[playswithcars]

My new elite is 5 months old not driven everyday and has 1700 miles. Yesterday after sitting 4 days the low battery warning came on but it started OK. That day I drove it about 25 miles stopping twice and it restarted normally both times without the warning. Today, it started normal without any warnings and I run it for about 15 mins checking some features which may be on after shut down. I turned it off and exited looking through the window as the interior lights turned off (15 sec) and the dash lights switched off. After a minute, I open the door and the lights and dash switched on as normal but when I exited without starting the engine, the interior lights turned off but the dash flashed the start up images and each side stayed lite and eventually turn off.I am wondering if something like accessory is staying on and causing a drain on the battery. If I start the engine and exit after engine shut down, everything goes off like it always did. I am very new to Honda and don't understand some of the items which might be staying connected.

Thanks for any help,

Bob

 

[ObsidianX]

My new elite is 5 months old not driven everyday and has 1700 miles. Yesterday after sitting 4 days the low battery warning came on but it started OK. That day I drove it about 25 miles stopping twice and it restarted normally both times without the warning. Today, it started normal without any warnings and I run it for about 15 mins checking some features which may be on after shut down. I turned it off and exited looking through the window as the interior lights turned off (15 sec) and the dash lights switched off. After a minute, I open the door and the lights and dash switched on as normal but when I exited without starting the engine, the interior lights turned off but the dash flashed the start up images and each side stayed lite and eventually turn off.I am wondering if something like accessory is staying on and causing a drain on the battery. If I start the engine and exit after engine shut down, everything goes off like it always did. I am very new to Honda and don't understand some of the items which might be staying connected.

Thanks for any help,

Bob

Hmmm... Being that it rarely gets driven I would take it for a nice drive and let the alternator recharge the cells. Seems like the short infrequent trips are not allowing the battery to fully charge.

Earlier today, I replaced my original battery which was manufactured in 5/15. Never gave me problems but I'd rather err on the side of caution. I have about 54k miles. I drive alot and often so my alternator always keeps the battery topped off.

 

[toolazy4alogin]

Hmmm... Being that it rarely gets driven I would take it for a nice drive and let the alternator recharge the cells. Seems like the short infrequent trips are not allowing the battery to fully charge.

Earlier today, I replaced my original battery which was manufactured in 5/15. Never gave me problems but I'd rather err on the side of caution. I have about 54k miles. I drive alot and often so my alternator always keeps the battery topped off.

Which battery did you go with and how long did it take you to replace?

 

[ObsidianX]

Which battery did you go with and how long did it take you to replace?

Went with a Champion AGM at PepBoys for $160 after core deposit refund. Took about 20mins. The AGM I have is cooled by a fan box. Had to remove the cover, remove the terminal connects and it was easy from there. One of my harness wires from my HIDs got snagged in the box and took me a bit to figure out why the positive cable was shorter than before. Simple and straight forward. New batt was made in 6/19. Not too bad.

 

[Dixie]

My new elite is 5 months old not driven everyday and has 1700 miles. Yesterday after sitting 4 days the low battery warning came on but it started OK. That day I drove it about 25 miles stopping twice and it restarted normally both times without the warning. Today, it started normal without any warnings and I run it for about 15 mins checking some features which may be on after shut down. I turned it off and exited looking through the window as the interior lights turned off (15 sec) and the dash lights switched off. After a minute, I open the door and the lights and dash switched on as normal but when I exited without starting the engine, the interior lights turned off but the dash flashed the start up images and each side stayed lite and eventually turn off.I am wondering if something like accessory is staying on and causing a drain on the battery. If I start the engine and exit after engine shut down, everything goes off like it always did. I am very new to Honda and don't understand some of the items which might be staying connected.

Thanks for any help,

Bob

I have a 2019 Pilot Touring and as of today, I am now on my 3rd battery. I am quite annoyed. I only have 2500 miles on the car and it is 11 months old. The dealer has replaced 2 batteries under warranty, but, I don't feel this vehicle is reliable any more. The original battery started giving me the big warning about turn everything off, etc. when the car had about 1100 miles on it. I took it on a 30 minute drive to make sure it would get charged up, but, it didn't help. The warnings continued, but, the car would start. At 1275 miles, I had the car at my local tire and service shop and asked about the battery warning. They did a long charge and it did not hold the charge. The dealer took 2 days to diagnose, but they replaced the battery in the end. Today, I got stranded at Costco and had to call AAA. I tried to call the Honda Roadside Service, but it was a nightmare. I was very happy I had AAA. They were out in 20 minutes. They ran 2 tests and it came up 'Replace Battery.' So the dealer put in battery #3 under warranty. I may post this as a question to see if other people have had issues and had multiple batteries replaced.

