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

runaround · August 2005

To be continued.....
Just received a call from "American Honda" seems they are different than "Canadian Honda" Since my product as he says is a "Gray Market" vehicle we are in the "Twilight Zone". No one wants to accept responsibility for this vehicle. Therefore be careful where you buy a Honda, because they will find a loophole to keep from fixing THEIR FAULTY PRODUCT. I will process complaint papers in the state of New York. I am not a satisfied customer. I will not own another Honda. The gentleman I spoke to from Honda of America, said that a Honda is not a Honda, and that Honda's built in other countries are inferior products. The dealer should be penalized for bringing cars across the border just to increase his sales, and then not standing behind the product.

user777 · August 2005

that doesn't make sense. honda doesn't make all their vehicles in the US.

can you register your VIN on the Honda's Owner-Link web-site? If so, do you have access to Recall information and Warrenty information?

imidazol97 · August 2005

Try taking your battery to a local parts store that charges batteries for free. Our local Advance Auto does that. I had a battery in a friend's grandson's car that tested below voltage for me and I had it checked at Walmart and they said it was fine, but admitted the voltage testing they do sometimes doesn't catch problems. I took it to AA and it passed the initial test in the automated machine for 90 sec and then failed the 5 minute test done before the machine starts a full charge cycle. The battery was a 7+ year old in a Cherokee.

IF the battery fails you can take that result to your dealer and stomp on the service manager's desk about why they're wasting your time over a $20 battery for them to replace under warranty.

runaround · August 2005

It is a Canadian Vin number and they do not recognize it when I have called Honda of America. When I call Honda of Canada, they recognize it, but say it is not a Canadian vehicle because it is not registered in that country. The dealer here is sympathetic, but says he gets his orders from Honda of America. Honda of America, says it's a Canadian vehicle, and isn't under American warranty. Dealer in New York says Gray Market vehicle,can't fix.... and never mentioned that word when I was making the purchase, knows I no longer live in the area, and will not be a return customer........ YADA YADA YADA.....Runaround

runaround · August 2005

They have admitted there is a problem with the transmissions. They have extended the warranty to 100,000 miles and are not standing behind their product or their customers. At the time we bought our Odyssey, they were in popular demand. That is why the dealers went to Canada to bring them back across the border, it doesn't look good when you don't have the most popular vehicle on your lot. When we purchased the van it was not a problem....same warranty, we will take good care of you. When there is a major problem, it is a "grey market" vehicle Canadian problem, can't help you out. People who live in states who border other countries should beware. As Mark Evensizer from American Honda said....A Honda from another country is not the same and does not have the same warranty. Sorry. My opinion.....Honda does not stand behind its product, it shouldn't matter what country it was made in.

rorr · August 2005

"Honda does not stand behind its product, it shouldn't matter what country it was made in."

A couple of comments:

First, I was under the impression that all North American Market Odysseys (this would include Canadian models) were built in Alabama. It would be news to me that Canadian Odysseys are built in Canada.

Second, is the replacement transmission specific to Canadian Odysseys? In other words, if you agreed to replace the transmission, would it have to come from Canada?

Third, what if you were still living in Canada, the car was registered in Canada and you were in the States on a vacation? And you went in for some minor warantee repair? Would the dealership point you to a Canadian dealership or would they do the warantee work?

Something smells rotten about this whole deal to me. Who pays for the replacement (Honda of Canada or Honda of America) shouldn't make a damn bit of difference and you shouldn't have to be the intermediary to get the two to talk to each other. You just want the car fixed and THEY should figure out amoungst themselves who's going to pay for it.

sebring95 · August 2005

Here's the deal....this is very common problem amoung all manufacturers. A few years ago, most all announced they would no longer perform warranty work on gray market vehicles (a vehicle that was originally sold in Canada and later registered in USA in this case). There are a few reasons for this, one of which is that to register the vehicle here, the entire dash cluster has to be changed which includes installing/reprogramming a new odometer. There has been gross negligence when this transfer takes place. The other reason the manufacturers did this was to protect dealers, because the market was being flooded with vehicles that were cheaper because of the exchange rate. It typically WAS NOT Honda/Dodge/GM dealers buying in Canada, but smaller used lots. We had one here in town at the time that you would always see nearly one/two-year old cars with rediculously low miles for sale. That blew-up when all this went down and the fraud was discovered.

