I purchased my 2016 Honda Fit EX as soon as they became available in late 2015. After owning the car now for just over two years I would have expected the battery to at least last 4 years, but to my disappointment it's now leaving me sit. To a greater disappointment, I called the dealership and they informed me the battery is not something that would be covered under the warranty. Honda has really dropped the ball with this.

I'm now researching a battery replacement, but I absolutely want to get a larger battery. It looks like there's plenty of room for a larger battery. Does anyone know the dimensions of the battery housing, or what the largest battery size is that would fit in my Fit?

I always felt the battery in the Honda Fit was ridiculously small, and even when it was new I questioned whether it would hold up in time. Granted, it's winter now and the temperatures where I live are in the single digits, but a battery 2 years old still should be able to hold up. My only thought is because the battery is so small, it just doesn't have enough juice to handle the cold.

Aside from the battery, I still love everything about the car. It's just too bad Honda skimped on something that wouldn't have cost them much to keep their customers fully satisfied and safe.

 

Here'a thread from a couple of months ago that might help.

https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/3rd-...hlight=battery

 

BenQuick, thank you. The link you provided gave me exactly the information I needed. I'll be going for a new 51R battery tomorrow. Thanks

 

Glad to help. Let us know how the install goes.

 

it can also be how you are using your car that is causing the premature wear.

ive owned 4 Fits and none required battery replacement.. and ive owned them 5-6 yrs each in a colder snow belt state. like this entire week we've been in -12F to 8F temps. started each and every time.

 

Two studies showed that the average car battery lasts between 37 - 48 months. Battery life is negatively affected by extreme heat and infrequent charging.

 

yes, and people not adding water to maintain.

 

I just buy a sealed batter if I were you and upgrade.

 

My 2015 Fit battery was replaced by Honda last week under the 3yr/36,000 mile "bumper to bumper" warranty. I just had 3 weeks left on the 3yrs but only have 18k miles. Check your owners manual. The 2015 manual states the battery is covered under the "bumper to bumper". May be different for the 2016 or maybe you have exceeded the mileage limit. The replacement battery is the same group with more cca and indicates it has a 1 yr warranty. Hope this helps.

 

I also had my battery replaced under warranty. 2015 fit with 23,000 miles on it.

 

you folks are making it sound like the battery the GK comes with is inferior. yah its a small battery but stop draining the battery while engine is off and ensure to drive at least 10miles+ per drive and drive over 20miles at least once a week.. otherwise plug it into a battery manager during the week the car is off.

im basically saying it is user error.

 

Could be just that I got a bad battery. It happens. I've never had battery issues with any of our other vehicles, aside from old age 5+ years old. I drive 34 miles to work each day and have never had a problem until now. I chalked it up to the fact that it's a small battery, could be just a failed battery, plus the -15 to -20 degree weather we're having at the moment. You guys make it sound like when batteries fail it's always due to something someone did or didn't do. It's a sealed battery, there's nothing to do to it, and it's only 2 years old. When they checked the battery, the guy asked me if this battery was in a vehicle, lol. When I said "Yes, why?", he responded that it's showing less than 200 cold cranking amps. There's the problem when you're dealing with sub Zero temperatures. I am disappointed that it isn't covered under the warranty, but I'd rather get a bigger battery anyhow.

BTW, I bought a 51R battery and it fits in the Fit perfectly, like it's made for it. Perfectly.

 

For anyone wanting to upgrade their battery to a larger capacity 51R battery, the only tool you'll need is a ratcheting wrench, or a socket wrench with a 10mm deep socket. For anyone who is handy, I would rate this project as very easy. No modifications were necessary, and the removal and installation was done within 30 minutes even while taking pictures and freezing my fingers off in -20 degree wind chill temperatures. To say it was cold would be an understatement. Even my phone kept shutting down due to the cold, lol.


This is the original 2016 Honda Fit EX battery.
It's only two years old, but it couldn't handle starting the car in sub zero temperatures any more. In fact, when the battery was tested it was showing the CCA at less than 200. Pathetically low. This is one of the problems with such a small battery.




Loosen this 10mm nut to unhook one side of the battery brace.




Unscrew this plastic wire brace with a 10mm tool, or firmly pull it off the threads, and then loosen the 10mm nut underneath it in order to unhook the other side of the brace, then remove the brace entirely and set it somewhere out of the way and safe.




Loosen this 10mm nut to remove the negative wire from the battery, then pull and secure the contact out of the way.




Loosen this 10mm nut to remove the positive wire from the battery, then pull and secure the contact out of the way.




Securely grasp the battery with both hands and pull the battery straight up and out of the engine compartment without tilting or tipping the battery.
As seen above, all that will remain is the battery sleeve and the battery tray, of which you may also easily remove and clean if you wish.




Battery sleeve.




This is the original 151R battery inside the battery sleeve. Note the additional space available inside the sleeve for a larger capacity battery.




This is the larger capacity 51R battery I purchased to replace the much smaller 151R battery originally provided by Honda.




The battery sleeve perfectly fits loosely around the 51R battery without making any modifications.




As you can tell from this image, the 51R battery also fits perfectly and loosely inside the battery tray.




After re-inserting the battery tray, carefully & securely use both hands to lower the 51R battery into the tray & re-insert the battery sleeve around the battery.

I'd recommend at this point you thoroughly apply a thick quality grease to the positive & negative terminals prior to connecting them to the new battery. This will significantly aid in preventing corrosion.

