Honda Odyssey Transmission Problems

jw_r · May 2009

Your transmission is dead. It is in its last stages. Hopefully you are not over the warranty time deadline.

Good luck!

JW_R

fuhonda2 · May 2009

I bought this van two years ago with 60000K. Two boys in college now, thinking i buy a HONDA van, really cant afford major car repairs for the next few years and the TRANSMISSION NEEDS REPLACED!!! I was told it was replaced in 2004 because of a recall on the second gear.They replace it with another bad one hoping to get it past its warranty,and it worked. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE BUSINESS! It was very generous of them to offer a 50/50 cost to me.They should stand behind their product and not charge me for their mistakes.THEY JUST LOST ANOTHER CUSTOMER!

jw_r · May 2009

50/50???? Why? Your car is still under 109K for the original tranny. Plus the new trannys have +36K + 3 years more per tranny.

Don't let them give you the runaround. They should pay the whole thing.

JW_R

rfreitas · May 2009

The 109k extended warranty was only for 99-2001. But JW is right the new transmission replaced 2 years ago should have a 3yr/36k warranty. I was told all replacement transmissions come with that warranty when I did mine.

Be prepared if you open a case with honda they will say, "We handle this on a case by case basis. You can't believe everything you read on the internet." You can read more horror stories here:
http://www.odysseytransmission.com/ProblemCases/Page1
Some of these people mention the 3yr/36 warranty on the new tranny.

barbie02 · May 2009

so if everyone has so many problems why is there not a class action law suit I have been looking all over the web my Odyssey is now needing a third transmition at 100594 miles I think that is crazy but Honda say's no what can we all do? :sick: or :lemon:

vanmom6 · May 2009

I finally got them to agree to pay half. And then they found engine mount problems. So after 13 days of no car, tons of hassle, and finally migraines on my part.... I drove off with rebuilt trans., and fixed engine mount for around 2k. I did get a 36month/36k warranty which is very important to me since I've read about so many having to be replaced a second and third time!

REALLY DISAPPOINTED IN HONDA! I paid top dollar for a reliable car and a company that had "great " customer service. I feel jipped!

advicewanted · May 2009

Have had the Odessey 2002 since it was new. It has 107K miles. Kept up to date with all the services/ maintenance at the Honda dealer/service. Recently just had a 105K mile service. Then about a week ago started expriencing "transmission" problems. Was told that I have a transmission failure and need a new one and it is going to cost $4K!
This is ridiculous. Didn't expect this with my Honda
Has anyone out there had any luck having Honda Corp pick up the cost of this especially as it doesn't fall under the 1999 to 2001 warranty? Thanks

rfreitas · May 2009

Welcome to the "No Longer Buying Honda's Club".

I had a 2002 and they paid 25%. They said I was only getting 25% because I was the 2nd owner and I did not have my service records.

You should get more than 25% if you have all your service receipts showing you had the transmission fluid changed, and since you are a 1 owner. Call Honda and open a case.

Good luck.

autowrite · May 2009

Changed my transmission in October 2007, at 180,000 kilometers (109,000 miles). Warrantly was for 20,000 kilometers (12,000 miles). It's currrently at 229,000 kilometers (139,500 miles). Prior to replacement the service called for ATF change at 54,000 kms. I decided after this transmission change to change the ATF at 24,000 kms. It cost $4200 to replace but I got back 50% of the invoice. I still believe it's a fantastic vehicle. I went from Ontario, Canada to Texas twice and once to Colorado with no headaches. I put 10,000 kms on it to Texas in 2009. I think the drivers side seat is losing it's comfort. The Japanize Odyssey which si called a Dylson over there is similar but better looking than the 2005-2009. The 1998-2004 I think as the better design. Look at the following Jaoanese motels.
http://www.batfa.com/

advicewanted · May 2009

Thanks! My service manager/ dealer "advocated" for me with Honda and Honda said they would pick up 50%. Now my dealer is now saying that to put in a new transmission is ~$4,600 (not $4K) which means I pick up $~2,300 ( and oh BTW you need to have your timing belt replaced).....
Reading these blogs and threads have been so helpful. Not sure if I am in the market to buying Honda again, though....We have always bought Honda and our other car is also a Honda

autowrite · May 2009

In Japan the American style is called an Elysion. I had the name wrong. Japan still produces the earlier Odyssey design.
see
http://www.batfa.com/

vanmom6 · May 2009

our transmission was $3200 and after HUGE headache Honda AMerican paid 1/2. Why is your transmission so expensive? I'm in Atlanta. Is the price set by individual dealerships.
We did get hit having to replace engine mounts at the same time. And it is now making a loud bumping sound. Sounds like the engine is falling out, Might have to take it back to get checked. But hate the thought of going back there after this whole ordeal.
Finally got my van back!

