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Old 02-02-2017, 03:54 PM   #1
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THOR #3433
Blue Ox Patriot and Honda CR-V

I have the Blue Ox Patriot braking system set up for my 2014 Honda CR-V and on my first trip towing the CR-V the vehicle battery died after about 3.5 hours. The Patriot is plugged into the accessory plug next to the seat heater controls. Everything (headlights, radio, air handling system/fan, seat heaters, and Economy mode) was turned off except the navigation system and I haven't found a way to do that. I have also read that Honda is notorious for putting a small capacity (meaning cheap) battery in these vehicles so I plan to replace/upgrade to a different size. My question is, has anyone else run into this issue with their CR-V and were you able to turn off the navigation system to conserve the battery - if indeed that is the culprit?

Thanks

Ed L
2016 Thor Synergy TT24
3.0L V6 Sprinter

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Old 02-02-2017, 06:36 PM   #2
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Ideally you want to bring 12v from the RV back to the toad to charge the battery while driving... The braking system would only be dependent on the car battery alone in a 'breakaway' situation.
A properly wired 7 pin tow harness has a 12v auxiliary feed (sometimes labeled 'battery charger'.)
My Roadmaster Invisibrake handles charging the battery using that feed.
From their site:
Quote:
Charges your battery while towing — InvisiBrake connects directly to the towed vehicle’s battery and trickle-charges the battery during towing — InvisiBrake will never drain the battery.
Don't know if Patriot does...

The newest Patriot models include an on board battery so they don't drain the car battery.
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Old 02-03-2017, 11:59 AM   #3
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Here is what I use to charge my car battery while using the Blue Ox Patriot:

https://www.amazon.com/Hopkins-39332...ery+maintainer

After 2 years, I haven't had a dead car battery when towing. There are a number of other similar systems out there.
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Old 02-03-2017, 12:16 PM   #4
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THOR #3433
Blue Ox Patriot and Honda CR-V

GMC and Doc P,


Thank you for the replies. I'll look into the Hopkins charging system and may very well get it installed before our next long trip with the Honda. On the Patriot internal battery, the manufacturer's literature doesn't go into specifics about its purpose but I've seen on other forums where it is only used for the emergency break-away feature to engage the vehicle brakes but I need to call Blue Ox to get the full details. I still don't know if there is a way to turn off the navigation system but once the Hopkins system is installed I would think that the navigation system being on won't be an issue.

Again, thank you for the help and hope you enjoy the journey!
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Old 02-03-2017, 12:44 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by KC8RXQ View Post
GMC and Doc P,


Thank you for the replies. I'll look into the Hopkins charging system and may very well get it installed before our next long trip with the Honda. On the Patriot internal battery, the manufacturer's literature doesn't go into specifics about its purpose but I've seen on other forums where it is only used for the emergency break-away feature to engage the vehicle brakes but I need to call Blue Ox to get the full details. I still don't know if there is a way to turn off the navigation system but once the Hopkins system is installed I would think that the navigation system being on won't be an issue.

Again, thank you for the help and hope you enjoy the journey!
In order to tow my 2015 Ford Explorer the key has to be in the "accessory" position, and the Sync/dash display is always on (I do try to turn off every other accessory). That's why I installed the Hopkins charging device to make sure that my car's battery is constantly being charged while traveling.

When I first bought the Blue Ox Patriot, I was concerned after reading from the owner's manual the following:

FLASHING “4” WITH INTERMITTENT BEEP - UNIT IN CAR BATTERY LOW

What does this mean? The car battery low error comes on when the car voltage drops below 10V (unfiltered reading) or the unit battery is low. This means that the brake has detected that the towed car’s battery is verylow.It may not be completely dead yet; however, it is probably close. The brake will go into an idle state and not work for normal braking. It will work in the event of a breakaway!

It is highly recommend, but not mandatory, that you pull over and charge the towed vehicles car battery or charge the unit’s battery. Make sure to go through the set-up procedure again prior to resuming driving.


Based on this, I figured that I never wanted to be in that situation, so that's why I went with the Hopkins charging system.

Also, on Blue Ox's web site, I found the following information about the Patriot's internal battery:

Built in battery ensures power is always available to the brake.

I'm not sure whether this means that the Patriot battery uses this power first, and then the car battery, or vice versa.
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Old 02-03-2017, 02:01 PM   #6
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I tow a Jeep Wrangler and use a RVi2 Brake, haven't had any battery issues.

However, my Dad recently went with the Blue Ox Patriot to use with a GMC Terrain (I believe). First trip and subsequent leg after battery replacement he drained the battery, again. It was user error. After pulling the required breaker, what he thought was the ACC key position was actually the ON position, thus drained his battery. Once he realized he was not in ACC, all is good.
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Old 02-03-2017, 07:54 PM   #7
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Invisibrake Charging

One note on the invisibrake charging, if wired IAW the installation manual there is no connection to the RV 12V output, the only place it states how it charges is in the operators manual, the RV running lights must be on to charge the battery. I saw that same note before buying the system and was scratching my head after installation on how it works since the wiring diagram had no connection to the 7pin 12V feed that I expected.
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Old 02-03-2017, 08:35 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by cbscbs View Post
One note on the invisibrake charging, if wired IAW the installation manual there is no connection to the RV 12V output, the only place it states how it charges is in the operators manual, the RV running lights must be on to charge the battery. I saw that same note before buying the system and was scratching my head after installation on how it works since the wiring diagram had no connection to the 7pin 12V feed that I expected.
In that case - the Invisibrake is connected to the taillights wire - and is only on (and charging the battery) when taillights are active - which is why you need running lights on...
My installer recommended connecting to the 12V aux/charger line instead - so the brakes are active (and charging) whenever connected regardless of running lights...
(Invisibrake has to work for various configurations - a flat four connector would have to connect the brake to taillights wire.)
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Old 02-07-2017, 07:39 PM   #9
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I have a 2014 CRV. I had problems towing and the battery going dead. My Honda dealer know the cure. Pull the fuse #19. That is for the GPS and satellite radio. They draw power even not turned on when the key is switched so the steering wheel i allowed to move. I tow with my front wheels up and the trailer has its own brakes. I used a small fuse puller since the fuse is so small. And better buy an extra cause that fuse can get lost in a heart beat. I use an old empty pill bottle to store my extra fuse and puller. and I wrote down which fuse I remove so its not brain surgery to pull and install later. That cured my battery problem. I hope you start up your car every few hours of toading it. So you can through all the gears so the lube is allowed to flow in the transmission. Another hint from my Honda tech.
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Old 02-07-2017, 07:44 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DocP View Post
Here is what I use to charge my car battery while using the Blue Ox Patriot:

https://www.amazon.com/Hopkins-39332...ery+maintainer

After 2 years, I haven't had a dead car battery when towing. There are a number of other similar systems out there.
I use the exact same thing and works great on my Jeep.
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Old 02-07-2017, 11:03 PM   #11
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The easy way to solve the problem is to remove fuse # 29 (check the manual to be sure). It's a devil to get to. On driver side inner wall. I tow my 2014 CRV more than 1000 miles with no problem. Used to go dead. That fuse shuts off the display but doesn't lose your radio settings. I have heard that there is an install kit to turn the fuse on and off on the dashboard. But, if you don't mind getting on your knees with a flashlight, it can be done.
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Old 02-10-2017, 12:17 PM   #12
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Thanks everyone for the comments and suggestions. At least I have solutions to the problem. Now I have to find time, and have the right weather to do what needs to be done. I do know that I need to upgrade the CR-V battery and after that will come the "other" stuff!
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