Honda Odyssey 1999 - 2004

rsw99

I'll be visiting a dealer tomorrow in MD
who still has several Canadian 2000 EXs on
the lot. I was originally going to order
a 2001 LX but now I'm thinking of making an
offer on one of the 2000 EXs. Besides the
fact that the original warranty is voided,
are there any other potential problems when
purchasing a Canadian model. Thanks for any
info..

isellhondas

You are asking for trouble. There is NO Honda warranty. If it has a squeak, rattle or needs adjustments, you are on your own.

The odometers have been converted. This could cause you disclosure problems down the road.

And, some of the electrical components are a bit different. They have heated mirrors which require a different alternator and wiring.

I would either buy the non grey market LX or spend a few more bucks and get a proper EX.

rsw99

isellhondas,
thanks for the advice, I decided to steer
clear of the Canadian EXs. Turns out I
never even made it to that dealership. The
second dealer I visited today had a dark
emerald pearl LX - which is the exact model
I had planned on ordering.

toodyssey

Has any Canadian out there able to get any discounts on the 7/160kkm/0 extended warranty ?? If so, please post the price paid and where.

daisydavi1

The Honda hitch is rated Class II. I need a class III hitch because this is required for a 4-bike rack. Because of the weight, it has a higher torque requirement. RIght Trevor?

Hey Trevor,
Do you have the service bulletin for the front brake problem?

mschafer

The Honda Hitch is a Class III.

van_fan

I would like to thank everyone for their input to my post (#84) for advice on "WHAT TO ADD IN". Here is the final list- I will have the dealer install the cassette ($189), Transmission cooler ($279), and fog lights ($450). I want the new fog lights though! Dealer said they knew nothing of them. I will buy the leather steering wheel cover, mud flaps, cargo tray, and wheel locks from honda-accessories.com and attempt them myself.

I haven't been able to find a local dealer for Hidden Hitch yet, but I can get a Draw-Tite hitch and wiring installed at U-Haul for about $200.

Anyone install the Fenderwell Trim and door edge guards? Doesn't look bad to do.

I think I am going to hold off on the roof racks for now. But when I need them, I will buy the Thule racks. They seem to be a better value.

Thanks for the listings on the warranty. Dealer said "NO WAY will anyone sell it for that" Well the others will and will get my $$$.

Anyone every order and extra FOB? Can you program them yourself or do you have to have the dealer do it?

My wife wants the Cargo Cover. Does anybody have this? Is it worth it? Does it retract if you need to put something higher than the seats in? Is it a pain to put in and out?

Thanks.

kuhl3

Hey, Texans-My family had gone to Galveston for Thanksgiving. As we were driving north to Houston, a vehicle carrier was going the opposite direction with 10+ Odysseys! We give pinches when we see an Odyssey so it was a bonus for me!!! They were TW, MB, and SS. We were just coming up to Fuqua exit on 45. Hopefully you've gotten your calls to come get them!!! Lucky ducks!! We saw lots and lots of Odysseys being driven in Galveston and can't wait to get our call...

kuhl3

That was yesterday (Sat-Nov 25th) at 12:30 pm.

phil47

Anybody know if there are headlight guards available for the 99-2001 ODY? I was driving to Banff this weekend and a gust of wind threw some gravel in front of me (120 kph)...ouch. The bumper has a few small rash marks, and I noticed the lense covers for the headlights also have a dozen shallow knicks in them. They are not very serious, but over time they add up and start to diffuse the light. I'd like to protect them during the winter. Any solutions??

I'm aware of the stick-on films, but I'd like something less permanent if possible since I only really need it in the winter. Any help would be appreciated.

dmathews3

I to thought of getting the cargo cover but was told by someone here that they punch holes in the panels and it's a very poor setup. Not very atractive or sturdy. Check it out before you go that route. Read the installation instructions at www.honda-accessories.com

billg7

I also remember that post refered to in #122. The little rubber ends fell off and the sharp rod ends then put holes on the inside of the sides as you removed and installed the cover, which you need to do when you change the third seat arrangement. When I asked the salesman about it he said he did not recommend it. He also said it was a poor design. There is no hurry to install it.

I had door edge guards on my other car and they do offer some protection. I wonder how they look on the Odyssey?

FOB. Is that the remote control locks. My salesman said only a Honda dealer could replace the programable key so the whole thing is probable a Honda item. I think it may be expensive also. I thought I saw a price on this board of one key for $35.

elew

If you want to save a few more $$, install the cassette deck yourself. I have a LX, and installed the CD player, which was purchased, and used the instructions from honda-accessories.com.

wpalkowski

Hi,
I have a 2K TW EX, and have noticed the backup lights aren't bright enough for me to see well through rear tinted window. Does anybody know if there are higher wattage bulbs available? Or do I have to get auxilliary backup lights for under the rear bumper like I have on my F-350 Pickup? Anyone have a recommendation for a lamp that would look decent with on Ody?

