Honda Pilot Maintenance and Repair

ajwx3

Dear tphpilot,

I bet you are correct - it has something to do with door realignment. It may also be something that needs to be adjusted every so often as the door misaligns from opening and closing it. I still am noise free with the weather stripping on the doors but American Honda called me back and wants to fix the problem. He referred me to another dealer who is confident that he can fix the problem. I have nothing to lose. I will let you know the outcome.

By the way, on another topic (namely "wind noise"), I had the vent shades installed on the windows to see if it would reduce the wind noise. It did not make it better or worse but it did change the tone of the noise. I prefer it without the shades so I am taking them off.

55535432

I just receive a call from a close friend regarding his Pilot woes.He knows I'm a forum junkie,thus he wanted my opinion but can't give him one, so guys help me out.

Here is how he got into trouble.He has a black Pilot 03 (just like mine, we bought it from same delearship a week a part.

The warranty on his ride expired last week, he is now on his 36,215 miles.This morning on the beltway, a huge piece of plastic sheet (about 4'x 6' )came floating out of nowhere and wrap itself around on the Pilots front end right where the H emblem can be found.

He was lucky enough the huge plastic sheet didn't get to the windshield. He immediatelly vereed from the fast lane and stop on the safest spot on the highway to remove the plastic (distance traveled maybe half a mile).His wife, and 2 other passengers commented they smell something like burnt rubber, he did not smell it. After another 15 miles of travel they arrive at their destination, and both of them noticed the smell this time.THE Burnt rubber SMELL disappears but GETS NOTICED SPORADICALLY, THE ONLY PATTERN HE SAW ALBEIT INCONSISTENTLY WAS WHEN THE VEHICLE ACCELERATES FROM A STOP THE SMELL GETS STRONGER.The engine temp remained normal.

LATER THAT DAY, HE ALSO NOTICED THAT HE AND 3 PASSENGERS GOT SO DROWSY TOGETHER, THAT THEY SUSPECT CARBON DIOXIDE/MONOXIDE POISONING, SECONDARY TO THE SMELL. Not even 2 cups of very strong starbucks cofee prevented him and his three passengers to take a snoze at a rest area all at the same time.Weird huh.After a 20 minute nap they drove for another 25 miles before reaching home.

The smell of something burning really bug him since he personally saw a car consumed by fire a year ago in a stoplight. Now he has a fire extinguisher on all his vehicles.

Can anyone with engine/car aircon savvy shed light to this situation.He doesn't trust the delearships enough coz he got a lot of "thats normal or we can't duplicate the problem alibi"

tidester

After that experience I don't understand why your friend didn't get his Pilot to the dealer or a mechanic immediately. Also, CO and CO₂ levels can be measured so it's not a guessing game. Did anyone bother to look for physical signs of damage like torn, shredded, loose or broken tubes and/or pipes?

tidester, host

slowry

I'm about to buy a 06 Pilot EX-L and would like to hook up an Ipod. I ran into the same problems as you. Did you ever find out a way to hook it up with the factory installed stereo with XM?

55535432

Actually, this incident happened around 11 am today and he left the Pilot with the delearship per my advice around 7:30 pm Maryland time, so he does not have to run to the delearship early in the morning of 4/6/06. The delearship closes at 8 pm.

He just bugged me again and again coz he though I know all the answers to his questions. Sheeesh, I only help the guy negotiate a good price on his ride now he thinks I'm a mechanic or a walking CO/CO2 detector.

I suppose, he trust my opinion better than those alledgedly "trained experts", who up to now after installing can't fix the foglights on his Pilot. The panel gaps are outrageously 1/4 inch wide on the grey housing where the foglights are attached to.

Seems to me, he knows I'll be at Edmunds forums asap trying to search for solutions to his problems.Guess he was right, anyone care to offer any insight to these problems.Pls. :confuse: :confuse:

devrem

Sorry, I hit the wrong key. To finish - When driving down a dark road with no other light source we have a visible line that's about 20' in front of the car seperating the darkness (above the line) from the lit road (below the line). This line is very defined and when you hit a dip in the road you loose all visibility.

Apparently, Popular Science had a recent article on current headlight problems in that the headlight manufacturer forgot to install a reflector in the lens.

Has anyone else had this problem or read the article. My Honda service center says that the headlamps are adjusted to spec.

raydahs

You guys might want to look at this as an alternative. It's not as "COOL" as using the steering wheel buttons to control everything, but it works extremely well (I have one) and a heck of a lot cheaper than replacing the head unit....hope it helps.

http://reviews.cnet.com/Sonnet_PodFreq_Premium_FM_transmitter/4652-6519_7-314133- - 03.html?tag=series

An advertisement comes up first, hit continue to CNET in the upper right corner to see the product in reference.

nevets2

I have a 2005 Silver Honda Pilot well cared for. The clear coat on the paint is peeling in the unibody area that the right front passenger door is mounted to. The entire area below the door threshold/rocker panel part of the unibody has the clear coat peeling also.

