Honda Civic Hybrid Battery Woes:
The hybrid battery in the Honda Civic Hybrid is covered by a 8 year/80,000 mile warranty, but many people are now exceeding that mileage. It is becoming obvious that all Civic Hybrids and Insights, will eventually develop battery problems. Batteries seem to be lasting an average of seven years for the earlier cars and less for the 2006-2011 cars - primarily due to the increased number of cells in the battery.
One of the biggest fears that most HCH owners have is that they will have to replace their battery out-of-warranty. It costs about $3000 on the east coast to replace a battery pack and $4000 or more on the west coast.
We offer an attractive alternative to this bank-breaking repair. We sell replacement BetterBattery modules for $2100.
|
Honda Dealer Replacement Battery |
Hybrid-Battery BetterBattery |
|
|---|---|---|
| Battery Type: | Remanufactured | Remanufactured |
| Source of components: | Refurbished electronics with new cells | Refurbished electronics with new cells |
| Battery Cost: | $2700 - $3700 | $2100 |
| Shipping Costs: | $600 (included in battery) |
$145-$225 (round trip) |
| Installation: | $300 | $200 (or free) |
| Total Cost: | $3000 - $4000 | $2245 - $2325 |
| Projected Battery Life: | 6 years | 7 years |
| Cost per year: | $400 - $665 | $320 - $330 |
| Warranty: | one-three years | two years |
IMA Batteries
IMA batteries for the 2006-2011 Civic Hybrid are made up of 11 battery "sticks". Each stick is made up of twelve "D" cell NiMH (Nickle-Metal-Hydride) batteries that have been welded together. This means that the IMA battery is really just 132 "D" cell flashlight batteries. The cells are welded together to provide large contact areas so that they can handle the enormous charge and discharge current (up to 100 Amps). If you tried to simply replace the cells with off-the-shelf consumer "D" cells, the tips would melt under load or they might even set the car on fire.
NiMH batteries have a life of over 30 years under ideal conditons. The HCH certainly does not provide ideal conditions, so some of the cells fail early. When they do, they tend to affect the other cells and bring down the performance of some or all of the good cells.
The car's OBD-II port will provide information about why your IMA light is on. This information can be read with a code scanner. Every mechanic has one, and your local Autozone will scan the car for free (just ask them to "check my codes"). (A dealer will charge you $100 for for this same free service.) Once you get your codes, call us or refer to the following chart.
| Error | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| P0300-P0304 | Unrelated error | Engine misfire |
| P0420 | Unrelated error | O2 sensor or Catalytic converter |
| P1600, P1601 | Not a real error | These errors mean the IMA light is on |
| P0A7E, P0A7F, P1435, P1446, P1570 | Battery failure | Battery must be replaced. |
| P0A9D, P0A9E, P0AC7-P0ACD, P1574, P0A27, P0AE1 | Possibly repairable - contact us | Failure of electronics or sensors inside the battery, BUT the battery has been sitting so it must be reconditioned and the cells may not be good. |
| P0562-P0A1F, P0A3C-P0A78, P0A94, P0AA6-P0AC0, P0AEE-P0AF0, P1437-P1440, P1448, P1575-P16C3 | Unrelated error | Call us for help with these errors. |
Please contact us for more information on your error(s) or if you are not sure. We'll be more than happy to help you by providing the information that you need to get your car back on the road.