Walt

dlh2

I agree, I have to back out of a long dark driveway and the OEM lights are worthless. Autotoys.com sells a brighter replacement for the 7440 backup bulb in the Ody. It is the Polarg M2 Hyper white. I intend to try them.

binkybarnes

please let us know how the backup lightbulbs work out...i agree, the oem backup lights are not bright enough

has anyone else noticed that the EX cd/radio unit has a "anti-blast" feature? if you turn off the stereo or the car with the volume really loud, when you turn it or the car on again, the volume is lower and gradually builds...gives you time to turn it down in case whoever drove the van before you listens to their music loud (of course, the stock unit isn't even capable of playing THAT loud)

bg18947

Headlight Guards can be found at the weathertech site. Be forewarned, the Honda page sometimes has problems coming up. I didn't order them yet. I'm waiting for someone else's feedback.

I had halogen backup bulbs on my Blazer which also had the factory window tinting which made it hard to see at night. I didn't find the brighter bulbs helping much. They are still limited by the lens ability and the wattage. I'm planning to install a normal 55w dichroic ion fog lamp tapped into the reverse lamp wiring on the Odyssey. Just got review the service manual to figure out how to run a power wire to the back and figure out a good place to mount it to on the hitch.

xfactor

1999 Honda Odyssey LX Approx. 30,000 miles.

Just completed the round trip from NY to St. Louis. Average mile per a gallon was 24.7.
Best 26.2 (Cruise control set at the speed limit of 70 some city driving).
Worst 22. (Due to accident stuck at a stand still for 1 hr 10 minutes with another hour of stop & go.)

Normal everyday driving 21 mpg.

Thought someone might be interested.

semass

We're about to order our Ody. Ricky Smith Honda in Weymouth MA quoted us MSRP plus destination charge, which seems fair enough to me. Seems like a no-hassle buy experience so far, but who can tell? Just wondering if anyone has any experience with them, good or bad, to share before we make make the plunge.

mojo66

Trevor, thanks for the info. We have an '01 EX with 2,100 miles on it and have not experienced this problem at all. Maybe Honda made modifications for the new models?

bclough

I have an Odyssey with regular keys, no keyless entry or remote locks or anything. Today I went into my dealership to get an extra key cut, for my daughter. They had the tiny aluminum tag that comes with the original set of keys (I bought the car new) and also my own key, which works fine. Nevertheless they were unable to cut a key for me. They cut several, and either they didn't work, or the key would open the doors but not work in the ignition. In the end they had to give me my money back!

What is wrong?

Brenda

billg7

You can not cut a key for the Odyssey ignition and have it work. The key is programmed to work with your Odyssey only. The Honda dealer must have the equipment to program a key using your key. Is your dealership a Honda dealership or a very small one. Most Honda dealerships would know this. Have them get in touch with the Honda motor company.

This was done for security. You can not take the Odyssey key, go to someone and have them make a copy of it. It will look the same, but it will not have the proper code in the key.

lisahhh

I too have a no frills ODY (2000 LX). However, as I understand it, they all have the chip in the key that prevents anyone from copying it, as BillG stated. It looks plain and simple, but it is a theft deterrant. Honda dealers should know about this.

Actually, I got a discount on my insurance for this. If you haven't advised your insurance company about it, you might want to see if you are eligible for a theft deterrant discount.

justpurple

...2000 Odyssey EX MB. It has about 8,500 miles on it. I love the van! Unfortunately, I need to sell it. Does anyone have an idea what I should I ask for it? I'd like to try to sell it outright rather than accept less as trade on another vehicle. I also purchased the extended warranty so I can transfer it to a private owner but not a dealer. Kelly blue book says 29,500 retail, 24,900 trade in.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks

billg7

The Edmonds site and the Kelly Blue Book site have prices on used cars. Edmonds also has a number of articles, I believe, on selling your car. I notice that Kelly Blue book shows lower prices for used cars then does Edmonds. I also notice that some dealers sell the cars at one-half way between the two. Auto Nation is one. So I question the KB prices.

You will get more for it if you sell it to a private party and they will like the idea of having an extended warranty on it. Since the Odyssey is in short supply you may be able to find someone who likes the idea of not having to wait, having an extended warranty, and paying less for a Odyssey.

persamp

I've noticed that KBB has higher retail and lower wholesale prices than Edmunds. I suspect that they are somehow more tied to the used car industry, allowing dealers to buy low and sell high.

billg7

Yes thats one thing I meant to say. When I went to a used car dealer he said that his cars were very fairly priced and below retail, and about one-half way between retail and wholesale. He then referred me to the KBB site. I suspect that
Edmonds better lists what prices should actually be.

