Can you provide a pic of the top of your battery?

 

It looks like the one in the left picture but appears to be a different brand. Thanks

 

EDIT: Sorry, I meant to say the image on the right side!!! My senility is beginning to catch up with me. It seems that the battery in question is therefore maintenance free. Thanks again

 

Honestly, these still need filling up, the cap will come off, but sometimes won't reseal properly on certain ones because its glued, so you would have to make one. You asked if yours was, a picture is worth a 1000... we cant see under your hood.

 

Several posters here claim that even "maintenance free" batteries need to be topped off with distilled water. How?

 

You don't open a maintenance free battery, doing so is unwise and hazardous. If someone doesn't want a maintenance free battery just buy one that made to be serviced.

 

 

Strange, Why doesn’t my Honda manual say to check the water acid level in my maintenance free battery, if it should be done periodically, as a poster claims here? The manual say to check the radiator level and add coolant if needed, but not the battery. Why hasn’t it gone off on the highly touted maintenance minder either?

Hmmm 🤔

 

In general most if not all modern automobile batteries are maintenance free. They are SEALED for a reason..... Maintenance free.

 

Maintenance free is another meaning for "buy a battery every three to four years".

Just because it is harder to access doesn't mean you can't or shouldn't. Always wear safety equipment. Even just hooking or unhooking battery.

AGM stands for "Absorbent Glass Mat", which is a type of a separator used in the construction of the battery. ... AGM batteries are also sealed, allowing them to be maintenance-free. AGM batteries are also sometimes referred to as VRLA or SLA. VRLA "stands for valve regulated lead acid"

 

“The condition of the battery is monitored by a sensor located on the negative terminal of the battery.”.

Anyone with battery failure had any advanced warning from this supposed sensor mentioned in the manual?

 

“The condition of the battery is monitored by a sensor located on the negative terminal of the battery.”.

Anyone with battery failure had any advanced warning from this supposed sensor mentioned in the manual?

That sensor is to detect the "charge condition" of the battery, NOT it's actual health or reserve capacity. The sensor is used by the dual charge system to know when the battery has reached sufficient charge that the vehicle can shift down into the low charge state. It probably can trigger an indicator light on the instrument panel if it detects an abnormal current that could indicate a short in the battery, but that's about it.

The only way to actually determine the CCA capacity, reserve capacity, and plate quality is to attach an actual battery tester to the battery. It can be an old school load tester, or it can be one of the new consumer models that uses dynamic impedance testing to check CCA and plate quality.

 

there is a level line, Pleasepost up that photo of yours so we can further discuss. thanks

 

I had to replace my battery in my 2017 CR-V yesterday (Juneteenth). It was just over 3 years old from the time of purchase of the vehicle. I did not get any warning about it. The car was working fine in the morning, but she I tried to start in the afternoon it when “click, click click” and didn’t start. Had to cycle thru the power options and was just able t get it running. It was 84 F at the time.

I had the car serviced two weeks before and they tested the battery and said it was fine. The replacement is a Honda battery since I went to the dealership near my home (called them on the way there).

 

I had to replace my battery in my 2017 CR-V yesterday (Juneteenth). It was just over 3 years old from the time of purchase of the vehicle. I did not get any warning about it. The car was working fine in the morning, but she I tried to start in the afternoon it when “click, click click” and didn’t start. Had to cycle thru the power options and was just able t get it running. It was 84 F at the time.

I had the car serviced two weeks before and they tested the battery and said it was fine. The replacement is a Honda battery since I went to the dealership near my home (called them on the way there).

When the dealership “checks” your battery they only check the voltage. If you want it tested go to Advance or Auto Zone. They will test your battery and charging system for free.

 

there are screw caps on batteries, but is there for our vs Lol

 

I am about sharing not typing what I find online so enjoy what I love to share break the seriousness up it relates to cars enjoy you talk about a company with a maint free bat. here is a new car with just that bat and that rhymes.

 

Hey.. you have a battery that still uses actual screw caps!

 

Neil

Have a pic?

 

Thanks for the replies....obviously the battery I have is maintenance free.....I didn't think cars were supplied with the old style batteries with removable caps any more, so I created my message since so many posters here were discussing topping up their batteries and I thought I was missing something. I wasn't. Thanks again
Neil

 

You might be. Pics are great!