Your beef should be taken-up absolutely 100% with the dealer that sold you this vehicle. Take it back to them and do some complaining. I agree with Honda (and Dodge, Chevy, Ford) on this, used cars shouldn't be transported between countries and then expect the manufacturer (sometimes a seperate entity all together like in Hondas case) to honor the warranty.

runaround · August 2005

I thought about taking it back to the dealer, but it would be a 7 hr drive. I am not sure a car with a faulty transmission should make such a trip. I have talked to them on the phone and they say it is a grey market vehicle. They won't fix it. The dealer here said that even if Honda would agree to replace it that they are not making those transmissions any longer and that we would have to go to salvage yards to try and find a replacement. Meanwhile what do I drive??? They did changed the odometer so that it read miles instead of kilometers, that is as far as they went, the van still reads celsius on the thermometer. The light went out on the clock and we were told it would cost hundreds of dollars to remove the dash to replace the bulb. You are right about that. The dealer is considered the owner, because he drove it across the bridge from Canada. Now I am not even considered the original owner, even though the car only had the miles from Toronto to Buffalo. Ray Laks is a well known dealer with also a Acura dealership. He knew exactly what he was doing. The Odyssey was is demand, so he trucked to Canada and brought them back. Honda has said they have made a product with a faulty transmission. Honda should approve this repair. I shouldn't have to be forced to drive a van with a faulty transmission back to the original dealer 7 hours away. I have 5 payments left on a van I cannot drive. I have a honda.....it shouldn't matter where it came from......it has a faulty transmission......it is Honda's fault......Honda should fix it. Are there any honest company's out there??? Are there any reputable dealers, who believe in their product and will stand behind it???

runaround · August 2005

Don't do it!!!! US won't honor Canadian car repairs, what makes you think Canada will honor US cars that need repairs. When I called Canada, they told me that yes my van was covered under the warranty, but since it was not registered in Canada, they would not repair it. Now that I have it in the US the canadian warranty is void. American Honda won't touch it. Sad huh. Buying a car out of the country and crossing borders seems to void Honda warranty s.

user777 · August 2005

would you please entertain the concept of trying to register the vehicle on the owners' link website? this is what i would do in your situation. i don't care if the VIN is Japanese, there is only one Honda company. try it and see if it provides you additional leverage.

as for the "they don't build them anymore" this i don't believe is true. undoubtedly, if anyone were getting their transmission replaced it would be a rebuilt one. there are rebuilts out there you can be sure.

jpmiller99 · August 2005

Had my Odyssey into the Dealer yesterday. The heard the "rumbling/roaring" noise at between 40-60mph. Thought it was a the left front wheel bearign. They then replaced the left front wheel bearing. They test drove it and noticed little improvement. Bearings are sealed units, so they couldn't determine if it was really bad, or not. Scheduled the right front to be replaced next week.

I think that the odds are against both wheel bearings going bad at 2500 miles, but maybe that just replaced the wrong one?

If it's not the bearing, where do we go from here? It doesn't sound like tires, but maybe it's a tire.

rmzip · August 2005

When my right front wheel bearing went bad at 7500 miles, I was told that there are actually 3 front bearings. One at each wheel and one in the middle between the two front wheels.

Just thought I would let you know, in case they hadn't mentioned it.

rnfu · August 2005

Wanted to say thanks for sharing your transmission issues and experiences.

I have a 2000 EX in California. so far, the transmission is ok (knocking on wood). however, having read your experiences, i am not sure if I should wait at the sideline or do something. I have about 60k miles and purchased the 100k/0 deductible warranty (thinking that the automatic doors would fail). I read that the 100k is automatically extended for the transmission for model year 99 - 03??? What do you advise? i am thinking:

1. trade it in for another one. but just bought another car and don't want 2 car payments, if possible.
2. continue to pray and change the transmission fluid frequently
3. start the process to see if honda detects if there is a problem and hopeful a swap.

