hey guys,
i have my 8th gen accord ex since march.. i'm looking to add on that homelink.. but before i do it.. does anyone know if it works for apartment gates? i have my clicker for the gate and would like for it to program that to the homelink addon piece.. anyone have experience with that? please reply

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i thought that adding on a homelink should be an easy mod, but i did a little research and it seems like we dont actually have a lot of options in terms of just adding on a homelink. its not that easy...

When you program the home link, you will train the home link with the remote. Then you will program the home link to the Garage door opener. Yo uwill phycally tell the opener that you are adding a remote. Do you have access to the gate unit to program the home link?

i'm not certain on the ease of installing one, but they are available. here is a link to one site that sells them (http://www.collegehillshonda.com/honda_accord_2dr_accessories/08_09_accord_interior.htm).

as for use, it appears to be the same as the stock one in my accord, which i can say that after a couple of easy programming steps, works well with my garage door.

definitely do some searching for prices and availability if you haven't already.

The College Hills Honda unit is very easy to install. When I installed my auto-dim mirror, the overhead console was easy to take apart. Taking the light lenses off is a little unnerving but they're sturdy. Pay attention to the instructions.

For more info on home link, check out their site:

http://www.homelink.com/home/home.taf

If the gate remote, light control, etc . . . is Homelink compatible, the Honda unit should work.

The College Hills Honda unit is very easy to install.

can i purchase this homelink unit EXCLUSIVELY through college hills? it seems like they did some kind of modification to allow it to be used with a 12v battery. im not sure why they did that. why dont they just connect it to a 12v source in the cabin?

also, other than the plastic strip that houses the 3 buttons in the overhead console are there any other parts that need to be installed?

can i purchase this homelink unit EXCLUSIVELY through college hills? it seems like they did some kind of modification to allow it to be used with a 12v battery. im not sure why they did that. why dont they just connect it to a 12v source in the cabin?

also, other than the plastic strip that houses the 3 buttons in the overhead console are there any other parts that need to be installed?
From what I read they did it to not have to splice into the electrical and keep everything under warranty.

From what I read they did it to not have to splice into the electrical and keep everything under warranty.

i wonder if anyone has spliced it directly into a 12v wire. it seems like it would be kind of annoying to have to change the 12v battery everytime it died. then youd have to reprogram all of the buttons too!

anyone try this?

it can be done, but keep in mind that some are power on all the time, and some are power only when ignition is on, or key is turned to on/acc. the only other thing i can think of is that some apartment systems don't allow homelink to be programmed because then you can gain access to the apartment complex even if you leave the complex. some apartment systems use a diff code type and can't be programmed into any homelink system because of that. ask your apartment person who handles remotes/keys and see about how their system works.

I have an ivory College Hills Honda homelink mod available for sale. It was used from February 2008 to December on my 2008 Accord EX-L Navi. It's available for $75 to the first person to PM me. ($179 from College Hills Honda today) It's going on eBay in a couple of weeks. I'll even provide a new 12V battery. Worked great for me. Don't know if it fits the 2009, but I expect it does.

I also have a trunk tray, fog light kit (for auto headlights), interior illumination lights and ivory all weather mat set for sale. The fog lights and interior lights are new in box. The trunk tray and mats are slightly used.

hey guys,
i have my 8th gen accord ex since march.. i'm looking to add on that homelink.. but before i do it.. does anyone know if it works for apartment gates? i have my clicker for the gate and would like for it to program that to the homelink addon piece.. anyone have experience with that? please reply

Your gate .. is it activated by a remote or by a key fob that you wave in front of a sensor? If it's remote, it should work .. just program it the same way you would a garage remote.

If it's an RFID device, it's not going to work.

FWIW, I use mine to open a remote gate at neighborhood and it works fine. Should be no problem for you.

Also, I don not believe that the batteries will need changed too often, it uses very little power...............

Also, I don not believe that the batteries will need changed too often, it uses very little power...............

+1. Just think about it: When was the last time you had to change the batteries in your garage door opener? I've had mine for 5 going on 6 years without having to. If I only have to change a battery once every 6 years, I don't think I'll be too bothered.

my gate is activated by a remote. so ill give it a try and order one and hope it works.
thanks guys

+1. Just think about it: When was the last time you had to change the batteries in your garage door opener? I've had mine for 5 going on 6 years without having to. If I only have to change a battery once every 6 years, I don't think I'll be too bothered.

I bought and installed the battery operated Homelink from College Hills Honda in November 2008 right after Thanksgiving. In 6 months the battery was dead and I was locked out of my house because I did not have the garage door little key with me.

Keep in mind that the Homelink was designed to work from the car battery power supply so it is not the same as a regular gate opener. It consumes a lot of power.

BTW, when I took down the light console to install the Honda Homelink upgrade I noticed an unused ready to use electric "socket". I wonder if I could just use that as a power source. I hope it will make the Homelink night backlights operational because now with the battery I have to look for the buttons in the dark.

anyone try hardwiring it yet?

whats the lowest price you guys got it for? and from what dealer or site?

