Honda Odyssey: Problems & Solutions:(1995-2004 Models)

dmathews3

You shouldn't have to with any car but since they are all made by humans, things go wrong. I guess all you can do is ask yourself, do I feel lucky today.

hoyahenry

No, the Sedona warranty is the best and cheapest: 10/100, $0. Juice makes the point - consider all of the options.

sweingast

Is the Sedona bumper to bumper? The DC has a 7/100 mile powertrain warranty. However, the powertrain is a small percentage of the vehicles approximately five thousand parts. Did you price the cost of extending the Sedona's 5,000 parts to 100,000 miles?

As I said earlier, DC wanted more than a grand to extent the powertrain to their max coverage. I did not look at the Sedona, but I looked at the fine print of other warranties. I only considered factory warranties. Though cars breakdown less, they are more expensive to fix.

Even Honda with its great reputation is still having problems with the power doors, breaks and transmission. Only one of these are covered power powertrain coverage. Nine hundred dollars for coverage to 100,000 miles is good insurance given the repair costs. Look at this problems board. Note that CR gives lower marks to the Ody versus the other Honda vehicles.

I actually bought a used car because it had an extended transferable factory warranty. I made sure that the factory dealer checked the vehicle and would honor the warranty. This covered me if the previous owner did not maintain the vehicle as I would have done. It gave me piece of mind and saved me lots of money.

ateixeira

Sedona's B2B warranty is still a longish 5/60. The powertrain is 10/100.

Chrysler gives you just 3/36 and 7/100. Honda's is 3/36 period. In fact I'd say it's time for them to beef their warranty up - it's about the shortest in the industry. Toyota, Nissan, and Subaru all offer 5/60 on the powertrain, 3/36 B2B.

Keep in mind some extended warranty are 7/100, not 10/100. What you buy should depend on how many miles you drive per year.

-juice

bob550k

You guys sure are worried about the warranty, I didn't buy an Ody so I wouldn't have to worry about such things.

msroman

Recently purchased an EX-L Navi (one of the first ones off the Alabama production line, I think) and am interested in extended warranty coverage. I'm not pleased with the fit of the body panels...has uneven gaps on one side...and the sliding door on that same side has wider gap than door on other side. Dealer says all is "normal". "Magic" folding seat also doesn't go flush into floor. Anyone with similar problems? Where do you get extended warranty for $895. My dealer is quoting $1055 for $50 deductible...$1125 for $0 Deductible.

lboule

I just purchased an EX this week, and there is a vibration when riding in the middle row. I had the tires balanced but it is still there. You don't feel it at all when driving, but it is really annoying in the middle. Any advice on this?

ukrick

We had our 2002 Ody in over 2 weeks ago for a scheduled appointment because the SRS light stayed on after the engine was started. We found out that the passenger seats sensor was faulty. The parts were not in stock, but on backorder. Last Friday was scheduled an appointment to take the van back in for repair. The parts had come in. We dropped the van off Friday evening, and the man said it would be ready on Saturday. I called Saturday afternoon, and was told that they couldn't fix the van because it had to go to the upholsterer. We would have to bring the van back on Monday.

Is this a typical scenario for Honda Service for warranty issues? Take the vehicle back three times before it gets fixed?

If this is the kind of service I can expect from a Honda dealer in the future, I'm having serious doubts about whether to buy another Honda again. I know they are known for reliability, but their service stinks!!

dmathews3

I think you will find this to be standard operation procedure for all dealers. You are lucky in the fact that I doubt if 5% of the dealers service centers are even open on Saturday. When it comes to windshields and upholstery you will find they send it out to the experts who do it daily. I don't see where you have much of a complaint.

donbroer

I concur. I had my windshield replaced in the summer of 2000 at a local Auto Glass shop. The installer told me that the Honda dealer that I bought the Ody from sends all their glass work to him. I just cut out the middle man. It took about 3 hours. He said that he can do the work remotely, but prefers the shop. Can do a better job.
Figure if you drop it off at the dealer, they have someone drive it to the repair place, come back later on to pick it up and return to the dealer. Could easily shoot the better part of a day.

popper

Been quite a while since I posted but thought I'd share my Ody experience. Now passing 55000 trouble-free miles. Engine and body structure still sound as tight as day one, although suspension still makes that clunk when accelerating over uneven surface- doesn't happen too frequently. I finally broke down and ordered 4 new Toyo 800 Ultra's from treadepot.com to replace the #$%^& Firestone's (Had a good experience with the Toyo's on an old Accord)
Things I would wish for: 1)Quieter ride 2)Better stereo- Guess they've addressed those on the new model. Overall very pleased.

