How to Open Charge port

L

lotsa questions

New Member
Hello, I have a question.
My car has no power. I'm trying to open the charge port to charge it. But since it has no power I can't open the charge port door, since it is opened by an electronic button.

Is there another way to open it? A manual way?
I tried to pry on the door but it felt like it was going to damage it so I stopped.

I am able to open the hood. Should I now try to charge the 12v battery with jumper cables and see if that gives some of the controls power?

Thanks!
 
"In the driver’s footwell, next to the fuse box, is a manual handle that when pulled opens the charging port door. [ I assume] It’s meant to be a backup for situations like this (or if the electric actuator dies)." - from another topic.

Yes, you can put a charger on your 12v battery (unless it is shorted and completely dead) - and car will be happy and opens to you )
 
Alex800st said:
"In the driver’s footwell, next to the fuse box, is a manual handle that when pulled opens the charging port door. [ I assume] It’s meant to be a backup for situations like this (or if the electric actuator dies)." - from another topic.

Yes, you can put a charger on your 12v battery (unless it is shorted and completely dead) - and car will be happy and opens to you )
Click to expand...
Thanks! That indeed worked!

However I plugged the charger in and there was no response. Do you think the battery is fried? Or the charger doesn't work (it showed a green light but not the red charge light).
 
Hello, and yes, you need your 12V battery charged to "activate" the electric powertrain. If I'm not mistaken the 12V battery energizes a series of relays, that connects the traction battery.
 
Thank you @Daniel M W @Landshark @Alex800st . I connected jumper cables to the 12v from my neighbor's car and that worked.
Turns out the HV battery was not depleted after all (still had 20 miles of range). It was the 12v.

I wonder if the 12v depletes if you let the car sit for too long without charging. That's what I did because I had gotten a new car and didn't drive the Honda awhile (a couple weeks) and one day it went blank. I think the 12v recharges when you're charging the HV battery? That's what google said. So its not like a typical gas 12v battery which would last longer at idle I would think.
 
The 12V gets charged whenever you are operating the vehicle via the DC/DC converter. It also gets charged whenever the HV battery is charging. It never cranks the engine even though a Group 51 battery is capable of doing so. This would lead one to believe that the battery in the Clarity might possibly outlast the same battery in a conventional car. There is little evidence to support that belief.

Yes, the Clarity will drain the battery if left to sit for a period of time. I left it for 6 weeks without incident. Another time for 6 months, drained the battery. At 3rd spell of about 5 weeks killed it for good at about the 4 year mark.

A few owners have reported a battery failure at the 2-3 year mark, others have had the original battery for nearly 7 years. There may have been some “defective” batteries installed. That said, the Clarity tends to drain the battery a more rapid pace that any other car I’ve ever owned. A battery tender is a worthy investment.
 
Is it possible that a charge schedule is set up in the car? If so, charging will not begin when plugged in—not until the scheduled time. This is easy to override by holding the charge button on the fob to force charging to start.
 
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