[williamsji]

Thanks for the tips Beww! Looks like at least 3 posts recently with the same topic--hopefully those authors are looking for posts in the forum versus replies to their threads.

Adding more info--if you open up a case with Honda Care North America, the email says "This correspondence has been forwarded to a District Case Manager, who will contact you via telephone as soon as possible to discuss your concern". I have now been told this translates to 6-8 weeks!!! I opened my case October 12th, I have called about 2-3 times per week, left messages with my case manager and have never actually spoken to a real person about my issue.

Seems your local dealership if you have a decent relationship with is the only person that can do anything to assist in the short term.

Keep in mind, we are not living in normal times at all where motor vehicles are concerned, neither purchasing vehicles nor having them serviced. And your BCM has numerous integrated circuits (chips) in it.. in the presence of extremely tight supplies and resulting tight supplies down the chain to various subsystems like the BCM.

Between parts shortages, sometimes long lead times, and other pandemic/supply related issues, it does not surprise me if Honda district case managers are backed up with case files they have to work through. I know it sucks, but your CRV is a case file among many case files, and generally it's first in first out for things like this.

It's a terrible time right now to have a component defect in a motor vehicle, and not just Hondas. And if you are the one in need... of course it sucks.

I believe the reason district case managers are backlogged is because owners open case files requesting exceptions to an expired factory warranty and asking for financial relief. Each of those cases have to be reviewed and checked against Honda internal eligibility guidelines for exceptions.

Also, if it were still under factory warranty or an active HondaCare policy serve well in this situation as Honda will give priority to servicing these as well as providing rental car relief as well. Still could be parts delays and all of course and that means longer times without a working vehicle.

Best you can do is politely ping HCNA once a week (no more often than that or you will be eye-rolled on the other end) and let them know you are still waiting for the district case officer to contact you, and is there any way they can provide you any sort of status on when to expect contact.

Good luck.

 

[williamsji]

I posted this in another thread as well, but same issue for me. Very frustrating!!

Same issue for me and others as many threads in the last couple of weeks. I have a 2017 crv touring USA with 44k miles on it.



Dash going crazy after I shut the car off until battery dies. I jump start and repeat situation.



Took to dealer, says is BCM. Critical back order. Was first a month out, now two months out. Cannot use the car as battery will die.



Now I'm at over $2,000 in rental car fees. Dealer finally is giving me a loaner at a discount but says won't reimburse for past rental fees. Said will cover 75% of part cost of $600.



Looks like many generations of Hondas have had BCM recall from their website...except the 2017 crv!!



Stinks have a car supposedly known for reliability with barely over 40k miles in my garage collecting dust!! For a non-wear and tear related part!!

There have been a handful or reports of issues with BCMs... but it is by no means an epidemic in gen5 CRVs. I'm not even sure that more than a few were actually Gen5s, as I thought some of them were older gen4s.

I know it sucks.. but random failures are random failures. They can happen to any vehicle at any age or mileage. Yours just happens to be with a component on long lead time back order.

 

[williamsji]

By the way, the BCM recall by Honda... nothing to do with CRVs. It's for 2018-2020 Accords and Insights.

Statement by American Honda Regarding Body Control Module Recall: 2018-2020 Honda Accord, 2018-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid and 2019-2020 Honda Insight

Honda will voluntarily recall approximately 737,000 model-year 2018-2020 Accord and Accord Hybrid vehicles along with 2019-2020 Insight vehicles in the United States to update software in the Body Control Module (BCM).

hondanews.com

My wife's Accord was in this recall. It was a simple software fix performed at the dealership. She never had any issues with her vehicle, and that is not surprising as Honda states in their communication that a software flaw was allowing a particular set of driver actions in conjunction with vehicle action that might trigger the cascade of alerts lights and cause the rear camera to malfunction.

Here in our forum, discussion around BCM is fairly limited, but yeah.. there are some failing in the field. But again, not in any numbers that trigger owners to stampede NHTSA or CarComplaints.

 

[williamsji]

Thanks for the tips Beww!

Just a quick note that since this topic is more relevant to your issue, I deleted your duplicate post in the other thread, which was really focused on a battery issue, not BCM issues.

 

[clevernw]

I opened a case with Honda of America and was told my case was escalated up to a District Manager. They also confirmed the issue with the dealership. In the meantime, I have been been keeping it hooked up to a 6 amp batter charger/tender at home so when the car does turn on randomly, my battery is not completely drained.

Today I ran into another problem, while at the store, my alarm went off with my dog in the car. So if the alarm is armed and the accessory mode turns on, it will set off the alarm. So now I cannot lock my CR V when I am out anywhere.

