Upgrading Honda CR-V Battery

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Carlostrece

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As many already know, and some may not know... You can upgrade a Honda CRV Gen 2 battery from 51R to 24F. From my time spent at CRVownersclub.com I know that several other generations of CRV can do this same mod and upgrade to 24F. However, a few other generations might not be able to vertically fit a 24F battery. For any generation that can't vertically fit a 24F battery, they can upgrade to a 35 battery.

The rest of this post and thread is about Gen 2 and other gen that can upgrade to a 24F battery. For more info about other generations, please consult CRVownersclub.com.

This upgrade not only gives you a larger more powerful battery, but can save you money every time you buy a battery. 24F is a more common size, is more mass produced, and therefore costs less. It's also bigger and more powerful.

I'm in the process of upgrading right now.

Let's look at the economics of parts cost.

Most sources say you need to buy a Honda Odyssey battery tray to upgrade a CRV to a 24F battery. Some sources say you can modify and use the stock original CRV battery tray.

I've never done this mod on a Honda, but I did similar mods on 3 Jeeps. My past experiences and common sense suggest to me that both methods probably work, but buying an Odyssey tray probably requires less modification work/time and probably gives a better supported 24R battery (which might be helpful on bumpy roads).

I decided to go the route of buying a Honda Odyssey battery tray for $30 from my local Honda dealership because it's probably the faster and easier solution, and it's the most common solution.

Honda Odyssey battery tray part # 31521-TK8-A00 should cost $30 (or less) at your local Honda dealership parts dept. It cost me $30 at my local dealership, but some dealerships (in other parts of USA) advertise online $22 for this battery tray.

Now lets look at the cost and power of 51R vs 24F batteries and you can see why this is an economically attractive modification-upgrade. Prices and Warranties Jan 2026.

51R Batteries
Walmart Everstart, 500 CCA, 85 RC, $150
Genuine Honda OE 500 CCA, 85 RC, $162
Oreilly Superstart 500 CCA, 85 RC, $214

Those ^ are highend premium flooded 51R batteries. Their electrical specs are the minimum needed to be (marginally) acceptable for a CRV parked outdoors in a Northern winter climate.

There are economy lower cost (weaker) 51R batteries available, but I don't think less than 500 CCA is advisable in a Northern winter. IMO, 500 CCA is only marginally adequate in a Northern winter. It's better to have more than 500 CCA if you can afford it and fit it. With 24F you can afford more CCA and fit it.

As you can see below, having signifigantly more than 500 CCA actually costs less because 24F is a larger, more common size battery. More common size means more mass production, which means lower price even though it's more powerful. Yes a 24F will fit!

24F batteries
*Walmart Everstart 585 CCA, 95 RC, $80
**Walmart Everstart 600 CCA, 110 RC, $100-110, My favorite!
Genuine Honda OE 630 CCA, 120 RC, $170
Oreilly Superstart 585 CCA, 115RC, $120, I bought this one.
United Battery 550 CCA, ?RC (probaby 80-85 RC), $100.

There are even more powerful Everstart flooded 24F batteries available from Walmart and Oreilly. I think lots of CCA would be ideal in Canada, Alaska, Upper Midwest, Upstate New York, but in Western WA (where I am) I have no need for more than 600 CCA in a CRV. In my moderate winter climate 585 or 600 CCA is plenty of overkill.

For those in the frozen North...
Walmart Everstart 600 CCA, 110 RC, $100-110
Walmart Everstart 725 CCA, 130 RC, $140
Oreilly Superstart 750 CCA, 130 RC, $210

If you live in a warm Southern climate, there are low cost economy 51R batteries available, which are be fine in a warm climate. So in a warm climate I see no reason to upgrade your battery size. In a warm climate just buy economy 51R from Walmart, IMO.

Manufacturer and Warranty
Oreilly Superstart (made by East Penn) 1 year warranty.

Walmart Everstart (made by Clarios on Westcoast, East Penn on East Coast) 2 year warranty.

Genuine Honda OE (made by Clarios) 5 year warranty with 3 yrs full replacement, 2 years prorated. Honda OE battery prices are surprisingly good and competetive (much lower cost than Oreilly Superstart for a premium 51R).

The only bad thing about Honda OE battery is that AFAIK Honda only sells a (flooded) premium Clarios battery in 51R and 24F. Premium is ideal if I was buying a 51R because if buying a 51R it needs to be premium to get 500 CCA (which is the minimum acceptable CCA in my climate). However, if I'm buying a 24F then I don't need or want a premium (most powerful) 24F. When I'm buying a 24F I want an economy line battery to save money (and it'll still be more powerful than any premium 51R).

United Battery housebrand (manufactured by an offbrand that I forgot the name of). I don't recall the Warranty. The specs per price are uninspiring.