 

Clear as day give me a minute with your bat, I peal the sticker off, pop the cap done.
there are screw caps on batteries, but is there for our vs Lol View attachment 139681
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On my list to show people the maintenance free bat has two square removable lids, and when the battery kit is in hand. think i showed a few crv bats here Lol

some old school style

 

can not wait for the day its actually 100% sealed. oh we forgot to say warranty voided if tampered with the labels.

 

Plan on prophylactically replacing it every three years. The OEM battery isn't the greatest. Replace it with greater CCA capacity.

 

CCA is the wrong metric to use for choosing a battery. The new small engines from Honda DO NOT require high CCA.. so it is a true waste. Anything over 450 is wasted... period... even in very cold weather conditions.

The proper metric to focus on is "reserve capacity" which actually stipulates how much reserve charge a battery has (ie: amp hours of stored charge). Secondarily.. it speaks to how robust the design of the plates in the battery are.. which is THE single most failure prone component in a battery.

Yes.. sometimes higher CCA and higher reserve capacity go hand in hand in a battery ... but not always. Take the new OEM battery in the 2020 hybrids..... low CCA (~420) yet much higher reserve capacity ( approximately 2X) than the typical flooded cell battery like the old 51R (400-450) CCA. Note this new battery in the 2020s is directly derived from commercial grade tractor batteries, and it goes to the expectation of many starts and stops due to the nature of both the hybrid system and the auto start/stop feature in the 2020s. Notably.... this new battery in the 2020s is also a lot more expensive... because.. you get what you pay for.

Since it is literally the increasing normal parasitics in modern vehicles that slowly discharge the battery at an accelerated rate that are driving premature plate damage through sulfation due to persistent low battery charge state ... reserve capacity is metric number one... followed by an actual impedance test of the battery to determine that it has acceptably low plate resistance and is operating normally (ie: no sulfation of plates, no loss of electrolyte, etc.)

Hondas move now to larger batteries with notably more reserve capacity, regardless of CCA spec... shows that manufacturers of these modern vehicles are beginning to understand that while a 51R was fine for earlier generation vehicles (like gen1 - gen3 CRVS)... they no longer have sufficient reserve charge capacity for the ever increasing latent parasitics from more and more electronics... even in a fully powered down state.

 

I have a 2018 EXL and live in Florida. My battery just went at 20k miles. Young man from AAA that jumped me said he finds my cars OEM battery to be under powered. Dealer replaced battery with another OEM..... no chance for an upgrade. I don't argue with FREE.

 

Battery abuse? How many people, like my brother in law, leave their lights on after turning off the car? I asked him if his parents always told him never to leave the light on when the car is not running. "But GM makes it that way..."

 

A 30 second headlight burn after shutting down does not materially discharge a battery. In fact.. what it mostly does is bleed off the float charge from having been charged by the alternator and being fully charged when shut down.

I encourage forum members who have any real interest in how to maintain a starter battery, and what impacts life expectancy to spend some quality time here

In particular... read subtopic-4 and read subtopic-8 Subtopic-8 specifically is key to understanding why starter batteries simply to not last as long as they used to.. and NO.. it is not cheap battery design and manufacturing as so many assert.... it is in fact the much higher demands placed on vehicle starter batteries these days (and I do not mean starting requirements either).

4. CCA, CA, AH and RC. These are the standards that most battery companies use to rate the output and capacity of a battery.

Cold cranking amps (CCA) is a measurement of the number of amps a battery can deliver at 0°F for 30 seconds and not drop below 7.2 volts. So a high CCA battery rating is especially important in starting battery applications, and in cold weather.This measurement is not particularly important in deep cycle batteries, though it is the most commonly "known" battery measurement.

CA is cranking amps measured at 32°F. This rating is also called marine cranking amps (MCA). Hot cranking amps (HCA) is seldom used any longer but is measured at 80°F.

Reserve Capacity (RC) is a very important battery rating. This is the number of minutes a fully charged battery at 80°F will discharge 25 amps until the battery drops below 10.5 volts.