jnash2

I think the point is that they should have told ukrick not to bring his van in untill Monday.

hondadown1

Hello everyone. This is my first post,after one year of reading all the messages about the Odyssey. We bought a 2002 ex on Oct. 28,2001.Everything was great until the first week of January 2002.I began to hear a rattle coming from the left floorpan were the left foot rest is located.Also the left sliding door was rattling. The first time I took the van to the dealer the tech sprayed all the door seals with silicon spray.According to the tech spraying the seals would help the rubber not stick to the doors,thus stopping the rattle(yeah right!).My main concern is the rattle coming from the left side of the suspension.After the first visit the left sliding door quiet up, but the suspension noise continued. The mechanic that checked the van the second time about two weeks later said all the suspension was nice and tight.He could not figure out were the "deep sounding rattle" is coming from.The third visit to the dealer was another dissapointment they adjusted the hood because it was misalined.When I picked up my van all the service crew had gone home as soon as I drove out of the dealership there was that rattle and to my surprise a new mini rattle coming from the middle of the dashboard. On the fourth visit they had the van all day and all the the person in charge of customer service had to say was,don't worry with just 6500 miles I have plenty of warrenty.She said drive the van until the rattle gets louder and it will be easier for them to figure it out.Visit number five mid March again after the rattle cage spend all day at the dealer I got it back the same way LOUD! rattle ever present. First week of April back from a 1500 mile vacation to southern California. Odometer 8700 miles. Visit six,went on one hour drive with mechanic and service manager. They heard the infamous rattle they showed concern I thought they were really going to finally take care of this problem. The van now has the left suspension rattle,above glove compartment rattle both front doors trim panels rattles. They said that HONDA MOTOR COMPANY is aware of the front rattle in the suspension and that HONDA has a silencer kit that is to be placed on the left front suspension spring in two weeks the service manager wants me to make another appointment so they can instal this so called silencer kit on the spring. I am not a mechanic but this sounds like bunch of .......... to me. April 17 I called HONDA in Torrence California opened a case and now I am waiting to hear from a case manager. All this rattles have left me dissapointed.I am preparing myself for a tuff fight with HONDA. All the rattles sound like a jar of lemonade... HELP

capasa200

Today as we were driving our 1996 Honda Odyssey Ex we noticed the our brake light came on shortly followed by the Abs light. The manual says it is a low brake fluid level but I want to know if anybody else has had this problem.

capasa200

We bought our 1996 Odyssey 6 years ago and 103000 miles we have enjoyed this car very much but we have a problem the car is going through oil very rapidly and the belts are squealing constantly we have had these problems for quite a while and they do not stop after getting fixed if any of you have advice please tell

jcampa1

This is my first post ever. I enjoy reading the information provided by the other Honda Owners. Let me tell you about my Honda experience. I purchased a new 2000 LX, from "Hollywood Honda", in Dec. of '99. I have always believed that the Japanese build a better product as far as automobiles are concerned. (Please don't waive the Flag at me because I'm more patriotic than the next guy!) Well right off the bat, I noticed that the van rode super firm and you could hear all the road noise. After only 1000 miles I noticed the infamous "shimmy" from the Firestones. Took it back to the dealer and they told me that the tires have their own warranty and that I would have to take it up with a Firestone dealer. So I did. Bought an alignment and balancing policy but the vibration continued. Dealer also took six months to get my seat covers ordered right and only after contacting the regional manager with a complaint. At 4000 miles I noticed that the transmission slipped during hard acceleration and made a loud whining noise while coasting. At 5000 miles the "check enging " light went on. I had a transmission temperature gauge professionally installed. The dealer said that it was throwing the "code" in the computer. I removed the guage because the service manager said that it "WILL" void my warrenty. The light had not returned since. I'l take the blame for that one. The vibration has gotten worse and the dealer refused to help me. I'm not rich so I don't buy new cars very often. In fact I still own my first new car, a '85 Mazda GLC. These problems with the 2000 and the lack of dealer support really messed up the all important "New Car Experiance" for me. I tell everyone that "Hollywood" is not a place I would recomend. They just want your money and don't care about service after the sale. Well I had to make a decision weather to buy an extended warranty or trade it in. Since the 2002 addressed all of my concerns, I traded it for a 2000 EX. Couldnt be happier. Extra power, new 5-speed trans, Mishelins, power seat and factory alarm w/ lojack. Oh, forgot to mention that the dealer "warrned" me that the after market alarm that I had installed could void my warrenty if any "electrical" poroblems arose. I've had it! My 2002 is bone stock and I bought the "Honda Care" 7Yr-100k extended policy. I stuck with the Ody because it meets my family need to a T. We go camping a lot and I pull a 5X8 utility trailer with 2500 lbs worth of gear. We bring it all, and the kitchen sink when we go camping. Well my 2000 only had 9000 miles on it when I traded it in. Picked up the 2002 from "Maroone" Honda in Miami. So far very happy. Too bad about "Holywood Honda". They lost a good customer and got a bunch of bad press.

