Honda Pilot Maintenance and Repair

jay_24

Yes they can fit. Last summer we were in the same position. We had a Plymouth mini van and hated having to always use the third row seats. We tried the Pilot and it worked. Car/booster seats vary in width a fair amount so you should still try before buying.
2 boosters and a rear facing seat worked in our Subaru, but it doesn't work any more with all three facing frontwards.

We went with a Chevy Tahoe (we liked the Pilot) because of dealer location 2 miles vs 30 and cost (Tahoe was 4K less). In this case Chevy sales person was much nicer. Service dept actually picks up our truck from our house for oil changes (no charge), so my wife doesn't have to take 3 kids and wait...

Look for rear radio controls and head phone jacks. This allows the kids to listen to tape/CD/radio while you listen to your choice. It makes driving to the in-laws bearable.

Note: Tahoe is only 1.5" wider outside, but 3 inches wider on the inside and has same turning radius as the Pilot. So is it a HUGE SUV?

Please don't think I'm knocking the Pilot. I liked it alot. I still follow the posting here wondering if it might be our next vehical. 3rd row is better than the Tahoe. remove vs fold flat.

--jay

blarsen2

We bought a Honda Pilot last July. Love it. It has good power, smooth ride, roomy. But something happened yesterday that the Pilot community should know about. My wife was driving home and heard a loud snap in the rear of the Pilot. She called me and we looked at it. The shock absorber on the rear left wheel had broken off from its mount. This is real safety concern. We don't tow anything. We don't drive it off road. The thing just failed. It was good she wasn't driving on the freeway when it happened. That could have caused a very serious accident.

apuddy

My pilot is only a little over 3 months old and I've been having what I think is a minor issue with my brakes grabbing a little too hard sometimes. It only happens when I've got the Pilot up to 50-60 mph and then gradually slow down to get off at an exit or something like that. The brakes start to gradually slow the car down as they should, but then for a split second they grab a little harder than they should and then return to the proper braking level. It seems that it's also more likely to happen when going down a hill. When this occurs, I can feel the brake pedal depress slightly further even though my foot has not moved. The grabbing doesn't happen every time, but often enough to be quite annoying. Has anyone else experienced anything like this or have any recommendations? I'll obviously have it checked out by the dealer during my first service.

qbrozen

yup, that's the same thing we have on ours. Nope, never did anything about it. Ya know, now that you mention it, I really haven't even noticed it in quite a while. I don't know if it faded away or if we've just gotten used to it. We're going for a long drive this afternoon, so I'll try to listen for it.

qbrozen

I have heard this problem a couple of times. Definitely a defect on some of these vehicles. Maybe it will be a future recall?

qbrozen

this is a feature, not a defect. Well, at least, that's the story you'll get. It is called "brake assist" and it does have to do with braking while driving down a decline. I agree that it is not the best or most intuitive feature. I have grown to expect it, though, I just never know exactly how hard it will brake. I do assume its in the manual, although I don't think I ever actually checked.

daveo

Curious if the Honda Pilot is what I need: I'm looking for a safe vehicle for a family with 5 month old, need adequate storage space, off road capability (I'm an avid outdoorsman and hunter), want decent acceleration capability, and decent gas mileage. Considered larger SUV's (Yukons, Armadas, Sequoias),but all were out of my price range. I do not want to spend over $30M. Is the Pilot what I need based on any of your experience? Appreciate any advice.

stephen1

Had our Pilot for about a month now. We have the slight rattle/squeak above the radio. If you press on the dash in that spot, it goes away. At this time, it's not bad enough to mess with. Another problem is that the cruise control does not work most of the time. This will be scheduled for repair this week.

I've owned a couple of Hondas previously and I expected the slight road noise that you hear compared to most other vehicles. What I don't care about is the fact that most bumps cause a noticeable "thump". The ride is good enough but this thump sound when going over any bumps in the road is what's annoying. The same bumps wouldn't even cause a sound in our Highlander.

To DaveO: We too considered all the other possibilities when looking for an suv. A third seat was a priority for occasional extra passengers. The larger suvs were more than we wanted to pay and bigger than we prefer to drive around town on a daily basis. Considered the new Toyota 4 Runner but the design of the third row seats is not ideal for us (fold and swing up to each side and they still take up cargo room. The 4 Runner appears to be more capable off road since it's actually a body-on-frame design (same frame as the Tacoma trucks if I recall). I believe the Pilot is of unibody construction - same as the Odyssey, Accord, etc.

dako_tian

For $30 MILLION, you can get any vehicle you want, including many war ships!?! ;-)

For $30K you can still get into a Yukon or Tahoe pretty easily (check the increased incentives and sales of late). You could probably get into a Yukon XL or at least a Suburban for that (I paid just under $31,000 for a 2003 YXL last October -- the deals on 2004s are about that good now).