P.S. - @Nukeman7 introduced this topic and these concepts to me. I'm very grateful. I'm also very grateful to @f355spider for his excellent advice on this topic. I'm also grateful to everyone else who gave me excellent advice on this topic in other threads. I'm sorry that I can't name you all here, but my memory for names isn't that good. Please know that I appreciate you all.
 
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The first post was in regard to why people do this upgrade. This second post is to show how easy it is to do. About 30 min for a pro. 1 hour for an amateur DIY person.

Plus time possibly going to autostore for longer bolts or a new battery tie-down, or other fiddly little items that you might need.

Several people who did this mod told me they were able to do it using all stock bolts and stock tie-down with only a minor mod to stock tie down. So you might not have to make any trips to autostore or hardware store.

I think the minor details vary a bit for each model/generation of CRV. Minor details might also vary slightly between individual CRVs of the same model/generation. It might also vary slightly according to your skills or tools. So you may, or may not, have to make a parts run to get for longer bolts or other minor items.

Whatever the exact details with your CRV and your skill level and tools... Overall this is a relatively quick, easy, basic mod that does NOT require special tools NOR special skills. This is so easy that I could have done it when I was in high school.

 
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Another option would be a 35.
When I did the swap on my Accord, the only modification required was bending back the tab that held the 51 in place with a pair of pliers.
I would think that the fact that the 35 is close to 1" shorter would be of some benefit, as well.
The swap opens up the opportunities for a battery with additional CCA's, as well as a wider array of batteries with potentially lower cost.
 
Tdbo said:
Another option would be a 35.
When I did the swap on my Accord, the only modification required was bending back the tab that held the 51 in place with a pair of pliers.
I would think that the fact that the 35 is close to 1" shorter would be of some benefit, as well.
The swap opens up the opportunities for a battery with additional CCA's, as well as a wider array of batteries with potentially lower cost.
Click to expand...
Ya 35 is another good upgrade option, but I think 24F offers more opportunities to increase CCA at a low cost. Correct me if I'm wrong.
 
Hall said:
Yeap, this is still an upgrade over a 51R. Most automakers that spec'd 24F have switched to 35 due to space and weight-savings, but still enough CCA, Ah, etc.


What years ? The linked video is for quite a bit older models.
Click to expand...
The video is for a Gen 2 CRV. I'm working on a Gen 2 CRV doing the upgrade to 24F.

I don't know if 24F will fit all newer generations of CRV. If some newer generation(s) has less vertical clearance (between battery and hood), then a 35 battery would be an upgrade option with more vertical clearance than 24F. A 35 is still an electrical upgrade compared to 51R. I don't know how 35 prices compare.

You and @Tdbo are correct that 35 is an upgrade option that has more vertical clearance than 24F.
 
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Carlostrece said:
Ya 35 is another good upgrade option, but I think 24F offers more opportunities to increase CCA at a low cost. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Click to expand...

Yes, a 24 gets 75 more CCA, and 10 more reserve minutes. These numbers were a comparison of the WM Plus battery.
However, the 35 saves buying a new battery tray, and in the case of the Accord, a new battery box.
We are talking about a 4 cylinder engine here. If 525 won't get it started, I doubt 600 will make a sizable difference.
In the 13 years since the modification, I have never had an issue regarding not having enough CCA to start the car, and that is with it sitting outdoors.
 
Hall said:
Yeap, this is still an upgrade over a 51R. Most automakers that spec'd 24F have switched to 35 due to space and weight-savings, but still enough CCA, Ah, etc.

What years ? The linked video is for quite a bit older models.
Click to expand...
I have personally installed a 24F in a 2003 CR-V, a 2003 Element and a 2015 CR-V. The 2015 CR-V also required a ~6" longer negative (-) battery cable for the 24F conversion.

While I installed an Odyssey tray in the 2015 CR-V, I used a universal battery tray in the 2003 CR-V upgrade, similar to the installation shown here:

2003 CR-V Battery Upgrade

Note: Unlike the above linked installation, I reused the original hold down crossbar by simply flattening the depressed tab that kept the 51R from shifting.
 
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Tdbo said:
Yes, a 24 gets 75 more CCA, and 10 more reserve minutes. These numbers were a comparison of the WM Plus battery.
However, the 35 saves buying a new battery tray, and in the case of the Accord, a new battery box.
We are talking about a 4 cylinder engine here. If 525 won't get it started, I doubt 600 will make a sizable difference.
In the 13 years since the modification, I have never had an issue regarding not having enough CCA to start the car, and that is with it sitting outdoors.
Click to expand...
I've been hearing conflicting info regarding whether a person can install a 35 battery in the stock battery tray of a CRV. You say it fits. I've read others in other threads say a 35 does not fit the stock tray so they installed a Honda Odyssey tray.

I don't know if a 35 will fit in a stock tray or not. If I knew it would fit, I'd have bought a 35. However, I'm now comitted to upgrading to 24F because I already bought a 24F battery and Odyssey tray to do the upgrade.

I'm happy with my 24F battery purchase.
 
