Keyfob battery replacement

Hi there. Yesterday was 4th month birthday of my little son.

That is what keeping me busy :-) But slowly I'm returning to the blog.

I noticed that keyfob working distance became shorter. Looks like it's about time to replace a battery.

You will need CR1616 cell. Great deal I found on eBay from this seller (choose from options there) is maxell 5 pcs set from Spain. maxell has great quality from my experience and if I ever order such batteries, I try to look for maxell. Not because it's also Japan maker :-).

So, I order 5pc set. One for me, others for friends of mine with Civics. It cost about 5 EUR with shipping.

Not, lets open this sucker. One screw only.

It will fall apart into 2 pieces. Use flat screwdriver bit to open further.

Again, 2 more pieces.
Notice rubber sealing for electrical part. So our keyfob is safe from water splashes and maybe quick water drop test also will be passed.

Holly shit, it's like matreshka keyfob, never saw like this before :-)

Final 2 pieces :-)
But thumbs up to Honda for water resistant protection.

So, now you can replace battery. Mine was below 3V, new has ~3.3V. I don't know if it has power regulator inside, but now it works fine, 1 month after, 0.3V was helpful for sure.

Rule of thumb is to replace it after 1 year or year and a half when you open a car twice a day or so.

28,703 km | 1Y 7M

Keyfob wearout

Left is the key that I use for almost 3 month and got this noticable wear on Honda logo. Right is second key that never used.

Normal use. Usually in a pocket while going to car and on shelf at home and at work.
Why so bad, Honda? WHY???

Honda well known for motors, so this is trivial things...
I will compare a lot with Skoda Fabia (European vs Japanese) in this blog in such things, usability, materials, etc.

Update (2013-09-29)
And here is almost 3 years old standard VAG car keyfob from my Skoda Fabia. Shines like a new :-)

Update (2013-10-30)
From a friend. 4 month old...

4,200 km | 0Y 3M