Anyone else see symptoms like this?

cityfishin

Some stereo guy said that he could hook up something that is "FM Direct". It's different from an FM transmitter in that it takes over an FM station and doesn't rely on the antennae to pick up the signal. I'm still looking into this. The other option is to replace the stereo. The frustrating thing is that the radio on the LX works just fine with the Honda iPod connector. Honda wouldn't switch out my radio for a lesser one when I bought it. Bummer.

master1

I do not understand. Did he take the car to the dealer or not?
Just a small polite suggestion - Please try to not talk so much about information not regarding this one issue because it just gets slightly confusing.

master1

Some chemical or rocks must have hit it because this is the first time I heard about paint peeling off. Something may have been sticking out of the road. The paint most likely wouldn't peel off by itself, something hit it.

keatonhonda

I too have the smell of something that has burnt. I have been experiencing a problem with the fatory installed DVD Entertainment system in my 2003 Pilot. As the system warmed up (stereo, DVD, CD either one), the sub woofer, the wireless headphones, and wired headphone would suddenly make a buzzing sound. It was so load in the headphones that it would hurt your ears. The sound would go away after the car was shut off. Long story short, a couple of weeks ago as I was exiting off the Interstate, smoke poured from behind the center console. From behind the radio, up from around the DVD player, steering column etc. I stopped as soon as I could and my daughter and I got out of the car. The smoke cleared...no fire occurred (at least not visable) and the car smelled like burning electronics. The noise in the woofer is gone, radio still works, dvd and everything else seems to work though the sound is not as solid or crisp as it used to be. I took the car to the dealer, he pulled out the radio, said everything looked find and claimed to have to send the radio out to be tested. $125 just to test and trouble shoot. Repair if needed would be extra. The dealer was very very hesitant about digging into the DVD player. Claimed that the dash would have to be removed in order to even trouble shoot and the whole event would take a day or two at $90 an hour. Repair extra. Needless to say, I have not moved forward on the repair. Still trying to figure out if any real damage has occurred.

55535432

Yes, he took the car to delearship (the one who installed his foglights with 1/4 inch panel gaps).Twas 5 miles from his house next one was around 26 miles according to him.
Repair to take out the burnt plastic which melted into several spots on the car engines hot parts when its running was a whooping $112.

Stealership said that the burnt smell would stay for a few more days till all plastic gets burn out, the only consolation for him is that it is only noticeable when someone is outside the vehicle.Inside it's been smell free.

rich357

I have a 2003 Honda Pilot and while driving tonight I noticed that the D (Drive) light was blinking. I stopped at a light and shifted the auto. trans. into P and the other gears but the D was still blinking. I turned the car off and on again and the blinking stopped. I can't find an explanation in the Manual. Any explanations would be greatly appreciated.

Rich357

master1

Don't worry about that. Sometimes that happens, but if it continues take it to your dealer.
But it's normal, sometimes the car's computer does that.

teddavid

I have a 2005 Pilot with about 11k miles on it.

It has been fine in every respect except that about 6 months ago it began to flash the lights and honk the horn even when I had not hit the panic button on the key.

I let it go as it seemed to be intermittent. Then it began again and would not stop. I would reset with the key and it would go off again in 10 mins. I had to remove the horn relay to get a good night's sleep. (pity the neighbors)

Eventually the flashing headlights would reset only start in again. It finally drained the battery. The car is now at the dealer for more than a week. They have run this test and that, changed a "multiplexer" and several of the pin switches on the doors and hood to no avail. They are now talking about "flying in" some top mechanic.

Anybody here have this problem, hear of this problem or have some thoughts on it?

They gave a free loaner but I want my truck back and am wondering at what point the car is unfixable and they have to give me a new one. (I do not want a new one, I want MINE) but I do want this fixed.


td

ratnip

2005 EX-L w Navi has the CD changer under the driver's seat. The Navi DVD is under the passenger seat. The CD changer uses a removable cartridge that holds up to 6 CD's.

cityfishin

I just read about the Harman Kardon Drive and Play system that hooks up to your stereo via an aux input jack. It sounds awsome and MacWorld reviewed it and loved it. I'm going to try to find more out about them. They have them at Circuit City though when I was there, the guy told me that they were for Harman Kardon stereos only which isn't true. So, I'm skeptical of those guys. I don't know if anyone else sells them though.

