Battery has swollen

Your Mac must be checked by Apple. Please, take it to an Apple Store or Authorized and and ask for an evaluation. Explain everything that happened to your Mac and how you normally use it.

You can first get in contact with Apple Support on 800-APL-CARE Contact - How to Contact Us - Apple for instructions and proper registration of your problem. When you go to the store/authorized, you'll then already have instructions from Apple itself on how to proceed.

It is possible that they even replace it under the Service Program again, but first it must be checked.

Don't take a first no as an answer, maybe you'll have to push it a little bit.

There are several issues involved here.

The recall program is only valid for the original battery which shipped with the laptop from the factory...so that no longer applies since Apple replaced the original battery for you.

This laptop is now considered "Vintage" by Apple which means repairs will only be performed as long as the necessary part is still available. In this case, the necessary part is the Top Case Assembly which includes the Keyboard, Trackpad, and the glued in Battery. This part definitely won't be available for long since a keyboard failure requires this part. A Trackpad failure requires this part. A Battery failure also requires this part. So you can see this part is needed for a lot of different failures so existing stock will be quickly depleted. Thank Apple for gluing the battery to the underside of the palmrest & trackpad so keeping a "battery" in stock is nearly impossible once Apple stops producing the Top Case Assembly. Apple does mention they will allow battery replacement for up to 10 years, but this has a very critical footnote "as long as the part is still available". We've had better luck with Apple supplying batteries for the "Vintage" MacBook Airs, but those laptops have removable batteries, however, even with those laptops Apple refused repair multiple times when later they did allow for repairs.

I am not sure of the warranty on a replacement battery, but I think it only has a 90 day warranty (1 year at the most). Again, the small print comes into play...because it is only possible if the part is still available. Even if you were able to get a repair today while the laptop is "Vintage"....so if the part fails next week, you may not be able to get a warranty replacement if the part is no longer available due to the "Vintage" nature of the laptop.

At this point, you will need to get a third party battery replacement. Unfortunately the quality of third party Lithium Batteries is extremely poor even when purchased from a reputable vendor such as OWC or iFixIt. These vendors do suggest professional installation due to the difficulty of removing the battery and the risk of damaging other components (including the new battery). I've seen a lot of users post on these forums that their laptops had issues after they performed their own battery replacement because they usually unknowingly accidentally damaged something.

I just installed an iFixIt battery into a 2015 laptop and the first battery I received was defective (lost nearly 80% of its capacity in two days), but I easily received a warranty replacement which seems to be holding up fine so far. In the past I have had premature battery failures from OWC as well. It is just the nature of the third party Lithium Battery marketplace.

DNPH1BDWDTFD wrote:

I agree that Apple allegedly replaced my battery. However, this second battery also swelled just like the first one because it couldn't function properly even for 300 cycles, even though its specifications should have allowed it to last for 1000 cycles.

FYI, the Battery Recall program for the MBPro 15" (2015) laptop is not for a swelling issue, but a fire safety issue which is why Apple is replacing them for free in this model regardless of the battery's current condition. The fact the original battery was swollen is irrelevant in regards to the recall. A swollen Lithium battery is one of the more noticeable ways a Lithium battery fails and is much more common as the battery ages. The two issues are completely different.

This means that the battery they replaced for me was also defective and subjected to rapid wear and swelling.

Yes, it means the new battery is defective, but it also lasted about three years which is about the point some batteries will begin to fail regardless of the cycle count which I previously mentioned is mostly irrelevant.

While Apple batteries are generally of good quality, even Apple has trouble with battery quality from time to time. This is from someone who has been supporting our organization's thousands of laptops (majority Apple) for decades. And in that time I have also used some third party Lithium batteries which generally never hold up quite as well as the OEM batteries.

In the end, it turns out that no one is to blame, and I simply had bad luck...

Not that it is any comfort, but I have the same luck....bad.

Mac battery replacements are warrantied for a year, the same regardless of whether or not it was paid for or part of a replacement program.

I got mine replaced by Apple (paid for it) last year after it had slightly swollen and even failed completely, but temporarily. It was at about 74% battery health when it was replaced. But that was for a mid-2012 Unibody where Apple considers the battery a separate part from the top case. I believe with any of the Retina models, once the battery swells, Apple considers it a damaged top case that isn't eligible for a battery replacement service price, but a top case replacement price.

A swelling battery is is a possibility with almost any lithium-ion battery. Unfortunately it's not usually something that's covered out of warranty.

DNPH1BDWDTFD wrote:

"..so that no longer applies since Apple replaced the original battery for you..."

I agree that Apple allegedly replaced my battery. However, this second battery also swelled just like the first one because it couldn't function properly even for 300 cycles, even though its specifications should have allowed it to last for 1000 cycles. This means that the battery they replaced for me was also defective and subjected to rapid wear and swelling. This is not my fault.

In the end, it turns out that no one is to blame, and I simply had bad luck...

It doesn't necessarily mean it was defective out of the factory. There are a lot of reasons for why batteries swell. It's just something that can happen randomly.

I had an older Mac that had a swollen battery, but it was considered user serviceable with a retail replacement. Even out of warranty it was eligible for a "service replacement" price since it was under the nominal cycle rating. It was a little bit cheaper and it required an exchange of the damaged battery, but it only had a 90 day warranty. But with a retail replacement I could keep the defective battery and it would come with a 1 year warranty.

y_p_w wrote:

I believe with any of the Retina models, once the battery swells, Apple considers it a damaged top case that isn't eligible for a battery replacement service price, but a top case replacement price.

No, Apple doesn't consider it damaged. At least never for any laptops I'm aware, but perhaps some individual techs may do so incorrectly. I've seen reports from a lot of users (perhaps in other regions) where the Apple Stores or AASPs don't follow the same rules (or don't interpret them properly).

A swelling battery is is a possibility with almost any lithium-ion battery. Unfortunately it's not usually something that's covered out of warranty.

Actually Apple has replaced some swollen batteries for free even for laptops not under warranty as part of a secret repair program, but only for the original battery from factory. We've had some of our organization's batteries replaced for free this way.

HWTech wrote:

y_p_w wrote:

I believe with any of the Retina models, once the battery swells, Apple considers it a damaged top case that isn't eligible for a battery replacement service price, but a top case replacement price.

No, Apple doesn't consider it damaged. At least never for any laptops I'm aware, but perhaps some individual techs may do so incorrectly. I've seen reports from a lot of users (perhaps in other regions) where the Apple Stores or AASPs don't follow the same rules (or don't interpret them properly).

A swelling battery is is a possibility with almost any lithium-ion battery. Unfortunately it's not usually something that's covered out of warranty.

Actually Apple has replaced some swollen batteries for free even for laptops not under warranty as part of a secret repair program, but only for the original battery from factory. We've had some of our organization's batteries replaced for free this way.

I wasn't really accounting for any kind of double-secret probation "warranty".

I was under the impression that the top case had to be in good condition once out of warranty, regardless of what may or may not have damaged it. A swelling battery can definitely damage the trackpad and other stuff in the top case. Obviously if it's swelling during the warranty period, the battery and everything that it damages is covered by the warranty. But there's a chance that a swelling battery damages the chassis and the board. I haven't seen anything extreme, but there are posts to ASC that show ones where the cover was bent and where it seemed likely that there was a lot more damage than just the top case. Not sure what they would do out of warranty, but I was under the impression that the warranty is a cost of doing business and after the warranty is up they don't fix consequential damage from battery swelling.