dmathews3

Congrats on your new purchase, just to bad you didn't visit here a year ago. The shimmy in the front most likely was from the wheels. It has been reported here many, many times that the dealers who gave their customer a free upgrade to the EX wheels and tire done away with the problem. Later Honda came out with a fix where the dealer loosens a bunch of bolts etc. in the frontend and re-aligns the under carrage. The procedure was posted here before. Oh well, to late for you now, but hang with us from now on and maybe we can save you some money. For example, did you know you can buy the 7/100K/0 Honda care warranty from dealers here on line for about $895 where a lot of dealers try to screw you to the tune of upto $1600 for the very same HOnda warranty. Anyway enjoy the new ride.

lrlander

At about 15000 miles there appeared an engine oil leak. The dealer saying that there was a bulletin about corrosion on the oil pan, replaced the oil pan. The oil still dripped and the pan was replaced again. Still leaking even worse and now the dealer wants to install a short block. This is not an isolated case since I know of other 3.5 engines having the same problem, and not only in the Odyssey. Anything out there on this matter?

car_obsessed

My wife and I are looking at the EX model but my mother in law heard from a friend that they had a 2001 model that needed the power doors replaced. They had more than 35000 miles and so their warranty ran out. The replacement cost was $5000 !! Has anyone seen/heard of this as well ? That just doesnt seem right. Would the 895 extended warranty cover such a repair ?

grandtotal

You're right to be a little circumspect about this secondhand report. There are a number of aspects about the story as you relate it that give me pause for thought.

• 35000 miles is a lot for a year old vehicle, not impossible, but unusual. The Honda warranty is for 36000 miles or 3 years so the repair should have been covered.
• Obviously I do not speak for Honda but I doubt that they would not step up to the plate to cover this sort of repair on a year old vehicle regardless of mileage, assuming the failures were not due to abuse.
• Both doors failing at once, just outside the warranty, is a little unlikely.
• $5000 seems a little steep even for motorised doors.
• It's hard to imagine how the doors might fail so catastrophically that they required complete replacement rather than replacement of parts or simply adjustment or re-alignment.

Lastly the extended warranty would cover those repairs assuming, as mentioned before, that the problem were not due to abuse.

rawoof

I recently bought a brand new 2002 Honda Odyssey EXL. It has only 1740 miles and I encountered a major problem yesterday. I was driving to pick up my daughter at her school which was about 5 miles away from my house. I parked the car, picked up my daughter and started the car and the oil pressure indicator was lit. I started driving the car home and the light was still on. I looked up in the driver's manual and it mentioned that there could be a severe damage to the engine if the light stay lit while the engine was running. I immediately called the nearby dealership and they asked me to bring the car over to service immediately. I drove to the service station, which was about 10 miles away from my house. While I was getting close to the service station, the engine started making a loud rattling noise. The noise that I heard sounded like the valves were tapping.

Has anyone had a similar problem? The fact that it was making a rattling noise makes me think that the engine was running without lubrication. Is it possible that engine parts could have been damaged as a result of this?

dchopp

I would say there is some damage.

dmathews3

My guess is major damage. The dealer should NOT have told you to bring the car over to have them look at it. He should have advised you to first check the oil and if no oil on the dipstick which I doubt there is to have it towed. I sure hope for your sake they cover the problem. If not I would see a lawyer as if you need a new engine and its not under warranty I bet its a good $6000.
NEVER EVER DRIVE A CAR WITH AN OIL LIGHT ON unless you are sure its just a short and that there is oil and it is pumping through your engine.

jeffreykim

I have 2001 Odyssey (~40K miles on it already, but mostly Freeway driving) and it jerks and grinds when shifting from 1st to 2nd gear. It only happens when it's cold or that's when I notice the most. After driving for about 5 minutes the problem seems to disappear.
I took it to a dealer and had transmission fluid replaced, but doesn't seem to help much at all. What should I do?

rawoof

The oil was full. The van only has 1750 miles on it. Not even close to needing an oil change either. We bought it back in December brand new and we had to order it. The service guy at the dealership thinks that the oil pump failed/defect. I am glad it is still under warranty. Honda has to put a new engine in it. I am so unhappy right now with Honda.