autowrite · May 2009

I do not know who you are responding to?! Any ways mine cost $4200 for the total replacement including breaking and replacing the transmission supports. I ended up paying $4250 & was reimbused 50%. I am in Canada. You are in the USA. A new Odyssey or Sienna is approximately $10,000 more in Canada than the USA. Daylight runnning lights are manitary in Canada for all vehcicles since 1991. Some items in Canada where they are optinal in the USA, like heated mirros for winter driving. There are no plax tires in Canada on the Odyssey. All NA (North American)Odysseys are currenly built in Lincoln, Alabama. My 2002 ws built in Ontario, Canada, when all were built here. They moved production in late 2003. The MDX and Ridgeline is built in Ontario. Amercam Honda looks only after the American market. Honda Canada looks after the Canadian market. Odomoters are in kilometers with the small numbefs in miles. When I had the van in for servicing a dorr gasket in Colorado in 2003 they couldn't get over the fact that I had daylight running lights. It's weird, the daylight running light module comes from the USA factory so it can be an option in the USA and standard in Canada. Why it's called an Elyison in Japan and Odyssey in NA is anyboby's guess. The Odyssey in Japan, which is still manufactured there, is smaller and different and even has a wheelchair edition so that a driver can command the wheelchair be taken out of the rear hatch and moved to just outside the driver's seat.

d1yer · May 2009

dragonlady3 (post1039), and others that might not have a bad transmission.
I had problems with my 2000 Odyssey, thought is was the trans. The van did not have any power to the wheels and it finally threw a mil code, p0420, I think. I replaced the cat with an aftermarket converter and it threw the code again about 1 year later, I had it replaced with another aftermarket cat but this one is considered a heavy duty O.E.M converter, and it happened again a few months later. I have a friend in the auto repair business and he did some digging, it turns out that the Oxygen sensor that screws into cat needs an adapter (like a spacer) to get the tip of the O2 sensor out of the direct flow of the exhaust.

I know that this is a transmisson thread but I hope it may help someone that thinks the have a transmission problem but do not have a p0420 code yet.

I think the Transmission is truly going out now though.

cindy0345 · May 2009

Thank you, d1yer! I, too, have thought that many of these folks did not actually have a tranny problem. I have forwarded your post to my Honda mechanic - I'll keep you posted.

jipster · May 2009

I feel jipped!

I know how you feel. :sick:

dphonda3 · May 2009

Hi Everyone, thank you for your helpful information!!

I am looking at a 2000 Odyssey that is in really great shape. However, from maintenance records it has:
1. Honda replaced transmission at 87K
2. Timing belt replaced
3. O2 sensor replaced with aftermarket and Check Engine light is on.

The van now has 131K on it. So the new transmission has 44K miles of use. How long will the replaced transmission last? Do they go out again? Seems like a design flaw is still there even after replacing it. Do I need to be concerned about the O2 sensor as potentially an issue with the catalytic converter? I don't want to have to shell out 3-4K in 2 years.

kominsky · May 2009

My wife's 2000 EX had trannies replaced at 65K miles, 95K miles, and when we got rid of the van with ~145K miles, it was starting to shift roughly.

In your case, I obviously cannot say if/when it will need another tranny, but I personally wouldn't get involved.

The O2 sensor shouldn't be that big of a deal, but the check engine light is often a sign of bad tranny things to come.