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Tdbo said:
Yes, a 24 gets 75 more CCA, and 10 more reserve minutes. These numbers were a comparison of the WM Plus battery.
Click to expand...
That's ^ signifigant. I'm glad I bought a 24F.
Tdbo said:
However, the 35 saves buying a new battery tray, and in the case of the Accord, a new battery box.
We are talking about a 4 cylinder engine here. If 525 won't get it started, I doubt 600 will make a sizable difference.
In the 13 years since the modification, I have never had an issue regarding not having enough CCA to start the car, and that is with it sitting outdoors.
Click to expand...
The Honda Odyssey battery tray only cost me $30 one time cost. No big deal. My economy 24F is affordable and powerful. I have no regrets.

P.S. - I have lots of experiences with various cars struggling to start in winter when they have small economy batteries. Those same cars started easy with either a premium small battery or a large economy battery. l've previously upgraded batteries in 3 Jeeps and a Buick. The performance and reliability improvements were signifigant. The bigger batteries also last longer. I don't know why they lasted longer, but they did.

Then there's the cost of purchasing battery (which is a recurring cost).

Sometimes a small premium battery costs more than a big economy battery, even though the big economy battery is more powerful. Look at the cost comparison in post #1 of premium 51R compared to (and outclassed by) much less expensive 24R batteries that are much more powerful.

Maybe it's not just about cold, but also humidity. I live in a cold damp rain forest climate. Cars can be hard to start when it's cold and damp.
 
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Carlostrece said:
I've been hearing conflicting info regarding whether a person can install a 35 battery in the stock battery tray of a CRV. You say it fits. I've read others in other threads say a 35 does not fit the stock tray so they installed a Honda Odyssey tray.

I don't know if a 35 will fit in a stock tray or not. If it would, I'd have just bought a 35. However, I'm now comitted to upgrading to 24F because I already bought a 24F battery and Odyssey tray.

Regardless, I'll be happy with a 24F battery.
Click to expand...

I'm giving my experience based on making the change in the Accord in my signature.
I admit to not being sure that the Accord and the CRV use the same tray.
I know that in the case of the Accord, the tray used fit the 35 perfectly, that would be because the V6 Accord at the time came with a 35 new.
If I would have gone with the 24, I know I would have had to ante up for a new tray, a battery box, and perhaps one or both cables (can't remember for sure.)
At any rate for me, too much jack for minimal return regarding the difference between the 35 and the 24.
If you can get a 24 in a CRV, more power to you. No first hand knowledge, but I have heard conflicting reports on whether it can be done.
 
Carlostrece said:
I've been hearing conflicting info regarding whether a person can install a 35 battery in the stock battery tray of a CRV. You say it fits. I've read others in other threads say a 35 does not fit the stock tray so they installed a Honda Odyssey tray.
Click to expand...
I think we are mixing apples and oranges here. TDBO appears to be saying that he upgraded from a Group 51R to a 35 battery in his 2012 Honda Accord which has a larger/wider tray than the battery tray in a 2003 CR-V.

2012 Accord Battery Tray

1768791634908.webp



2003 CR-V Battery Tray
1768791379885.webp
 
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Tdbo said:
I'm giving my experience based on making the change in the Accord in my signature.
I admit to not being sure that the Accord and the CRV use the same tray.
I know that in the case of the Accord, the tray used fit the 35 perfectly, that would be because the V6 Accord at the time came with a 35 new.
If I would have gone with the 24, I know I would have had to ante up for a new tray, a battery box, and perhaps one or both cables (can't remember for sure.)
At any rate for me, too much jack for minimal return regarding the difference between the 35 and the 24.
If you can get a 24 in a CRV, more power to you. No first hand knowledge, but I have heard conflicting reports on whether it can be done.
Click to expand...
OK. Fair point. 👍 You were talking about upgrading the battery in a Honda Accord.

That said, regarding CRV, I have read conflicting reports about whether a 35 battery will fit an original CRV battery tray, or not. Perhaps it depends on if the CRV battery tray is modified?

I have also read about people installing a Honda Odyssey tray so they can install a 35 battery. I sure that would fit. However, if I go to the trouble of installing an Odyssey tray, then I want a 24F big butt battery if it will fit vertically, which it will in many (most?) generations of CRV. Certainly a 24F will fit in my neighbor's Gen 2.
 
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On my 8th gen Accord (2009, 08-12 was the same care) I always ran 24F batteries. Battery physically fit just fine, had to hammer over the two metal ears on the metal battery hold down that was sized for a 51R. Very common on the Accords.
 
I looked at putting a 24F into our CRV and gave up, too much work to change things. I forget what wasn't going to fit, might have been the battery cable.

The 51 might be expensive but if I have to replace it every 5 years then I'm ok with that--usually I get 7 in our climate on other vehicles with "better" batteries. But your milage may vary. I can see why others would upgrade; I'm of the impression that my CRV could rust out before I'd see return on investment.
 
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