My Honda dealer asking $120 for Battery change - Need Help

Guys:

I need help, my dealer charging $120 for battery change, could
somebody suggest me where can I get it done for less, also if I buy
inCostco, Is it hard to fix?. Thanks in advance and appreciated.

Santa

 

Go to Autozone and get one for half the price. Installing is easy, if you know
how to use a wrench.




....................
I do not killfile nor use do-not-call lists.

 

I usually get my batteries at Sears. Their batteries are good and
reasonably priced. You can just buy the battery or have them replace it
for you.

Replacing it yourself is an easy task, 5 - 10 minutes for someone who
has done it before.

 

I need help, my dealer charging $120 for battery change, could

Since you're asking this question, I'm guessing that you never worked
yourself of any car and that you have very little mechanical skills.
Changing a battery takes 5 minutes. You unscrew and disconnect to cables.
Then undo the battery holder bracket and swap the battery. Put everything
back in place being careful in putting the + and - terminals as they were
initially to reconnect the cables properly. Clean up the terminals and
cables and reconnect. Then bolt everything back in place. It is a good idea
to put some grease on the connectors to reduce oxidation.
If you're not sure, just any garage will do it. Just stick major battery
brands and make sure they use the correct power (especially if it gets cold
where you live). They will probably install it for free or almost.

 

When my 3-year old battery gave out, I had a friend at work give
me a jumpstart and I drove straight to WalMart to buy a replacement.
The only problem I had is that I discovered the nuts that held the
battery on were metric so I had to go back into WalMart to buy a
cheapo metric socket set.

Do it yourself, it's easy.

Andrew

 

It is not as simple as these posts make you think. TAKE THE NEGATIVE LEAD
OFF FIRST. I saw one idiot take the positive lead first. As the wrench hit
the frame... After medical costs and all WAS IT WORTH IT. Make sure you
understand what you are doing first.....

 

Walmart batteries seem to be okay. I would stay away from Kragen. After
years of buying their batteries with long pro-rated warranties, and getting
discounted replacements every couple of years, I realized that I was just
renting batteries, and never really bought one. It dawned on me when I was
replacing the Kragen battery in my truck and realized that the OEM battery
in my newer car had already outlasted a couple of Kragen batteries.

A quality battery is a better thing.

 

its not just the HONDA people.. friend was at work and his burglary
alarm on his car did not work...opened the hood and gave him a jump to
start up the car and first after putting the cables on his alarm then
started to work... told him it thought it was the battery... he jumped
into the car and ran over to the Chrysler dealer and the next day told
me that they put a new battery in and adjusted(???????) his air
conditioner... that did not make much sense, they charged him $320.. and
he was happy that it was not more.... Kinda high for a $50 battery...
go to auto zone and buy one for $49.00 the same size battery with the
same amp. hour rating of about 420 CCA(cold cranking amps...).........

 

What dealership you going to? Honda batteries are $70 @ the dealer. I
usually by Interstate for about the same $$$. Both will outlast anything
from Wally world, K-world, and many various auto part stores. You get what
you pay for. Compare CCA

 

The Nov. 2003 Consumer Reports has ratings for batteries, but almost
anything is acceptable if you plan to replace it every 3 years,
especially if you connect an external charge to it every week or so
(keeps battery fully charged, removes sulfate coating, and final
charge rate will indicate battery condition).

www.popularmechanics.com has several articles about car care and
repair. Changing a battery isn't difficult, but be sure to remove the
negative terminal first, and when installing the new battery, install
the negative terminal last. Clean the posts and terminals (clean
terminals with baking soda and water to neutralize acid) and coat them
with waterproof grease before reattaching (coat even the contact
surfaces of the terminals; grease will not interfere with electrical
conduction). High temperature disk brake wheel bearing grease is good
for this because it doesn't run (look for alumina based grease, but
lithium based grease is also acceptable), while Vaseline will run and
possibly get into the battery. Charge the battery for several hours
to maximize life, preferrably with an automatic charger.

 

Guess I'll add my own battery story.. My battery had gone dead at work,
after getting a jump, I headed straight to Auto Zone. I got a new
battery, plopped it in.. Tightened the terminals, and they were LOOSE..
As in the terminals were as tight as possible, and wouldn't stay on the
posts.

Turns out the positive battery terminal was so corroded and worn that it
wasn't thick enough to wrap around the post tight enough.. Definitely a
problem. I managed to "rig" a solution though.. I got my grandfather (a
plumber) to take a piece of copper pipe (about the size of the terminal)
and split it open (so the pipe would open up to the size of the post)..
Got the "shim" and tapped it onto the post.. terminal fit perfectly.. and
stayed on until I got the battery cables replaced later on in the year.

--
-Chris

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