Good luck!

g3guy · May 2009

My '02 Ody is on its third transmission. Total miles 121,000. The flaw is in the design and has not been fixed; all they do is rebuild the old ones. You probably have one of mine, or one of someone else on this forum.. I love this van, but will never trust the tranny. If the check engine light is on, have it checked at an auto supply store or Honda dealer. If it says anything about the transmission, walk away from the deal, no matter what the price is or the otherwise condition of the van. Aw, hell, walk away anyway; you can't trust it and you won't get much help from Honda. Best wishes...G3 Guy

km1234 · May 2009

I have a 2000 EX Odyssey. At 89K miles, I had the tranny replaced. It was covered under the extended warranty...no out of pocket. Then, about a month ago...at about 131K, another tranny! It only had 42K miles on it. I dealt with American Honda and ended up paying about $700 for it. With a week or so of the new tranny, I'm having issues again. Of course it's never "misbahaving" when I bring it to the dealer. But next month they are going to give me a loner and hold onto the van for a week or so and see if it happens. The car "bucks" when I accelerate from a dead stop. You would think that the car was about to die on you.
I also had the catalytic converter replaced...I think last summer. They did something else at the same time...I believe it was that O2 senser you may be talking about.
I always loved my van...but lately...NOT! Starting to look at replacing it now. It's simply not reliable. A friend also had the same situation..2001 LX...new tranny at 90K miles and again at about 130K miles.

km1234 · May 2009

Might be a little late on this response. But if you had the tranny replaced at NO COST to you...then there is no warranty. If you paid even $5, then you have the warranty.

wrightsville · May 2009

HELP! I bought a new 2004 Honda Odyssey Mini Van in 2004. It has about 75,000 miles on it now. Recently when the vehicle changes gears the transmission shutters. Upon acceleration the shutter stops. If you have had this problem please tell me how you got it fixed. Also, how can I locate the warranty on my transmission. I've been all through my paperwork and cannot locate it. I do recall a 3yr/36,000 mile warranty, but I can't find it written anywhere. Finally, does anyone know if the warranty was extended on the 2004 Honda Odyssey transmissions? If yes, please direct me to something official that tells me this.
THANKS FOR YOUR HELP!!!!!!

autowrite · June 2009

I have not heard of any attorney collecting names on a Honda lawsuit in CANADA

zoltaro · June 2009

Hello all,
I've read that the Odyssey transmission problems were on 99-03 models ( I owned an '01 that needed the transmission replaced). As I don't have the '01 anymore, I am thinking about getting an '04. I've read through a few pages of this thread, but with a busy toddler I don't have time to read it all. Can anyone tell me if an '04 would be a good bet? Thanks in advance.

00bng · June 2009

My parents bought this van new and I bought it from my dad last year. It has 131,000 miles and a few months ago I noticed the transmission was leaking fluid and it was shifting rough. It especially does when I slow down to make a turn but without a complete stop it's as if the trans hasn't shifted all the way down yet and so I get a jolt when trying to accelerate again. I took it to a trans shop and paid $700.00 to have all the gaskets and seals replaced. It doesn't leak anymore but after only a couple of days, it is doing the funky shifting stuff again. My dad gave me the extended warranty that Honda had sent him for the trans but it is now past that. I got on this forum today and am freaked out about what to do. Any suggestions?

autowrite · June 2009

I have a 2002 & the transmission went at 180,000 kilometers (Canadian odometer) which was in Oct 2007; so it should last awhile as it was replaced in 2007, not earlier. To answer you question. It seems that from 2005 to 2008 there were not 'replacing transmiison' issues like previous. I have read that there are selinoid problems with the transmisisons in 2009. Now, if you look at 'Consumers Reports' issues showing how many repairs reportly by customers, are done for each area of the vehciles (red or black dots) the 2004 has the best showing for any Odyssey 1998-2009. I currently have 231,000 kilometers on my 2002 and I will not trade it until it becomes too expensive to keep. I like the 1998-2004 styling more than the later ones. It's a shame the styling of the 1998-2004 was not just changed slightly in front. I am a senior and I cannot just buy theses expenive vehicles on just a 'wish' as some readers have done, including changing them every 2 years or having 2-3 of them in a household. In Canada Odysseys are about 8,000 to 10,000 more that in the USA.

jchan2 · June 2009

I've noticed that the failure rates on the 2004s have been significantly lower than the rate on 2002s and 2003s, so you should be ok.