I think that we should strongly suspect that KKB is tied to the used car industry, in an effort for used car dealers to get increased profits.

caviller

Don't forget about NADA. That's the book many dealers have, and you can often find it at libraries or get reports at nadaguides.com.

I have noted that Edmunds, Kelley and NADA sometimes agree very well, and other times do not. You have to be careful to match options, since not all are always available on all the guides. They also don't adjust for mileage in the same way, and some don't adjust prices for your zip code.

If you have a local CarMax, you can always get a guaranteed quote from them to use as a minimum.

dpfc

We just drove our 2000 EX about 1700 miles round trip. We towed a trailer, mostly empty on the way out, about half full on the way back. The trailer weights about 800 lbs empty, and I figure we loaded it with about 400 lbs of cargo.

Our EX has a Hidden Hitch and a Honda tranny cooler. I did not use a load distributing hitch.

The trailer towed just fine. On the way out, I could hardly tell it was behind us. There was very little loss of power or downshifting.

On the way back, we had a headwind most of the way, with an elevation gain of about 3300 ft. It was a little tougher coming back, I had to slow down in some stretches to 60mph to keep the transmission from going into a lower gear. A problem I have had when carrying lots of weight in the Odyssey is that the rear end really sinks -- I can tell this is the case because oncoming traffic will signal to tell me to dim my headlights. I did not have this problem when towing the trailer.

Even with the loaded trailer, the handling did not change much, I could hardly tell the trailer was behind us (until I got some crosswinds).

Our gas mileage definitely suffered -- we got about 17mpg on the way out and 15mpg on the way back. Normally we get about 21-22mpg.

Overall, I would say our Odyssey exceeded my expectations when towing this trailer.

rictom

I guess you were thinking of not getting a radio at all and then installing something? I got the cassette and then added a cd changer. The reason I only added a cd changer was I thought I would still have a use for the cassette, and even if I didn't adding a cd changer was the same amount as adding a single cd/am/fm radio. Plus the van is still new and I didn't want some radio that looked like it didn't belong sitting in the dash. I also didn't want to spend the $$ for a new cd/radio and cd changer. It works great, it's an Alpine 6disc changer $249, $329 total including adapter and installation, and works through the radio, no problem. I'm not switching cd's, no jewelcases taking up space, and I got an extra 6cd caddy so I could just swap the entire caddy, rather than yanking individual cd's. The changer fits easily under driver or passenger seat. When I want to replace the radio I'll have to choose an ALpine, unless I want to replace the cd changer also, then I can choose just about any brand.

lisahhh

Just read a news release from State Farm (my insurer) about discounts for "safe" autos. Here's an excerpt:

"....Using its actual claim payments for driver and passenger injuries by make and model of vehicle, the company is awarding discounts of up to 40 percent on medical payments and personal injury protection premiums.

State Farm's new vehicle safety discount is replacing the company's passive restraint discount - which applies to cars with air bags or automatic safety belts - for 1994 and newer private passenger vehicles."

You can go to their website and see:
http://www.statefarm.com/media/release/discount.htm
Interestingly enough, they have the 36 top rated safest cars (including those with less damage). The ODY IS NOT in the Top 36. I want a recount!!

isellhondas

We've been found out! KBB and us dealers are in cahoots! Is nothing sacred?

Actually, it's kinda funny, especially with trade in values. Some people will check all of the "guides" of course the highest one is the one they will hold as gospel for theri trade in.

Seriously, it varies by the part of the country.

Around here NADA is the one used by dealers and the banks. the NADA guides sold in stores are not very accurate. Kelly is used mostly in California.

Sorry, hosts, but Edmunds isn't used by anybody.

KBB numbers are usually (but not always) the highest. Edmunds numbers tend to be all over the board. Sometimes right with NADA, other times way high or low.

bclough

I went to another Honda dealer, and this time they cut a key with no problem at all. It was only three dollars, too. It worked perfectly in both the doors and the ignition, first thing.

Brenda

yewlock

Hi everybody,
I had lost one of my remote keyless entry for my EX. Do anybody know how much is the replacement cost? Do I had to bring my van and the other remote entry to the Honda dealer so they can reprogram the new remote keyless entry? Thanks.

dmathews3

What a joke. Did you notice that Pontiac Montana was listed. Where were its brothers? There is no difference between them.

skiptomeloo

Momma don' allow no car ads 'roun heah.

dlp5

Trevor, Thanks for the service bulletin on the right side drift on the oddy. I test drove one last week and passed on it due to he drift. The salesman acted as if it wasn't there and I started second guessing myself. It was an lx w/ the firestone tires and I thought the tires were the problem but obviously not.