Good luck and let me know if you find out anything.

rtrin77

I just hit over 100k, never had a problem with any part of my 2003 Pilot. But just recently, my engine light went on. I checked the gas cap, and that took care of the problem for a week. The light went on and has stayed on. I took it to the Dealership to have it serviced and they reset the code so that the light would go off. The light went back on in matter of a few hours. They are telling me that they will change the Trans fluid, if that doesn't work, then they are talking about putting a new trans in (at a cost of $3000 to $4000). I've been reading alot of post about this problem. Is there anyone else that has had the same problem and what are you doing about it, or what is Honda doing about it. I need some direction as to who to contact or what other solution there is out there. Thanks!

TigerT

suvtime

Other than the light being on is the transmission acting up in any way? Maybe take it to another dealer for a second opinion if there is one close by.

Who knows, it may be the something much simpler like a faulty engine light. Wishful thinking I know, but you never know. Good luck and let us know what happens.

snake34

Just bought a new 2006 Pilot EX-L. Noticed 2 issues:
- The Driver side Power windows Auto Up/Down does not work. Normal up/down works.
- Also noticed that there is a slight "whistling" noise coming from the driver window, esp on the freeway (at higher speeds)

Is it just me...maybe. Any ideas, other than going back to the dealer

rich357

I have a 2003 Pilot EX and your whistling and driver window problems have been with me for 3 years now.

I know I'm the odd one, but I've been cheated by dealers in the past and NEVER go to a Honday dealer for repairs or maintenance other than recalls (2).

I have a mechanic I trust and he checks out all my stuff - when he tells me to "go to Honda" for the little things, like whistling" I just laugh and forget it. Otherwise, the car has been superb.

rpowers

Sorry, I didn't pick up on the issue being discussed. Is it a trans issue with the Pilot's? if so what are the symptoms?

Thanks,

snake34

Well my experience with Honda/Acura has been pretty good for the last 5-6 years. I was wondering if I am doing something wrong to activate the Auto Up/Down but it seems that the switch for Auto is not working. I also have a Acura TL which uses the exact same system and it works flawlessly on it. So a trip to Honda is due since it is all under warranty. 9/10 they will say that they do not hear any "whistling" sounds, but maybe they will if I complain a couple of times. I need to zero in on the exact technique to replicate the issue...which I should be able to (hopefully) over the next few days.

cityfishin

I was wondering if anyone knows about how the 4wd kicks in. Not the automatic 4wd that is always on, but the button you push to the left of the stereo that supposedly engages 4wd if you're stuck somewhere. I pushed the button to see if it worked and nothing happened. No light on the dash, or the button. I want to make sure if it actually works BEFORE I really need it. I will be taking it to the dealer to ask if I ever get a chance. Thanks in advance.

Cityfishin.

kabill

I've driven many Pilots, and only one had-IMO-an acceptable level of wind noise. I didn't buy it because it wasn't the color I want. I've heard the whistling you speak of. When the noise actually becomes a whole tone, a note, then it would drive anyone nuts.
Personally, I think it's the nature of this beast, but there are people who have written on this site who have had some luck resolving certain noise issues. Do a keyword search and you may get some helpful ideas.

wrascal

the button ONLY works when you shift into the two lowest gears AND stay below 18 MPH. Check your manual for exact specifics.

lumpydog

The driver's side window auto up/down feature is something that is disabled when the battery is disconnected. It's on the dealer's list of things to do pre-delivery. I bet they forgot to do this...

I beleive that re-enabling the auto up/down is as simple as rolling the wind all the way down, then all the way up - continuing to hold the button up fow two seconds after the window is fully closed.

This procedure is described in the owner's manual....

Hope this helps.

snake34

It certainly helped. I tried your procedure and the Auto On/Off works perfectly. Thanks a lot.....time to now drive and figure out that whistling sound.

rpowers

You will probably find out it's the transmission down shifting. While driving about 60mph apply the brakes firmly and watch the tachometer, when you feel the "grab" you'll see the RPM change. You may feel this twice in a long braking sequence like an off-ramp. It is one of the really irritating quirks of Hondas supposedly "great new hi-tech transmission".
Do you also notice your transmission jumps in-to and out-of a lower gear on just a slight throttle increase at hi-way speeds, like an overpass or very slight grade?

master1

It may also have to do with the drive by wire throttle

jimpghpa

hope this makes sense
2006 exl awd
know where the little sliding door is that uncovers the two front cup holders?
well right behind that is a little storage area right in front of the armrest thing. about the size to hold a pair of glasses or something. it looks like there should be a small cover over it. i can see theee slots where hinges and a latch might be. am a missing a lid? or is the way all pilots are? guess i could find one in a parking lot and peek in

tsy

You can move the cupholders to the storage area in front of the center console if you want. That way everything in front of the cupholders is storage that you can cover with the door, which I think is better than covering your cupholders.

tom

mkrobison

Did you ever find anything on the engine missing/possible trans problem? I am having the same issue at 35 - 45 mph.