When you do go shopping for an '04, though, have someone take an extra peek at the transmission, though, just in case, and check the maintenance records to see if someone before you already replaced the transmission.

zoltaro · June 2009

Thank you both for your advice. Good idea about checking the service records and having the transmission looked at.
I did see the good marks the 2004 got in Consumer Reports--so hopefully that will continue to be the case.

avionics · June 2009

If I know about this problem of this van I never bought one but I already have one and after run from 154k miles to 160990k miles the transmission fail and the problem was the torque converter case i went to the dealer because i bought a extended warranty apart of honda and gues what: they said that the torque converter case its not a part of the transmission and is not covered thats bad. Im dissapointed about the Manufacturer Honda and of the law that don´t do nothing to help to resolve the problem because the problrem stills on that models and they have to correct that equal that they did with the 109k of the models 2001 below.
By the way dont trust again in honda.

Bye.

asitmehta · June 2009

Hello I have a 2001 odyssey with 98,000 miles, I bought it new in August 2001 and now I'm finally having issues with the transmission. It still runs, but it shifts improperly and I know soon I will have some major issues. I didn't buy any extended warranty and now I've owned the car for 96 months, will I be covered under the new 109,000 miles or 93 months warranty?

bigdadi118 · June 2009

You passed the 93 months but you can ask for GOOD WILL repair (secret warranty) from the regional Honda rep., since Honda knows the crappy pre-matured failure tranny in Ody at that period

asitmehta · June 2009

will the good will repair replace the transmission and cover all costs? I haven't been to the dealer yet because the car still runs, but I want it replaced because I hate having it shift erratically.

bigdadi118 · June 2009

Good will repair is totally up to the Honda Regional Manager approval. He/She may request all your service records to see if the car was taken care properly and the first step is bring van to the dealer to have diagnoisis what actually went wrong. If it really needs the tranny repair or replacement then talk nicely to the service manager and explain the infamous class action and request the manager to call Honda if they can do something. Meanwhile you google search Odyssey Transmission Problem and class action against Honda for more info. One way or the other you prepare some cash for this thing as you are more than 93 months. The chance of 0% out of your pocket is pretty slim.

asitmehta · June 2009

thanks for the information, I'm pretty sure the dealer won't be able to do much because the car still runs alright. I did some research and the warranty is 93 months OR 109,000 miles. If I have to spend a little bit I don't mind, I'll speak with my service manager soon. thanks again

rikfre · June 2009

If anyone knows of any information regarding a class action law suit against Honda for this particular year and model, Please contact me. I would like to join it. Honda is a fraud. I will never buy their products again. They are a rotten organization. :lemon:

autowrite · June 2009

There is information regarding class action suit(s) mentioned many places in the Odyssey Transmssion forums. You just need to search for it. It you are in Canada I know of no class action suits taking place (readers correct me if I'm wrong). See also the web site ODYCLUB.COM

leephd · June 2009

At 92 k, the trans began to leak. I take immaculate care of the vehicle, change trans fluid regularly at dealer and I'm an easy driver, so I was
concerned. Dealer (Norm Reeves) had me bring it in 3 times before admitting trans was failing. Then I made many calls to American Honda to open a case. Today, finally, after much back and forth, Honda offered to pay 40% for an exchange trans. I am supposed to be grateful. Had I known back in 2000, I would have bought a Sienna. I realize nothing lasts forever, but Honda has a well known trans defect in this year Odyssey. Not once did I hear an apology from Honda for all the trouble and cost of a failed part due to their design flaw. Will never buy another Honda.

franks13 · June 2009

I have a 2001 Odyssey with 70,00 miles and I am the original owner. Transmission started shifting erratically in lower gears and a Honda dealer told me I need a new transmission. Is anyone aware of any remedies given that this is apparently a known issue? I know of a 2006 class action law suit (Chris Collins, Ernest galang, et al v. American Honda Motor Co., Inc. brought in CA, Case # RG 03099677), but I am not sure if it applies here. I live in IL.

