Yah, so it's only a matter of time then. And no, the civic won't run without the hybrid battery, but you do have a few months before you'll need it replaced. Your battery isn't dead yet, just weak. When your 12V light comes on, you're screwed (might want to have a battery booster just in case you're away from your other car or another ride).

So, I've done tons of research on this, and I've discovered that these are our options:

1: Get a rebuilt battery for a cost of $1250, from http://www.hybrid-battery-repair.com/, or Hybridrevolt, or something like them.

2: Rebuild your own battery at your own risk, provided you feel comfortable doing so, cost varies and could be as little as a few hundred bucks, although the SuperBrain alone costs $110:
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...vic-13610.html

- although I'm not sure this will fix the 1433 as this is a weak battery, not an unbalanced one. But I'm not an expert. I'm sure during testing you'd be able to determine how many sticks will need replaced.

3: Buy a BetterBattery from the hybrid battery repair people I posted above for $2000. This would be my favorite option.

4: Get screwed by the dealer, who quoted me $3500. Be aware they don't make the battery anymore, so you will be getting a refurbished one just like the kind made by the guys posted in #1.

You can keep driving it for awhile; but just be aware that should your 12V light come on, it means it is no longer charging it. I just use my car to commute, and I have a booster battery just in case, so I'm gonna drive it til it dies.

Supposedly there exists a board out there that can also avoid using the hybrid battery and still allow the 12V to charge. I know the hybrid-battery-repair guys have one, but I have no idea the cost as they don't have it on the website, only what he has mentioned in other forums. I believe the design is out there somewhere, but I can't seem to find it.

Hope this info helps. I will likely be replacing my battery in Feb.-March with a BetterBattery. Let me know what you decide to do.

 

Oh, and one more thing.
I live in a state where I must pass a vehicle inspection. You fail just for having a CEL on. I don't know if this will work to get around it, but supposedly if you reset the codes and drive 10 miles VERY gently, you can keep the CEL off. What I plan to do is use Calmod's modification to shut off the assist/regen completely for 10 miles and see if that'll keep it off. Haven't done it yet, so I don't know if it will work:

http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=15708

 

Well, I'm at the dealer currently because the lights are still on. They've been on for 2k miles now. I'm thinking about a game plan to prevent them from just resetting the computer and sending me on my way again. I hate to spend $97/visit just to have them say, oh, it's okay now. I know the battery is bad and it needs replaced. The car has told me and when driving it, I think it's quite obvious. Hopefully I can get somewhere with things here so something ACTUALLY gets accomplished.

 

Just tell them the car is just to dangerous to drive. The light is on for a reason and that means correcting the problem not a reset. Good luck, H

 

I changed my mind.
I got rid of my hybrid. Traded in for a good fuel efficiency car.
It isn't worth it.

 

Lol! That's sad. I love my hybrid. In my '98 Civic LX which had EPA estimates of 24/32 the best tank I EVER got in the six years I had it was 28. I'm much happier with the 48+ I get out of my HCH. Even with the failing battery my tank average before they test drove it was 50.1 according to the dash. Of course, I have learned to drive differently in the new car, which gives it a big advantage. I wasn't exactly a speed demon before, though.

News from the dealer is that the battery needs replaced (duh!). They gave me an estimate of 2550ish plus tax. Less than what I expected, but it will still have to wait until I can afford it. I can't wait to see how a new battery affects mileage! Being that my battery won't even fully charge during my commute to work (about 20 minutes 50/50 highway/city), it HAS to be better. I get awful mileage while the IMA is parasitic.

 

The reason I traded in my car is it had engine problems as well. I had air leakage and compression problems. It needed to have the engine re-conditioned in addition to a new hybrid battery. Plus, it needed new rotors and pads (not that expensive, but still several hundred dollars for the parts). In all I was looking at over 4500 dollars in work. As my car was averaging 36 mpg after starting at 45 a year ago, I figured I would get a new car.
The car dealer gave me 4000 for my car (trade-in value was only 3000), and took 1500 off the sticker price. My payments are below 200/month, and includes all service/maintenance/warranty for 6 years/100k miles. So technically I bought a complete worry-free car for the next 6 years for 200/month that gets 35 mpg.
I win. Ford wins. Honda loses. Sorry Honda, but I expect better engine performance from the Japanese than needing an engine reconditioning at 110,000 miles, couple that to a bad battery and I'll likely never buy you again.

 

And I would look into Hybrid Battery repair. Honda is only offering a re-conditioned pack, and those at HBR offer the same for 1200 bucks with shipping. Better yet, they offer a BetterBattery for $2000, which is a higher capacity, longer lasting battery. After all, it has been 8 years since that hybrid battery was made, there have been significant advances in battery technology since then.

 

Well, the 12v light is on and I have an appointment to get the battery replaced. I don't want to go with a third party battery. I've had terrible luck with third party batteries for other things and I don't want to take a chance with the most expensive battery I own. They offered it for a decent price from the dealer (less than 3k) so I'm taking the opportunity. Also, with all the lawsuits out there, I'd like to be able to have the chance to get reimbursed eventually if possible. So, until my appointment, I'm carpooling with the hubby. LUCKILY my schedule allows for it this week. Timing ended up working well for us. So...I suppose we're almost to problem solved.

 

The bypass board just connects the HV inverter output directly to the DC-DC inputs. It is only used if the battery is removed from the car, because the battery itself makes this connection. THEREFORE, you don't need one because your battery is still in the car.

All you need to do on a Civic is unplug the leftmost connector from the bottom of the MCM. Between 1500 and 3800 rpm, the car will produce enough power to charge the 12V battery. Note that idle is lower than this, so you have to manage your driving.

For an Insight, just unplug the BCM. You only need to unplug one of the plugs, but if you do all three, you don't have to worry about unplugging the wrong one.

For either car, leave the battery switch off.