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

aaykay · September 2005

Mine is also close to 10K miles. I think it has something to do with the brake pads used. I took mine to the dealer a few months back and they replaced the pads and re-surfaced the rotors (under warranty, of course). It has been almost 5K miles since then and I am happy to say that there are no more grinding or other unwelcome noises.

ti48 · September 2005

They also replaced my front brake pads a month ago and that did not fix the problem. I don't know if they re-surfaced the rotors or not.

minhvotx · September 2005

My 2000 Honda Odyssey recently starts to show very high reading on the temperature gauge on the hot days. It becomes very consistent when I push on the gas to go above 60MPH or up hill. I have the thermostat replaced but the problem was not resolved. It currently has about 80,000 miles. I would be interested to know if other people have similar problem and how to resolve.

rsht · September 2005

Wow! I would expect the dealers replace the rotors and pads rather than re-surface the rotors since you all have 05 Odys not 04s or older models... Will, I am more and more disappointed with Honda and its dealerships. Each of our Ody rotors are only with enough thickness to be re-surfaced just about once in their service life, for most that have had their rotors already re-surfaced at 10K miles or less, that pretty much means you will have to replaced your rotors the next time around... Will, when the time comes, be sure to replace them rotors with a nicer quality... Thank goodness its simple and relatively inexpensive to replace these rotors with after market upgrades...

jjtrindc · September 2005

This seems to be an issue with some rather large batches of the Ody's. It's definately the quality of the pads they used...so a lot of these "fixes" like resurfacing rotors, etc, are just temporary. Some dealers say Honda is aware, others say not. Consensus seems to be that it is not a safety issue. Fact is, however, that Honda needs to get a new line of brake pads in stock. In the meantime, hopefully aftermarket distributors will fill the gap.

aaykay · September 2005

Wow! I would expect the dealers replace the rotors and pads rather than re-surface the rotors since you all have 05 Odys not 04s or older models...

I thought about the same thing too. In fact, when I thought about it later, I felt I should have insisted on putting in new rotors under warranty or if they refused, to put in new rotors at my expense....rotors don't cost that much I presume.

daly1 · September 2005

Wish I had read your message before I paid the dealer $99 to get those crossbars! Assuming they are the same as my 05', you will need a "torx" socket, available a most parts houses & @ Home Depot.

shopaholicmom · September 2005

My bestfriend has an 05 ody purchased 2 weeks after mine and she said she feels the same thing. So im assuming this is normal and that its the ABS doing a self test.

badgerfan · September 2005

Uncle Al posted that message June 14, 2001 and based on his profile, the last time he was logged onto Edmunds was June 18, 2001. I doubt if you will hear from him!

rockycow33 · September 2005

check the fan thermocouple, I believe that is what it is called. I had a 90 accord that would heat up and that was the problem, the aux fan wasn't coming on. good luck, hope this help. You might be able to check it your self by letting the car idle and turning on the A/C if both fans come on it should be ok.

msibille · September 2005

Sorry for stirring up what appears to be an old fire, but I'm just getting caught up here after a few months of distractions by the Toyota Taco forums (2005 replacing my '94 Suzuki), work, and two hurricanes.

I think this PC thing is just going over the top folks.
I have no problem with, and sort of like the term grease monkey, and it was applied to me while in college. I'm pleased to be referred to in that way today, particularly since I've practiced as a mechanical engineer for the past 25 years. I take pride in the fact that I don't JUST wear a pocket protector and consult my calculator for every step I take, but can actually turn a wrench, perform some diagnostics, and actually FIX things.

If you don't know who you are, and have a sense of personal value, a label isn't going to fix that. Personally I find greasemonkey to be a term of endearment. I suppose someone could find "honey" or "sweetie" to be insulting too if they really wanted to. -0r under the wrong circumstances.

We waste too much energy on worrying about labels. The intent is what is important. If someone calls you a "mountain of a man", and the intent is an insult because he is saying you're a blockhead and move into action about like a mountain, then fine, be ticked off. But just assuming that a label is derrogatory is just getting out of hand and, to me, appears to often be someone just looking for a reason to be ticked off.

How 'bout looking for a reason to be happy?
Like if you weren't hit by hurricanes Katrina or Rita, or if you were affected, but still have a home to clean up and repair, or if you don't have a home, but your family is OK, or if you've had a tragedy, but you know you're still loved...

linumn · September 2005

Since I bought the 2003 Odyssey, the van tends to pull to one side. The dealership has done several alignments and I also have Michelin replace two tires. Then, the dealership changed the camber bolt. These measures seem to solve the pulling problem. Actually, as you can see below, I jsut fnd that the two newer tires were in the rear after they replaced the camber bolt.

