Limelight

Not sure if you heard about this recent story making news, but an owner in Canada of a 2017 Hyundai Ioniq hybrid was told his battery, just out of warranty, would cost $50,000 to replace so he ended up scrapping the car.

Extreme situation no doubt, and Hyundai not Acura, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say owning the RLX SH out of warranty worries me a little… here is a link to the article:

https://globalnews.ca/news/10103753/electric-car-shock-50000-battery/amp/

mrgold35

I "kinda" looked into my RLX/MDX sport hybrid battery replacement because I am planning to keep them to 120,000-150,000 miles each. From what I looked at back in 2020 put the price around +/- $5000+labor for the battery pack replacement at the Acura dealership (might be some $$$ back for trade-in value with old battery pack). There wasn't a lot refurbished packs or local shops for battery back repair/replacement with most leaning towards Toyota hybrid brands only back then. Plus, I think; but, don't really know the Sport Hybrid system will still operate at at lower EV battery state because of the I.C.E. engine will compensate and run more. I "think" I will still get my 321hp in my MDX or 377hp for my RLX with a degraded battery pack; but, little to no EV mode available for max mpgs. Our sport hybrids "should" have a similar performance and handling with a degraded battery pack because of the electrical generator inside the 7DCT powering the 3 electric motors. Our mpgs will take a huge dump with a degraded battery pack in the range to what we see in below freezing winter temps with every electrical heater system on with little to no EV mode.


Acura RLX hybrid battery pack 2013-2017, $1500 manufactured cells or $2100 or for new cells:
https://www.greentecauto.com/hybrid-...d-battery-pack

hondamore

I recall reading a while ago that Acura had an exchange program in place whereby you could trade your old battery pack for a pack with new lithium cells for a cost of around $1500. I'll do a little digging to see if I can find the source of that info.

hondamore

If you look in the Sticky Threads under 2014 RLX Technical Service Bulletins, about the fifth TSB listed is for the IMA Battery Exchange Program. It doesn't list a dollar figure, but does suggest 3.3 hours of labour for the replacement. I'm pretty sure that when this topic was discussed a while back that the cost of the "refurbished" battery packs was around $1500. Of course, the program depends on having a supply of returned units to refurbish and the extreme rarity of the Sport Hybrid may make the entire program moot until a stockpile of returned batteries can be acquired. My recollection is that new battery packs would cost $3000-4000 IF you DIDN'T return your existing old battery back to Acura to refurbish.

This is all based on the fading memory of an old man, so take it all with a grain of salt, but I am confident in saying that replacing the battery in our Sport Hybrids won't be anywhere near $50,000. How long it would take to get a replacement battery for such a rare car is anyones guess, however.

Limelight

So the universe punished me for mentioning the words RLX and battery in the same sentence. Today I went to drive my car after it sitting in the garage for a few days and it made a ticking sound, all the lights on the dash went on and then it went dead.

I hooked it up to my trickle charger and it says the battery is dead. My car is pulled forward in the garage and I can’t back it out to be boosted. Ugh.

There are several cables connected to the battery so I was wondering if anyone has instructions on how to remove the battery in the SH? I’m going to need to figure out how to remove it and go buy a new one…

Limelight

False alarm - I was able to get the battery out. Will head over to the dealer tomorrow and get a replacement. I bought the battery from the dealer in September 2020 so it only lasted 3 years…

neuronbob

You have to remember, there is an eight year or 100k mile warranty on the hybrid battery, and Acura has a battery replacement program. No big hybrid battery issues reported so far. My son has a 2011 CR-Z and the hybrid battery in that car is still in good nick after 167k miles. While it’s good to be prepared for a hybrid battery replacement, the likelihood it will require replacement in ordinary ideas with good maintenance, is low.