I am original owner of '98 ML320. Had original battery replaced 2-1/2 years after purchase by Benz Dealer while still under warranty. That was May, 2000. Now 5 years and 2 months later, while the battery is still operational I want to do some preventative maintenance and replace it before I am stuck in some remote area with a dead battery, usually where a battery dies. My question, "Is there any more to this operation than removing the old battery and replacing it with the new one?"

it is pretty easy, just two suggestions
1. use an original battery, i have yey to see an aftermarket that is tall enough to use and still allow it to attach using the plastic lip on top
2. besure that you completely remove the remote key from the ignition. the power surge that occurs when charging a battery, jump starting, or replacing a battery is enough to wipe the key that is in the ignition from the AAM module, this will render the key useless and i have seen this sometines damage the AAM, this does not always happen, but i have seen it occur more than once, remove the key and save yourself from potential issues. just takes a second to remove the key.

Thanks for the response Carson. A little more depth to my question follows. Are there any resets required after the new battery is installed, like resetting the radio stations, or any sophisticated codes to reset. I have an 86 BMW and since new I have replaced the battery three times getting approx. 5 years life per battery. All that is required after battery replacement is to enter a theft prevent code into the radio and reset the stations. So back to the ML, are there any things like that required after battery change???

I bought an Interstate battery that's a perfect fit...although as Carson stated, OEM is probably the way to go.

Other than the VERY good suggestion of making sure the key is not in the ignition, when reconnecting everything, you will have to reenter your radio security codes.

Also, your BAS/ESP light will come on. You can correct this by turning your steering wheel lock-to-lock.

Not sure, but perhaps some "learned" driving parameters may have been reset. Your ML will have to relearn them, and will do so on its own.

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2009 ML350 (106K) - Family vehicle
2001 CLK430 Cabriolet (80K) - Wife's car
2005 BMW 645CI (138K) - My daily driver
2016 Mustang (32K) - Daughter's car

Owner's manual will tell you everything that needs to be reset when changing the battery and how to reset them. You probably need to have your radio code handy.

Len