stathis

In the last service at the local dealer, they said my battery positive cable has corrosion and needs to be replaced ($350). Cable goes all the way to the starter. So far I don't have starting issues.
That sounds a bit unusual.
Has anyone had battery cable corrosion issues?
That's a 2007 base RDX with 80K, garaged in subterranean parking, in LA.

Vividsi

no but what id do is get some battery terminal cleaning spray and hose it down, then get that brush tool and clean up the terminal contacts and get some honda dielectric grease and lube it up to repel future corrosion. probably cost you around $8.

dcmodels

Does the cable look like it is corroded? it can be difficult to tell, as only the very end of the cable is exposed, the rest is covered with a plastic cover, everywhere except the ends and connections.

I dump 1/2 a 99 cent box of baking soda into a 2-gallon wash bucket, and then pour that over everywhere that has corrosion. It foams as it neutralizes the sulfuric acid. Then hose it off with the water hose. Dry with paper towels, and use di-electric grease on the cable connection at the battery post.

But before you do that, can you at least lift the RED positive cable connector cover at the battery, and try to see if there is any corrosion going down into the cable wire inside the plastic covering? Unless the inside of the wire has been damaged, but only the connector at the battery, there should be no need for replacement. But I cannot see what you see, unless you post a picture.

And what causes the problem, is acid fumes rising from around the battery posts, as they are not perfectly sealed. From the factory, there is chassis grease around the bottom of the posts. Or you can use those RED and GREEN felt circular pads around the posts and under the battery cables. Available at Sears or most any auto parts store.

stathis

Thanks folks. It appears there is some white powder residue around the post, and some oxide of sorts. There seem to be some trace of acid(?) perhaps from the battery covers(?) --see photo.
I will do some baking soda clean up, dry, and then apply the grease to seal.

737 Jock

+1 to dcmodels comments.

The battery is leaking acid vapor from around the battery posts. Sulfation inside the battery is forcing the plates apart and breaking the o-ring seal around the posts. It will only get worse.

The felt rings will catch some of the vapor but the battery will continue to leak and corrode your wire harness.

Clean up the wire terminals as dcmodels says and get a new battery.

dcmodels

Unless the battery is low on power, I do not think it needs replacement, based on your comments. Just a good cleaning. Any top-post battery leaks acid-vapors, the reason why the factory uses grease on the posts.

Forgot to mention - while the factory does use what appears to be chassis grease, I prefer to use dielectric grease. It is less likely to cause conductivity problems if improperly applied. Where most people go wrong is applying the grease before the cables are properly connected *firmly* to the battery. Since you probably do not plan to remove the battery cables, that should not be a problem.

But if you do remove the cables, and then clean the posts, be certain to reconnect the cables, and THEN apply any grease. My RDX was delivered with grease applied over the entire surface of both the battery posts and the cable ends, as well as around the bottoms of the battery posts where they meet/ exit the top of the battery.

I also 'jam' and force some dielectric grease into the area where the plastic cable covering begins, so that acid vapor cannot work its way into the cable wires and between the wire and the plastic coverings.

Hope that is more-or-less clear.

stathis

Battery is good, gave 496 cold crank amps (out of 550). So I will clean up the oxides and the acid. And apply the grease.
I guess as I clean it with the baking soda paste I want to make sure there is no water on the battery surface or it would tend to drain some power, correct?

dcmodels

OK, I am not certain that I understand that comment (in underline). Its baking soda in a bucket of water that I use, and just dump it over the battery and all around the area. I want to neutralize any battery acid anywhere on the battery, and any that has found its way anywhere around the battery: the box, base, wiring, etc.

I clean my battery until it looks like new - perfectly clean. Helps with spotting any case cracks or leaks. Any stubborn spots, such as heavy white deposits on the cable or cable-ends, I use an old toothbrush until clean and spotless, and repeat with fresh 'cleaner'.

If the battery caps are tight, no problem. After all, you drive your car in the rain, and I can assure you that your battery and cables get not damp but soaking wet. Do note that baking soda will also neutralize the acid inside your battery, if it gets in there.

Anyway, after cleaning with the baking soda, I dump (carefully and slowly)another two or three 2-gallon buckets of water to rinse away the baking soda. Just don't go crazy. Neither the soda or plain water should be 'forced' into any of the electrical harness connectors in the area of the battery.

That is the reason I don't just use the water hose, which is how I used to do my older cars. New cars have many more connectors, and are much more sensitive to getting water into the wrong places, such as the engine air intake, etc. I also no longer use a heavy hose spray to clean the engine, but a trickle(flow) or light spray, taking care around electrical connectors, or even covering the electrical connectors and alternator with plastic wrap before a heavy cleaning job.

After rinsing, THEN you dry the battery with paper towels, but I have been known to ignore this step.

Its not water on the battery surface that causes trickle-drains, but the dirt and grease mixed with the water, that causes the problems, by providing a low-level electrical path between the two battery cable posts. WHich is why once or twice a year, I clean, wash, and (generally) dry the battery. However, the heavy coating of grease on the posts will also provide a good insulation against this.

At the risk of droning on far too long (oops, too late), I usually do not use grease on the battery posts themselves, since it is so 'messy'. I only do that when I am too lazy to remove the cables to use the RED and GREEN felt pads, as with a new car.

When I replace a battery, I clean the cable ends, the posts, and install the felt pads. I put a coating of grease UNDER the pads, against the battery top. Then every thing above is nice and clean and dry, and I have left batteries like that for 3-4 years without any corrosion at all, until the next battery replacement.

As a side note, this is why GM invented the side terminal battery. Supposedly there is less acid-vapor and corrosion of the battery terminals and cables. Does seem to work better on my Chevy truck.

For more info on battery maintence, check my thread in the DIY & FAQ RDX section.

stathis

Great, thanks for the detail. I cleaned it up with baking soda+brush, and removed all the oxides. I removed as much of the plastic cover around the cable, and cleaned up there. The cable looks good further inside. Then dried everything up. And finally applied the dielectric grease over both poles, exposed cables, etc. It looks pretty clean now.
(I was initially worried that the soda solution might be too conductive--it's not).