 

[ys1219]

My 2020 Touring did that when it was brand new, but now that we're driving it. It's not coming back. My car was made on December 5th 2019, and I picked it up on Jan 22nd 2020. It would only happen when I would turn the car on, but engine still off. You should maybe go on a one hour drive with your family to recharge the battery. Also press the little button under the gear selector to turn off auto stop/start every time you drive. It drains the battery much faster with that "feature" on all the time, especially in city driving. It's still scary how a brand new car is already showing a low battery sign. Also, some things might stay on until you lock the doors (by pressing the little button on the door handle).

 

[xGS]

Went with a Champion AGM at PepBoys for $160 after core deposit refund.
New batt was made in 6/19. Not too bad.

A "new" battery that is more than a year old?
That's not too good.
Typical advice is to look for one that is no more than 6 months old, with 3 months or less being even better.
Car Battery Buying Guide

Save your receipt to prove the purchase date when it's time for the next replacement.

 

[ObsidianX]

A "new" battery that is more than a year old?
That's not too good.
Typical advice is to look for one that is no more than 6 months old, with 3 months or less being even better.
Car Battery Buying Guide

Save your receipt to prove the purchase date when it's time for the next replacement.

I made that post on 9/19. 3 months is fine.

 

[Daltongang]

I have a 2019 Pilot Touring and as of today, I am now on my 3rd battery. I am quite annoyed. I only have 2500 miles on the car and it is 11 months old. The dealer has replaced 2 batteries under warranty, but, I don't feel this vehicle is reliable any more. The original battery started giving me the big warning about turn everything off, etc. when the car had about 1100 miles on it. I took it on a 30 minute drive to make sure it would get charged up, but, it didn't help. The warnings continued, but, the car would start. At 1275 miles, I had the car at my local tire and service shop and asked about the battery warning. They did a long charge and it did not hold the charge. The dealer took 2 days to diagnose, but they replaced the battery in the end. Today, I got stranded at Costco and had to call AAA. I tried to call the Honda Roadside Service, but it was a nightmare. I was very happy I had AAA. They were out in 20 minutes. They ran 2 tests and it came up 'Replace Battery.' So the dealer put in battery #3 under warranty. I may post this as a question to see if other people have had issues and had multiple batteries replaced.

If this issue rears its ugly head again in the near future, ask the dealer to do a through test of the alternator. Your vehicle has an AGM battery. AGM batteries are designed for vehicles with start stop feature as well as all of the electronics in the vehicle. AGM batteries require a slower charge rate than standard flood batteries. It the system is charging a battery too fast it will degrade the battery, be it a flood battery or AGM.

Also, what are your driving habits. If you are just making little two or three block hops to the grocery store etc or lots of stop and go traffic driving then an AGM may not get enough charge to bring it back up to full capacity. It does need a good charge. That is why with the current situation I get my 2020 Passport Touring out for a nice highway drive once a week, just to keep the battery conditioned.

 

[Dixie]

If this issue rears its ugly head again in the near future, ask the dealer to do a through test of the alternator. Your vehicle has an AGM battery. AGM batteries are designed for vehicles with start stop feature as well as all of the electronics in the vehicle. AGM batteries require a slower charge rate than standard flood batteries. It the system is charging a battery too fast it will degrade the battery, be it a flood battery or AGM.

Also, what are your driving habits. If you are just making little two or three block hops to the grocery store etc or lots of stop and go traffic driving then an AGM may not get enough charge to bring it back up to full capacity. It does need a good charge. That is why with the current situation I get my 2020 Passport Touring out for a nice highway drive once a week, just to keep the battery conditioned.

When AAA came out when I was stranded yesterday, he tested the alternator and the battery. The test indicated the alternator was fine.
It is true that I mostly run short errand trips, but, I never had any trouble with previous vehicles. Stop and start driving is a way of life in Southern California. If this expensive SUV cannot handle such driving habits, I should have been warned prior to buying the vehicle. I would not have bought it if it had such limitations.
I would think if my driving habits caused this issue, the battery could have been revived with a charge. The test indicated that the battery needed to be replaced, which the dealer did. I'm thinking short driving trips should not kill a battery completely.

 

[ys1219]

When AAA came out when I was stranded yesterday, he tested the alternator and the battery. The test indicated the alternator was fine.
It is true that I mostly run short errand trips, but, I never had any trouble with previous vehicles. Stop and start driving is a way of life in Southern California. If this expensive SUV cannot handle such driving habits, I should have been warned prior to buying the vehicle. I would not have bought it if it had such limitations.
I would think if my driving habits caused this issue, the battery could have been revived with a charge. The test indicated that the battery needed to be replaced, which the dealer did. I'm thinking short driving trips should not kill a battery completely.