mfeldman

and can you buy it from honda after your purchase at any time before 36k miles?

dmathews3

Most likely Honda bought the oil pump from some supplier so don't be to hard on them. Remember everything is made by humans and humans aren't perfect. Hopefully they gave you something nice to drive in the mean time.

miscusibella

I have a 2001 EX and have been plagued by a horrible sound coming from the driver's window. It only happens when I am driving on the highway and in a very stiff side wind-- It happens intermittently and when it does, it scares the S-out of me. If I weren't hanging on tightly to the steering wheel, I would be jerked into the ditch when this happens. What is going on here??? Is there weatherstripping around the window that is defective? Is the door improperly fitted?? (The door closes okay). Anybody out there with a similar problem? Any suggestions????? HELP.

stever

That would scare the "stuffing" out of me too. Sounds like a weatherstripping or alignment issue to me. Anyone?

Steve
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twisrter

Where can you purchase this for under 1000.00

cbranson1

I have experienced the same LOUD howl when driving in a crosswind. I have a 2000 LX and have determined that the noise is caused by the side mirror. Last time it occurred I rotated the mirror in to the side of the van. It stopped the noise but it was uncomfortable driving without the mirror. When I took delivery of the van in Oct 99 I complained about a whistling sound from the mirrors and had them replaced under warranty. If you find a permanent cure let me know.

ods123

Its time to replace my ome Firestones. Looking at the Goodyear Aquatread 3 and Michelin x 4. Any advice on these or any others would be appreciated.

ukrick

You can probably haggle with a local dealership. That's what I did. We bought a 2002 Ody last fall. They tried to sell me an extended warranty for like $1700. But when I told them I could buy it off the internet for around $800-$900, they changed their tune pretty quick.

http://www.hondaacurawarrantiesatspringfieldmotorcars.com

gdevas

I have a 1999 odyssey.A few months after I bought it,we had a "small" dent in the middle of the sliding door. Since then the automatic sliding doorhas been malfunctioning ie. the sliding door sign lights up,and a beeping sound is heard.The dealer has been able to "reset" the electronics and it has functioned properly for a few months.Now they say that they have to do the body work costing about $1500 in order to fix the problem permanently.Is this true, or should I get another opinion or call the company
hoping to hear from anyone soon
thanks

davida5

Howdy

We have a 2001 Odyssey with about 8k miles. The front brakes occasionally gave a low groaning sound, particularly when headed slowly down an incline. We told the Honda dealership about this when brought it in for 7.5k service, and it turns out to be a known problem.

From Service bulletin 99-013 (may be superseded):

Symptom
When coming to a stop at a low speed, the front brakes make a low-pitched groaning sound.

Corrective Action
Refinish the front brakes, measure total disc thickness after refinishing, and install new front brake pads.

They actually did this without our approval, but that doesn't bother me much (they left a voice mail that the were doing it). The groan is gone. Rotor thickness for this van according to their documentation is 28.0 mm new and 26.0 mm service limit (minimum). After refinishing, the rotors on our van are at 27.5 mm thick right front and 27.7 mm thick left front.

I complained that I didn't like the idea of machining down rotors about 25% of their usable thickness at 8k miles. They called the District Service Manager, who responded that they were still in spec, and that they therefore wouldn't replace them. Not a great argument in my mind, as it could be applied equally if they were both just above the service limit. I called American Honda, and they told me that while they regretted the problem, I'd just have to live with it.

As a summary, I'd say that Honda dealt with this in a reasonable fashion in fixing the problem, but has been been rather unresponsive in addressing my concern about resurfacing rotors so early in a car's life. I'd like to think they'd be more forthcoming on a significant probmlem, but I'm not so sure. Hopefully I won't have to find out.

P.S. Overall a great van. Would definitely buy another one if this one fell off a cliff (hopefully empty at the time). Gas sloshes when full, but doesn't matter when full of kids. Plastic thing at bottom of windshield is rippling and needs to be replaced.

auburn63

There are door improvements that have came out and may apply to your van if they havent been done as of yet. If the small dent is near any of the inside door mechanisms then it is possible that it may be interfering with its operation but if they can get it to operate for periods of a time, then it sounds as if they clean and align the junction switches and they work fine until they get dirty. Have them or another dealer check the latest bulletins for your van and see if you need any updated parts. Good luck

ojc

is this just what we get or is there a fix for these doors always rattling?

