datmrman

All,

I have not been on these forums for a while, but I wanted to share this story to see if anyone had a similar experience and also provide awareness to this issue.

I recently purchased a 2015 MDX SH-AWD with Tech Pack for my pregnant wife as a birthday present. Unfortunately, she has not had the chance to drive the car as there is a parasitic draw that is draining the battery and preventing the car from starting.


Here is the timeline of events:

• 10/10 Purchased the car that just arrived at the dealership the day before. 10 miles on the odometer on drive off. Car was driven home and left in the garage. Odometer at 50 miles.
• 10/12 After returning from a short weekend trip, my wife wanted to move the car. The power came on, but the car would not start; you can hear it trying but it would just click to a halt. Thinking that we may have left something on while tinkering with the electronics, we called Acura Care to have it jump started. Everything looked fine and we made sure dome lights were off. Odometer still at 50 miles.
• 10/13 Received a courtesy call from Sales Manager just to check up. I mentioned to him about the jump start and we agreed that we would just monitor it. A few minutes later, my wife indicated that the car was dead again. Notified the sales manager and made an appointment for 10/15.
• 10/15 Had Acura Care jump start the vehicle and then dropped it off at the dealership. Service team did a battery check and found that the battery was fine. However, there was a parasitic draw that they need to locate and I was issued a loaner. Later that day, dealer indicated that the have not been able to locate the cause. This is a new issue for them and will take time to investigate. Odometer at 80 miles.
• 10/16 Still investigating. They have contacted District Manager for assistance. They have been using a donor MDX with similar specs to swap parts and attempted to eliminate the excess draw. Acura has suggested they try swapping the fuse box.
• 10/17 I called Acura Client Relations to start documenting the issue. Case manager stated they will call back on 10/21 to follow up. Dealership Service Manager indicated that Acura will be sending an engineer on 10/21 to help troubleshoot the issue. If things go well, the car should fixed by 10/24.

We decided to purchase another Acura as I have had no issues with my third generation TL. I am shocked that this car made it by quality control. I'm now questioning what else could be wrong with this car.

datmrman

10/20 Received a call from the Service Manager indicating that they have located the cause: a module that controls the passenger side mirror. They located the issue on Sat and the part arrived today so the car will be ready for pick up at noon. As compensation, they will include three free maintenances. Details to follow after I pick up the car tomorrow.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

glad they found the draw

RL06tech

Good luck. Finding the so called parasitic losses that kill your battery can be vexing to say the least. Cross your fingers that it is actually fixed. The real test is when the car has been sitting for a couple of days without using it and it starts without problems. Till then I would keep the booster cables handy. Sometimes, even if they find the real "parasite" the battery becomes damaged and needs to be replaced.

NBP04TL4ME

Agreed -

This is a very good point. "Deep cycling" a battery isn't good for automotive battery health. Obviously you now have a heightened awareness of starting issues with your new MDX, but I would keep a close eye on the battery and you may want to suggest having it replaced.

JT4

^^ I was thinking the same thing.. Hopefully the dealer will load test the battery. But since this is a brand new vehicle I would suggest the OP request a new battery.

Comfy

Damn, this is one of those things that destroys the new car buying experience. So they ripped open the whole car to find the defective part??? Now your car may not feel that new anymore. Ask the dealer if they would swap the vehicle for a new one.

NBP04TL4ME

There is no way that is going to happen - especially since they found and theoretically fixed the problem.

RL06tech

Usually that's not necessary. The normal way to figure out whats doing the draw is by pulling fuses till you find the circuit that sucking electricity. Then you have a very good idea or know exactly who's the culprit.

Edward'TLS

^^^^^

Wish that all car technicians/mechanics are as smart as we are, especially that they don't like being told what to do when troubleshooting problems.

das2015

I have the same parasitic battery drain problem with my brand new 2015 Acura MDX. I bought the car on 10/2/2014 with 5 miles out of the door. The battery drain started happening last month. I haven't driven the car for probably around 4 days. On the fifth day, when I tried to start the car, the car wouldn't start. I called Acura roadside assistance and they came and jump started the car. So far good until recently 2 days back, it happened again. Jump started again and then today (4/16/2105), happened again. My wife called the Acura dealer (Palatine Acura, IL) and talked to the service person and the answer she got is - "This is a common problem in Acura. The car is made to drive at least 40 mins everyday (how funny), if not the battery will drain and go dead. You will need to charge the battery everyday". I think they forgot it is Acura and NOT Tesla. How ridiculous? We cant go for vacation, and if we do we have to hire a car-sitter to charge the car everyday. Is this a joke?