I am also thinking that "if it aint broken, don't fix it".

I am interested in your thoughts.

thanks

Richard

jpmiller99 · August 2005

Drive it until the warranty expires (100K) miles, then get rid of it. Consider yourself lucky if you don't have to deal with the transmission. If it does have a transmission problem, you have the warranty to cover you.

Good luck...

fibber2 · August 2005

Need to debunk a couple of items:

1) Until the Alabama plant came on line in '02, I am pretty sure that all North American Odyssey's were built in Canada. I believe vin numbers that begin with 2 are Canada, 5 is from the USA.

2) The selling dealer telling you to find a tranny is nonsense. Honda is making them available to the dealers to support vehicles in the field, especially as they are an extended warranty item. IIRC, by law they have to make parts available for 10 years???? Yes, there could be constraints and delays, but read this board and note how many others are still getting their units replaced.

3) You are, unfortunately, a victim of fraud, and you will have to fight this on that basis. I am sure Eliot Spitzer (NYS attorney general's office) would love to hear about a case like this. It doesn't hurt to keep American Honda on notice, but ultimately, this will be an issue between the dealer and Honda to work out. Probably it will come out of the dealers pocket, at they are the ones that took the risk, and did the act.

4) Long shot: Google "Honda Worldwide" and register a complaint with the Japanese overlords about the screwing you are taking as the result of dealer fraud and Honda of America & Canada's indifference to the situation.

Steve

camerauser · August 2005

"Drive it until the warranty expires (100K) miles, then get rid of it." What a disappointment. I bought Honda because it was supposed to be reliable. Now I don't feel the extra cost and dealer hassle with Honda was worth a darn. And those pesky power sliding doors. And that road noise. And those rattles. Not what I paid good money for.

okc1 · August 2005

Bought my 05 EX-L on July 29. Noticed the wind noise coming from the passenger side. Took it to a dealer to fix the problem. A week later, the dealer installed a new windshield and the problem was gone. Now several days later, the whistling noise is BACK. This time its from the driver side. What should I do? I don't want to keep going back to the dealer if they don't have a real solution. I am thinking about waiting a little longer, maybe Honda will come with a real fix? Thanks for any suggestions/experiences!

robr2 · August 2005

As fibber noted, all Odysseys until 2002 were built in their plant in Canada to US and Canada market specifications.

Transmissions are still available.

Grey Market - just about all automakers started clamping down on Canadian spec vehicles being resold in the US. People were taking advantage of the favorable exchange rate and the fact that in Canada vehicles were priced less than in the US due to market conditions. Lots of dealers - including Honda dealers - were going to Canada and buying up Odysseys and reselling them as USED.

runaround - didn't it bother you when you bought it that you were paying MSRP for a USED vehicle? Also, when they changed out the speedometer/odometer your vehicle went into a total mileage unknown status. Are you aware of the resale hit you took? Not to sound like a jerk, but didn't you think your were outsmarting other folks who had to wait or pay over MSRP back then? You can't have your cake and eat it too.

Honda of America and Honda of Canada are 2 distinct companies. Their policy is that if the vehicle wasn't originally registered in Canada, it's a grey market car. Warranty is void. Now if you were a resident of Canada and registered the vehicle there and then moved or visited the US, you would be covered. Every manufacturer afaik has the same policy.

There was a huge thread on it a couple-three years back here. Search for "Buying in Canada".

I agree, your beef is with the dealer who promised you the world. Work with them or the NYS attorney general's office.

