2018 Honda Odyssey: battery drain or dead battery

Filed Apr 1, 2026 · Electrical · IL

Power Tailgate Failure/Dead Battery from Body Leak. currently power tailgate is not functioning.

Filed Feb 15, 2026 · Electrical · CA

Defective body seam on roof panel over drivers side rear wheel - resulting water leak on control panel for power liftgate caused the rear tailgate to continually open and close while driving. The vehicle was parked and the fuses controlling the tailgate were removed to enable the closure of the hatch and allow vehicle operation. Prior to this, the vehicle battery died while parked due to the continuous tailgate operation and required a battery jump. The vehicle was taken to D&J Auto (an independent service center) where a previous liftgate control panel was replaced for failure to open the tailgate. A search of the internet on 2018 Honda Odyessey liftgate problems revealed multiple instances of water leaks on the liftgate control panels due to body seam issues which caused liftgate failures. This information was relayed to the auto repair shop where the leak was discovered. The vehicle was taken to a body repair shop across the street where the seam was fixed, returned to the auto repair shop where a third tailgate control panel installed.

Filed Mar 16, 2025 · Electrical · PA

The power tailgate opened by itself while I was driving on high way at around 60mph. Later it stopped working/won't open and the car battery died as well. Went to Honda dealership for a Diagnosis and found a water leakage on the roof of the back, causing the tailgate control module to be burned out by water damage.

Filed Jan 14, 2025 · Body, Electrical · NY

The seam seals on the rear driver's quarter panel of the vehicle are faulty and allowed water to flow into the cabin of the vehicle. The resulting damage was loss of function to the rear power lift gate, front seats, remote start and other key fob functions, as well as a dead battery(assumedly due to arcing on wet circuitry). The damage rendered the lift gate inoperable as I it initially closed but came open during operation. We continued to receive a power lift gae problem on the "Heads Up Display" but the power gate would not open or close, electrically or manually. After a few days the gate opened but would not close, rendering the vehicle unsafe to operate. Furthermore, the battery was dead and would not start. Had this incicdent not occurred in our driveway we could have been susceptible to being stranded in sub-freezing temperatures with kids. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and they confirmed a roof leak was a cause of the water incursion. The power lift gate module and floor harness were damaged causing failures to lift gate operation and other electronics. It will cost $7000 to have it repaired at the local Honda dealer. Pending completion of repairs and paperwork for submission.

Filed Jan 8, 2025 · Acceleration, Driver assistance · GA

The Honda sense front facing camera has went out on my 2018 Honda Odyssey. The camera is currently still installed in my van and if it is necessary to replace to keep it from draining the battery I will request that the faulty part be provided to me. This camera being faulty causes the loss of cruise control, adaptive cruise control, auto high beams, lane keep assist and emergency breaking. This issue is also causing a drain on the battery, which impacts other items due to low voltage. My van is currently at the dealership and I am being told that I will have to purchase a new camera which will be around $1500. The following lights are on; BREAKS, ACC and LKAS. These items first appeared within a few weeks of having the rear camera recall completed. Based on my research this is a common problem and just like the rear camera recall, Honda should have to replace this camera as well. The date provided is the date it was officially diagnosed by Honda, the lights appeared in 10/2024 and all of the functions were lost around that time.

Filed Apr 11, 2024 · Driver assistance, Electrical · MN

It is available for inspection on request. Lost blindspot info, lost use of turn indicators, rear door hatch malfunction, several warnings flash up while driving. I was in a busy area and didn't have a way to signal my movements, screen flashing warnings was terrifying, the van felt like it might turn off at any moment. Before the most recent incident, we had brought the van to Honda dealer for repair, for similar issues that occured at start-up, they found water in the power control unit in rear left area of van that caused corrosion and short-circuit. No body damage or alterations to vehicle. Replaced unit and after rainy weather problems recurred at start up and power down, then while driving, they tested the battery and it was almost dead (the battery was only 1 month old) replaced battery. Problems recurred and water found again. significant leak suspected but not found yet as the service department won't evaluate the seals, and told us it's a body-shop task. summary: intermittent left-side passenger door and rear hatch door malfunction, blind spot system warnings/loss, loss of turn indication, brake system warnings, other system warnings, difficulty starting the car and turning the car off, brand new battery drained while the car was parked and turned off. This manufacturing defect should be addressed by Honda, seals should not fail when exposed to regular conditions. Water should not enter the vehicle and short out an important component leading to several malfunctions that could cause loss of important systems and rear-door latch while driving.