An amp hour (AH) is a rating usually found on deep cycle batteries. The standard rating is an amp rating taken for 20 hours. What this means for a 100 AH rated battery is this: Draw from the battery for 20 hours, and it will provide a total of 100 amp hours. That translates to about 5 amps an hour. (5 x 20 = 100). However, it's very important to know that the total time of discharge and load applied is not a linear relationship. As your load increases, your realized capacity decreases. This means if you discharged that same 100 AH battery by a 100 amp load, it will not give you one hour of runtime. On the contrary, the perceived capacity of the battery will be that of 64 amp hours.

8. Battery Life and Performance: Average battery life has become shorter as energy requirements have increased. Two phrases I hear most often are "my battery won't take a charge," and "my battery won't hold a charge." Only 30% of batteries sold today reach the 48-month mark. In fact 80% of all battery failure is related to sulfation build-up. This build-up occurs when the sulfur molecules in the electrolyte (battery acid) become so deeply discharged that they begin to coat the battery's lead plates. Before long the plates become so coated that the battery dies. The causes of sulfation are numerous:

• Batteries sit too long between charges. As little as 24 hours in hot weather and several days in cooler weather.
• Battery is stored without some type of energy input.
• "Deep cycling" an engine-starting battery. Remember these batteries can't stand deep discharge.
• Undercharging of a battery to only 90% of capacity will allow sulfation of the battery using the 10% of battery chemistry not reactivated by the incompleted charging cycle.
• Heat of over 100°F increases internal discharge. As temperatures increase so does internal discharge. A new fully charged battery left sitting 24 hours a day at 110°F for 30 days would most likely not start an engine.
• Low electrolyte level. Battery plates exposed to air will immediately sulfate.
• Incorrect charging levels and settings. Most cheap battery chargers can do more harm than good. See the section on battery charging.
• Cold weather is also hard on the battery. The chemistry does not make the same amount of energy as a warm battery. A deeply discharged battery can freeze solid in sub zero weather.
• Parasitic drain is a load put on a battery with the key off. More info to follow on parasitic drain.

 

Some time ago, maintenance-free batteries had those flush mounted screw on caps that were covered by a large label across the top of the battery. Peeling off the label allowed you to remove the caps and check the electrolyte level. The best thing to do with any battery (maintenance-free or conventional) is to get yourself a good quality battery tester. You can get a decent one for well under $100 and it will give you the CCA of the battery. When the battery is new, it will far exceed the rated CCA of the battery (my 340 CCA batteries tested at 450 CCA or higher) but as it ages, you will see it declining. Although a 340 CCA battery will show as OK by the tester if it has 320 CCA, it's warning you that it won't be long before the battery will fail. Anytime the battery test has a capacity of 10% or more below the rated CCA, get ready to replace it soon or you will find yourself stranded at some point.

 

The best thing to do with any battery (maintenance-free or conventional) is to get yourself a good quality battery tester. You can get a decent one for well under $100 and it will give you the CCA of the battery. When the battery is new, it will far exceed the rated CCA of the battery (my 340 CCA batteries tested at 450 CCA or higher) but as it ages, you will see it declining. Although a 340 CCA battery will show as OK by the tester if it has 320 CCA, it's warning you that it won't be long before the battery will fail. Anytime the battery test has a capacity of 10% or more below the rated CCA, get ready to replace it soon or you will find yourself stranded at some point.

Spot on advice!

 

I have only purchased ONE maintenance free battery in my life of 71 years. A few years ago I went to Tractor Supply (never again) and I needed a battery for my tractor. They said 'No one makes batteries anymore you can add water to" so I had to buy one....instead of heading to Walmart, I believed them. It lasted almost 2 years. EVERY battery I ever bought that I added water to has lasted 7+ years....Each year I clean the terminals and put 4-5 325mg aspirin tablets in each cell...that dissolves the crud off the plates. My one car battery lasted 10 years. My current mower battery is going on 7 years. My 2012 CRV new battery was still good after 5 years but the bottom split and I had to replace. In 2014 I purchased 6 battery tenders and keep them on when not using a machine for 2-3 weeks and of course all winter, except for the snowblower tractor. The maintenance one I did buy....I pried the top off and keep it on a charger now and use it to test bulbs. Just my experience.

 

hmm I hear water, and it works for you.

 

New battery from Honda, maintenance free...if you want it to be...