Battery Care - 2006 Honda Accord Hybrid Battery Freezing Risk
Asked by GuruRK394 Feb 12, 2020 at 11:22 AM about the 2006 Honda Accord Hybrid
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
I live close to Winnipeg, MB, and I'm parking my 2006 car for a few months.
Should I be concerned about leaving my car outside, specifically I'm concerned
about the battery freezing with a pro-long period of non-use sitting outside?
1 Answer
Hello GuruRK394, First I am not hybrid expert- however we have owned 2 Honda Hybrids (still have 1) so my answer is based on what I've learned since 2003 when we purchased a Civic Hybrid. Congratulations on keeping your hybrid 14 years - not all hybrid owners have been that fortunate. If you search on 'storing your hybrid' the recommendations that I recall from the past were that it needs to be run for at least a half hour every month (essentially to cycle and recharge the batteries I think..) If I was in your shoes,I would be compulsive about having it run because it was in 2017 when the hybrid battery in that 2003 Civic started to 'fail'. I use fail loosely because we were still getting 45+ mpg but the check engine light went on and I could no longer 'baby it' through the emissions checks (like I did in 2013 and 2015) that they have here. Since I couldn't pass the emissions tests I couldn't register it and had to replace the car. Not to be a pessimist but I suspect your hybrid battery may be nearing the end of its 'useful life.' I don't know your vehicle registration requirements - maybe the check engine light isn't an issue there. However while cycling it one or two times month while you're storing it won't guarantee the battery capacity, not running it probably is a bad idea. I suggest searching the net for hybrid specific forums for current advice and maybe taking a look at your owner's manual.