I'm going to try again this Thurs. (I'm #1 on the list after several months of waiting) but is this a big enough problem not to buy one??? The dealer says if I pass on this one I must take my deposit back and look elsewhere! Can you believe that? Thanks again for your help!

timothyadavis

My insurer is State Farm too. Since I drive an F-150 pickup right now, which I thought would surely be on their list skewed as it was to bigger vehicles, I listened intently to the news reports on this new discount. Wouldn't you know my luck? It turns out that Texas, where I live, is one of only 3 states excluded in the offer! The claim is that the state-mandated discounts are already greater than the new one. :-(

Of course, it couldn't have anything to do with the huge majority of big vehicles in Texas and consequent lost revenue for the company, could it?!?

lisahhh

Well wouldn't ya'll know it, I'm in Texas too. That just chaps my hide.

timothyadavis

:-(

billg7

I see my local paper has an article on the State Farm discount rates. Here is a quote from the newspaper article, "State Farm said yesterday that the new system which will replace its across the board discount for all vehicles with air bags will result in no more than a $50 a year difference in insurance costs." I also see the only van listed is the Chrysler Town & Country.

They are basing this on their claims data and the Odyssey would be too new to be included. The Odyssey,Windstar and some other minivans have a better test and actual safety rating then the T&C.

Bottom line: I am not going to take a payment of ,at the most $50, in return for driving an unsafer van like the T&C, no matter where the money comes from. I would rather pay the extra $50 and have less chance of injuries in my Odyssey. The risk reward ratio just does not make sense.

billg7

If I hadn't been reading this board I would have never noticed that my Odyssey had right drift. I can not feel it in the steering wheel. I have to take my hands off the wheel to see it. I will have the dealer look at it one of this days.

Since there is a fix,my guess is after the fix it will be even less noticeable. I consider it an almost insignificant problem.

caviller

Please note that the insurance ratings have 2 components. One is real-world safety from accident claims. The other is driver profile. Two physically identical cars may vary because they are marketed/sold to slightly different demographics of people, or just because of a random difference in claims. The IIHS compiles Injury, collision, theft and death rates at www.iihs.org. The insurance numbers are just one factor of many to consider in safety. Also consider the IIHS offset crash tests, the NHTSA frontal and side impact tests (5 stars across the board for Odyssey again for 2001), rollover ratings and accident avoidance features (handling, traction control, ABS, DRLs, vehicle color, etc). Looking at all these reports can give you a good idea of safety, and many are summarized at crashtest.com. Along with convenience, safety was our #1 concern when buying a new vehicle.

I have no doubt Odyssey is one of the safest passenger vehicles on the road. It gets top crash ratings in every test, good insurance ratings, and weighs in at 4200+ pounds. Despite that, it has superior handling and rollover ratings compared to SUVs of similar size. Plus, the unibody construction with crush zones will give it an advantage over ladder-frame trucks and SUVs in accidents involving other large vehicles or stationary objects. Plus, riding higher up gives you a better view of the road through all those other minivans and SUVs.

So, don't worry that one insurance company gave it a good rating, though not the best one. Others may vary (see http://www.erieinsurance.com/default_ie1024.asp). Incidentally, with identical coverages, our 2001 Odyssey LX cost $1.20 more a year to insure than our 1999 Saturn SL2, and the SL2 is among the best cars in its class for safety and low insurance rates...

dmathews3

Reason you don't get added discount is Gov. Bush needs the money for the joke in Florida. :-)

justpurple

FYI. I went from driving a 2000 Plymouth Neon to a 2000 Honda Odyssey. My insurance only went up $30/year with State Farm. Considering it went up $200/year when I switched from a Ford Escort to the Neon. I was told the increases I incurred were based on crash/safety ratings.

terry624

Thanks to Trevor I was able to give my local Honda Dealer a copy of the Service Bulletin. They acted a little surprised when I showed them a copy and guess what...they had their very own copy filed away. Had them do the "sub frame shift" which is really no more than a more detailed alignment and the car is perfect. My suggestion to you is to take a copy of the bulletin and have them do the work before delivery. You'll love the car.

mojo66

it's gonna take me a while to learn to get upset about my new Ody EX drifting slightly to the right. I owned a Caravan and would have been happy to have such minor troubles. By the way, what is it like to have a dealer fix a problem the first time you take it in? Does that really happen?

mojo66

:-)

binkybarnes

i know the ody is assembled in canada but where is the engine built? i think i remember correctly that the ody engine is the same as from the accord v6? what other honda or acura cars use the same engine? finally, weren't the rumors that the 2001 chrysler t&c would have an optional 230 hp engine...the only one i see is 215 hp. thanks...just have a "discussion" with a friend of mine.

pat84

There are no insurance discounts, you have fire ants and killer bees. Three good reasons not to live in Texas.