Buying a new car battery: are you being overcharged?
Exclusive investigation reveals the big price differences – and sheer cost – you could face when buying a new car battery
Replacing a car’s battery is something that many buyers will face at some point. But how much does it cost on the UK’s most popular new cars? And are buyers getting a fair deal?
An Auto Express investigation can reveal that some car owners are being charged a staggering £1,250 for battery replacement, while others face bills as low as £98.
Auto Express compiled a list of the UK’s 20 best-selling vehicles and contacted three franchised dealer networks across the country to get a price for parts and labour. The only information dealers requested was the vehicle’s registration details.
Owners of the current-generation Mercedes C-Class are in for the biggest shock, because we were quoted a fee of £1,248 for a replacement battery. A second dealership quoted a price of £1,098.90 for the same job, while a third was charging only £315. To check this figure was not an anomaly, we contacted two more dealerships and again received quotes of £1,111.80 and £1,198.80.
A Mercedes spokesperson told Auto Express: “We believe the majority of retailers you contacted have quoted for a lithium-ion battery, and one quote may be for a 12v battery. We can only recommend a retail price for these parts, which means there could be a variation across retailers.”
By comparison, prices for a replacement battery on a comparable BMW 320i started from £296.98 and rose to £392.57.
The Vauxhall Mokka X was also a model that had a big disparity in price, with some dealers offering parts and labour for as little as £98.46, while two other dealers quoted £248.40 and £262.80. “We believe that the cost of the lowest-priced battery quoted to your researcher was based on a unit that was not of comparable quality to the other units for which quotes were received,” a Vauxhall spokesperson told us.
Volkswagen Tiguan owners also face quite a disparity in price for a battery replacement, ranging from £190.66 up to £320.66 – a difference of more than 68 per cent.
The fairest and most consistent pricing was to be found with the Toyota Yaris; all three franchised dealers quoted the same £105 fee for parts and labour.
Industry regulator Motor Codes told Auto Express that the results highlighted the importance of buyers shopping around if vehicle repairs are required. “When purchasing and/or having a replacement part fitted, such as a battery, we always advise motorists to shop around and to spend time doing their research. As the retail price of batteries isn’t regulated, this means that the brands supplied and the cost to the consumer will vary between retailers for the recommended technical specifications advised by the vehicle manufacturer.”
Winners and losers of battery replacement
Losers
Mercedes C-Class
Top price: £1,248.80Cheapest: £315Difference: 296.4%
Big price difference shows you need to specify what work needs doing.
Vauxhall Mokka X
Top price: £262.80Cheapest: £98.46Difference: 166.91%
Price disparity was blamed on offer of a ‘lower quality’ replacement.
Volkswagen Tiguan
Top price: £320.66Cheapest: £190.66Difference: 68.18%
Compact SUV had a wide range of prices quoted for battery replacement.
Winners
Toyota Yaris
Top price: £105Cheapest: £105Difference: 0%
UK-wide pricing policy means Toyota garages all offered the same rate
Vauxhall Astra
Top price: £136Cheapest: £134.40Difference: 1.19%
Similar prices across the country put Vauxhall in a good light here.
Car battery costs
| Car | Dealership 1 | Cost | Dealership 2 | Cost | Dealership 3 | Cost | Difference |
| Ford Fiesta 1.0 EcoBoost | Bridgend | £199 | Nottingham | £208 | Bristol | £186 | 11.28% |
| Volkswagen Golf 1.5 TSI SE Edition 5dr | Loughborough | £194 | West London | £244 | Swansea | £250 | 28.86% |
| Ford Focus 1.0 EcoBoost auto Style | Maidstone | £181 | Gravesend | £218 | Cambridge | £193 | 20.44% |
| Vauxhall Corsa 1.4 Design 5d | North London | £284 | Bristol | £249 | Manchester | £237 | 19.83% |
| Mercedes A-Class A 180 SE | Manchester | £322 | Loughton | £444 | Coventry | £377 | 37.88% |
| Nissan Qashqai 1.2 DiG-T Acenta | Nottingham | £129 | Birmingham | £132 | North London | £130 | 2.32% |
| Volkswagen Polo SE 1.0 TSI | Bristol | £234 | Newport | £212 | Ashford | £192 | 21.87% |
| Ford Kuga Titanium X 1.5 TDCi | Manchester | £206 | Swindon | £202 | Liverpool | £228 | 12.87% |
| Kia Sportage 1.7 CRDi ISG 2 | Solihull | £286 | Leeds | £215 | Cardiff | £309 | 43.72% |
| MINI Hatchback Cooper S Classic 3d | Liverpool | £357 | Milton Keynes | £232 | Coventry | £224 | 59.37% |
| Mercedes C-Class C 200 SE* | Central London | £1,248 | Cambridge | £315 | Harrogate | £1,098.80 | 296.44% |
| Vauxhall Mokka ecoTEC XDesign Nav 1.4i | Tonbridge | £248.40 | Burnley | £98.46 | Leeds | £262.80 | 166.91% |
| Vauxhall Astra 1.4 Design | Crawley | £135.00 | Birmingham | £134.40 | Carlisle | £136 | 1.19% |
| Volkswagen Tiguan 2.0 TDI 150 SE Nav | Maidstone | £190.66 | Coventry | £320.66 | South West London | £235.66 | 68.18% |
| Audi A3 Sportback 1.5 TFSI | Whetstone | £405.46 | Leicester | £336.60 | Harrogate | 388 | 20.45% |
| Toyota Yaris 1.0 Icon Tech | Ashford | £105 | Cheltenham | £105 | Rotherham | £105 | 0% |
| BMW 1 Series 118i Sport | Essex | £332.57 | Boston | £292.57 | Newcastle | £271.27 | 22.59% |
| BMW 3 Series 320i SE | Eastleigh | £296.98 | Coventry | £300.77 | Doncaster | £392.57 | 32.18% |
| Hyundai Tucson 1.6 GDi SE Nav | Maidstone | £289.76 | Bristol | £321.18 | Sunderland | £298.38 | 10.84% |
| Fiat 500 1.2 Lounge | Crawley | £207 | Chesterfield | £192 | Glasgow | £193 | 7.80% |
* Mercedes prices varied so widely that we obtained two extra quotes of £1,111.80 and £1,198.80 from other dealerships