However, the pulling occurs again after the tire rotation recently. Now, the two newer tires are in the front when the van pulls to one side.

The Honda service said that I got bad tires again and I have to talk to Michelin's dealership.
I went to Sears. They try to identify which tire is causing the problem. They then showed me that one wheel of the newer tires is wobbling. They said that the bent wheel is causing the pulling.
Well, the Honda service doubt that the bent wheel is the cause.

Please advise what the cause is and what to do with that.

Thanks.

stickguy · September 2005

if you rotate the tires and the pulling goes away, you know where the problem is. Actually, I would put the new tire that you think is good (the non-wobbler) in the back, and leve the wobbler in the front to see if the pull remains. Then rotate those 2 to see if it goes away.

If you isolate it to that tire, you will be back arguing with Sears/Michilin. maybe that one needs to be roadforce balanced?

A new wheel can get expensive (at least an alloy will), so maybe you can keep the offender in the back?

rsht · September 2005

An out of round/balanced wheel can cause vibration as well as cause premature wear to your tire and suspension components... Replace the rim, at least I would. There are several online stores that carry OEM rims at a fair price, better than the dealerships... Good Luck!

linumn · September 2005

stickguy and rsht, Thanks.

RSHT is righ about the vibration part. The steering does vibrate at 70+ miles. Honda service did the balance, but it didn't correct the problem.

Before the recent tire rotation, the two new tires was in the rear and there was no pulling. After the rotation, the van starts to pull.

Sears/Michelin did do tire rotation on the same side first, road test, another two or three rotations (another side + swamp+ ...) and road tests. Then they put the suspected tire on the machine for balancing and saw the wobble.

I am all confused now -- is it the tire or the wheel causing the pulling?
If it's the former, I'll have to deal with the Seas/Michelin.
If it's the latter, I'll want to Honda pay for the wheel since it may be the cause of pulling since we bought the van.
Nevertheless, I am "sandwiched" between Honda service and Sears/Michelin.

Your advice are appreciated.

msibille · September 2005

I think that you'll be shocked by how much rotors cost, particularly from Honda, Toyota, Suzuki, etc. I would be surprised if a Honda rotor was much under $125 EACH. (plus labor, of course)

If the rotor surfacing was light, so much so that the thickness still was within the tolerance for new rotors, no foul, no problem. But if any significant amount was taken off below the min. new rotor thickness, now you're basically getting partially worn out rotors vs brand new that were problematic. Fine if it's an old vehicle, not so great if it's new. (Why not just sell them a used van as new?)

dj_in_oc · September 2005

Hello,

I have a 2005 ODY EX-L, NAVI, RES. I have been having a few problems with the 6 disc cd changer. Two of the six slots routinely give me a "disc error" message. I have tried changing CD's, using only factory CD's (no mixes or burned CD's). It doesn't seem to make a difference. I am reluctant to take it back to my dealer at this point. They don't seem well equipped to deal with all of the electronics that this vehicle has on it.

Anyone else experience this problem?

Thanks,

DJ

jipster · September 2005

Well put msibille...or should I say "greasemonkey."

Those were my sentiments exactly, when I made that original post almost 9 months ago. But, some people do have a tendency to look at the negative side of things.

To all those "greasemonkeys" out there that work on Hondas, DCX's, Toyotas, Mazdas and even Kia's...good job...and keep up the good work.

msibille · September 2005

Not "common" but not unheard of. My wife has about 80000 mi (~120000 km) on her 2002 and we haven't had the failure (yet?). Her best friend's 2000 had the failure at about 50000 mi (~75000km). If I recall, it's a couple hundred US$.
I can think of no plausible connection between it and failure of the EGR.

The EGR valve allows exhaust gas to recirculate, reducing the amount of fresh air/fuel mixture filling the cylinder. This gives more gas for the fuel-air mixture to heat and expand, without adding more fuel. (If you were to just admit air, you throw off the mixture and temperatures go up. Besides driveability issues, higher temps raise NOx emissions.) The knock sensor is part of the computer controlled/optimized timing. Efficiency improves if the compression is raised, timing advanced, and a few other things that can cause knock, or detonation. The knock sensor is the measuring tool that the ecm uses to determine when the dynamic adjustments to timing, mixture, etc are at the optimum. If the engine knocks, it's gone too far. The knock sensor will sense a knock that is so slight you can't sense it, and at a low enough level to avoid damage.

