Multiple error messages in my 5th-gen Honda City due to low battery

The technician asked a few questions on whether I'm able to lock/unlock the car, working of the power windows etc. All the accessories were indeed working all the time.

BHPian Isjey recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello all,

Had an interesting time with my car this morning. Posting here so that if this weird situation happens to you all, you're prepared.

I'd parked my car in my daughter's college and was waiting for her to come. While waiting, had turned on the car in to accessories mode. Was happily listening to podcasts on Android Auto and fan was on.

After about 45 mins, the following happened.

As you can see, suddenly the EPS, the ABS warning and Vehicle Stability Control warnings came up. I was stumped. I told myself not to panic and that if I'm able to drive, I can take the car to a service centre. So I try to start my car.

When I tried to start, this happened.

The car was not cranking up, and auto headlight warning started coming up.

Now I was panic-stricken. My car is just about a year old and had run only 9K odd KMs.

I called RSA. The first communication from the number was an automatic message that due to Covid they are operating under reduced capacity and hence I may have to wait. But despite this message, I got quickly connected to a support person. I explained the problem. The lady confirmed all the details and said that she will arrange for a call back from technical team. Unfortunately for me, when the callback came, I could not pick up the call as I was on another important call. LPT(Life Pro Tip) people, never do this.

Because of this, my next call happened after multiple follow-ups and 45 mins later.

When the technical person's call came in finally, it was a good 50 mins to an hour later. The technician asked a few questions on whether I'm able to lock/unlock the car, working of the power windows etc. All the accessories were indeed working all the time. Then the technician asked me to start the vehicle. And lo-and-behold the vehicle started and there were no error messages.

The technician explained to me that when the Honda ECU senses that the battery is getting dangerously low, it prevents cranking etc so that the battery is not drained below a threshold. He advised me to keep the vehicle moving/running for another 30 mins and everything should be fine. I heaved a sigh of relief and drove off.

In all this, I'm not convinced of the behaviour of the Honda City for the following reasons:

If battery is to be protected, why allow me to play music, switch on fans, and connect Android Auto? All accessories were working. Only that I could not crank the engine to life.

If indeed the ECU sensed that the battery was getting low, why display messages like EPS, ABS, VSC and auto headlights are not working etc. Why not a straight forward battery low message?

And Honda RSA experience was not very satisfactory. The front line support people do not transfer the call to technical team. They cut the call and a technical team calls you later to do troubleshooting.

I'm still thinking if I need to take the car to ASC for a check. What do you guys think?

Regards,

lsjey.

Here's what BHPian indivic had to say on the matter:

I got myself into same situation by running a car vacuum cleaner on battery for about 30 min just before a long trip. My entire family was in the car and all luggage packed and car wouldn't crank - I got the same warnings on the display.

I realized that I could have drained the battery , called the nearby battery shop guy and asked him to jump start the car. He came immediately , car started at first crank , cost me Rs.150 and we were on the way in about 15 min. I didnt bother with the RSA at all.

Since then using only an AC powered vacuum cleaner for the car.

Here's what BHPian Blackwing had to say on the matter:

My experience was a bit different. When I drained my battery waiting for my brother and listening to music, I just kept the start button pressed till the car cranked and then drove straight to the dealership.

They asked me never to do it again as it strains the battery and will lead to an early replacement.

Here's what BHPian arjab had to say on the matter:

This is precisely the reason why some cars have a preset time limit after which the accessories switch off to conserve battery charge. You will see this in Tata vehicles. If you go into accessories mode to listen to music etc, without the engine runing to charge the battery, the display will flash the message "entering one hour mode" . After an hour the music system will automatically switch off.

Surprised that Honda doesn't have an equivalent?

Here's what BHPian Jeroen had to say on the matter:

Just about all modern cars are very susceptible to low voltage. When the voltage at the electronics dips below a certain threshold all sorts of peculiar things start to happen.

There can be different reasons for the low voltage though and it needs to be investigated properly. Obviously, a battery on its last legs or a battery not being charged can cause a too low voltage.

But also poor electrical connection can cause a voltage dip. A poor connection causes a resistance and thus a voltage drop. So as a mere minimum check the battery connectors too. Are they properly fastened, take them off and ensure they are free of corrosion.

Poor connections can also happen at fuses, connectors and ground. So if the battery is ok, you need to check a lot of stuff! My Jaguar is well known for throwing a wobble when the electronic supply voltage drops. Display lights up like a Christmas tree. There are about 40 different ground straps on it! I clean them every 3-4 years. The most relevant ones tend to be the groundstraps near the ECu, PCM and BCM and the main groundstraps on the engine itself.

Jeroen

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