Inteligent key battery issues are driving me nuts!

Just changed the battery about a week or so ago for the inteligent key. I used the same type that was in it. Cr20 something. I even opened a thread about it so that I knew I'd change it to the right one. I am getting low battery messages from the console in the leaf. What gives? I got it from harbor freight too. If the battery is going to be draining this fast can't i just use rechargeable batteries so I could j ust recharge them if they get low?

what should i do? I still have 3 left in the package but at the speed they are draining I'll need one new pack every month!

NissanLeafCamper said:

Just changed the battery about a week or so ago for the inteligent key. I used the same type that was in it. Cr20 something. I even opened a thread about it so that I knew I'd change it to the right one. I am getting low battery messages from the console in the leaf. What gives? I got it from harbor freight too. If the battery is going to be draining this fast can't i just use rechargeable batteries so I could j ust recharge them if they get low?

what should i do? I still have 3 left in the package but at the speed they are draining I'll need one new pack every month!

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If your fob has somehow increased its power consumption, I would expect it to have happened to just one of your fobs. Try switching to the other one. If that other fob looks like it's going to give several years' service from one battery, you could try disassembling the suspect fob and cleaning it.

Levenkay said:

NissanLeafCamper said:

Just changed the battery about a week or so ago for the inteligent key. I used the same type that was in it. Cr20 something. I even opened a thread about it so that I knew I'd change it to the right one. I am getting low battery messages from the console in the leaf. What gives? I got it from harbor freight too. If the battery is going to be draining this fast can't i just use rechargeable batteries so I could j ust recharge them if they get low?

what should i do? I still have 3 left in the package but at the speed they are draining I'll need one new pack every month!

Click to expand...

If your fob has somehow increased its power consumption, I would expect it to have happened to just one of your fobs. Try switching to the other one. If that other fob looks like it's going to give several years' service from one battery, you could try disassembling the suspect fob and cleaning it.

Click to expand...

I switch out to the spare about every 6 months, both work fine 2nd year of use. I would think with a new leaf like yours, if there was an issue with the fob or it's factory supplied batteries that the dealer would fix it n/c warranty!

NissanLeafCamper said:

Just changed the battery about a week or so ago for the inteligent key. I used the same type that was in it. Cr20 something. I even opened a thread about it so that I knew I'd change it to the right one. I am getting low battery messages from the console in the leaf. What gives? I got it from harbor freight too. ...

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How many miles on the 2013 LEAF S you bought used?
The LEAF fob and its battery replacement is covered by the three year / 36,000 mile warranty.
I found out about this too late and paid around $10 for the first replacement at the two year mark.

I used Harbor Freight battery on recent change.
I wasn't very impressed by the battery appearance.
Seemed to have deposit on it.
I cleaned it thoroughly with dry paper towels.
Also important to NOT touch the batery or anything inside the fob with your hands.
Oil / salt on your hands can be very bad for battery and fob performance.

Keep in mind that the fob has a built in RFID chip.
Even without a battery in the fob the LEAF will read the RFID if you put the fob close to the start button and will start.
I was having to do that some of the time for a couple weeks till I got around to changing the battery.

Oh Drats the battery replacement is covered by the bumper to bumper warranty? And they don't charge you any fees for the 'service' part? Labor or whatever? Wish I had known that I wouldn't have spent the cash on the batteries. Darn, I guess it is too late now. My leaf is a 2013 used and has about 23,700 something ish miles.

Oh, when I bought this used leaf from a non-nissan dealer they only gave me once FOB. Was this illegal? Should I ask for the other? I don't even know if they got another one. Maybe the owner only turned one in? Wish they had given me 2 of these babies. I only have one. What should I do?

I did touch the battery with my fingers when putting it on the fob but I didn't touch anything inside the fob.... Drats wish I had known about the warranty I should have asked! I did not think the batteries in the fob were covered!!!!

I have touched the star button with the battery sometimes since I recall reading you c ould do that to start the car. It works! I sometimes get the low battery messages and other times I don't get the message its so confusing.

