Batteries in the civic x

[tsdobbi]

So I was at work friday, sat in my car to eat lunch. Pushed the button for power to listen to the radio. All of a sudden after about 20 minutes, every error message in existence spit out on the dash then the car wouldnt start. Got it towed to the dealer, they found no issues and just said the battery was drained, but it was fine otherwise. They recharged it and I havent had a problem in the past few days even though it sat for a whole day.

Do the electronics just draw that much power that the battery cant handle sitting in it for 20 friggin minutes listening to the radio? Dealer said the battery was fine it was just drained. This doesnt seem right to me.

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[TypeSiR]

So I was at work friday, sat in my car to eat lunch. Pushed the button for power to listen to the radio. All of a sudden after about 20 minutes, every error message in existence spit out on the dash then the car wouldnt start. Got it towed to the dealer, they found no issues and just said the battery was drained, but it was fine otherwise. They recharged it and I havent had a problem in the past few days even though it sat for a whole day.

Do the electronics just draw that much power that the battery cant handle sitting in it for 20 friggin minutes listening to the radio? Dealer said the battery was fine it was just drained. This doesnt seem right to me.

Factory battery is just weak. It's nearing end of service life for a 2016 battery anyway. Spend a few bucks on a good battery charger and/or lithium ion jump start battery. Charge the car's battery once a month to extend the life. Carry the jump start battery with you when you drive.

https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-G3500-UltraSafe-Battery-Charger/dp/B004LWVEKS/
https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tender-021-0123-Junior-Charger/dp/B000CITK8S/
https://www.amazon.com/GOOLOO-18000mAh-SuperSafe-Starter-Portable/dp/B0748D8KT6/

 

[latole]

If you need to recharge battery once month, car or / and battery have an issue. Fix it
Or you don't drive the car enough

Never need a new battery on my previous cars with 10 year old

 

[shoegazer]

My understanding is this...

As mentioned above; the factory battery is not that great.

If there's not much capacity in there; certainly you can drain it running the system with the motor off.

But also... all these systems will start to freak out when the battery voltage drops below a certain point. The systems don't just go a little dim or fade out like an incandescent light bulb. Instead... they freak out and go non-linear when the battery voltage drops below a certain threshold.

I hope that the dealer load-tested the battery. Autozone, I'm told, will do this for you for free.

Three years seems to be the general life span of Civic OEM lead acid batteries these days. And they tend to fail in extreme weather conditions. I'd go ahead and replace it. You've already been stranded once. And you'll likely have to replace it soon anyway.

Good luck.

 

[swah_fk7]

If you need to recharge battery once month, car or / and battery have an issue. Fix it
Or you don't drive the car enough

Never need a new battery on my previous cars with 10 year old

These batteries go bad after 2-3 years because they're poor quality.

 

[Gruber]

I have the same Honda OEM battery in my CR-V and the current one will celebrate it's 6th anniversary of installation if it lives until November.

 

[swah_fk7]

I have the same Honda OEM battery in my CR-V and the current one will celebrate it's 6th anniversary of installation if it lives until November.

Do you live in a cooler state? Down south the heat is what kills the battery.

 

[Gruber]

I have enough heat here, but my batteries always die in the winter.
The civic may eat more power, have a less powerful alternator, and a hotter engine bay.
I suspect many people driving short trips may drive most of the time with undercharged batteries.

 

[latole]

Do you live in a cooler state? Down south the heat is what kills the battery.

TN is not a cooler state for a Canadian

 

[swah_fk7]

TN is not a cooler state for a Canadian

in Florida we've been having 100 degree 60+% humidity weather.
My engine bay can get very hot. I've seen IAT's get to 150-160F standing still in traffic.

 

[dallasjhawk]

new tech means more strain on the charging system, couple that with a rather small battery that is just trash in these new civics and voila, battery issues. Heck the ECU takes time to go all the way to "sleep" and then if you have proximity key, if its too close to the car, they will always "talk" to each other. I went through 3 batteries in under 18 months from Honda warranty before I finally had to buy my own. Ever since I put a Duralast in, it's the longest a battery has lasted in this car

 

[fjrman]

My 2016 LX OE battery has been fine so far. Apparently all the Civics use the same battery -- 51R, 410 CCA.

I'd speculate that all the Civics with the better display systems, push button ignition, smart remote entry, etc. load up the electrical system much more than my LX with its basic display system, radio, etc.

Honda probably should have included a more robust battery for the Civics with higher electrical loads.

I also wonder if the charging system attempts to keep the battery fully charged at all times. In the quest for fuel economy Honda may have designed a charging system which aggressively manages charging versus fuel economy and as a result the battery is not always fully charged.

The stronger aftermarket 51R batteries typically have 500 CCA versus the OE 410 CCA.

 

[Keropi76]

The battery on my 2016 lx died after 2 years and 2 months with no warnings, hopefully the 2018 will last longer

 

[latole]

The battery on my 2016 lx dies after 2 years and 2 months with no warnings, hopefully the 2018 will last longer

You are very badlucky , my wife 2016 Civic LX have original battery. Battery is more than 3 years old now

 

[Gonzo_Si]

TN is not a cooler state for a Canadian

Tn isnt a cooler state for a Tennessean either! 105 to 115 heat index here in Memphis....ugh

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