Yes I totally agree. Your car should be able to handle short trips, with auto stop/start on. I'm pretty sure your car might have an issue. I'd be really surprised if Honda actually put this car on the roads which needs 3 batteries after like a year if you don't take a long trip. I really don't like it when someone says they want to get rid of their Pilot or that they regret purchasing it. Feels like a stab in the heart lol.

 

[Dixie]

Yes I totally agree. Your car should be able to handle short trips, with auto stop/start on. I'm pretty sure your car might have an issue. I'd be really surprised if Honda actually put this car on the roads which needs 3 batteries after like a year if you don't take a long trip. I really don't like it when someone says they want to get rid of their Pilot or that they regret purchasing it. Feels like a stab in the heart lol.

I really like the car, but, I do not keep unreliable cars. I need a car to be dependable. I had 2 4Runners in the past (1997 and 2007) and neither one EVER stranded me. I decided on buying the Honda because I didn't care for the new 4Runners and wanted to buy a new car with all the safety and other good electronic features.

Can you elaborate on your statement regarding the auto stop/start feature? I routinely turn it off because I don't like the engine restarting at every traffic signal. I find it alarming.

 

[ys1219]

I really like the car, but, I do not keep unreliable cars. I need a car to be dependable. I had 2 4Runners in the past (1997 and 2007) and neither one EVER stranded me. I decided on buying the Honda because I didn't care for the new 4Runners and wanted to buy a new car with all the safety and other good electronic features.

Can you elaborate on your statement regarding the auto stop/start feature? I routinely turn it off because I don't like the engine restarting at every traffic signal. I find it alarming.

Honda put in the auto stop/start feature to save gas by turning off the engine off at the appropriate time. As you may know, it takes some juice from the battery to restart the engine, and if you're repeatedly doing that without giving the battery much of a chance to recharge, of course the battery will fail. Honda should've done better by adding a limit to how many times the engine shuts off per hour it was on or something. It doesn't make sense to have to take your car for a long drive to recharge the battery due to a "feature" that the wise engineers at Honda put in the car. If you turn that "feature" off all the time, Honda really has no excuse for you since you used 3 batteries in about a year. Honda is trying to save the environment by turning off the engine, but it's having the reverse effect due to extra batteries having to be used. Have you noticed that your screen stays on after you turn off the car and leave? When I was purchasing my Pilot, the guy said his Pilot had that issue (idk why he would tell me that).

 

[Dixie]

Honda put in the auto stop/start feature to save gas by turning off the engine off at the appropriate time. As you may know, it takes some juice from the battery to restart the engine, and if you're repeatedly doing that without giving the battery much of a chance to recharge, of course the battery will fail. Honda should've done better by adding a limit to how many times the engine shuts off per hour it was on or something. It doesn't make sense to have to take your car for a long drive to recharge the battery due to a "feature" that the wise engineers at Honda put in the car. If you turn that "feature" off all the time, Honda really has no excuse for you since you used 3 batteries in about a year. Honda is trying to save the environment by turning off the engine, but it's having the reverse effect due to extra batteries having to be used. Have you noticed that your screen stays on after you turn off the car and leave? When I was purchasing my Pilot, the guy said his Pilot had that issue (idk why he would tell me that).

I always turn off the auto start/stop feature. I don't like it. I have not noticed anything staying on. The screen, radio, etc. stay on after the engine is turned off, but they turn off as soon as I open the door.
I suspect something else in the electrical system is killing the batteries, but who knows with all the electronics on board. I would hope that the Honda dealership or Honda corporate would have a respectable way of diagnosing a problem like this, but so far, they have just put in another battery. I suspect the problem is not solved.

 

[ys1219]

I always turn off the auto start/stop feature. I don't like it. I have not noticed anything staying on. The screen, radio, etc. stay on after the engine is turned off, but they turn off as soon as I open the door.
I suspect something else in the electrical system is killing the batteries, but who knows with all the electronics on board. I would hope that the Honda dealership or Honda corporate would have a respectable way of diagnosing a problem like this, but so far, they have just put in another battery. I suspect the problem is not solved.

I mean, your car is still under warranty. You could try calling Honda corporate directly, or keep taking it back the dealer.

 

[Dixie]

I mean, your car is still under warranty. You could try calling Honda corporate directly, or keep taking it back the dealer.

This afternoon, I joined a Facebook group for 3rd Generation Pilot owners and had a good discussion. Members of that group feel it could be the aftermarket (but provided by the dealer) alarm system. It is the Karr alarm. A few people said they had battery problems with that alarm system. I hope I can get it tested to see if it is causing the battery issue.

