GregToni wrote:
WE just had our 2011 Honda CR-V set up for towing. After towing about 300 miles, we stopped to do the transmission procedure again (as recommended) and found out the battery was dead. While the radio was off, we have the Navigational package and perhaps that drained the battery. Any way, I think I read somewhere about pulling a fuse, but can't remember where I read it. Can I just disconnect the Negative terminal from the battery? I am concerned that a code might be sent to the computer during the transmission procedure and might be lost by disconnecting the battery, causing damage to the transmission. Any help or comments appreciated...Thanks in advance.
GregToni,
Where you "I think I read", saw this is in the Owners manual for your CRV. On line, it's on page 334, "Towing behind a Motor home".
And it has all the procedures for towing. It does tell you to turn the key to the "Accessory" position. And that position is to UNLOCK the steering wheel. But, what they don't tell you is, that leaving the key in that particular position, DOES ENERGIZE certain electrical components. And, by having even minor ones energized, that DOES put a draw or, "Load" on the battery. They are more of a draw than people think.
They go on to say, on page 335, that if you're going to tow for extended periods of time, that you are to go to the fuse block and pull #34 fuse. It's for the "Radio/Accessory" operation.
Now, here's what we did for our 2011 Honda CRV EX-L. I was not about to hang upside down, stand on tongue and hold my breath, all while trying to get into position, to pull that particular fuse, each and every time, we wanted to tow it, while on trips. Then, you had to do it all over again, to PUT IT BACK. WHAT A PAIN IN THE A$$.
So, I simply set up a "Charge line" from the coach to the CRVs battery. It was very simple to set up. In most RV 7 pin trailer plugs, not all the wires are used in the pig tail. I used the one in the plug specifically for this application. It's a 12V lead/pin, in that seven pin plug. The pig tail should also have those seven wires. If not, the get one that does.
At the other end, the CRVs plug, that's mounted on the front of the car, I continued that line, all the way up to the positive post on the CRV battery. There I installed a 10 amp, inline fuse. From that point, the battery in the CRV was constantly kept topped off, while being towed. WE NEVER had any dead batteries. And, I didn't have to go through that ridiculous fuse pulling and reinstalling operation each and every time we towed or disconnected.
If you do it this way, you'll be very thankful you did. It's all done automatically, just by hooking up your regular pig tail, between the coach and the CRV. Good luck. Any questions? PM me and I'd be glad to help.
Scott