BTW, when I took down the light console to install the Honda Homelink upgrade I noticed an unused ready to use electric "socket". I wonder if I could just use that as a power source. I hope it will make the Homelink night backlights operational because now with the battery I have to look for the buttons in the dark.

I will check this out when I get mine. I assume you didn't run a test light on the socket in question to see if it has power?

hmmm... sounds interesting..

please try it out and let us know. id love to install the homelink in my car. i keep reaching up to the roof whenever i get close to my house.

i wonder if anyone has spliced it directly into a 12v wire. it seems like it would be kind of annoying to have to change the 12v battery everytime it died. then youd have to reprogram all of the buttons too!

anyone try this?

I wrote the College Hills Honda about this. They confirmed they took the battery approach to protect the electrical warranty on the car, but said it was possible to splice it into the electrical in the console. They would not provide the assistance to do this.

I just ordered the part from them, and i am undecided whether to hard wire it or use the battery.

I wrote the College Hills Honda about this. They confirmed they took the battery approach to protect the electrical warranty on the car, but said it was possible to splice it into the electrical in the console. They would not provide the assistance to do this.

I just ordered the part from them, and i am undecided whether to hard wire it or use the battery.

cool! keep us posted!!!

Can some V6 EXL w. Navi owner confirm that the Homelink buttons light up with the rest of the console buttons at night?

If so, hardwiring has another advantage over battery operated Homelink...

the homelink that comes standard on our cars is different from the unit being purchased from CHH, therefore the unit from CHH might not even light up at all.

the homelink that comes standard on our cars is different from the unit being purchased from CHH, therefore the unit from CHH might not even light up at all.

wait... i thought the CHH homelink unit was an oem unit that had been "hacked"

i know that the EX-L wiring is different from the EX wiring. thats why we dont have the wiring for the homelink. however, i was under the impression that CHH took an OEM homelink module and just added a 12v source.

and btw... apparently you can hook it up to any 12v source and it should be fine.

http://www.driveaccord.net/forums/showthread.php?t=13569

Nevermind, I guess I didn't read the whole thing correctly. It does say it's a hacked unit, so in that case, it might or might not light up. Most of the units I use don't have the buttons light up, but the small LED inside the house does light when you press one of the buttons. You just kind of get used to the position of the buttons and know which is which after a while.

The Homelink buttons do light up on the EX-L whenever parking or headlights are on; same as dash controls lighting.

BTW, when I took down the light console to install the Honda Homelink upgrade I noticed an unused ready to use electric "socket". I wonder if I could just use that as a power source. I hope it will make the Homelink night backlights operational because now with the battery I have to look for the buttons in the dark.[/QUOTE]

That socket is for the self dimming mirror...which I just installed a couple of weeks ago.

BTW, when I took down the light console to install the Honda Homelink upgrade I noticed an unused ready to use electric "socket". I wonder if I could just use that as a power source. I hope it will make the Homelink night backlights operational because now with the battery I have to look for the buttons in the dark.

That socket is for the self dimming mirror...which I just installed a couple of weeks ago. [/QUOTE]

I installed mine which I got from a forum member. Thanks alot, Keith.

There isn't an extra plug on my EX-L I4. If you want the buttons to light up you'll have to take the unit apart and tie into the plug. CHH only provides power for the unit, not illumination. I didn't mess with hardwiring mine but the illumination would be nice. Now I have to feel for the button. I'm tempted to program all three buttons to my garage door so I don't have to Helen Keller it with so much accuracy.

You could run a 12v power to the illumination which means it will always be illuminated but that would be okay.

does anyone happen to have a picture of what kind of "hacking" was done to the circuit board? i am trying to buy one of the homelink units but not from CHH so i need to know where to solder in the red and black wire.

i think CHH just soldered 2 wires to the circuit board. it cant be that hard to figure that out. and we could potentially save about 40+ dollars on this little DIY mod instead of buying it through CHH.

The homelink itself from South Bay Honda, which I've found to be the cheapest, come to $123. The part from CHH already soldered and re-pieced back together comes to $150. It's a $27 difference, but without the hassle of finding which part to solder a plug to, and taking it apart as well.

The homelink itself from South Bay Honda, which I've found to be the cheapest, come to $123. The part from CHH already soldered and re-pieced back together comes to $150. It's a $27 difference, but without the hassle of finding which part to solder a plug to, and taking it apart as well.

i think my friend who works for honda can get them for about 100. so if i can figure out how to do it myself i can save about 50 bucks. thats worth it in my opinion. plus i kind of enjoy little DIY projects.

this wouldnt be a very big project because its just soldering. i just need to know where to attach the wires on the circuit board...

i think my friend who works for honda can get them for about 100. so if i can figure out how to do it myself i can save about 50 bucks. thats worth it in my opinion. plus i kind of enjoy little DIY projects.

this wouldnt be a very big project because its just soldering. i just need to know where to attach the wires on the circuit board...


+1

CHH is charging $179 for homelink for EX-L V4 Navi. Someone posted it is less than $100 if we get OEM part from dealer. We just need to know where to solder the two wires.

btw does some one knows if the EX-L V4 Navi has power socket for it.