 

[sequoiasoon]

The dealer should do a Parasitic Draw test, but some dealers do other plug in diagnostics. Parasitic draw test, Eric the Car Guy

I was just given an '08 CR-V from my sister as she was tired of the dead battery when the car sat and other small issues. My sisters dealers said they couldn't find anything. "we believe you that there is a problem you are experiencing but are unable to confirm the symptom problem". Honda had a problem on MANY models that the A/C relay sticks and causes the A/C compressor clutch to stay engaged draining the battery. The CR-V had a 300+milliamp draw when tested. I took out the relay and it dropped to 20 milliamp. All recommendations are it needs to be less than 50 milliamps. I put a new updated part# relay in and so far (fingers crossed), battery has not lost any Volts or CCA in 5 days.

The CR-V is also on its 4th battery in 18 months due to constantly be killed. Hopefully this cures that.

I would hope that Honda fixed that issue by now BUT relays are an electronic part and things happen. Biggest thing for the test is to leave the hood open/unlatched and keep your keys away so nothing "wakes up" then start pulling whatever fuses/relays.

My wife's old Sequoia had an Optima Deep Cycle battery in it. 1-2 each year I needed to give it charge as you could hear the motor cranking slower and on test battery would be lower on voltage (I didn't have tester for CCA then). We live 1.5 from her job and 2 miles from the schools/supermarket with only 1-2 stop lights. Hers was nothing but many starts/stops small trips. Once I figured that out, battery was good for 8-10 years and was killed a couple times with kids/lights etc. Even longer trips with alternator wasn't enough to give it proper charge when it got lower but that was a spiral cell, deep cycle marine.

One other spot to check is the ground point at body. The paint insulates from making good contact, only connection is the bolt threads and EVERYTHING in your Pilot relies on that one point to be a solid connection. Many dealers shops clean/grind that when electrical problems are encountered. I did the Pilot while doing my tranny cooler. My son's 2010 Kia the bolt rusted in place and snapped trying to get it out. His lights were flickering, radio would cut out, horn didn't work or sounded like it was dying. Negative cable was severely corroded and that ground point. Battery/alternator tested perfect. Changed cable, removed paint and coated lightly with Kopr-Shield and reassembled. All issues disappeared.

 

[Dixie]

The dealer should do a Parasitic Draw test, but some dealers do other plug in diagnostics. Parasitic draw test, Eric the Car Guy

I was just given an '08 CR-V from my sister as she was tired of the dead battery when the car sat and other small issues. My sisters dealers said they couldn't find anything. "we believe you that there is a problem you are experiencing but are unable to confirm the symptom problem". Honda had a problem on MANY models that the A/C relay sticks and causes the A/C compressor clutch to stay engaged draining the battery. The CR-V had a 300+milliamp draw when tested. I took out the relay and it dropped to 20 milliamp. All recommendations are it needs to be less than 50 milliamps. I put a new updated part# relay in and so far (fingers crossed), battery has not lost any Volts or CCA in 5 days.

The CR-V is also on its 4th battery in 18 months due to constantly be killed. Hopefully this cures that.

I would hope that Honda fixed that issue by now BUT relays are an electronic part and things happen. Biggest thing for the test is to leave the hood open/unlatched and keep your keys away so nothing "wakes up" then start pulling whatever fuses/relays.

Thank you for your information! I find it ridiculous that ANY newer car should have a dead battery after sitting for only a few days.

 

[Daltongang]

This afternoon, I joined a Facebook group for 3rd Generation Pilot owners and had a good discussion. Members of that group feel it could be the aftermarket (but provided by the dealer) alarm system. It is the Karr alarm. A few people said they had battery problems with that alarm system. I hope I can get it tested to see if it is causing the battery issue.

You well could be blaming an issue on the vehicle that is an issue with an aftermarket product (Karr Alarm) the dealer stuck on the vehicle. Was this at your choice or was it already installed on the vehicle by the dealer when you bought it?

One thing people forget about new vehicles, especially vehicles like the Touring and Elite editions, your not driving a car any longer. Your driving a computer on wheels. People love the upper tier accessories, but forget that some of those things don't just shut off when you turn off the vehicle. It's like shutting the lid on you laptop and leaving it unplugged. Give it a day or two and the battery will be drained. There is a very small electrical drain on the battery when the vehicle is shut off. That should not be a problem with a properly fully charged battery.

It is quite possible that the dealer installed alarm system is sucking considerable juice out of the system when the vehicle is off, prematurely draining the charge from the battery.

If batteries are left sitting in a discharged state the lead sulfate can begin to harden (sulfate). It looks very much like crystals under a microscope. The longer it sits this way, the harder it is to remove. Leaving batteries in a discharged state can actually ruin them faster than over charging and it’s imperative that when they’re stored they’re fully charged.

It leads me to wonder why the dealer would install an alarm system on the vehicle. Per Honda.

" The Immobilizer System that is part of the vehicle protects your vehicle from theft. If an improperly-coded key (or other device) is used, the engine’s fuel system is disabled."