I am waiting for AAA to jump my RDX. Hopefully in this 25-degree weather that the problem is the battery, but I have my doubts (I know nothing about cars!). I have not used the car in about 3 weeks, and it has been very cold. While it was a bit difficult to start this morning, it did turn over. I ran a few errands, stopping and staring the car a number of times. No problems. I returned home and turned off the car to unload the packages. 15 minutes later, I went to move the car and it would not start. When I push the starter button everything on the dashboard flickers and I then need to push the start button twice to get the flickering to stop. I had the flashers on, but after about an hour, they stopped. I need to manually open the tailgate and I can't get the key Fob to lock the doors.

AAA is backed up, but they are scheduled to me in 3-hours the latest. Assuming that is the battery and one reason that it might be is because I think that the battery is original (it may have been replaced in 2018), I need to buy a replacement. Tomorrow, I will be going with a friend to Costco and will purchase a battery, and I read things like group size, CCA, and CA. What is the right battery to buy?

Thank you!

 

I recently replaced mine in my 2018 RDX. I bought a Duralast at Auto Zone, and they installed it for free. I don't know whether sizes have changed since 2016. Mine was a form 24F, 750 CCA's, three year warranty. Duralast batteries are made by Johnson Controls, as I understand it.

Getting them to change it for me made the deal. I tried to get the battery out myself, but it was not easy to get out of the battery box and too much for this old man. I gladly left it to a younger fellow to do the pulling and lifting.

FYI, Autozone.com has a battery "configurator.", like a lot of those sites. Just plug in your car's information.

Good luck. As cold as it has been over the past few days, I am glad I had a good battery.

 

Oops. I see that Johnson Controls sold its battery business to Clarios in 2019. There are only a handful of manufacturers--the retailers put their badge on them.

 

Thanks for the information.

AAA jumped the car. One of the cables was loose and until the AAA person tightened it, he was not able to jump the car. I guess this leaves open the possibility that the battery is good, but since it is at least 4-years old and maybe 6-years, I will have it replaced. I was able to confirm that the group size is 24F.

 

FWIW, Autozone will replace your battery at no additional charge.

 

The same one that came from the factory. Mine is going strong in my 2017.

Then to know if your alternator is charging, order one of these and stick it in the lighter socket. You should see 14 to 14.4V. They are under $20 on Amazon.

 

One of these (above) told me that I had a problem before any symptom showed; although it didn't help me because I was on the road and it was after hours (I was not in a position to simply stop and check it out), it did alert me that there was a problem. In my case it was the alternator, which apparently got 'oiled' due to a faulty part that sits in a position to leak oil down into and onto the alternator. Replacing that valve and the alternator itself, plus the night-time towing, cost me $1400. Anyway, for simply knowing the state of the charging system, this is a cheap and effective tool.


RFT!!!
Dave Kelsen
--
If attacked by a mob of clowns, go for the juggler.

 

Oil probably made it onto the slip rings.

Two of my newer vehicles (2016 motorcycle and 2015 car) came with a voltmeter which I think ALL vehicles should come with. Of course you also need owners that can make sense of the voltage readings which is not rocket science.

Then 2 of my other 5 vehicles, I made my own voltmeter using a Datel display and a compact potting box. They draw less than 2 mA and as a result, I wired them directly to the battery for an always-on true reading of my battery voltage.

 

And not only that, I just picked up my RDX after it was in storage for exactly 3 months. I did not disconnect the battery and it was not on a battery maintainer either since there were no outlets where it was stored.

This battery is the factory installed original and 6 years old, going into its 7th year. It started the RDX as if I had run it yesterday, in other words, no change from the day I picked it up new at the dealer back in 2017. I was surprised and expected it to turn the engine over slowly or not at all. I believe it is a sealed conventional battery and not an AGM.