NissanLeafCamper said:

Oh Drats the battery replacement is covered by the bumper to bumper warranty? And they don't charge you any fees for the 'service' part? Labor or whatever? Wish I had known that I wouldn't have spent the cash on the batteries. Darn, I guess it is too late now. ...

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In another thread about the fobs someone said there is no charge.
Bit unusual that the LEAF warranty covers the fob battery, I don't think it is covered on most Nissan models.

But since the Harbor Freight battery is already dieing, the warranty gives you a good way to get it replaced.

Too bad you didn't get two fobs.
But not illegal. Used cars are pretty much sold as is.
Replacement fob with the programming is pricey, I think near $200.

My wife lost one of ours.
But so far I haven't spent the $ to get another one.

Fob initially comes with a small metal tag with a number on it.
New fob is less $ if you have that tag or working fob.

If no working fob, more $.

Just get good brand-name batteries from a reliable retailer, imho. Duracell, not HF "ThunderFist" crap. I really can't see driving to the dealership and having to deal with a service department, just to get a coin cell.

Nubo said:

Just get good brand-name batteries from a reliable retailer, imho. Duracell, not HF "ThunderFist" crap. I really can't see driving to the dealership and having to deal with a service department, just to get a coin cell.

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Yep... and as I mentioned, Daiso is a decent alternative. Pack of 2 Mitsubishi CR2025's for $1.50. This time, they were Made in Indonesia though. Otherwise, Fry's has some.

I don't really trust the coin cells at HF either.

No metal tag on the fob Just the key. Drats so no extra fob and no metal tag for me. I still have the old sony coin the fob had. If its covered by the warranty I can pop the old one in and take it to get it changed. Should I do it or?

I thought the metal tag was just the code for the metal mechanical key, so that the dealer can cut you a new one, if you lose the originals.

NissanLeafCamper said:

... I still have the old sony coin the fob had. If its covered by the warranty I can pop the old one in and take it to get it changed. Should I do it or?

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I don't think the dealer will care which battery is in it.
They will just change it.

The original Sony CR2025 non-rechargeable battery in my 2012 Nissan LEAF SL's Intelligent (FOB) key, lasted for almost one year. After it got discharged, I found Energizer CR2025 non-rechargeable battery in Home Depot but it was a bit pricey for one battery, So I bought a pack of five for $1 at local Dollar store. Each one of those lasted for about 4 months. I was replacing them every 4-6 months for 1.5 years..

Since these batteries are non-recyclable, I hate throwing them away because they contain rare earth element Lithium which ends up in landfills. Even though these are tiny amounts, millions of them thrown away everyday add up to big amounts. So I looked for rechargeable ones and found LIR2025 on eBay. Its the same size as CR2025 and similar voltage. I had to buy a separate charger. Rechargeable battery and charger are quite cheap.

I purchased and installed the battery in my key in Aug 2015 and it just lost it's charge last week in March 2016. So I got about seven months of service. I noticed that it didn't show the dashboard low-battery warning for this one. I am guessing that these rechargeable ones don't give enough time for the LEAF to notice.

I recharged the battery for about two hours and its working great again. The LED lights on my charger don't work properly. Instead of solid Green or solid Red, the Red blinks while charging, and turns off after charging. The other empty battery compartment remains solid Green at all times. My charger's LED lights may be malfunctioning but the charging part is still working fine.


Battery eBay link ($4 for two rechargeable batteries): http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-LIR2025-R...5-Batteries-/201012503089?hash=item2ecd476231


Charger eBay link ($7): http://www.ebay.com/itm/Charger-For...y-Brand-New-/321729833370?hash=item4ae897a99a

I'm not sure (ironically, I guess, given the forum) that I'd trust a cheap rechargeable lithium battery. I go for the name brands, sold locally (Ebay is rife with counterfeits) and get them where they are reasonably priced. Prices vary wildly, with grocery stores and drug stores actually being the worst places to buy them. I just replaced both fob batteries a couple of months ago, after about 2.5 years of service. I used an Energizer CR2032 for the main fob, and an OEM-size Energizer CR2025 for the spare fob. So far, so good.