Filed Dec 11, 2023 · Electrical, Engine · TX

For the last 3 months the car will turn on by itself and drain the battery. Went to several mechanics that could not find a reason for this issue. This weekend, while I was driving on the road, the car stopped while driving on the highway. This happened 4 times risking my life, wife, and my children. The problem has been reproduced and confirmed by other owners of this car on various forums. I have not had the vehicle inspected by the manufacturer as they are trying to charged me thousands of dollars to review the issue. There were no warning lamps or signals on the car.

Filed May 11, 2023 · Electrical · CA

Vehicle has roughly 32,000 miles. KEY SAFETY ISSUES [with vehicle parked, engine off and doors closed] (1) vehicle randomly and without warning locks driver out (cannot open car with key fob by pressing unlock button, cannot open car manually by entering key into door). Had to call AAA on 4 different occasions to pry open door with specialty tools. After that, had to leave window fully open in order to ensure we would not get locked out. (2) when vehicle locks driver out it also sets off the alarm, turns the car on to idle, and turns on the radio (even if its off) thus draining the battery until its dead. Why this is a major safety issue? -- Scenarios I though of (1) child/toddler getting accidently locked into car with no way to open and AAA not readily available (2) getting locked out of your car in a remote location with no cell service (mountains, desert, etc) When this issue happened the dash screen would show an error of "Auto Engine Idle Stop System Problem". I took the van to Honda and they diagnosed the problem to be a faulty keyless access control unit. Fees to replace were +/- $1,100. Honda decline to provide any cost reduction or assistance stating that warranty for the part had expired.

Filed Oct 9, 2021 · Electrical · KY

1. The battery died after sitting still for 2.5 hours on the inserstate. (A tractor trailer had jackknifed stalling traffic). The van had been turned off after 20 mins. When traffic started moving again, the van would not start. The battery was too drained to even be jumped. People offered to help push it to the emergency lane but there was no way to get it into neutral to move it, because it has gear shifter buttons which were also disabled. 2. It was 10 pm and on a pitch black interstate in the pouring rain. It sat in the moving lane of traffic, which had picked back up to normal interstate speed, for about 25 mins until cops got there to park behind it with their lights on waiting for a tow truck. Before the cops got there, cars, tractor trailers, etc. were coming up on it rather suddenly b/c they couldn’t see it in the lane of traffic, they were dodging it left and right at full speeds. 3. The vehicle was towed that night and then the following day to our local honda dealer where they couldn’t determine why the battery had been drained, and confirmed it was too dead to have even been jumped. We never got an answer as to why it died. My husband had me tell him about the evening and basically re-enacted it. We believe it was the fact that even after the van was turned off after 20 mins of sitting there, that the driver door had not been opened once and that it dying had something to do with the anti theft system. We reported these findings to our local service dept. 4. There were no warnings that it had died because it had been turned off for over 2 hours, the driver door had never been opened. This happened in September, 2018. It was a very scary event and I didn’t want to keep the vehicle knowing there is no way to get it into neutral when it’s that dead. (The service dept confirmed that and when I asked a salesman about it, he was puzzled, also confirmed that he does not know of a way to get it into neutral once dead.)

Filed Jun 25, 2019 · Electrical · 14,400 miles · CA

Car was powered off on level ground, no lights, radio, nothing was turned on in car. No sensors displayed in dashboard, no sounds from car. Hatch was left opened for 2 days for an event. When event over, car would not turn on. Took to dealership who said car battery died. They said it was probably bad battery since nothing was on battery should not drain. I suspect it's a fuse issue with the hatch door draining the battery not a bad battery.