I have a 06 and I'm experiencing the same problem. Earlier this year the lights came on and took it in and the dealer updated the software. They were just following the procedure from Honda. The updates has not helped.

I hate this car now. The service manager says he has never heard of this issue, and without the IMA light or error code they can't replace the battery.

 

Dantheman
I signed over the title to Honda about 2 weeks ago. I had to deliver the car to the dealer I have always gone to although they had nothing to do with the repurchase. A large sticker was placed on the inside of the car’s windshield indicating the car was not to be driven. I do not know what happened to the car. Hopefully Honda is looking into the reason for the frequent recals. Seeing that the arbitrator indicated the car had safety issues I did not drive the car after receiving the decision and had the car trucked to the dealer the day of the transfer.

I was VERY satisfied with the repurchase amount! Even though I had gone through the Better Business Bureau Auto Line the repurchase calculation is based on your State’s lemon law rules. Here in Maine we get the full contract price of the vehicle including doc fees and sales tax less a mileage deduction. The mileage deduction in a Lemon Law award is based on 1/3 the IRS standard deduction for operating a car for business miles driven or 10% of the purchase price, whichever is less. The IRS allowance is 55 cents per mile so if your car had 35,999 on it at the time of arbitration then the calculation would be (.55 / 3) x 35,999 = $6599.82. This is more than 10% of the total purchase price so the deduction is limited to a 10% deduction. I imagine every State has its own repurchase regulations and probably not as good as this State.

My advice to all of you having a recal every couple of days and still having the 36/36,000 miles warranty is to contact the BBB for an application because from my experience the recals will occur more and more frequently. Why is it happening, the battery is deteriorating and is not going to recover to the way it operated when it was purchased. Even a new battery will not get it back to original with all the software updates Honda has added to protect the battery. Read the booklet BBB sends you along with the application and follow the steps that are required for arbitration. Just do it, it does take time. In my case it was close to 8 months.

I counted 4 recals in a 50 mile trip. It took 2 to 3 miles to recover my charge so lets say it got recharged in 2 ½ miles so for my trip I had NO assist for 20% of the time. ((2.5 x 4) / 50 x100)). This should not happen, it is a safety issue and Honda should stop selling these cars if this is going to happen and we know it is happening. If a recal has to take place then maybe there should be a light on the dash asking if this is a good time for a recal and we respond by pressing a button for the answer but to randomly happen is a real safety issue. I have read that with the new updates you will get a bar or 2 of assist when there is only 1 or 2 bars of charge but only for a second or two. What good is this fix?

Please take Honda to arbitration. It is this kind of action that will eventually make Honda do something about the recal problem. From my experience I do not feel Honda has a leg to stand on when it comes to arbitration. They have nothing but their word that that car is operating the way it should. No test evidence, nothing but your work invoices showing no problems were found. They are the ones doing the software updates and we do not know what they are and there is no way for us to find out. Trading in the car and sticking someone else with the problem is not the answer. The purchaser of a car declared to be a lemon has to be informed at the time of sale that the car was found to have been a lemon so at least you did your best.
Sorry for another long winded post but I do get very upset over this situation.

 

Yep. And this is why I hand them a typed page at each service stating that they are not to touch, investigate, add to, modify, or update IMA/SOC /hybrid battery pack software for any reason at any time. I further specify that they cannot even test the battery cells in any manner shape or form.

I then list what I expect them to do.

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Honda installed a new hybrid battery pack for me at 55,000 miles no questions asked. The IMA light came on just as I pulled into the dealership and I was having frequent recals just like you all are describing. I have had zero recals since that time ( about 10,000 miles ago).