Thanks.

rockfan

I bought this last Sat and starting hear this low bass rumble from the car whenever the VCM system kicks in (it shows ECO on the dash). Went back to the dealer and made their head mechanic and sales guy go with me on the test drives and both heard the noise. They test drove other 2WD LX models and heard the same noise but not in the EX trim. Long story short, they think that the noise is not dampened as well in the LX models and added some dampening strips to the speaker areas to fix the problem. I'll find out tomorrow if this fixed the noise.

rukind

There is an AUX on the head unit. It seems to me that with this input you could wire the connection cable into this receptacle and then run the other end to a convienent position to hook up the iPod.

markjenn

The issues of wiring to the Aux input in current Pilots are complicated because it depends on the Nav, RES, XM, CD changer, etc. Honda has a expensive and complicated Ipod kit, but it only works on certain models of Pilots and Ipods. AFAIK, there is no simple kit that plugs into the back of the radio on all models and gives you an input controlled by the AUX. There are kits that appear to work, but only on some models and some option combos and I've never seen anyone who has really figured it out. Honda just made this needlessly complicated.

- Mark

user777

with all due respect to master1, a blinking "D" indicator suggests something may be wrong with the transmission, or possibly the speed sensing used by the transmission.

a reference to it should be in your owner's manual in the section on the automatic transmission.

turning the vehicle off and back on perhaps cleared a code detected by the transmission control unit. i suggest you consult your manual and then the dealership on this.

it's possible a code is still stored which can be retrieved by the technicians.

it may be nothing... or it may be the first indication of something amiss.

good luck.

teddavid

Problem solved. The lock "actuator" switch on the rear left door needed to be replaced. It was falsing and once replaced system went normal.

td

ogie271

OK, so make my original post "no vibes, water or smoke (yet)". Had our first real rain in NJ since I bought the 06 Pilot, and I got water on the front passenger side. Only seems to be there, not in the back or front driver. I can definitely see a small, but obvious difference in how some of the weatherstripping is installed around that door versus all the others, hoping that's the problem. Have not had it to the dealer yet, just happened. I have pics of what I saw, not sure how to post them, though. Anyone else have updates on this problem?

normh

I have the same problem and actually complained to American Honda about it but never heard a reply. Did you ever get any resolution to your problem?

wcnngt

I was told on hondasuv forum that this works:
http://enfigcarstereo.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/BLITZSAFE_HON_MLINK1_V2X.html

or this from www.hondapilot.org:
http://www.discountcarstereo.com/detail.aspx?ID=879

Does anybody know if it has the same functions as a Honda ipod music link? like:
1. Use the audio system's controls to search for and play music from your iPod
2. Use the steering wheel-mounted audio control buttons to search for and play music from your iPod
3. The Music Link system charges your iPod battery while it's connected and the vehicle is on

patches88

Were you able to get this problem with your fuel cap light fixed--did they give an explanation of the problem? I am having the same issue with my '06 Pilot (leased in Jan.) and will get it looked at this week. Let me know, thanks!

bevack

We just brought our two month old Pilot back from the service department for constant clicking noise heard only when coming to a stop. Assume road noise blocked it out at higher speed. Honda heard the noise and replaced our rotors. Yes rotors. Just as we returned home the noise reappeared. Bringing car back next week for second of three strikes your out lemon law in Florida.

georgec1

Just got a Pilot EXL. The car is great, but seems more "floaty" on the road than the Pilots that I test drove. Maybe I just didn't notice on the test drives or perhaps this is unique to this car??? Anybody else notice a pretty loose feel -- particularly on highway? I'm constantly having to make minor steering adjustments to track straight. It's not the wind. Any way to tighten up the feel on the steering?

master1

There might be something wrong with it. I'm not sure, but I don't think that you can tighten the steering feel - it's the motor

grayfather

Hey there,

Did you ever find a resolution to your gas gauge issue?

I have aan '03 Pilot. The gas gauge is skewed - reads 1/2 full when tank is full, E when anything less then 1/2 tank full. Dealer diagnosed it as needing a fuel sending unit replaced. $500!

I'm thinking of doing it myself and am looking for anyneo with experience.

Appreciate it,
Robert

jw105

We just purchased our new pilot ex-l last week and so far the cd player isn't working. It won't load any cds or even switch to any type of cd mode (so i made an appointment to go back to the dealership.) Now the speedometer occasionally stops working. We're driving down the road and the speedometer is on "0" - this has happened twice! I'm afraid of what's next. Has this happened to anyone? (the car only has 100 miles on it!!!)
:lemon: :lemon: :lemon: ?????????

markjenn

You've probably got a loose connnector. Take it in, let them fix it. You're miles and miles from having a "lemon".

- Mark

master1

First let the dealer fix it