Being a sensor, excessive impact or electrical input can damage it, but whether or not the EGR functions is not likely to affect it. Unless the engine was running so badly that it beat itself up.

Your thought process is valid, when multiple items fail, there are 3 possibilities-
a) coincidence
b) one failure precipitated the other
c) the first part that was replaced hadn't really failed, and so when the prblm wasn't resolved, the technician (or as I prefer -greasemonkey) tried the next probable cause of the malfunction.

Contrary to a lot of dialogue in tv series as late, there are such things as coincidence -though one should evaluate the possibilities and not assume coincidence.

In your case, I would say it's either (a) or (c), above.

user777 · October 2005

dependng upon model year, it's probable the EGR is covered under an extended warranty campaign.

see this honda TSB:
http://www.alldata.com/tsb/Honda/1121842800000_1123225200000_05-026/601.html

scienceman · October 2005

If anyone has replaced the rear speakers on the 05 Ody, can you tell me if the rear side panels had to be removed or can the speaker grills be removed independently?

pen101 · October 2005

We have same problem. Dealer says others have complained also and they have ordered different pads from Honda to replace the original ones. Dealer says Honda has not made the new pads available yet. Dealer says current pads have no safety risk.

I have appointment next week to fix wind noise (trim on windshield) and weather stripping on sliding door. Will push dealer for sooner brake replacement at that time.

adouglas · October 2005

Hey Guys,
Any ideas on this I have a 2002 Odyssey Ex with 87k miles. In the last two weeks, the van has shut off twice while driving. Lucky, we weren't going very fast (approaching a stop sign, and in residential traffic). The dealer couldn't find anything wrong but as you can imagine this is a very uncomfortable position. Has anyone experienced this?

Your thoughts are appreciated ...
Anthony

mmaas · October 2005

I have had similar problems with my Odyssey XM radio. I have the same dealer installed unit as you. I have brought it to the dealer twice and talked with XM folks directly. I have only been told that it is installed correctly. I have frequent drop-outs, and what I feel sounds like a distorted signal. The dealer says it sounds fine.

I am curious to know how you moved your antenna outside your vehicle. I would like to try this myself and see if my radio improves. I love XM, but I am very close to canceling as the quality is unacceptable.

dave594 · October 2005

You can try to route the wire yourself outside. I did this on my 99 Ody with a vehicle kit I installed myself for my Roady2 XM receiver. I ran it under the front passenger door and then up the frame between the door going up to the recess by the rear view mirror and then tucked it under the windshield gasket all the way to the roof. Took me about 30 minutes. It's not as tidy as a professional install but it works and I have no dropouts and always 3 bars except under heavy foliage.

okc1 · October 2005

I had the usual complaints, e.g. whistling windshield and mis-aligned glove box,etc. But here is a even more frustrating one: the airbag warning light coming on. It comes on after about 30 minutes of driving and only goes off when you turn-off the engine (and it stays off for a while after a restart). When I took it to the dealer, they couldn't find anything (no code in the computer). We recently took a long road trip and the warning light must have come on a dozen of times. This certainly concerns me more than the wind noise issue, but the dealer could not find anything wrong. I understand sometimes the warning light will be on if a shorter person sits or if you place a grocery bag in the front passenger seat, but that's not the case in my situation.

Any comments/ideas/suggestions will be appreciated.

tycougar · October 2005

Did you ever find a solution to this issue? My dash lights come on when I press my brake. No other symptoms, but it sounds a little like your problem. What did you do to fix it? truebluestewcrew@yahoo.com

thegraduate · October 2005

The local dealer for me had to replace a faulty airbag sensor on the right side of the car (near the side sliding door. The exact same timing with the light blinking on and off happened to ours (EX cloth). Go back to the dealer! This problem has happened more than me and you i'm sure!

shaniz1 · October 2005

I have a 2000 Odyssey with 80k miles on it. Recently I smelled a burning smell coming from the engine compartment. I suspect it is something with the belts. When I engage the A/C compressor and the engine is idling I hear a clicking noise. As soon as I turn the A/C off it disappears. Does anyone have any experience with this? Is the compressor getting ready to fail.