juruki

iTrader: (2)

^^ call Acura Client Relations
What that dealer is telling you is unacceptable and a bunch of BS. Good luck

RSLTSX09XMNAVWX

I am thinking that you have a Defective Battery! Many of us have had our MDX sit at an airport, or in the garage while on a 7-10 day vacation. Most likley a Bad Battery.. On my wife's 2009 TSX, we just replaced her battery again, lasted just 3 years. on my 2010 TL, dealer replaced battery after just 24 months. Honda Batteries are not top quality. When you get a MDX with Advanced, it comes with a Larger Capacity battery, the car off residual load is NOT that big of a draw, and if you do the math the car should SIT for 30 days without a issue,

NBP04TL4ME

The dealer is handing you and your wife pure unadulterated crap! At the very least, they should start with replacing your battery under warranty. If that fails to fix your issue, then they need to start doing some real diagnostic work while you have a loaner.

Bluepill

Good link to info on 12 volt systems. It's directed to RV usage, but things like state of charge are good for all 12 v. vehicles.


The 12volt Side of Life (Part 1)




I am currently monitoring my system voltage with a small meter that plugs into the power socket.







Reading with car running. Normal.







Reading with car sitting only one day after 30 minutes of running on road. This is just turning on to the Accessory position. Too low.






I will continue to monitor and report findings.

ECRD

Any updates?

Is it still having draw issues?

AcurAlan1952

I had my 2015 MDX with less than 300 miles when I decided to "mess" with all the setting, etc. In the my garage with all the lights on for over an hour.
I didn't notice the headlights were on... well you know the rest. Had a jump from roadside assist, let it idle for twenty minutes and drove on the highway for a forty minute round trip (big sacrifice!) and it's been fine since.

My Bad!

Edward'TLS

Due to the built-in auto headlight function, the low-beam headlights will turn on automatically whenever the MDX is parked inside a garage, even with the engine shut off.

So you will need to manually turn off the headlight, if you decide to spend time sitting inside the car and playing around with those tons of various system settings.

manera

excuse me!

that's total BS. I have a '96 Accord LX and it doesn't have this problem even if it site for 4-5 days. Grant it the Accord is older. It still doesn't justify why the tech would say it requires "...at least 40 mins.." of driving everyday. c'mon

RSLTSX09XMNAVWX

Had my 2015 Acura MDX TECH-aDVANCED, SH-AWD at a parking garage for 11 days when out of town on Vacation. The car is 11 months old, 12450 miles. 4 times I used my Acura-link to check that the car was still Locked and in good shape. When I got back, got in the car, noticed the interior lights WERE NICE AND BRIGHT.. Pushed the ignition key and started right up!!! The MDX Advanced Package Does Come with a bigger battery then the non Advanced package, so that will help.. I have left my wife's 2009 TSX at the airport for 2 weeks with no battery problems!!

Bluepill

Update:


I took a long trip recently. The charging voltage on the road was only 12.2 volts when cruising. It would jump up to 14.1 volts when slowing down, then drop back to 12.2 when idling at a stop, speeding up again, and cruising. This went on for just about an hour. This means that the battery was staying at about 50% charge during that time. That also means that the battery has effectively lost half of it's reserve capacity and it's life is being shortened by not being properly charged.


My best guess is that this is an extreme implementation of a scheme to squeeze a bit more EPA MPG score.


My 2005 MDX used a scheme that would reduce the voltage to 12.8 volts for a few minutes at cruise, and then jump back to 14.2 volts. That might leave the battery at 95% charge some times, but I don't consider that to be a problem.


I am going to add a line to monitor the alternator control signal and compare that with the charging voltage. That should prove if the computer program is responsible or if there is an internal fault in the alternator.


I will update when I have more info.

RSLTSX09XMNAVWX

The alternator charging is in the range of 13.8 to 14.2 volts. If the battery is fully charged it should read 13.5 volts with the car turned off. The MPG part , well that does not make sense to me. I know that I did a measurement with my FLUKE high Quality volt meter when driving my 2005 Honda Pilot about 5 years ago and the driving voltage was around 13.4 volts, hunting down what turned out to be a bad battery. 12.2 volts just seems LOW for cruising speed. These Lead Acid batteries like to be charged! I have a Cigarette Lighter adapter that will go right into my Fluke Meter, I may have to go try out this to see how mine reacts. I already posted my long vacation trip, over 10 days, came back, battery was fine, car started right up..