[2019CRVDriver]

As I understand it, the car runs fine, and the battery runs down "often". Is it every day? Not sure I saw how long it takes to run down. I remember someone else needed a BCM that was out of stock, and I think they disconnected the battery every night until the BCM was available.

You won't know if you can trade it unless you try. I would certainly try to avoid paying $1,000 for a BCM (that isn't even available) is your lease ends in 2 months. Maybe disconnecting the battery is a hassle, but worth saving the $1,000 until turn in time, especially if the part is not available?

Yeah the car runs perfectly fine like nothing ever happened. And it has been happening every day now. I'm just astonished that such an important component for the most common SUV on the street is unavailable everywhere in the US despite the supply crisis. And it sucks that Honda isn't helping much either in the meantime like disabling the alarm (apparently its hard wired and can't be disabled).

Is it harmful to disconnect the battery everyday? And is it better than letting it drain daily. And does removing the battery often affect the 10 mm screws like potentially stripping it? Also should I wrap the connectors in cloth or something or is it fine to let them dangle?

 

[SnakeCharmer]

Yeah the car runs perfectly fine like nothing ever happened. And it has been happening every day now. I'm just astonished that such an important component for the most common SUV on the street is unavailable everywhere in the US despite the supply crisis. And it sucks that Honda isn't helping much either in the meantime like disabling the alarm (apparently its hard wired and can't be disabled).

Is it harmful to disconnect the battery everyday? And is it better than letting it drain daily. And does removing the battery often affect the 10 mm screws like potentially stripping it? Also should I wrap the connectors in cloth or something or is it fine to let them dangle?

I'd be disconnecting the battery every day until the issue is resolved. Just park it somewhere off the street and secured at night.

 

[TheDarkKnight]

As this is now a BCM issue, I've merged it to the existing BCM thread.

Thanks.

 

[2019CRVDriver]

I'd be disconnecting the battery every day until the issue is resolved. Just park it somewhere off the street and secured at night.

Should I just disconnect the negative terminal and let it hang? Or should I wrap it in cloth in case it touches the metal part of the body? Are there any safety precautions I should take with this? I'm completely clueless when it comes to car troubleshooting but am starting to learn after this incident.

 

[Traylaw]

Should I just disconnect the negative terminal and let it hang? Or should I wrap it in cloth in case it touches the metal part of the body? Are there any safety precautions I should take with this? I'm completely clueless when it comes to car troubleshooting but am starting to learn after this incident.

Just disconnect the negative terminal. The negative cable is connected to the car's body so nothing will happen if the terminal touches any other metal in the car. Note that when you reconnect the terminal and start the car you will get a bunch of alarms. This is normal and occurs anytime power is disconnected. Just drive the car and the alarms will automatically clear themselves after about a mile of driving.

 

[2019CRVDriver]

Just disconnect the negative terminal. The negative cable is connected to the car's body so nothing will happen if the terminal touches any other metal in the car. Note that when you reconnect the terminal and start the car you will get a bunch of alarms. This is normal and occurs anytime power is disconnected. Just drive the car and the alarms will automatically clear themselves after about a mile of driving.

Thanks for the tip I will start doing this until my issue gets resolved or I can get a new vehicle. Also do I need to wait after shutting off my engine to disconnect the terminal? Or can I do it right away?

Also is it possible moisture or water could have gotten inside the BCM or surrounding wires causing the shortage and triggering the alarm? I notice it goes off more consistently with high winds and strong rain. I really wonder if my dealership looked at it thoroughly and/or if I should find another mechanic to look at it again. Although, that will be more labor cost.

 

[Sherry5170]

Have them run a diagnostics. I had the same issue. They said the DCM module was bad, my alarm was going off and my battery was draining. The microchip to fix the issue is on back order for almost 4 weeks for me

 

[Traylaw]

Thanks for the tip I will start doing this until my issue gets resolved or I can get a new vehicle. Also do I need to wait after shutting off my engine to disconnect the terminal? Or can I do it right away?

Also is it possible moisture or water could have gotten inside the BCM or surrounding wires causing the shortage and triggering the alarm? I notice it goes off more consistently with high winds and strong rain. I really wonder if my dealership looked at it thoroughly and/or if I should find another mechanic to look at it again. Although, that will be more labor cost.

You can disconnect the battery anytime after shutting off the engine. The BCM is located inside the vehicle under the dash, so unlikely water has caused a problem unless you find water on the floor.

 

[wb4suv]

So I woke up this AM and I go to start up my 2018 CRV was dead in the water. No lights, accessories nothing. I jump it and get it started, let it run for about 30 min and then go take it for a drive to get all the systems reset. I get home and go to turn off the CRV and it will not turn off! I get glitching electrical problem where it seems to be struggling to turn off. After several more attempts it finally goes off. I go back in the house to get some coffee and breakfast and when I go back out to the garage, the CRV has turned itself on in Accessory mode.