I wish you luck.

ads1978 · August 2005

I just put on a brand new set of aftermarket wheels for my 2001 Odyssey that I purchased from Tirerack.com (the wheels). The reason I did so was because all 4 wheels were in poor condition and had a vibration in the wheel at 60-70. With the new wheels on and professionally balanced, it still vibrates. I think my wheel bearing might be bad. Could that be casuing a vibration in the steering wheel?

rsht · August 2005

Perhaps not for a cross country family vacation, but, I personally have experienced a mechanic used my car to get parts for another vehicle that they were fixing; also, I have heard people telling me that their mechanics took their cars out for lunch, and long test drives for no real good reasons.... Keeping a log of your odometer reading before taking your car in for a repair is always a good idea, at least it does not hurt. Good Luck!

fairview1 · August 2005

I had the same problem and filed a complaint with the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration. They are listed in the owners manual. You can read my complaint at http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/.

I am due to receive my vehicle tomorrow with a brand new transmission.

fairview1 · August 2005

I had the same problem and filed a complaint with the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration. They are listed in the owners manual. You can read my complaint at http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/.

I am due to receive my vehicle tomorrow with a brand new transmission.

bluetoothless · August 2005

In just under three months of ownership with 4500 miles our A/C stopped cooling. At first it was intermittent events in manual mode when the blower continued to work, but the air got warm and stale regardless of temp. settings. Once AUTO mode was enabled the fan would kick up and the compressor would start cooling again. This was our short-term remedy until we figured out how we going to handle our transportation needs if we were down a vehicle. The dealership we purchased it at was reluctant to offer a loaner. A few days later it started to cut out in AUTO mode. I brought it to a Honda dealership much closer than the one I purchased it at and the technicians could not reproduce the problem in the four hours I waited. Between the dealership's nursery and a nearby McDonalds I was able to keep my 27 mos. old daughter surprisingly entertained. After four hours nap time was approaching and I decided to grab the service manager and find out what my options were. He stated that unless the techs could duplicate the issue or a check engine fault was logged into memory there was nothing they could do! I asked him how many times do I need to spend one of my valued days off with my daughter at his dealership before something gets done? " Do three visits=Florida Lemon Law?" :lemon: ??? When I returned from McDonalds they had the shop Foreman and the original tech in my advisor's office with the service manager. Supposedly, they duplicated the problem and decided the controller was bad and had to get one Fed Ex'd from the factory. Another advisor saw me still at the dealership after five hours and asked "are you still here?" She asked what was the problem and I explained it to her. She mentioned a service bulletin describing the same issue recently and wondered why nobody else brought it up. Eventually they got me a loaner through their dealership based Enterprise and they have had it for five days now working with Honda out of California to figure it out. Most recent belief is that it's the compressor clutch and coil, but the factory had a power outage and didn't make any emergency parts shipments so we wait some more.
Anybody else have this A/C problem????

dansgirl · August 2005

I've been reading about rumbles and vibrations from other posters, but they seem to state that it happens above 35-40 mph. My issue is a little different.

My '05 Ody has 10k miles, and for the past 3 days I have experienced a rough idle at 700 rpms. The roughness/vibration can be felt in the steering column and the pedals. As I accelerate the vibration worsens, and the roughness continues throughout my drive - if anything it improves over 50 mph, but will worsen if the VCM kicks in. It almost feels like a exhaust leak, but I don't know if it's something more serious. It can't be a wheel bearing since it occurs when I'm idling.

user777 · August 2005

its within the warranty period. it's not right. people can only speculate what's wrong. bring it in, and take a test drive with the shop foreman if necessary. don't delay as your problem may only worsen...

rsht · August 2005

Agree with user777, take it in for a checkup aspecially its still under warranty.
By description, any reply is only a guess, as to my guess its possibly a bad spark plug or injector, not sure if it can be the module for the same cyclinder as it should trigger the "Check Engine" light. Good Luck!

user777 · August 2005

right, could be super simple for them to diagnose and resolve quickly, and then there's no worries. however, if you keep driving it in its current condition, you can't be sure that further damage or inconvenience (like being stranded) is possible.

i_wanitfixed · August 2005

You should consider speaking with an attorney. The cost for an initial consultation should be reasonable or even free. Look for one who deals primarily in Lemon Law cases (even if lemon law does not apply at this point). If you purchased from an authorized honda dealer in the US, and were not aware that the car came from canada, honda america may still be liable. You may also have additional options if the car was financed through the dealer or honda and you are still making payments.