Thanks

According to the Honda Parts site, the homelink units for the Navi vehicles is different from the one for Non-Navi vehicles. Can anyone confirm if there's actually a difference? or is it all the same? (The Navi one on the Honda Catalog was ~$150 before shipping whereas the Non-Navi was $107 before shipping)

According to the Honda Parts site, the homelink units for the Navi vehicles is different from the one for Non-Navi vehicles. Can anyone confirm if there's actually a difference? or is it all the same? (The Navi one on the Honda Catalog was ~$150 before shipping whereas the Non-Navi was $107 before shipping)

The only difference I can think of is the microphone module for navi voice recognition that sits in the same housing as the Homelink buttons. BUT, there must be a mic for non navi models as part of the active noise canceling technology that I believe that ALL Accords (or at least all EX and above) have...

That would probably be the difference. The mic for the ANC would swap right over. There would be no point for a non-navi to have the navi mic, or spend the extra $50 for it lol. Only the V6 has the homelink standard is what I'm seeing. Therefore if you have navi on your EX-L I4, you'd need the one with the mic to transfer that over too.

Yes. You remove your original ANC module and mount it on the new homelink.

ok i bought the homelink module from my dealership and im gonna try to take it apart and copy the college hills "hacked" module. hopefully i can save a few bucks by doing this on my own since the college hills honda one is pretty pricey.

fongaroos, how much did you end up paying for the piece?

i havnt paid for the order yet. i am going to pick it up tomorrow morning and ill let you know how much they charge.

According to the Honda Parts site, the homelink units for the Navi vehicles is different from the one for Non-Navi vehicles. Can anyone confirm if there's actually a difference? or is it all the same? (The Navi one on the Honda Catalog was ~$150 before shipping whereas the Non-Navi was $107 before shipping)

Can you post the link to Honda Catalog?

What about ANC mic? so both mic ANC as well Nav. mic will go into homelink module?

Sorry I'm confused..

Thanks for your help!

i havnt paid for the order yet. i am going to pick it up tomorrow morning and ill let you know how much they charge.

Did you get it for EX-L Navi?

if not, Can you check with dealer how much it is for EX-L I4 Navi?

Thanks

i wonder if anyone has spliced it directly into a 12v wire. it seems like it would be kind of annoying to have to change the 12v battery everytime it died. then youd have to reprogram all of the buttons too!

anyone try this?
I connected this into one of the 12 volt wires in the overhead console. I used a wire on the green plug that had 3 wires coming from it. If you hold this collector down so the locking tap is on bottom, the center black wire is ground, and the wire on the right side is 12volts always on. I used these two wires. I purchased electrical connectors at Radio Shack that did not require actual cutting of the wires. They just snapped over the wire. You did have to cut away some of the black protective tubing the set of three wires runs through. The connectors came with male collectors. I attached the red/ black wire from the Homelink module to these male connectors which allowed them to be snapped into the connector that was placed around the wire (you will need to cut off the battery holder -- cut the wires close to the holder). This eliminated the battery. Works great and is removable by just unplugging the connector. As for the car warrenty, I suppose a dealer could claim it was altered if something went wrong in the console, but it would be difficult to blame any problem on this minor modification. Looks like if you bought a Accord V6 EX-L which comes with this module, there would have been another electrical connector in the overhead console that would plug into the Homelink. The modification College Hills made simply connects a battery to the power supply terminals on the circuit board side. If you plan to tap into the car power as I have described, I suggest that before you actually start, put the battery in the holder and try to program your garage door. Make sure that works. This way, if there is a problem with the actual module, you can return it to College Hills no questions asked. Once you cut off the battery holder, you may have problems returning it.

Finally, one thing I found not noted in the College Hills installation video. The microphone module, which needs to be removed from the old holder and installed in the new one did not fit. I needed to use a wire cutter and trim the plastic tabs to get it to fit. I have a 2009 Accord, maybe there was a slight modification in size between the 2008/ 2009. I do not know. All the more reason to try to program the unit with with the battery before you do any installation, or evey remove your overhead console. This way, you will know it works, then go ahead and do the installation.

College Hills modified the Homelink module to solder in a black and red wire to the electrical terminals on the underside of the circuit board to provide power that normally would have come from the snap in terminal plug plug. I suppose you could buy the Homelink module at any Honda parts supplier (college hills, hondapartscheap.com, bernardi.com) for a little less money and make the connections yourself. Of course, if you want the battery power, you would need to buy a 12 v. battery holder, or you could wire it into a 12v power source in the overhead console.

I have the 2009 Accord with Nav. I notice that the Homelink I got from College Hills did not have slits in the outer trim piece as the original one did. It only had a very tiny hole drilled. After I installed the College Hills Homelink unit, my voice recognition was significantly degraded almost to the point of making it worthless. I removed the unit, and using a dremmel, made similar slits to the original trim piece. The voice recognition was restored to as it was before. I am not wondering if College Hills didn't send me the wrong trim.