2002 EX-L, 5000 miles.

dchopp

I have a 2002 Ex and the doors do not rattle.

auburn63

The door rattles can be fixed for the most part. Usally the main reason they rattle is because of the front edge lower roller being out of adjustment. You can tell this by having the slider closed and the front doors open, grab the lower front edge of the sliding door, move it in and out strongly and see if it moves in and out. If it does it needs adjusting. The other cause is the rubber seals get dry and cause noise, this can be fixed by lubing with Shin-it-su greese.Good luck

jeffatc

2002 Odyssey which makes a grinding noise (no more than a second) when first starting for the day. Doesn't really sound like the a/c compressor kicking in. Anyone with similar problems/????

dtownfb

I wouldn't be too concerned about the rotors. Yes the usable width is reduced but your vehicle is fixed with no charge to you. I would make sure you document the incidnet just in case down the road, you are told you need to replace the rotors. Honestly, they handled problem correctly. If they were to charge then I could understand your disapproval.

spangler1

My 2000 ODY also had a momentary grinding noise which I noticed the next morning after taking delivery. The noise occurred immediately after I put the car in gear and lasted for only a second or so. The noise sounded like a dry bearing. Honda originally attributed it to the brakes or a/c compressor. Several days later I noticed a "clunk" in reverse. The "clunk" would only occur very intermittently ie once ever 500 miles or so. Also the transmission occasionally would slip when trying to rapidly accelerate. Honda replaced the transmission under warranty at 24,000 miles even though they could not reproduce any of the problems.

fried2

My wife mentioned that our '99 Odyssey had trouble starting a couple times recently. Of course, I could not duplicate. Battery voltage, and ACDelco eye still green. Anyone have a battery die yet?

jim_loves_cars

Hi guys,

My wife told me this morning that she's having a problem with the sliding doors on our 2001 EX. While driving, the door alarm has been beeping as if trying to open when the car's in Drive. She said that it stops when she turns off the sliding door power switch on the dash or pushes the "close" button for that door.

I recall reading about this here last summer, but I can't find any info on it now. She's going to be taking the van into the dealership but I was hoping the Ody Pros here could give us a clue. It's always wise to be informed when dealing with the service department!

Thankfully, my wife is taking it in stride. She loves her Ody and seems to be pretty mellow about the problem. I guess when you're used to dealing with a wailing baby, a little door beeping is no big deal!

-jim

auburn63

Usally this is due to the door either not being fully latched or thinking it is not fully latched. There is a service bulletin out for the repair that has the tech do some door adjustments and replace the junction switches on both doors with improved ones. If done correctly this usally cures the problem for good..You may also want to ask them to check the closer motor operation on the door that you can push the close button on to stop the alarm. This latch assembly may need to be replaced, if for no other reason but to insyre the van is fixed right the first time. Good luck

majariwr

I recently (started a year ago) the Firestones on my 1999 EX with Aquatred 3s. After going through two sets, things seem to be OK now. The first set were very noisy, and just got worse. I was told that this was do to misalignment, but the dealer who sold them to me eventually honored the warranty. So, after a year, replacing the tires 2 at a time, they seem to be OK. My advice: have an alignment done at the same time in order to start "fresh". If I had to do it again, all in all, I'd probably buy the Michelins.

soccermom5

Has anyone had any experience with an odd odor coming from the air conditioner? I have a 2001 Odyssey EX with nearly 30,000 miles on it. As we are about to enter our second summer with this car, I would like to get this problem fixed. However, when I have mentioned it, the dealer has no idea what I am talking about. The smell comes sporadically when the air conditioner is on. It is an unpleasant odor, sort of metallic/chemical??? I really don't know how to describe it. Has anyone heard of this problem or have any idea what it could be? Thanks

ukrick

We've got a 2002 EX that we bought last September. Unfortunately, we've already got a spot on the hood where something has flown up off the road chipped the paint. The spot has already accummulated rust. Should this happen already?? Isn't this galvanized steel here?? Would this be a warranty issue?

jeffreykim

Has anyone heard about Differntial Bearings problem in 2001 model. My Odyssey started having transmission problems and started leaking fluid. I took it to a dealer and found the problem in Differential Bearings inside the casing along the axle. The dealer recommended replacing the whole tranny - estimate $5100. I took my odyssey to a local transmission shop and they also said the problem is in Differential Bearings. My mechanic also told me that he just got another Odyssey with the same problem. I wonder if this is a common problem for 2001 odyssey?

dchopp

The oder you described is a Musty, Mildew and it is caused by to much water vapor buildup on the inside cooling coils. generally it is caused by running your A/C in the recirculate mode to much. Try running the A/C in the normal mode for a about 6 hours and see if that eliminates it. Do not use recirculate at all durring this period.