jups · August 2005

We have a 03 lx, and our a/c has been working intermittently. When it was cutting out there was a hissing noise coming from the front right of the van. We brought it in yesterday and they said it was a leak, but they didn't know where the leak was. So they injected a dye and said next time we bring it in they should be able to indentify where the leak is. Do you remember the service bulletin number or title? Maybe we can use that to our advantage.Thanks

fcube · August 2005

Apparently some whistling can be cured by lubricating the side window seals. Honda has just begun shipping some special lubricant for this purchase but probably some kind of silicone lubricant would work also. This worked for my business partner who has an 05. He says my 05 whistles also but I guess I'm too deaf to notice.

fcube · August 2005

The steering wheel on my 05 Touring has vibrated since new. Dealer balanced wheels without helping. At my request he had the wheels road force balanced on a Hunter GSP 9700, also without curing the problem. Now says he will contact Honda's tech line. The vibration occurs at about 60 mph. Its not that bad but I'd like to get it fixed. Any suggestions? Seems like a lot of cars these days have similar problems, including all models of the 2005 Ody.

windowproblems · August 2005

I purchased my '05 Odyssey in May and in June during a heat wave all the windows opened approximately 1/2 an inch. At first I thought, "cool feature! the car knows when the inside temp. is too hot! I wonder how it knows when to put them up"...it isn't a feature. Then it happened again this time however, only front windows down 2 inches. Today all windows down 8 inches. This is not good, especially going into Manhattan where 8 inches open will get everything stolen. Anyone else hear of such a thing? Took it to the dealer they thought I was cracked. :confuse:

sebring95 · August 2005

You're probably holding the unlock button too long on the remote. If you hold the unlock button, all the windows will rolldown. And they rolldown for whatever time period you're holding the button. Just blip the buttons when unlocking and I"ll bet your "problem" goes away

user777 · August 2005

one presumes this problem is happening while everyone is riding in the car... perhaps windowproblems would clarify for us?

melina · August 2005

Does anyone know a way to reprogram the 05 odyssey so the low fuel indicator will beep? My wife keeps running out of gas. Her old car beeped when the fuel was low.
Also any way to reprogram the dash board lights to stay on when the headlights are on but the car is off? Or have the dash dimned when the lights are off? The problem is when its around dusk the most important time to have your headlights on. The dash is all lite up and it appears the headlights are on.

pisciotta · August 2005

Does anyone know how to reset SRS light. Dealer wants a hundred dollars to reset this I tried disconnecting the battery but that didnt work, Thats what cause it to begin with !!!

user777 · August 2005

I believe you can reset the SRS light if you have the proper electronic scanner / diagnostic tool. I'm not sure if an auto-parts store would do this for you or not. An independant mechanic working on Honda's should have one. Call and find out. Perhaps a nominal charge.

stickguy · August 2005

Well, you really need to find out why the light is on and address the root cause first, otherwise it will likely come back on (plus you might not have airbags).

What year is your van? There is a new recall for the 2005 model (bad sensor).

user777 · August 2005

Agreed. the poster seemed to imply that changing the battery was the cause for the SRS light illuminating.

odybill · August 2005

My EX-L developed a crack in the lower passenger side of the windshield with only 1k on the odometer :sick: . The crack starts from the the black part and runs upwards about 5-6 inches above the windshield wipers. The star appears to be inside the car and I find it hard to believe a rock caused it since the star is directly under the wiper blade. Would this be consider a defect from Honda?

dennisctc · August 2005

Check Oddy history, I think others have had same problem.

joelg1 · August 2005

Just returned from 6000 mile trip Florida to Canada in my touring with 3700 at start. Averaged 25-27 mpg on hiway and 20-21 mixed. Only problem so far is whistle noise which has been previously noted. Everything else worked great. The nav system was perfect particularly in working around accidents.