Thanks
Shannon

scienceman · October 2005

I have the same problem with my '94 Subaru with about 70k miles. If you find a definite solution, please post. I'm thinking it has something to do with the Idle Air Control (IAC) valve switch, but you didn't mention a brief rough idle when you hear the clicking. Monitor the rpm guage and see if the engine speed changes at all with the clicking.

Oh yeah, I'm assuming this isn't the normal on/off cycling of the A/C compressor.

odysseyowner · October 2005

This occured on our 2000 Odyssey EX twice also. I believe I caused it by pressure washing under the hood. Since it dried out (a day or two later) we haven't had that problem since and it's been several months. Whatever got wet, shut our van down while we were accellerating onto the highway. We took it back home and parked it for a few days. I haven't pressure washed under the hood since and so far no problems. Could be moisture getting in somewhere that it doesn't belong. Hope this helps.

isellhondas · October 2005

Yeah, don't do that! No good comes from pressure washing a modern engine in ANY car. First of all, it's unnecessary and there are a lot of components under there that don't like water.

gmachinedart1 · October 2005

I too am just starting to experience a wind noise from the front windshield area on my 05 odyssey(2k mi).I usually notice it at around 30-45 mph.This obviously seems to be a common problem from what I have read in this collumn.I will bring it back to my dealer monday and see what happens.Does anyone know if honda has a service bulletin out on this problem?Anyones shared experiences with this problem and or dealer interactions would be appreciated.

thanx justin

user777 · October 2005

try this for the tsb on wind noise (2 pages):
http://www.alldata.com/tsb/Honda/1121410800000_1123225200000_04-078/index.html

gmachinedart1 · October 2005

thanx for the wind noise info

justin

aongch · October 2005

Just starting to look into these forums, and two issues we're also experiencing - front brake grinding when deep braking, and poor gas mileage (appx. 17 mixed driving, mostly city). The brake problem we were told was being addressed by Honda; it is a commonly reported problem but no resolution as yet. So, we're waiting. Horrible sound when it does occur. The gas mileage is very disappointing so far. With the VCM we we're expecting at least 20 mpg, so what is the cause? The cylinder cut-off is working by the indication of the 'ECO' light on the dash, or at least we hope so.

dennisctc · October 2005

Long ago, someone wrote on here that the VCM light doesn't really indicated when it's actually running on 3 cylinders. So what's the purpose?

Today, I get to drive a friend's new Charger R/T with cylinder deactivation, I'm very curious how DCX does it - is there a light like Honda? I'm meeting him for lunch tomorrow.

sebring95 · October 2005

Chrysler doesn't use a light to indicate 4cyl mode. Chrysler released some information a year or so when they first brought it out and basically they said it switches from 4/8 so often they felt the light would be annoying. I've also heard that the ECO light on the Honda only indicates efficient conditions, but not necessarily 3cyl operation. I've never had this confirmed by anyone that would know for sure, but the ECO light is quite obvious when it's going to come on and that's not the way I understand the MDS, VCM, type systems work.

I've driven a couple of the Hemi MDS engines and it's not any different than the Honda; basically seemless. I've only thought I could feel it on the Honda in very engineered circumstances. Basically I've creeped along at low speeds and then tried to accelerate very very lightly. It seems like it stays in 3cyl mode for a bit and then when it kicks out theres a bit of a kick in the power and even with steady throttle it surges a tiny bit (and it's not a gear change). Other than that, I can't feel it whatsoever. And I tend to feel every little thing on a vehicle, having a history in autoracing and such.

gtee · October 2005

I have a 2005 Odyssey which is making a strange noise when driving on the freeway. It always happens around 70MPH at part throttle position. The sound is like a whooshing sound, it is similar to the sound an AC evaporation coil makes. At first I thought that this sound was coming from the AC, but its not because I can turn OFF the AC and the sound is still there. The only thing is that if I let go of the throttle the sound immediately stops. I took this car to the dealer and he told me that this sound is normal induction noise. Has any body else noticed this type of sound and what is the cause of it. It is really bothering me because normally I drive without the radio on.

Thank for you help.

bfd63 · October 2005

I have an '02 Odyssey that has had a vibration at 60-65 mph since I bought it last November. It had a Honda certified warrenty on it and they have tried to fix it 8 times. The service department has balanced the tires 3 times, incorrectly done alignments 2 times and they have put on three sets of tires (the latest ones are "better tires", Good Year). They also replaced a rim that an independant tire company locally thought might have "run-out". None of this has solved the problem. Has anyone had a similar probem?
I don't know if I should be worried about this vibration, it is mildly annoying. If it wasn't a condition of the sale to have the vibration fixed, I would live with it. The service manager has refered me to the GM of the dealership. What can I excpect?