So I think my work around for locking the CR-V without anti-theft activation is to pop the hood release before getting out of the car. I can lock the doors and the anti theft system should not activate as the red light on the dash does not flash. Once the hood is pushed down and locked, the lights will flash and the anti-theft system is activated as the red light will flash on the dashboard.

 

[Aegean]

Why don’t you install a remote controlled 12v battery switch while you wait for the part? You can turn the battery power off when you do not drive.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WRFYH7L/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_8V939ZF4VCJTJ2PRW2SH

 

[williamsji]

Why don’t you install a remote controlled 12v battery switch while you wait for the part? You can turn the battery power off when you do not drive.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WRFYH7L/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_8V939ZF4VCJTJ2PRW2SH

No, that will cause all the electronic systems and sensors to loose power.

Which means when you go to start the next time, the vehicle has to perform a complete reboot of all the systems and a host of system self-checks and cross checks... which results in the nasty light show on the instrument display until you drive above 15 mph for at least 10 minutes. And also, no telling how much stress this puts on all the systems and sensors.. which are meant to be on standby power when the vehicle is off.

Better to put it on a smart charger/maintainer over night at home. If away from home a lot, then go with a solar powered smart charger/maintainer.

Here is an analogy for you, from the electronics world or PCs: you can power down at night or simply put your computer to sleep at night. Which one is more efficient? The reboot will take 20 seconds to several minutes.. depending on your particular PC, but wake from sleep only takes a few seconds and the PC is ready to go.. exactly how you left it when last used.

 

[beww]

No, that will cause all the electronic systems and sensors to loose power.

And also cause you to have to enter the security code, or go looking for it.

 

[clevernw]

Finally heard back from Honda of North America (15 days to be exact) Case manager was very nice and seemed helpful. She said she had never heard of this issue and is going to reach out to the dealership today and run this up to her boss. Ironically, a 30 min later, I get a call from the dealership. Sounds like Honda is going to replace the Keyless Access Control Unit as soon as the part comes in from being back ordered. Keeping my fingers crossed!

 

[williamsji]

Finally heard back from Honda of North America (15 days to be exact) Case manager was very nice and seemed helpful. She said she had never heard of this issue and is going to reach out to the dealership today and run this up to her boss. Ironically, a 30 min later, I get a call from the dealership. Sounds like Honda is going to replace the Keyless Access Control Unit as soon as the part comes in from being back ordered. Keeping my fingers crossed!

Thank you very much for keeping us informed on your progress with Honda. It is valuable information for fellow members who may bump into a similar or same issue in the future.

Your results here are a case study in the value of working with your dealer to open a case with Honda Customer Support for issues like this that crop up after warranty expires. In other words, working the escalation process with Honda can and does result in positive outcomes for warranty exceptions in some cases.

 

[clevernw]

So an update on how its going or not going with my CR-V...........

Last weekend the battery finally gave up the ghost and had to be replaced. Even leaving it on a charger over night could not get it over 10.5 volts. I ended up replacing it with an AGM battery and installed a top post battery disconnect to make it slightly easier than having to disconnect the cables every time.

In addition, the problem has escalated. It is now to the point that unless the battery is disconnected, the accessory mode will be on and will not shut off. As soon as the battery is connected, bam, accessory mode turns on and sometimes I cannot even get the engine to turn over. Also what is even worse, after driving, parking and trying to turn off the engine, 9 out of 10 times I cannot get the engine to turn off.

This is beyond frustrating. Its been a few weeks since I talked to the case manager at Honda of America, so I called back just to see if they have reached out to the dealership about the repair. Though I did not talk to the case manager, the person I spoke with did and said they have not talked to the dealership yet as they are waiting to hear back from the District parts manager.

I have a feeling one of these days my CR-V will start by itself, put itself in gear, and take off never to be seen again.

 

[az_crv]

So an update on how its going or not going with my CR-V...........

Last weekend the battery finally gave up the ghost and had to be replaced. Even leaving it on a charger over night could not get it over 10.5 volts. I ended up replacing it with an AGM battery and installed a top post battery disconnect to make it slightly easier than having to disconnect the cables every time.

In addition, the problem has escalated. It is now to the point that unless the battery is disconnected, the accessory mode will be on and will not shut off. As soon as the battery is connected, bam, accessory mode turns on and sometimes I cannot even get the engine to turn over. Also what is even worse, after driving, parking and trying to turn off the engine, 9 out of 10 times I cannot get the engine to turn off.

This is beyond frustrating. Its been a few weeks since I talked to the case manager at Honda of America, so I called back just to see if they have reached out to the dealership about the repair. Though I did not talk to the case manager, the person I spoke with did and said they have not talked to the dealership yet as they are waiting to hear back from the District parts manager.

I have a feeling one of these days my CR-V will start by itself, put itself in gear, and take off never to be seen again.

