Honda Battery

Joined
Jun 15, 2011
Messages
92
Location
Kimberly, WI
We have a ‘17 accord with the 2.4l 4cyl. The battery is now 5.5 years old and is starting to show its age. I was going to buy another OE Honda battery, but was wondering if any of you could recommend something other than OE? The car takes a 51R battery. Who makes the Honda branded battery?
 
Go on the Honda forums and read about upgrading to a group 35 or 24F. The CR-V requires upgrading the battery tray and heat shield box with those from a 2013 Honda Odyssey, but they are available at low cost from OEMPartSource.com

Your Accord may also require those upgrades for the larger battery. The extra weight of the larger battery is not enough for you to notice any change in the performance. But going from 500 CCA to 725 or 750 CCA and the big increase in reserve capacity is a big improvement in reliability, especially in very cold weather which is when you do not want a battery to leave you stranded.
 
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They seem to be made by Johnson Controls (now under a new name). You can buy JC batteries under Walmart's brand, AAP, Autozone, etc. Walmart may sell batteries made by East Penn in some locations though and that brand is generally well-thought of around here. They are sold as DEKA batteries when it's not store-branded batteries.
 
What I did on my '15 Accord. The OEM 51R battery was a Johnson (octagonal vent caps) if it matters.


Mine is the pre-facelift 9th gen Accord but I assume the facelifted ones like yours are similar if not the same under the hood.
 
The 51r to 24f seems like a good idea. If the dealership has the v6 part in stock I’ll go that route. If the Honda battery is a JC, which sounds like a good manufacturer, does it make sense to buy it or is there another brand? The way I see it the original battery has been though many below zero night and is short tripped. We have gotten good use of the OE brand. The battery has been depleted 2 or 3 time from done lights being left on as well.
 
Doing the tray upgrade yourself or by an independent mechanic might be low cost. But I suspect Honda dealers would rip you off big time for that job IF THEY WERE WILLING TO DO IT. Probably most dealers will not do it.
 
If it started the car reliably in Wisconsin weather for over 5 years, no need to Frankenstein in a bigger battery on a 4 cylinder engine. You don't think Honda engineers spec'd the right size battery for their cars? And Honda replacement batteries have some of the best warranties. 3 years free replacement and 100 month pro-rated. You can sometimes find discount coupons or service specials for under $100 installed.
 
The OE supplier may have been JCI (now Clarios), but anything made by East Penn/Deka is a great choice. JCI/Clarios batteries are widely available, as they supply many house brands. Walmart uses different suppliers depending on region. Napa and O'R batteries are mostly Deka

51r is small, so upgrading to 24F is a good idea. Just be glad you don't have the 151R toy battery they put in the Fit :D
 
If it started the car reliably in Wisconsin weather for over 5 years, no need to Frankenstein in a bigger battery on a 4 cylinder engine. You don't think Honda engineers spec'd the right size battery for their cars? And Honda replacement batteries have some of the best warranties. 3 years free replacement and 100 month pro-rated. You can sometimes find discount coupons or service specials for under $100 installed.
I had an 02 Civic Si and it had 2 OEM batteries and spent 98% of its life in Minnesota. Never had issues. I replaced both batteries after 8 years and they still tested fine when I used a load tester on them. They started to test borderline on the load tester so I replaced them. I thought they were great batteries, but I only have a sample size of 2. Now Subaru batteries, on the other hand...I think they're the equivalent of two AAA's. And if you get 4 years you're blessed. At least that's my experience.
 
We have a ‘17 accord with the 2.4l 4cyl. The battery is now 5.5 years old and is starting to show its age. I was going to buy another OE Honda battery, but was wondering if any of you could recommend something other than OE? The car takes a 51R battery. Who makes the Honda branded battery?
Do check with the Honda dealer re the warranty period of the replacement battery and if they have an upgrade cca wise. I once got a battery at the dealer and it had an 8 year prorated warranty.
 
I had a size 51 in my 2005 Civic for 12 years. I am sure a maintenance charge before summer and winter each year helped it last so long.
 
Just to to Wal Mart and get there battery and change it in the parking lot....just remember to have your radio code...after new one is in..
 
If you have a Rural King store near you, check their prices. When I last purchased a car battery in September, their prices on a 36 month warranty battery were the lowest, even cheaper than Walmart. The auto parts stores, except Napa, were the highest.
 
Just to to Wal Mart and get there battery and change it in the parking lot....just remember to have your radio code...after new one is in..
If they had the $55 battery I'd say yes but all I see is

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for $121. Might as well get a Honda battery cheaper with better warranty.
 
but all I see is
Yeah, it seems like a 51R size isn't that common. Maybe only used in Hondas and while there's a lot of Hondas out there and every battery maker offers a 51R, they don't offer variations of them, i.e. low-grade, mid-grade, premium, etc. Walmart seems to charge more for that smaller battery than they do for bigger and stronger sizes too. No doubt based on volume (sales).
 
If it started the car reliably in Wisconsin weather for over 5 years, no need to Frankenstein in a bigger battery on a 4 cylinder engine. You don't think Honda engineers spec'd the right size battery for their cars?
Normally I defer to the engineers on stuff like this but... but... but... there are EPA/CAFE weight classes and if they shed eight pounds with a lighter battery then can limp into the lower weight class which gives them a greater theoretical fleet MPG advantage.

OP should upgrade to the bigger battery because it's more common, and if they need a replacement for this one at 8pm on a Sunday there'll be more options.
 
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