Now, understand that we owned a F150 Supercab before the YXL. So, by comparison (the YXL is about a half-foot shorter and turns much more tightly), the YXL is a dream to drive and park. Of course, also note that we live in North Texas, the truck state where we know how big a parking space really needs to be!

Drive both. The Pilot handles like a car and I haven't heard of anyone really offroading one (though it undoubtedly has been done). The Yukon XL/Suburban is a truck, make no mistake about it. But then it halfway sounds like that's what you are looking for. You just need to decide which half is important to you....

Best of luck and persist until you get what you want, need, and can afford.

readytogo

Brought my new 04 Pilot for New Jersey State inspection. The outcome shocked me. It failed the emission test (Gas cap failed). The inspection guy told me that EVERY NEW Honda failed that test. I am not sure how true it is. Anyone had this experience?

dedog

Has anyone noticed a clunking sound that happens once per tire revolution while going in reverse? I noticed it today while backing up to a loading dock at a store. It was highly repeatable and sounded like a thumping tire - but only in reverse. Driving forward it never made the sound after the first revolution. Just to check again, I went out and put it in reverse after sitting 2 hours and its not nearly repeatable (i.e. no sound at all somtimes). Any ideas what this might be?
    We've heard the other clunking sounds when shifting in reverse that have been mentioned in earlier postings. This seems different.
     Guess I should mention our Pilot is not part of the recall, although we wonder if the "fix" for transition cars caused the leak we noticed at 600 miles. The ATF had drained to the "fill" line and was diagnosed as a leaking shifter shaft seal on the side of the transmission.
     As a lesson-learned, I would highly recommend looking at the transmission/front differential during Pre-Delivery Inspection or within 2 weeks. Our first indication was a spotty driveway.

adamicjg

04 EX-L with RES is about a week old and yesterday I noticed an unusual sound that I have not heard before(most likely because I usually always have the radio on and did not yesterday). When accelerating, I can hear a distinguished whining sound coming from the engine compartment(almost sounds like the whining sounds old radios would make because of feedback when accelerating) which gets louder as I increase engine RPM's. I switched the transmission to neutral and pushed on the accelerator and heard the same issue. Does anyone have an explanation for this, and is it normal? Def. an annoying sound. I would like to know before I call the dealer to schedule a repair claim just to end up looking dumb.

bbug1

Your Pilot is not on the recall list, really?
Just curious how you found out.

mugsy

"I would highly recommend looking at the transmission/front differential during Pre-Delivery Inspection or within 2 weeks. Our first indication was a spotty driveway."

Come again? Please explain for us car-phobic people what you mean by looking at the transmission/front differential. Also, please describe the spots, were they quarter sized, or more like a small puddle, and what color were they?

qbrozen

i assume then that you must have purchased out of state?
I have not had this problem in Jersey because I bought it from a Jersey dealer and, therefore, have a Jersey inspection sticker until 2007. I'd be interested to learn more of your problem, though, since I'll have to deal with it in the future.

qbrozen

yours is definitely different than what has been posted here before (concerning the brake clunk that happens the first time going in reverse and hitting the brakes). If your is happening once per revolution, then it sounds like you have another problem that must be addressed by the dealer.

qbrozen

I'd be very worried about this given the issues with the early '03s and failed timing belts. You SHOULDN'T have the same problem with your '04, but it would still concern me.

54maxell

I purchased my Pilot in NY and I live in NJ. After the purchase, I brought the vehicle to DMV in Eatontown but I did not have to get it inspected. I had to go inside DMV to get a yellow tag (I think it was yellow) and then I got in line for the inspection. When they saw I had a yellow tag they waved me through and put on a 4 year sticker.
Very curious why your new Pilot would fail the emission test. If on that day many of them failed then I would wonder if the inspection station had faulty equipment. If you hear any more info please let us know.

dedog

I registered on the Owner-link web-site https://www.ahm-ownerlink.com/SEO/HondaRecall.asp It promises to tell you instantly whether your car is involved. If you don't have an account registering is not hard but you'll need your VIN. Good luck

dedog

The fluid lost was enough to have the dipstick go from the full mark to just above the the fill mark in a 2 week period. I had to put about 6 ounces in to get it back near full. It was enough to coat the pan (shift cable cover) where the shift cable (Park, Neutral, Drive, Reverse...) is routed into the transmission. It is the cable that enters the transmission parallel to the main drive shaft that is connected to the rear differential. It was enough fluid to teardrop and leave 5 spots on the driveway. If you have the 2004 brochure it is right under the "1" that is shown on the drawing of the 5 main components of the VTM-4 wheel drive system. Hope this is adequate description.