Thanks for the advice!

autowrite · June 2009

Back in 2002 when I was shopping for a replacement for my 1992 Ford Taurus and decided the next vehicle would be a minii-van the Sienna had engine problems and was smaller than the GM minis (Montana, Venture & Eclipse), the Odyssey, Dodge Caravan. It was not until 2004 that the Sienna grew in size. My research showed, at the time of 2002, that the 2002 Odyssey was the vehicle to buy. The recall to add the oiler to 2nd grear or replace the transmission depending upon the inside colour of the transmission, was not annoiced until May 2004. My transmission on my 2002 was replaced in Oct 2007 when I had 180,000 kms. It currently has 232,000 kms. The recall for the oiler included 650,000 vehicles (MDX, Doyssey & Pilot). The Sienna is a good van but currently the Odyssey has less problems with their transmission. Also check out ODYCLUB.com

bigdadi118 · June 2009

There was class action and Honda settlement for 99-01 Odyssey. Google search "Honda Odyssey Transmission Class Action or settlement"

v_s · June 2009

My 2002 Honda Odyssey transmission failed after 74,000 miles. The minivan had transmission oil change/ service after 30K and 60K miles. The minivan had single owner with about 10K miles a year. Last week the started feeling jerks while driving, After a little while the TCS (Traction Control System) light came on and would not go off. The light would not go away. There after the D light [indicating car is in Drive gear] started flashing. When it was taken to dealer, was informed that transmission had failed and replacement cost for a new transmission and computer would be $6100. When I found from this forum that 99-01 Honda Odysseys had transmission problems and had class action suite which resulted that Honda extended the warranty to 7 yrs 9 months and 105000 miles. However dealer told that this is not extended to 2002 odyssey and even under goodwill repair Honda may not give more than $1000 towards repairs. So I took the other option of trading in the car for $3000 (about $ 1500 below the trade-in cost for car with good transmission)
I have had 5 Honda over last 20 yrs with a 1992 Honda accord with 180K miles still running. Obviously I am not pleased with shoddy quality of Honda Odyssey. I found that it is not so easy to report a problem to Honda USA (no email contact) but I will use every avenue to notify this. :mad:

akabanrosh · June 2009

I bought a new 2001 Honda Odyssey and the check engine light came on around 96500 miles. It is within warranty for miles but out of it by about 10 months on time.

Took it to a new dealer nearby (Hamilton Handoat Hamilton NJ) and they came back with tranny, catalytic convertor, struts (!!!) & cracked motor mounts (!!!). I figured that they are trying to drum up business, though they talked to Honda and said that Honda would cover 50% of transmission. So took it to the dealer (Willis HOnda, Burlington, NJ) that I bought it from and they are saying tranny, catalytic convertor, Timing belt and spark plugs.

I talked to Honda and initiallyt they said tough luck, you are out of warranty. When I told them about the first dealer's offer they said that's the best they can do. I asked them how they could say tough luck first and then 50% is the best. They gave me a spiel about each case being different. They initially would not give me a supervisor, but after a second call said that a super would call me within 24 hrs. Super called the same day wand was very curt and said the offer would be valid only for a couple of days(whereas the 1st dealer had given a written diagnosis and offer valid for 30 days). I felt like I was dealing with shysters and not a reputable company. It was really shocking to me that they do not have a uniform spelt out poliicy of dealing with this.

Willis Honda came back to me and said that Honda is not willing to go above 50% but that the dealer would throw in couple of hundred bucks. I guess that this is the best I can get and am going to take them up on the offer.

I will never buy any Honda product again. Mark my words, this coimpany is going down the tubes in a few years the way GM & Chrysler went

soccergirl2 · July 2009

I am looking to get a van, but I am considered about the trouble I am hearing regarding the transmission. Most of the Hondas out there for sale have between 50k and 75k miles. What do you recommend as I have been told that Honda is rated the best for safety?

jvhwood · July 2009

Soccergirl2;
:lemon: :lemon: :lemon: Erase the Honda Odyssey from your wish list. The transmission problems make this van a nightmare to own and at trade-in the Honda dealers are the worst to deal with because of the problems incurred. Case in point my 2002 Honda offered me $1000. as trade-in with a bad trans. Toyota gave me $6000. with another $2000 off as a factory incentive. Honda parent company does not admit to having a problem, although they settled a class action suit on 1999 thru 2001 models 2002 to present are still failing. Class action suits are being pursued on this website on the later ones. Please see my post # 758. Keep in mind the safety rating will look pretty good with it sitting disabled in your driveway or in the shop for transmission replacement. :lemon: :lemon:

jet_tester · July 2009

Thanks to all for posting problems and solutions on this site. I have a 2007 Honda Odyssey that I have been fairly satisfied with. Current mileage is 36000. For the past 6000 miles or so I've been experiencing a vibration/shudder at 40-45 mph, observing engine rpms fluctuate from 1300-1600 associated with shifting into 5th gear. I have also noticed what felt like an intermittent misfire feeling at cruise speeds. I noticed this more during cold weather, more when the car was cold and more when I had the whole family in the van (600# of people). At 40-45 the problem was regularly intermittent with variations in engine rpm and an engine lugging sound (and associated vibration). Also, the best way of reproducing the problem seemed to be to get it into the sweet spot (40-45mph/1300-1500rpm) and come to a slight incline in the road requiring almost a breath of increase in the accelerator.

