybe by not coding the new battery you will also reduce the lifespan of the new 12 V battery.

My 2017 e-Golf with 52,000 miles has its original 12 V battery. In addition to normal driving I have also jump started four ICE vehicles over the years.

I have read more people on more forums saying that coding isn't necessary and their points sound valid. I'm starting to think they are correct.

My factory battery lasted over three years, which is past the warranty period, and if coding was necessary then it was factory coded. Coding has nothing to do with whether or not my car was coded and a lot more to do with the number of electronics I have plugged into the car abusing the 12v battery.

I am also going to say right now, for anyone reading this, NEVER jump start a car with your e-Golf. I don't mean this offensively, but it will seem that way to you, if you think it's OK to jump start a car with a e-golf then you shouldn't be giving people advice about e-golfs. You've essentially discredited yourself...

[f1geek]

I don’t believe the manual indicates jumping another car is forbidden. Besides, since I’ve done it so many times with no I’ll effects, and the 12 V battery, as well the rest of my car, is still in good shape after 5 years, this suggests that the battery is treated better than one that is dead after 3 years.

Coding does NO harm to the 12 V battery, so if multiple dealers suggest it should be done, it is possible the VW mechanics know more than internet commenters.

[f1geek]

I just checked the e-Golf manual and it gives pointers about how to jump start another vehicle. Those German engineers built a stout electrical system!

[miamor]

I am also going to say right now, for anyone reading this, NEVER jump start a car with your e-Golf. I don't mean this offensively, but it will seem that way to you, if you think it's OK to jump start a car with a e-golf then you shouldn't be giving people advice about e-golfs. You've essentially discredited yourself...

I don't know why you know it's bad. Can you explain? I do agree that high amperage being drawn is never going to happen while being a eGolf battery. But does drawing that high current to jump start another's car really matter? I also own a used 2017 like f1geek, with what looks like original VARTA 68Ah AGM battery. But it's starting to warn about low voltage, charge by driving.

[miamor]

I made it a few months and got tired of the "12v battery low" and other warnings. Since replacing the battery with a 70Ah AGM type, I did not get any coding done. So to stop the pesky messages I took it in to a used car dealer where I purchased it because their service dept said they could to the re coding for $35.
But in reality, they found nothing to recode when they scanned the car's computer thru that OBD port. He said all he could do was reset codes, but there were no stored codes.
So if you decide to have yours re-coded, I suggest the dealer. And let us know if they really found something that gets changed. Then we know it's only dealers who can do new battery re-coding. Weird stuff for sure!

[f1geek]

Dealer not strictly required. OBD Eleven can also code the battery. Standard OBD dongle / software will not necessarily get the job done.

Clearing and reading codes is NOT the same as coding. "Coding" is VW's equivalent "programming" word.