dedog

Sorry for the incomplete reply. Automatic transmission fluid is a bright red oil and can get brownish as it mixes with the dirt on the underside of the car.

dedog

Acutally I am curious if anyone can duplicate this with their Pilot. If the car is cold/just started after sitting a couple of hours and you back up in reverse - no sound. If the car has been driven around and well warmed up, there is no mistaking the once per tire rotion clunk when backing up in reverse. There is no clunking once per tire rotation when driving forward cold or hot. Any ideas as to what this may be?

cameramatt

I had just registered with the Honda Owner-Link a couple days ago and wouldn't you know it, my 04 Pilot I bought in early March is included in the trany recall.

calg

I just took our 03 Pilot in for it's 30,000 mile service. It was part of the tranny recall, but fortunately they did not find any problems - not even any discoloration - so they just installed the oil jet kit. I got a loaner car for the day since it was going to take several hours to do all the work... they also had to install a new rear spoiler (under warranty) since ours was warped and we could not open the rear hatch. No sign of any leaking. My husband just drove it from Vermont to New Jersey today and all seems well.

terumi1

The clunking when shifting into reverse, then the clunking sound that occurs again when shifting into drive after backing up, are your brake pads self-adjusting to the disks. They are floating brake pads and will do this after the car has sat for a while. Supposedly, in that self-adjustment, it also serves the purpose of knocking the dust off the disks. The brakes are noisy in this process.

readytogo

I purchased it from Oh. When I was in Freehold inspection center, the guy asked me for the yellow tag. I did not know what he was talking about (DMV did not give me one). Anyway, got the "Gas Cap failed" issue. Brought it back to a dealership, was told they could not find anything wrong with the gas cap, but replaced it anyway for me. Went back to inspection. Passed without issue. Then was told the issue was very common with CRV, not pilot. Now my problem is that I only got a 2-year sticker. I can live with it.

qbrozen

terumi, he's talking about something else entirely (at least it seems that way). He's saying that there is a clunk each time the tires rotate. The brakes are not adjusting constantly. The one initial clunk is the brake shim issue (and there is a fix for this and your dealer will do it at no charge), but dedog is saying that he is experiencing a continual and consistent clunk.

terumi1

Sorry to jump in there like that qbrozen. I haven't read a lot of the posts lately, and that one caught my eye for some reason.

Thanks for keeping us on the straight and narrow with good inputs!

qbrozen

no apologies needed at all.

hey, ya know, i just thought of something else, and, actually talking of the brakes again made me think of it ... so its good you brought it up, terumi ... but some folks have complained of warped rotors. Maybe, possibly, that is causing this problem, dedog.

toca

I just had mine turned for a second time. I told the dealer I didn't think they would last long and I believe they will replace under warranty next time I bring it in.
1st time was at 13K; 2nd time was at 25K (although brakes were pulsating for some time before I brought it in).

terumi1

Definitely will cause the pulsating and the clunking initially going into reverse and drive after sitting a while.

dedog

Thanks qbrozen, I think you're probably right. Can't say I fully understand only in reverse, and only after warmed up (although I can picture increased friction with the heat). The repetitive sound is very similar to the initial clunk you get in both directions. Think I'll have it checked out. Also, I don't know the history wrt to the brake shims. Is there is a shim fix that helps/fixes freeplay in the brakes/calipers to minimize the clunking?

clpurnell

I know I will get shot by fellow pilot owners but if you do serious offroading you need a truck based suv. I would suggest either a toyota 4 runner or wait for the new pathfinder from nissan. If your offroading is light duty then the pilot is a fit. I don't do any offroading but needed to seat at least 6 on occasion so that is why I chose the Pilot. Similar to you I could not justify the increased price or fuel costs to move up to a full size suv. And when you compare the pilot to the competition (highlander, envoy xl, xl7 etc) it is a screaming bargain especially if you can get a deal.

qbrozen

yeah, the shim TSB they issued for both the MDX and Pilot will fix that initial clunk when you first step on the brakes after shifting into gear. My wife just had hers done this past week. she says she hasn't noticed the clunk since.

qbrozen

nah. i won't crucify you.
I certainly wouldn't do any real off-roading with the Pilot. Last vehicle I had that I would do such a thing with was my 4runner.

skelp

The clunking is the gasoline sloshing in the plastic fuel tank. This is a known problem with the Pilot. There is no baffling system in the tank to prevent sloshing. The clunk is prominent at 3/4's of a tank full or less and at slow speeds when going into reverse or forward and then putting on the brakes.