If all lithium batteries calendar degrade, then buying extra batteries, and putting them on a
shelf will not be useful, as they will be as degraded as the used battery. Are not all lithium
batteries rechargeable by the nature of being ion driven rather than chemical change driven?
They just have to be very carefully charged to keep from destroying them(current, voltage,
end condition).

I agree about calendar degradation. That's why it's generally best to get a two-pack of the same battery (one for each fob), unless you have more than two devices that need them. I ended up using one CR2032 for something else, and had the CR2025 sitting around, left over from a two-pack of those.

About 2 years for one of my originals in my '13, the other hasn't been replaced yet. I had to replace one in my recently purchased '12, have no idea how old it was. I put the larger capacity 2032 in both and hope for a longer life. Note the larger battery fit pretty easy in the 3 button '12 but took a bit of effort to get the cover back on, in my '13 4 button remote. If it matters for reference I never really use the buttons on the remote, I lock it with the interior button and unlock it with the outside door handle button.

Shelf life of a lithium battery is generally 10+ years so any wear is more due to draw than old age or self discharge. I generally purchase a 3 pack of my Energizer lithium's, ~$5 B&M on sale.
I never throw away Li batteries, very bad for the environment I've heard, it's fine to throw away non rechargeable(alkaline, zinc) at least in my location.

LeftieBiker said:

...I go for the name brands, sold locally (Ebay is rife with counterfeits) and get them where they are reasonably priced.

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I prefer name brands too, especially when purchasing rechargeable batteries. But I couldn't find any name brand rechargeable 2025 batteries anywhere, including online, except eBay. As far as I can tell, no name brand is manufacturing them.

I was a little sceptical about these non-brand rechargeable button batteries, but they worked well and recharged safely. It didn't damage my Intelligent FOB key, and it fits perfectly. LIR2025 is the exact size of CR2025.

Initially I had ordered ML2025 rechargeable batteries but the seller cancelled the order because they didn't have them any more. ML2025 is supposedly more energy dense than LIR2025. Since I couldn't find any other seller of ML2025, I ordered LIR2025.

I had a low voltage dash warning for my FOB -- its battery after removal tested slightly less than 3.10v. So I replaced the CR2025 with a new one (that tested slightly greater than 3.30v). This time the dash reported no FOB detected!

To fix the problem, I had to slightly bend the two metal prongs outwards on the "+" side (the half w/o electronics) so they made (better?) contact with the two copper pads (on the half w/ the electronics).

jjeff said:

About 2 years for one of my originals in my '13, the other hasn't been replaced yet. I had to replace one in my recently purchased '12, have no idea how old it was. I put the larger capacity 2032 in both and hope for a longer life. Note the larger battery fit pretty easy in the 3 button '12 but took a bit of effort to get the cover back on, in my '13 4 button remote. If it matters for reference I never really use the buttons on the remote, I lock it with the interior button and unlock it with the outside door handle button.

Shelf life of a lithium battery is generally 10+ years so any wear is more due to draw than old age or self discharge. I generally purchase a 3 pack of my Energizer lithium's, ~$5 B&M on sale.
I never throw away Li batteries, very bad for the environment I've heard, it's fine to throw away non rechargeable(alkaline, zinc) at least in my location.

Click to expand...

Well my second '13 battery FOB needed replacing today, 2 years after I purchased it new, about 2 3/4 years after being built. Put a 2032 in(like I did on my previous FOB) and again it was a bit hard to close but did snap closed after a bit of squeezing. Time will tell how much longer the 2032s last than the original 2025s but I believe going strictly off capacity it should last about 50% longer(220ma vs 150ma) so 4 1/8th year vs 2 3/4 years, again time will tell.

EVerlasting said:

TSince these batteries are non-recyclable, I hate throwing them away because they contain rare earth element Lithium which ends up in landfills.

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For what it's worth, Lithium is not a rare-earth element. Though of course spent batteries should be recycled not dumped.

And, I should add, that "rare-earth" elements are not particularly scarce, the term is an archaic reference to how difficult they once were to refine. I find the term "rare earth" is often used for FUD effect by EV opponents who try to capitalize on the word "rare". Some of the rare-earths are used in the high-strength magnets used in electric motors.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rare_earth_element