After 5 Months and many tests of fighting with AHM and Many different Dealers, I Contacted AHM and requested them to send me a letter stating that they are refusing to replace the bad IMA battery in my 07 HCHII, When they asked why i would need a letter like that, I told AHM that I am going to use the California Lemon Law to get out of the car as with the IMA Issues it falls right into that, I Also Expressed the safety concerns to them (yet again) of almost being rear ended all the time due to the sudden power loss from the battery recalls, and the fact that i refuse to put my children in it because its not a matter of if i would get in an accident, only a matter of when etc etc,

Tempe Honda had suggested to do a 2 part IMA test, Bring it in and do their normal test (which as usual it was normal and showing that it was at 75%), then the following day test it again and see if there is any difference.

AHM Agreed to do this, and provided a rental car for me (very surprised by that) and did the test last Tuesday (6-5-2012).

Wednesday I did'nt hear from the dealer all day so driving by i stopped in to check how the test went, when i got there, I expected to hear the normal, we found nothing wrong, Instead they informed me that they just got all the authorizations and are replacing the IMA. Finally!!!!!!!

While i dont know all the specifics of the test results, it was enough for honda to replace the battery. and probably AHM got really tired of me being loud about it.

I Got my car back on Friday. I immediately noticed a difference in the whole car, it has a noticable amount of increased power (It actually uses the IMA now) The way it charges is different (Actually better)

The Lowest I've seen the batter is 3 bars, and Even at 3 bars when accellerating from a stop, I get full IMA Assist.It is now a pleasant car to drive.and ALOT Safer as well.

Also, After 300 + miles (Yes i tested it like mad) my MPG is averaging at 42 instead of 26. (Ive heard many people say the IMA doesnt affect the MPG but from what ive seen so far its a major part of it)

Advice, If the car is unsafe like mine was, then you should be pushing that issue, not the mpg, as the mpg is directly effected by how you drive it, and therefore Honda wont really listen to that, some people think, if it says 45 MPG then they should be able to drive it as hard as they can and still get 45 MPG.

Also, while i was informed the replacement IMA does not have a warranty (Not sure if thats legal honestly considering the cost) i was told it is covered by the remainder of the cars warranty, so with mine being 10/150k, i still have 48k left

Chris
Finally Fixed (For Now)

 

Congratulations on your win! You are one of the lucky ones. Most folks give up. H

 

Well, you just inspired me to write another nasty-gram to AHM corporate. We'll see if it goes anywhere

 

Do, Dont give up, although my giving up is what ended up getting it done, I would suggest to have an over night test performed,

when they tested mine at 5 pm, it tested at 75%
at 9 AM the second test was around 18% usable, and all it did was sit overnight,

i do think it really sucks that this is such a problem in reguards of dealing with honda,

also, if all else failes, take a good look at the lemon law for your state, in california the car doesnt have to still be in warranty.

and Good Luck, if i can help in any way let me know

 

Been awhile since I've logged on here. I'm having the same issues as you are -- planning to let the car sit overnight at the dealership tonight and having them look at it in the morning. It takes 4 miles of highway driving after the car sits for a night to get the battery to charge normally.

I'm at 57,000 miles right now.

 

Cyork

This is what my 2007 experiences every morning..Full SOC at nite, and within 300 yards of level neighborhood driving 2 pips. I need 4 miles of highway driving and I am full SOC..Now if I do not drive my car again during the 8 hours of work, a lot of the time I am back at 2 pips soc, however it only takes about 1 mile to get back to Full SOC.

Will most Honda Dealers even know about this overnite test?...I have just over 100k on the car with the remaining extended warranty. By the way my life time mpg is 45.5 with mostly stop and go. If I can get a long HWY drive it is very easy to get 50+.

For me the battery issue is not an MPG issue, it is a Safety thing..although I have just gotten use to using all the RPM's the little 1.3 can give me.

 

Try using L mode on the CVT when you loss all SOC. This way the car revs and gives better power and charges the pack much faster. H

 

Harold

Thanks for the FYI, I use all of the little tricks to get the SOC back up as soon as possible..I was just wanting some more info on getting the battery replaced under warranty as I will at the current rate have over 200k before the car is paid off.

As long as I am the only person who drives the car most of the time, the unique driving needs of the car do not pose a risk to me. However my son will be driving in about a year, and no way will I have him learn to drive on this car. Too many other things...about being a new driver to have to deal with sudden low SOC and no assist.

Brian

 

I Dont know if most dealers know about the overnight test, it was suggested by the dealer here in Tempe, I Would say have your dealer call the one here, talk to Mike,

Ive heard some people say that the battery doesnt effect their mileage, on the hwy here in phoenix i average 40 to 42 now at 60-65 mph, unless i draft a big truck, then i can get in the low 50's. but mine is up, i was at 29 to 31 hwy before the battery replacement so im really not sure how some say the battery doesnt effect mpg, especially in city driving, stop n go i was averaging 21 mpg but now that is way up alsy because i get the ima assist,

and the AC Still kills the mpg and power of the car , drops down to 34 ish, but all in all it is a way better car to drive after the replacement,

Harold,

I have had the revers experience with using L, for me it seems to really bog down and not want to go untill the rpms are above 4k, so i used S mode, which seemed to work well for me,

but every car is different

Chris

 

L should rev more freely, you would think? Mine sure does, as I tried it. I am only passing on what they talked about on Cleanmpg.com They find it really helps when car is re-calibrating. I am one of the lucky ones as my HCH never has had this issue. Mind you I am never in a hurry and have a very light foot, so I probably would not notice it if it ever does happen. H!