clpurnell

Have to say I am very disappointed in the service I received at the Main Gillman Honda store in Houston, Texas (where I bought the vehicle). I specify the Main one because they have a second dealership in rosenberg where I went for my first service and it was much better. First off the price of service was extremely high ($155) then they redelivered the vehicle to my wife with the maintenance indicator still lit and dirty. They also failed and refused to change the VTM-4 fluid even though it is in the owners manual to do so. My first service while taking extremly long (over 2 hours for an oil change) at least was reasonable ($32). I mean the 7500 mile service on my pilot was over twice as much as on my Infiniti FX35 ($68). In addition my pilot is part of a recall which they failed to notify my wife about and did not address. Is this typical of honda service if so I may dump honda after this lease is over.

qbrozen

again, he hears it with every revolution of the tires. fuel tank slosh doesn't explain it, either.

dedog - have you had it checked out yet? any more clues?

dedog

No I haven't had it checked yet. I have 3 trips + vacation coming up so I don't know when.
After the last input about brake shoes, I had my wife drive back and forth on the driveway as it was thumping/clunking, while I was standing next to the driveway. I couldn't even hear the noise from the driver's side, but could hear it from the passenger's side. The noise didn't sound like it was coming from the wheel/brakes, but more under the car - like the rear differential.
qbrozen is right - once per tire rev, only when warm, only in reverse.

leyrer

I had the transmission fluid changed with my engine oil change at Valvoline Instant Oil Change. They claimed to have the Honda fluid, but once they were done had instead used MaxLife transmission fluid with the claim that Honda has approved it for use in the Pilot. Needless to say I'm skeptical. Anyone with any experience with this?

opus5

Your owner's manual states that you can substitute DEXRON III tranny fluid if need to, but at the first convenient opportunity, you should triple flush and fill your transmission with proper Honda ATF-Z1 tranny fluid. States that continued use of the non-Honda fluid may affect shift qualities of the tranny. I don't take chances with the tranny so I stick with the Honda fluid. Also, if tranny goes (God forbid), then I don't want a warranty issue caused by using non-Honda fluid.

pccompute

Your not the only one with this problem. For those who just recently purchased the Pilot will think it is comfortable. After awhile or during extended road trips, the seats are anything BUT comfortable. I recently sold my Pilot and one of my wife's biggest complaints is the uncomfortable seating.

isellhondas

O.K....I have to ask...WHY would you take a new , under warranty car to a quickie lube in the first place?

I'm not saying all of these places are bad...they aren't. Still, now you are skeptical over the work they have done?

jay_24

Because the Honda dealer is too far away? Nearest Honda dealer for me is 35 miles away. We happen to live in a major metro area. That was too far for my wife to take the Pilot and 3 kids for oil changes. Hence we didn't get a Pilot.

However, last I checked oil changes and tire rotations are not free warranty items and not required to be done by the dealer.

isellhondas

Yes, distance could be a problem, I agree.

Guess I've just seen too many botched up jobs by these quickie shops.

A " major metro" area with no Honda dealer???

Really?? I can drive to five Honda stores in less than an hour.

jay_24

Less than an hour drive can be 50 miles or more. For me Minneapolis/St Paul Metro area. I didn't say they didn't have one. Just none that are close. Closest being about 30 to 35 miles away. There are 5 in the area and all are mostly on the west side of town.

-jay

bernardh

I had the same problem with mine. Now the transmission and the trans axle are gone at 37975. I'm currently working with Honda to have this replace at no cost otherwise I will make a campaign against this vehicle. I insisted that the shifting was rough and hesitant. However they explained that it was a computer glitch. Well I know where this car is going soon... Good luck and please bring this to your dealer attention.

bernardh

I am disappointed on the Pilot. I got mine and had no leaks but the hesitation on shifting was there always. Now at 37975 the tranny is gone as well as the trans axle . I I'm waiting for Honda to come through. The more I read about their inexperience with 4x4, the more I am reluctant to buy a Honda anymore. I believe that American can do a better job when it comes to trucks.

qbrozen

I find it rather curious that paviaboy signed up on Edmunds back in February, posted that one message concerning his Pilot's transmission, then no other posts since. Now bernardh has signed up today and posted only these 2 messages in response to that single message from Pavia. Will we ever hear the followup to this complaint? Don't get me wrong, bernardh, if your issue is for real, that sucks. But you can see why I hesitate in believing much of anything I read on these boards. Letting us know how Honda handles your problem could be helpful.

paviaboy

i'm back. 4got my password.
i replaced my pilot/res to another pilot/nav.just 4 mos. w/3768 miles on it.
the first one -got a call from honda motors company (recall)
i have to notify the manager so they can call the buyer.
i'm happy with my pilot /nav. now.