On my initial complaint to the dealer I got the "normal condition" line. Doesn't work with me, I test aircraft for a living and know the difference between normal and "interesting". After the first visit I did my internet research, worked on defining the problem and developed my strategy for the next visit. 1st, I needed a dealer who could hook up a computer to take a snapshot during the shudder behavior. 2nd I needed a dealership technician who had seen the problem before (very important). I found both at Scholfield East Honda in Wichita, KS.

The technician, who had experienced two Odyssey's with the same condition in the past, was able to reproduce the problem, take the snapshot and send it to Honda. The solution was to replace the torque converter. The repair took two days, the torque converter was replaced, the engine computer was updated, they cleaned out the transmission cooler lines (I have a towing package) and performed an alignment all on warranty. I picked up the van this evening and it drives "properly" again.

Hope this helps. I would definitely shop for a Honda dealer that has seen this problem before. Search out a technician who knows how to reproduce the problem.

Thanks again,

coredump · July 2009

After having been through 2 trannies on my ody 2005, I with the help of my Honda dealer switched to Amsoil over 3 oil changes (drain-and-fill) each time.

Before the switch on my third tranny, shifts were quite harsh with the honda fluid.

After the switch to Amsoil synthetic ATF shift quality has improved greatly.

My Honda dealer has a great service manager who I deal with directly and he told me after the second drain and fill that the drained fluid looked superb unlike normally with the Honda fluid the drained fluid looked dark and brown. Also hetold me the drain plug magnet was clear and had virtually no filings.

I also switched to the same fluid in my Acura TL again with the help of my Acura dealership with identical results. Also my Acura dealer actually thanked me for recommending the fluid as they actually used it to solve a torque converter issue in an Acura MDX. This saved them having to replace the torque converter since the shudder had just started.

A few things that I wanted to note here are:
1. If one can find good and honest dealerships who are willing to help you then it makes it worth it to try out better products without fearing warranty issues and there indeed are dealerships out there that are good.

2. Sometimes it is just worth taking the risk to try out a new and better product. I was also discouraged by both the dealerships from using Amsoil ATF instead of the Honda Z1 ATF, but eventually I managed to convince them both to the point that they are believers. It is quite important to note that yelling at the dealerships for Honda's fault never advances your case - they won't help you, however patience and sweet talk will.

Disclaimer: I do not have anything to do with Amsoil (I am not an Amsoil dealer nor do I recoomend any) nor Honda (which is why I am not naming the dealerships here). I am basing my personal experience with my Ody 2005 and the horrors of going through with the repairs (I had many issues with my ody 2005 - tranny, motor mount, a pipe, power steering pump).

Hope that helps folks with tranny issues on the ody.

cleverstar · July 2009

1. When do your Odysseys switch from 4th to 5th gear? Mine usually does it y at around 50mph/2100rpm, resulting in driving at 5th gear at 1500rpm at most of the time, engine moaning.

2. 5th Gear easily slips when I slightly rav to pass or the cruise at 80mph meets a regular medium length slope, where I think the car can easily maintain the required speed w/o switching back to 4th gear for more torque... Is it a problem?

hhmax · July 2009

does the 1995-1998 ody generation have the infamous tranny problems? How is the overall reliability of this early generation odyssy?

akabanrosh · July 2009

I have a question. If engine mounts are cracked and I don't replace them, what will happen? As of yet I do not see any symptoms. I just had tranny, timing belt and spark plugs replaced. Am planning to keep it for 2 years and then trade it in. Will it last that long with cracked engine mounts?

akabanrosh · July 2009

Oops. Posted in the wrong forum. Sorry

Honda Odyssey Transmission Problems

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