trevorpdx

I've been doing some research on here, and I'm trying to find a nice Civic Hybrid, preferably in the 8th generation or so. Here's a link to one that I am thinking about:
http://portland.craigslist.org/clc/cto/4230930274.html

It says the IMA battery has been replaced, is this common for a Hybrid with just under 100k to have problems? Is there any way to tell if the IMA battery is having issues via test driving?

Any help or suggestions would be great, i'd really like to pick one up, but wanna make sure I'm making the right move!

Trevor

Poopies

iTrader: (4)

The car looks nice! It looks like the IMA batteries for that generation civic were known to be kind of unreliable:
http://autos.yahoo.com/news/honda-ci...175349961.html
http://www.hybridcars.com/consumer-r...y-reliability/

I'd check to see if the battery is still under warranty.

ezone

I always recommend that one has a specialist perform a prepurchase inspection prior to deciding on a purchase.


See a good Honda dealer to see what is still covered by warranty.
Have the dealer see if the rear upper control arms have been fixed yet.

If the original battery already got replaced, the car should be good to go for a long time with regular service and maintenance.
Note that improper care can dramatically shorten the IMA battery life.

trevorpdx

Thanks guys! I may have it checked out, but it looks like a nice car and I am gonna see if I can pick it up soon!

trevorpdx

Ok so I've got an update...I am going to pick up a 2008 Civic hybrid for VERY cheap, but I will need to replace the IMA battery.

Does anyone know the best way to take care of this? I found this http://www.highvoltagesolutionz.com/ site, but it looks like they only do the Prius and Nissan. What other options are out there for replacement of the IMA battery, if this company won't do it? I've heard it can be done for closer to 1,200 or so versus the crazy high prices at dealers. If anyone has any info / advice, that would be great!

ezone

How about FREE?
Before you consider buying it take the VIN of the car (and the mileage) to a Honda dealer and have them check for applicable recalls, campaigns, and warranty extensions.

Many of the cars had warranty extended on the IMA battery, along with numerous software updates that may have been covered in recalls and campaigns.

danwat12345

I would be hesitant, as I've heard the Civic Hybrid doesn't do a good job of keeping the cells of the NiMH battery pack equalized and I've heard that if you don't drive it regularly it would be smart to buy a an appropriate charger for the battery pack. With proper monitoring it should be a reliable vehicle for you and the pack should be reliable too. If the pack fails then engine has a traditional starter so the car can run like a straight gas car (unlike the Prius).

The Prius has very good cell management, and the seats fold down. Still can't believe the 2014 Accord Hybrid doesn't have some sort of pass through, the drivetrain is genius (no transmission at all!), battery pack location not so much.

If you buy 1 with a dead pack, I'd recommend replacing the pack yourself. Would probably be a similar procedure to the 7th gen Hybrids.

ezone

(I THINK (IMO) this was one of the problems with the bad batch of IMA batteries. Various individual cells within the pack went bad, causing too much variance within the stacks of a given battery pack.)


Some battery charging and deterioration issues were supposedly resolved with one of the software updates.

Battery life was addressed with warranty extensions, and then once the original pack is replaced there is new (different) software to go along with the 'improved' battery type to charge that pack differently from the original type.


I found a PDF of the IMA battery warranty extension info here: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j...57799294,d.aWM


Letting the car sit for long periods is an issue, but the only way the end user was given to charge the IMA battery is to get in the car and run the engine, at least long enough to show a full charge on the IMA meter..
Every 30 days. I think this is covered in the owners manual too.

There is no provision for the user to connect any sort of charger to the IMA battery.

Maybe someone out there has come up with something to do that, but the factory didn't give that option.

There isn't much the driver can monitor other than the meters on the dash. Everything is done through the computers, including deciding when the battery pack is failing.

We at the dealers have no easy way to test the IMA battery condition....We are supposed to just wait for the warning light(s) to come on and certain code(s) to set before we can replace the IMA battery.

Even with data available on the scantool (gobbledygook to most), we still have to wait for the computers to decide the pack failed before we can do anything.

I have seen and replaced enough bad ones that I can drive one and sorta GUESS if maybe the IMA battery might be getting weak, but I can't do a darn thing until they set a code for it.



However, if an owner wanted to assume all possible risks of shock and injury, electrocution and death, and open up the battery pack......... I'm sure there is more you can do. Google it?

Most of the time when I see one with a battery failure code, the engine still starts on the IMA. The state of charge has to be pretty darn low to run the 12v starter.
The conventional 12V starter is actually used (and normal!!) if the ambient temperature is below some certain point. Most hybrid drivers tend to freak out when they hear it start that way.




It's got one, they call it an e-CVT.




Yeah, R&R is damn near the same. But if you get an improved version battery pack, you can't update the software yourself.


Video notes:
Seatback came out WAY too easy, like it's been out a hundred times already. Seems like half the time I gotta use a prybar to raise it up. And need another person to help get all of the upper tabs seated for reinstallation.

Dude should use a binder clip or something on the middle seatbelt to get it out of the way.....

OMG OUCH, my back hurts just watching how he lifted that pack. Every time. OW ow ow.

If I laid the battery on the seat without a cover, I woulda tore the fabric or something. Same with setting the seatback on the lower cushion, there are large metal tabs with sharp edges along the bottom.

We have to swap the contactor assembly (junction board) off the end of the battery pack now, this guy did not.

Seatback went back in waaay too easy.

Damn, he made that look easy. Mine never go that fast.

ezone

More:
https://www.civicforums.com/forums/3...ml#post4633762

ezone

News flash, for those who think an aftermarket IMA battery is cheaper.....

Just did an 02 Insight IMA battery, customer supplied their own aftermarket unit......

Do your research carefully....

More info later...

ezone

Note: This was for an early INSIGHT, one aftermarket IMA battery supplier, and this was the first time I have been asked to install a non-Honda supplied IMA battery here.




This is the invoice total that was in the aftermarket battery box.
NOT SHOWN: $500 core charge (so subtract $500.00 from the total shown)
They still had to get it installed, and dink with getting it shipped back to the vendor, and wait for the reimbursements to the credit card, etc. etc.
Seems like a lot of hassle to me.



I'm also guessing that they paid someone else to diagnose that it needed the IMA battery too.




The battery price from us would have been $1968.85 (MSRP) plus tax. (Actually, with tax rate here it comes out pretty close to the same for the part, so figure far less hassle for us to handle the whole job.)

Our labor estimate to install it was apparently about $100 less than the dealer nearest to this customer, they came from a good hour away to get the job done here.

Side note: On this particular INSIGHT, Honda recommends the battery condition monitor (one of the control units for the hybrid stuff) also be replaced with the new battery to lengthen the life of the battery bla bla bla, another $2000 or so if you want that.