Thanks for any help.

bthayden · October 2005

Hi,

I am having the exact same whistling issue with my 2005 Odyssey. It seems to be on the driver's side, and I have had it to the dealer 5 times now to try to get it fixed. They have replaced the molding and also said that I was missing some clip. Tomorrow I am taking it back in for another try. They told me that they will have a factory rep there for me to talk to as well.

Did you ever get your problem resolved?

leem1 · October 2005

I have a problem with the speedometer and gas gage on my 2001 Honda Odyssey. First signal of problems was flashing lights indicating check engine, and some other lights, then the speedometer engine needle swung from left all the way to the right and back againfinally settling at the far right. The gas gage shows the out of gas light which disappearsbut the needle stays for a time on the empty mark. The gas needle stays inaccurate for 5 minutes or more then corrects itselfbut the speedometer needle still lied dead at the far right bottom.

When the car is turned off and on again the speedometer problem remains, but the gas gauge is generally okay.

I found a temporary fix for the problem. When driving on high speed roads I aim for the rumble strip at the side of the road. Riding on the rumble strip for about 5 seconds corrects the problem, and gets the speedometer working again sometimes for a week or more.

Sounds like something is loose. Any advice??

Lee

dj123 · October 2005

I found this same problem with my '01 Odyssey and think I've fixed it. After a really bad rain storm this weekend I found a half inch of water in the cargo area behind the 3rd row seat. I checked this forum yesterday and saw the advice about the A/C drain behind the wheel, but after inspecting it (and poking it with a thin wire) I found it was not clogged. A few hours later it started raining again and I checked the grate just above the cargo area and saw a stream of water dripping in (no A/C on). I then pulled the van into the garage and opened the hatch to check the door seal. In doing this I noticed that the rear window washer hose was not seated in the hole at the very top of the frame and water was dripping in. I'm 95% sure this is the source of my problem and now I just have to dry it out.

rsht · October 2005

Just a guess, check to see if your Air filter is in any way damaged (filter element and gasket/seal). If none, check for any possible air leak in your air intake any where (i.e. gasket for the mass air flow sensor, and etc...). You may consider change the air filter to see if the noise goes away... Again, this is only my guess; I wonder if it has anything to do with the PVC valve/system, hummmm hard to tell.

minhvotx · October 2005

Thank you for replying to my message (#5607). This should be a good thing to check. It has been a bit cooler in Texas and I have not seen the problem for about 2 weeks now. I will check and hope that this is a similar problem. Thanks, minhvotx.

ymj · October 2005

I just bought an 06 Ody touring with Nav. same error message "disc error" appears after norming working for a few hours (may be after loading more CDs in). the dealer is ording a new CD changer to replace.

ripa · October 2005

I have a 01 Odyssey and the TCS and check engine lights would come on/go off, stay on. It turned out that my battery was going bad. When it was replaced, all lights were gone. Hope this helps you.

pen101 · October 2005

Dealer just fixed wind noise problem (fixed trim), damaged door seal and rough brakes (new brake pads) all under warranty.

Over the weekend damaged (bent and tore) the underbody plastic shield when pulling back from a parking block. It has to be replaced. Fortunately, it is just a $35 part.

msibille · October 2005

There have been issues w/ the instrument panel, but from the first part of your post, my first instinct would be a bad ground connection in the instr panel. Your last line about the bumps fixing it makes me feel more strongly about a bad ground, somewhere,either in the panel or a ground that affects the signal sources.

But there was a rash of prblms with instr panels, I don't recall if there was a TSB or not - you might check

ymj · October 2005

I bought 06 Ody two weeks ago and it has been sent back to service 5 times. The power sliding door cannot close right from time to time and the service department had a hard time to find the root cause. The sales person told me that if they cannot fix it, I can get another one. Beyond this issue, the CD changer also failed and is waiting for a replacement part. I just don't have confidence on this model design anymore. Oh, BTW, the suspension has very short travel and I hit bottom several times making horrible sound, but I did not go too fast and did not run over too big a hump - much worse than my 96 Ody.

Does anyone know if I can request a refund from the dealer if they cannot fix the problem of the door?

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)