To make a long story short, this happened all morning. I had already checked the battery, battery connections, fuses, etc. Everything looked fine. Did some research and made sure that the shifter was fully in park as I had read that sometimes if it is off by mm's it would not recognize it being in park. I finally had enough and called the dealership and they told me to bring it down. I dropped it off and they called me back 30 min asking if I turn it off with my foot on the break keeping it in "Accessory mode" and wanted me to come back, pick it up, and monitor it. That way I would not have to pay the diagnostic fee. I agreed I would, but about an hour later they called and said it had turned on Accessory mode by itself and would send it over to the shop to have it looked it.

Another hour passed and they called back and said the shop manager is pretty confident that the issue is the Keyless Access Control Unit as he said its not a common problem but on the tech bulletins this is an issue with the Honda Pilot right down to the last detail. I am at 61k miles so this is not going to be under warranty and I am looking at $729 for parts and labor. The Service manager said they have never seen this problem before so it was a first for them there.

The big problem is the Keyless Access Control Unit is on back order and could be weeks to months till it comes in even on "critical" back order. That fine and all but that means my CRV will drain the battery every night until it is fixed unless I disconnect that battery, but that still means resetting the systems every time the battery is reconnected. I am going to go tomorrow and buy a 12 volt battery maintainer so I do not have to keep disconnecting the battery when I have it at home. I will have to limit my errands to a few hours so that battery does not completely drain but will bring my portable jumper just in case. Its like ghost has taken over my CRV.

Has anyone experienced anything even remotely similar to this ??? Do you agree that it could be the Keyless Access Control Unit? I was thinking it was possibly the ignition, but the dealer said it was not. Thoughts?

Thanks in advance for the feedback.

I have the same bad BCM problem with my 2017 CRV. After waiting 4 months I found one in an out of town junkyard for $400. Now I find out from Honda that it will not work because it is programmed for the VIN number it came out of and can not be reprogrammed or reflashed as they call it. Still waiting!

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.

I do not think it is a random failure. I have been waiting over 4 months for a BCM for my 2017. My dealership has seven Hondas sitting in there lot waiting for the same BCM. The part number for the BCM has also changed which tells you something.

Junkyard?
Perhaps as an interim measure?

Do not go the junkyard route. The BCM can not be reflashed. It will ONLY work on the car it came out of.

Has anyone tried a used one from Ebay or a wrecking yard? Curious if they work OK.

Yes and they will not work.

Just found a website that says they can repair my BCM. Has anybody tried this business before? G7 Computers!

 

[TheDarkKnight]

Now I find out from Honda that it will not work because it is programmed for the VIN number it came out of and can not be reprogrammed or reflashed as they call it.

Expensive lesson....

My dealership has seven Hondas sitting in there lot waiting for the same BCM. The part number for the BCM has also changed which tells you something.

Perhaps you missed the several existing mentions on this very thread about chip/component related issues afffecting ALL car OEMs. This issue may be unique to Honda (BCM) but all car makers are struggling with critical parts.

As for the part number(s) changing, thats largely meaningless to the end user(s) - its more likely changed because the BCM has been improved to prevent future failure(s).

 

[2019CRVDriver]

You can disconnect the battery anytime after shutting off the engine. The BCM is located inside the vehicle under the dash, so unlikely water has caused a problem unless you find water on the floor.

One thing I noticed is, when I sit in the car with the engine off and physically start shaking the car, it does the glitchy sound like something is shorting and the dashboard will turn on (this only happens sometimes). I'm really wondering if something in there is loose. How easy is it to access the area where the BCM is without specialized tools?

Just found a website that says they can repair my BCM. Has anybody tried this business before? G7 Computers!

Have not heard of that company, but that sounds interesting. How do you even get your BCM out to ship to them? Do you just go to a mechanic? Let us know if you end up trying this route. Also have you tried speaking to Honda's corporate customer service?

Also how did you find out the part number changed? Which part number is it if you don't mind me asking. I wanted to see if its the same one as mine.

 

[wb4suv]

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.

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.

One thing I noticed is, when I sit in the car with the engine off and physically start shaking the car, it does the glitchy sound like something is shorting and the dashboard will turn on (this only happens sometimes). I'm really wondering if something in there is loose. How easy is it to access the area where the BCM is without specialized tools?



Have not heard of that company, but that sounds interesting. How do you even get your BCM out to ship to them? Do you just go to a mechanic? Let us know if you end up trying this route. Also have you tried speaking to Honda's corporate customer service?

Also how did you find out the part number changed? Which part number is it if you don't mind me asking. I wanted to see if its the same one as mine.

New part number is 38809-TMMA21 old number on mine is 38800-TLA-A215-M1
When I called numerous junkyards I was told my part number was no good so I had my mechanic call Honda and Honda gave the new part number.

New part number is 38809-TMMA21 old number on mine is 38800-TLA-A215-M1
When I called numerous junkyards I was told my part number was no good so I had my mechanic call Honda and Honda gave the new part number.

The BCM is located under the dash on the left side. As you can see in the picture the wiring just plugs into it, however you need a multi thousand dollar computer instrument to program it as I understand.