ads1978 · August 2005

I have an 01 Odyssey EX with 65,000 miles on it. There is a bearing like noise coming from the car while traveling over 50MPH, but I was told that it is not the bearings.
I also have a vibration in the steering wheel while traveling over 55MPH. I have new tires and I had tried a few times to rebalance the wheels, and it still vibrated. I even replaced the wheels with brand new aftermarket wheels from tirerack.com and it still does it. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what it could be???
P.S. My wife is about to kick my butt if I don't get her van fixed soon. HELP!!!

amfnamf · August 2005

I was surprised to read about the feature that allowed all the windows to open when the unlock on the remote keyless entry was pressed and held. It is a far fetch...could something be triggering that mode of the remote keyless entry?

dansgirl · August 2005

They've had it at the shop for 2 days now, and are unable to locate the source of the problem. The good thing is that they recognize that there is a problem. When I asked them on Monday if it could be a loose spark plug wire or a bad spark plug (my husband thought that may be a possibility too) they shrugged it off saying that the check engine light would have come on. How do repair shops work these days? Do they rely on sensor systems to tell a magical computer what the problem is, or do they really know the mechanics of a vehicle anymore?

user777 · August 2005

well, with the increased functionality and complexity, i believe many shops do infact rely upon the internal diagnostic capabilities of said systems to get a handle on what is wrong. one problem, as you've discovered, is there is a range of issues that can exhibit themselves which do not result in a code being logged by the system.

this is where operational knowlege (how is the system designed and why would this problem exhibit itself) vs. prescriptive knowlege (how do i follow a diagnostic checklist or flowchart, what do i pull off, etc) comes into play. the really good mechs must have a lot of experience, have seen and read a lot, have tried many things, etc.

yes, the good thing is they acknowlege there is a problem. please update everyone.

aren't you glad you brought the vehicle in for diagnosis earlier rather than later?

felixdacat13 · August 2005

Hi,
I did a search of these boards but have not found anything like this problem.
I have a 2001 Odyssey with 53K mileage. For the last few days I noticed an odor. I then saw that the carpet mats in front of the drivers seat were soaked with water. I told my wife who said that she had noticed water build up on the carpet in front of the passenger seats.
Not being able to drop off the vehicle yet, I quickly stopped by the dealership's repair center. The drop off person believed it could be possible that this involves some kind of blockage of the air conditioner's drainage. I made an appointment to drop of the van on Friday. He said $95 to diagnose, which would be subtracted if a repair was needed.
The usual questions:
1- Anyone ever heard of this type of problem?
2- Anyone concur with the initial diagnosis (besides me)?
3- Sould this type of problem be covered under warranty?
4- If this is not warranty work, how much is reasonable for labor?
5- What type of parts are most likely needed to be replaced? How much should they be?
6- While I'm at it, should I just get the 60K service done?

Thanks,
Felix

user777 · August 2005

if you are stopped with the AC on, get out and look under the vehicle near the passenger front tire. if you don't see water exiting the vehicle, then it's likely the drain is clogged. yes it happens on vehicles, specially those parked under trees that drop pine needles and the like.

you need to keep the area below the windshield (with the hood open) free of debris. do this periodically.

$95 to diagnose is pretty steep, specially when all they are likely to do is the same I just mentioned.

go to a local garage and ask if they'll use their compressor and blow air up the drain tube.

if that unclogs it, you might want to pull your glovebox, and remove a cross-member to get at the pollen filter and see what sort of junk is in there.

I think a pollen filter job is on the order of 100-120 so it seems the garage isn't doing you much of a favor.

hope it helps.

jodieb · August 2005

Its nice to know there's sympathy out there for the problems related to this vehicle. How long do people usually put up with so many problems? We bought an '05 Odyssey EX and have had it in a dozen times in the last 10 months, from windshield replacement to sliding door problems, window problems, multiple broken parts, A/C recall, and a paint blemish. We are at the end of our rope. Any suggestions? I bought a new van hoping to avoid monthly service department visits. (Funny side note-as I was typing this, the service dept. called to schedule my next visit)

odybill · August 2005

what happened to your windshield?

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

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

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