03 Accord Owners Please Read.

matt87109

Anybody with an 03 Accord please post even if you don’t have this problem. If your car’s fine I want to know!

First off let me say the car is great!

I have a 03 Accord Sedan EX-L (4 cyl, man tranny.) Shortly after purchasing it I noticed that it had a slight steering wheel vibration at highway speeds. I believe the average unassuming person would just live with it as it is not that bad, but then again the average unassuming person buys a GM, Ford, or Chrysler. I'm very fluent with cars, so I thought right away I must have an out of balance tire or an out of round tire. I took it to the dealer and they gladly balance the tires. They claimed to have found a couple out of balance tires, so great right? Nope... still vibrating. I figured I was just being a picky [non-permissible content removed] and forgot about it for a couple months. Well the other day while driving on smooth new pavement I noticed my arm shaking from the steering wheel...”BS I said they gota do something about this.” This time they gladly balanced the tires again AND rotated the fronts to rear. I figured I had an out of round tire, and that getting it on the rear of the car would take the vibration out of the steering wheel... keep in mind the rest of the car seems to be riding smoothly. I marked the tires and observed weights to verify something had been changed, and it had been. The car is still vibrating after the second balancing and having the fronts moved to the rear.

I want to know if any of you are experience the same problem? If I'm not a looney, then maybe a group of us could put pressure on Honda to fix/redesign/recall... whatever. I just want to know if it's a "design" flaw and very prevalent (i.e. lots of people reply to this), or maybe just something with my car.

At this point I'm speculating a shaft is out of balance (doubtful), or the "new" steering design has a problem. The service manager told me that the new design was suppose to be more like a BMW and give you better feel of the road, but if this is the result give me a Chevrolet Impala that drives smoothly down the road for 20% less. Don't get me wrong... I love my car, but for 22,000 dollars I expect it to at least not giggle my hands driving down the freeway for hopefully 12 to 15 more years. I’m also considering pay somebody else to Balance the tires to see what happens.

Thanks,

Matt

fortportal

Matt,
 I have the same car and it seems to go straight without any vibration. Have you checked front tires if one of them is wobblely? - like when your bicycle rim gets hit from the side and when you ride, it wobbles. If it vibrates when the brake is applied, then it is the disk rotor.
Good Luck!
francis

jlacom2

I have an '03 EX Coupe with a V6. I can get that baby well over 100 and no vibration anywhere. Different engine, but everything else is pretty much the same. I would definately make them do something about it. Let the service guy drive it on the highway and feel what it is doing. He may be able to tell right away what is wrong. Remember, you paid for the car, it better damn well drive like it should.

silverk21

Mine does the same thing - EX V6 coupe. Have not had the time to bring it into the dealer though. Out of round tire could be the cause, usually starts at around 60-70mph and it does not matter what the road conditions are, ie. smooth road or not. There have been a couple of other complaints about this issue in other boards, but appears to be limited to a "lucky" few.

rave50214

I'll check when I drive home tonight. Mine EX-L just turned 500 miles today & I thought I noticed it when braking the other day. I know I read on another string on this same board about checking the amount of torque on the bolts. That particular string was about rotors warping. He was saying the rotors warp quicker if the wheels are put on to tight. Not sure if he's right or wrong...just passing the word.

over55

EX V6 coupe, 1700 miles. No vibration, no pulling. I once owned an Audi where all four OEM Goodyears self-destructed at various milages due to belt separations. It took a few miles to notice the abnormal wear patterns; the vibration this caused finally disappeared when all OEM's were gone (the vibration was never as bad as you describe). Michelin's aren't invincible. Good luck.

sd4sun

My 03 Accord has strong steering wheel vibration, but only on braking, even just a tap though. The dealer said the rotors were warped and machined them at 4000 miles. The car has 10,000 miles now and is doing exactly as before. This time around the dealer refused to repair under warranty and said the "brakes were fine and safe". I'm one mighty unhappy Honda owner. -

berbel

Matt87109:

Unless you actually like riding around with this condition, I
would suggest returning to your dealer and telll them that
you fully expect them to correctly analyze and resolve this
problem. Simply put.......THAT IS THEIR JOB!!! Tell them you
are leaving your car...you want a loaner and you don't want
your car back until it handles as it was designed to handle.
(It certainly WAS NOT designed to handle with a ton of vi-
bration coming through the steering wheel) Raise your voice..attract attention....be assertive. I certainly would not
put up with any cavalier attitude on the part of your dealer
concerning this matter. You said this has been a problem since shortly after you purchased the car. Don't you think it's
time they ^*(_&*^%$% did something about it?????

berbel

blane

Have you rotated the tires front to rear? If you still feel a problem up front while driving it's not the wheel or tire, but something else. If your vibration goes away or is reduced, the wheel or tire formerly at the front is suspect.

atlantabenny

Don't have this problem on my 03 coupe, but a pertinent example is of a friend's Lexus GS300 whose entire suspension AND steering systems were replaced by Lexus to eliminate a shimmy.

Dealer of course re-balanced and rotated tires previously and still couldn't fix it.

A Goodyear franchise finally fixed the problem; they simply had an extremely competent technician who knew how to balance tires.

Based on this scenario, I'd have the dealer replace the rim/tire set with one from a new car which has been driven at the same conditions without problem. In the remote chance this isn't feasible, I'd get an aftermarket shop to do the job with a commitment from the dealer to reimburse the expense.

tenor38

My EX-V6 Sedan now has 700 miles and no problems with steering vibration...very smooth and powerful acceleration and deceleration without a wobble. Just don't get me started on the rear window vibration thing!

ravb

Sorry to hear about that problem. I feel like I have the opposite problem. The car is so smooth that I glance down to see my speed and I am doing 20-30 miles more than I thought. Can you have the service manager test drive the car with you so he can see the problem?

rave50214

Checked mine. No problems. Thank the Lord for this blessing. I know what you're talking about....I've got an '88 that's done the same thing for quite a while. Once I had new tires & the rotors turned it took care of it. I'm go to the head service manager. If that doesn't get you results, go there on a real busy Saturday, when they've got a bunch of people there. Then try the raising your voice...you'll get some service. Let us know how things turn out.

tblazer503

I have no major problems. Just turned 8,800 miles this month. Rotate every 3750mi and never had the tires balanced. I do notice that the clutch doesn't seem to hold real well, though...

I will admit that the dampening on the steering is not very strong, and that's what gives it that "euro" driving feel. One of the things that I would probably check is the bolts on the suspension-- anti-sway, struts, etc. If there is a loose bolt, it will magnify any vibrations from the road.

riswami

person buys Ford, GM and Chrysler!

You buy a car that sells 400,000 units a year and you think your special? What makes me laugh is people who think like you are surprised that their cars aren't perfect. Go back to reading consumer reports!

Kirstie_H

That wasn't a very helpful comment. Let's cut the sarcasm and focus on helping other members with their questions.

kirstie_h
Roving Host & Future Vehicles Host

riswami

right.

However the original post is highly offensive and inappropriate and not necessary to get across the point. To categorize people buying GM, Ford and Chrysler as average and unassumming wasn't necessary!

aming

Sorry to go against you but.....

He is at an Accord Forum and he can get away with stuff like that. Had he gone to a GM forum he would have been chewed up and spit out and vise versa.

Cheers....

Kirstie_H

Looks like this topic has outlived its usefulness anyway, so I'll freeze it and ask that further conversation continue in one of the many active discussions on the Accord. Thanks!

kirstie_h
Roving Host & Future Vehicles Host