Then secure the new battery with the brace, re-connect the positive & negative terminals to the battery, & you're done.

I would have added a finished photo, but as I stated, my phone kept shutting down due to the extreme cold temperatures.

No animals were harmed in the making of this presentation, and I regained feeling in all of my fingers shortly after returning home.

 

true.. not denying the fact that there are bad batteries out there. ive also experienced like two out of over 30 new cars ive bought in my life time.

but the way some of you folks portray the Fit's batteries, it makes it sound like the car frequently comes with a bad battery. this is not the case.

 

How are we supposed to maintain modern batteries? There's a lot of conflicting information on the web.

Last time I bought a new car was 18 years ago. Since then I've been buying replacement Costco batteries. I've been told they are maintenance-free. I confirmed that on the phone to Costco this morning. I'd have to break a warranty sticker to remove what looks like the cell covers.

I checked the water level in my Fit battery yesterday. All the cells were full. It wasn't very convenient -- I had to lift the battery hold-down to pry-up the cell opening cover. I scanned the manual, nothing about battery fluid maintenance.

 

it's rather simple.

first step is dont drain the battery by running accessories on the car without the engine running. battery tends to build memory and dont charge all the way after drained.

next is if youre doing short trips often, best you get a battery manager (battery tender) and plug it in while not in use, keep the charger in float state. if your car wont be used for more than 2 weeks, plug it in for certain.

3rd is checking battery water level at least once every other year, hot climates id check every year and add distilled water as needed in the cells. even if the battery says 'maintenance free' check it. ive opened up 'maintenance free' batteries and found water levels low. make sure to wear safety goggles and gloves. the water inside the battery is VERY acidic.

ive had a 12 yr old car bought new on original battery and it was cranking fine when sold. my other 7yr old car was also on original battery, no issue. basically all my cars except for like 2 had bad batteries that needed replacing.

GL!

 

Thanks KenChan for the good information. Do you reside in an area that experiences Sub zero seasonal temp. variations? Reason I ask is because we all know winter cold is very hard on batteries, and if a battery is weak in the slightest in our area, the first real cold spell is usually the battery killer.

I'd like to add that one of the caveots with the small 151R battery in the Fit is the very fact that it's small. Meaning, it doesn't allow for much if any sitting in the car for even a few minutes (5-10) listening to music before going into work. This is where a larger battery has at least some added flexibility. Granted, you shouldn't ever go overboard. This is one reason why I upgraded to a 51R battery. A more realistic larger capacity.

 

Battery maintainers are a good idea for vehicles parked for over a week so. Theoretically any vehicle should be able to be started up to 30 days or so. At least that is GM's design point. I do not know what Honda's is but it is probably similar. After that period of tine the parasitic drain will have killed the battery and the car will have to be jump started. Deeply discharging a battery like this will also reduce it's storage capacity and reduce it's longevity.

Be careful what you use for a maintainer because it is possible to over charge the battery if the maintainer used runs the charging voltage too high.

A good fully charged battery should read 12.6 to 12.8 volts with no load depending on several things including temperature.

To actually charge a battery, a voltage higher than the battery must be applied. That voltage can be as high as 14.4 volts on initial start up on a very cold battery. The required level required drops as the battery warmsup or approaches a full charge. On a hot or nearly charged battery the level is around 13.6 to 13.8.

When using a maintainer you are not trying to charge the battery but instead you are only trying to maintain it at a nearly full charged state and in some cases to keep it warm. The ideal voltage for maintenance is 13.2 or 13.3 volts. So if you get a true single stage maintainer you should not ever see more than 13.3 volts. If you were to use a maintainer it to try to charge a battery is would probably take a week to get to a full charge. Enter the staged maintainer / charger. These things will put a higher voltage to charge the battery and then drop down to 13.2 or 13.3 to maintain the battery. The are many kinds of these and some have several stages. My motor home has a 3 stage one that puts out 14.2, 13.8, and then 13.2 in maintenance mode.

So if you have a maintainer and intend to leave it installed for a long time (like weeks) make sure it is not over 13.3 volts on a charged battery. If it is, it will boil the cells and shorten the life of the battery.

Here is a cheap item that will allow you to quickly check the 12 volt system voltage on your battery or alternator when driving. It can be left installed in your 12 volt accessory plug or removed when not needed.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2016...788670717.html

It will take a while to get here from China but for the price everybody should have one.

 

yah, in my area the last 2 weeks have been in the -12F to 5F range. sitting at 23F this am and feels like a heat wave.
batteries are supposed to work down to -40F (-40C) as operating temp but at those temps it will be iffy.

 

This is what NAPA say's about checking a "Maintenance Free" battery.

" Such batteries usually come with vent caps that are sealed, which means you no longer should check water levels. "

To me? And this is just my opinion.
I'm just going to keep an eye on my battery, and typically I get 2-4 years life...if I get more...Great.
And when it fails?
I'll buy another.

I do short trips.
I run accessories.
I listen to my radio on my lunch break with the engine off.

And really? I've never had a problem.
If I'm paying for it on the back end by losing a year or two...well if I can get 2-4 years anyway? I'm perfectly fine with it.

From a convenience and even more importantly a safety standpoint...no battery acid exposure or explosion risk, I'm willing to just keep on enjoying the convenience of a maintenance free battery.

Seems a lot better than buying thick rubber gloves, volt meters, goggles, battery tenders, and Zombie Walking my battery perpetually just to eek out every possible volt or starting crank.