 

[2019CRVDriver]

So I'm noticing that disconnecting the negative terminal still drains the battery, not completely drained but not enough juice to start the engine (~about 24 hours later) so I have to jump start it anyway. Is this normal? I had a battery test done just last week by Autozone and they said the battery is perfectly fine.

 

[Traylaw]

So I'm noticing that disconnecting the negative terminal still drains the battery, not completely drained but not enough juice to start the engine (~about 24 hours later) so I have to jump start it anyway. Is this normal? I had a battery test done just last week by Autozone and they said the battery is perfectly fine.

If you are disconnecting the battery and it's discharging you simply have a bad battery or it's not charging enough when you use the vehicle.

 

[Jayceegee]

So I'm noticing that disconnecting the negative terminal still drains the battery, not completely drained but not enough juice to start the engine (~about 24 hours later) so I have to jump start it anyway. Is this normal? I had a battery test done just last week by Autozone and they said the battery is perfectly fine.

after you disconnect the battery put a tender on it and it will charge right up.

 

[Grpass]

If you are disconnecting the battery and it's discharging you simply have a bad battery or it's not charging enough when you use the vehicle.

If I remember right, a battery tender will not bring a nearly dead battery up to a full charge. If you don't have a regular battery charger, take the battery out and take it to have it fully charged. Then put the battery tender on it in between uses.

 

[williamsji]

If I remember right, a battery tender will not bring a nearly dead battery up to a full charge. If you don't have a regular battery charger, take the battery out and take it to have it fully charged. Then put the battery tender on it in between uses.

Depends on the "battery tender" being used.

Most modern smart chargers/maintainers should be able to pull a completely dead battery back up to full charge (what ever that might be for that battery). It just takes longer for the charging and conditioning cycle to complete when you start with a severely depleted battery.

 

[williamsji]

So I'm noticing that disconnecting the negative terminal still drains the battery, not completely drained but not enough juice to start the engine (~about 24 hours later) so I have to jump start it anyway. Is this normal? I had a battery test done just last week by Autozone and they said the battery is perfectly fine.

I agree with Traylaw here. If you disconnect one side of the battery from the vehicle, it is impossible for the vehicle to be a current drain path for the battery. Which results in the conclusion that the battery has self-discharged. Thing is a battery not connected to a vehicle should have a self-discharge rate of about 1% per day if it is a good battery.

What you are reporting sounds like a dead battery, but not dead in the classic sense, but dead in the bad internal impedance sense (probably due to a mechanical defect somewhere inside the battery.

Have the battery retested, by a different auto parts store. Honestly, with batteries, I always recommend two separate tests by two different parts stores or service shops.... because... well because all batteries have a bit of "the squirrel" in them and will spoof a battery tester sometimes. Simple example: you are supposed to run the headlights on the vehicle for at least 30 seconds with the engine off to burn off any float charge on the battery before testing. If this is not done, you can get a good battery test result from an otherwise compromised battery. This happens most often with batteries with a bad internal electro-mechanical connection somewhere.

 

[joggernot]

Depends on the "battery tender" being used.

Most modern smart chargers/maintainers should be able to pull a completely dead battery back up to full charge (what ever that might be for that battery). It just takes longer for the charging and conditioning cycle to complete when you start with a severely depleted battery.

.
"Battery Tender" is a brand name down here. It is meant for use as described by Grpass. A charger with "maintain" capability is needed when the battery is completely dead. I tried to overnight charge a bad battery with a "Battery Tender" and it didn't work...still had to jump start in the morning.

 

[2019CRVDriver]

I agree with Traylaw here. If you disconnect one side of the battery from the vehicle, it is impossible for the vehicle to be a current drain path for the battery. Which results in the conclusion that the battery has self-discharged. Thing is a battery not connected to a vehicle should have a self-discharge rate of about 1% per day if it is a good battery.

What you are reporting sounds like a dead battery, but not dead in the classic sense, but dead in the bad internal impedance sense (probably due to a mechanical defect somewhere inside the battery.

Have the battery retested, by a different auto parts store. Honestly, with batteries, I always recommend two separate tests by two different parts stores or service shops.... because... well because all batteries have a bit of "the squirrel" in them and will spoof a battery tester sometimes. Simple example: you are supposed to run the headlights on the vehicle for at least 30 seconds with the engine off to burn off any float charge on the battery before testing. If this is not done, you can get a good battery test result from an otherwise compromised battery. This happens most often with batteries with a bad internal electro-mechanical connection somewhere.

Yeah it looks like my battery has failed. Apparently the voltage is below 12V which is a standard. The battery seems to not hold charge even after driving for a while. Looks like I need a new battery. Also how harmful is it to the rest of the car when jump starting so frequently (at least once a day)?

Additionally, does anyone happen to know where the hood latch sensor is located on the 2019 or (2017-2022 models, I assume they are the same?). I just want to see if that is loose on my vehicle causing the anti-theft to go off randomly. I'm just having a hard time locating it.