Battery question

[nimbus2007]

Wife got stranded today. Thank God she was at the grocery store lot. our 2007 Pilot's battery lasted (only) 4 years and 2 months 55600 miles. is this normal?

the new OEM battery says "lasts up to 100 months" no label on the original though.

[carguy07]

I usually get between 4-6 years regardless of brand or warranty. Most batteries will never make it close to 100 months.

[xGS]

Any idea how long the car sat on the lot before you bought it (at the end of the model year in July '07 - given that the '08 models were introduced in June '07)?
What is the build date?

Does the car get used mostly for short trips?

[nimbus2007]

carguy, I know that no battery will make 100 months. just comparing it to the original. I was expecting at least five (was planning on replacing it next summer regardless of condition)

xgs, funny you mentioned that. car was bought in July 2007 - Build date May 2007 and yes, a lot of short trips...kids, school, sports, etc.

[rocky]

Honda batteries survive three years safely. After that its on borrowed time.

[chas22]

Read This

Johnson Controls batteries.pdf

[samc]

Sounds normal.
But did you every check the water inside the battery?
My pilot's battery is at around 5.5 years and I feel it needing replacement real soon.

[nimbus2007]

thanks guys. just weird that it didn't give any warning signs like slow crank/start or something...

[94eg!]

If it's the original Honda battery, just call the dealer. They should give you a discount on a new battery because yours didn't make it the full 100 months. This is called a pro-rated warranty. You get a discount depending on how many months you still have left on your original warranty.

I just replaced a battery yesterday on my TL that still had several months left on it's warranty. Autozone took $33 off the price of the new one. Mine was purchased in Dec of 07, so the guy said it still had 4 months left on it. Every little bit counts. If your battery lasts more than 3 years without any maintenance from you, consider yourself lucky. This is just the facts of owning/using lead-acid batteries in general.

[94eg!]

Oh, I forgot to mention. The proper way to maintain a standard non-sealed lead-acid battery is to check it's water/acid level every couple months. Just pop off the electrolyte caps and make sure each cell is filled to the base of fill hole. If any of the six cells is low on water, simply add some. Just be sure to ONLY USE DISTILLED WATER (only 89 cents at the grocery store for 1-gal). Minerals in tap water will corrode the battery very quickly from the inside out.



As for the outside, if you have any spillage or corrosion on the battery (caused by gassing of the electrolyte), clean it off with some baking soda, water and a toothbrush. The baking soda will neutralize the acid instantly. Obviously you only do this with the caps in place. You don't want to get baking soda inside the battery.

[nimbus2007]

94eg, thanks for the tips. unfortunately, when my wife went to service they told her the original battery is only covered for 3 years.

[94eg!]

That's some BS. Just save yourself some money and get the Autozone red-top battery for $90. They keep the warranty under your phone number so you never worry about loosing your receipt. And you can exchange anywhere in the country.