That's rough. Sounds very similar to what mine was doing. I also had to disconnect the battery or it would go into accessory mode at a random time later and risk killing the battery. Fortunately they found an error code for the body control module also known as a multiplex control unit. The downside - it was on back order and they had no idea when it would arrive. It apparently interfaces between the display, sensors, doors, windows, ignition, security system, etc.

 

[clevernw]

That's rough. Sounds very similar to what mine was doing. I also had to disconnect the battery or it would go into accessory mode at a random time later and risk killing the battery. Fortunately they found an error code for the body control module also known as a multiplex control unit. The downside - it was on back order and they had no idea when it would arrive. It apparently interfaces between the display, sensors, doors, windows, ignition, security system, etc.

I have seen a few posts on some forums indicating that replacing the BCM resolves the issue. The dealership believes the issue is the Keyless Access Control Unit as the Shop manager found the same issue on their 'Techline" postings. I communicated to the Service rep that I have read on several forums that the issue could be related to the BCM, yet it was dismissed as "Google is not a reliable source compared to our Shop Manager."

I am not expert, but from my research it is probably one of the two. But when they want to replace the Keyless Access Control Unit I will make sure to ask, " What if that does not resolve the issue?" and direct again to the BCM.

 

[trenf424]

I had the same thing happen to me, diagnosed as a BCM issue. My CR-V has been inoperable since late September. The BCM "in-stock date" keeps getting pushed back every 30 days. It's been 3 months and my CR-V is useless.

 

[az_crv]

I had the same thing happen to me, diagnosed as a BCM issue. My CR-V has been inoperable since late September. The BCM "in-stock date" keeps getting pushed back every 30 days. It's been 3 months and my CR-V is useless.

Yep. It stinks. Hopefully your dealership elevated the backorder priority given the vehicle is inoperative. The 30 day sliding date was the same at my dealership. In the end it was down for about 2 months.

Might want to keep an eye on ebay as sometimes used parts become available. Unfortunately there seems to be a different Honda BCM part number for each trim. Probably wouldn't hurt to call local junk yards. Sometimes dealership will install used parts to get you going.

Seeing a few of these anecdotals makes me wonder if BCM failures are becoming more common in addition to the part shortage/shipping issues.

I have seen a few posts on some forums indicating that replacing the BCM resolves the issue. The dealership believes the issue is the Keyless Access Control Unit as the Shop manager found the same issue on their 'Techline" postings. I communicated to the Service rep that I have read on several forums that the issue could be related to the BCM, yet it was dismissed as "Google is not a reliable source compared to our Shop Manager."

I am not expert, but from my research it is probably one of the two. But when they want to replace the Keyless Access Control Unit I will make sure to ask, " What if that does not resolve the issue?" and direct again to the BCM.

I hope he's right otherwise there could be another 2-3 months of down time. It becomes tempting to trade it in. Used cars have big value these days unless they aren't working. The proverbial rock and hard place.

 

[Grpass]

I hope he's right otherwise there could be another 2-3 months of down time.

Looks like 2 or 3 BCM units on ebay. If I'm looking at the right item.

 

[Jtpeter]

My vehicle is just under 5 years old and suddenly while parked and off in my garage the panic horn started blaring and the dashboard lit up like a Christmas tree. Horn stopped and I could only get in with the manual key. I was able to start and drive to the dealer. They told me the body control module BCM went bad and it’s no longer under warranty. Unfortunately, the part 38809-TMM-A21 is backordered and the ETA is end of March. I am stuck with a vehicle that must have the battery disconnected and reconnected for each use!!! Not to mention what other damage might occur while driving with a bad BCM for that long period or longer! My hands are tied and I really don’t know what to do. I called Honda support and filed a case and also a case with the NHTSA. I know about 800k Hondas were recalled because of BCM problems but the CR-V wasn’t part of it. If anyone has any help or suggestions, I would greatly appreciate it!!

 

[BoostedV]

The part being back ordered till end of march is just nature of the beast right now. Pretty much every model has something that is backordered, friend at dealer has cars sitting for months .

i havent read anything on bcm failures but u can ask honda to discount the part or service for the delay.

 

[Traylaw]

Sorry to hear your problem with the BCM. Instead of disconnecting the battery you might try pulling the Backup fuse when you are not using it. As for the Accord recall issue, this was simply a programming issue in the BCM, not a bad BCM and was resolved by a software update.

 

[Jayceegee]

Actually you do know what to do -- and you have done so. You went to the dealership and ordered the part, which you must wait for -- no choice. You also know that you have to disconnect the battery when not using it. You are just going to have to wait it out. My only suggestion is if you are uncomfortable with the CRV in its current state -- how about considering a rental ? Expensive but maybe a better choice for the time being. Good luck and I hope you get the parts you need quicker than March.