Read your post and immediately phoned my dealer who said this is the computer trying to find the right gear and is causing the vibration. Your lucky to have a reputable dealer who is replacing your transmission so quickly. It wouldn't hurt to try to get them to extend the warranty beyond the 36 month period. What is your dealers name so I can at least inform my dealer that this problem is not the minor glitch he thinks it is. Good luck and thanks for your input.
mschafer is quite correct in that it does take a significant braking effort (more than light pressure and more than just a tap) to activate the grade logic. I received the page which discusses the grade logic from Honda's technical service manual from my service advisor. I don't have it with me, but I remember that the computer's decision to downshift (or hold the gear while climbing) depended on the vehicle speed and engine rpm. I like the feature (lots of long hills here in Calgary). I've learned to give the brake a decent shot when coasting down hills rather than a series of small taps. If the vehicle is within the right speed/rpm range, it will downshift. Uphills, I don't even think about it, I just let it do its thing.
phil47, can you check your page to see if there is a limit on speed that stop the grade logic to kick in? say if I am going downhill at 120 km/h, will it decide not to downshift because of the weight of the van? or will it downshifted (because of braking) and then decided to upshift again (because of the speed)? I am more worry about the "locking and unlocking the converter's clucth" that odyfan describe in msg #642. Please help. Thanks.
For starters, you're reading in a "Problems" forum. You probably won't hear glowing reviews in such a forum, for any vehicle. I felt the same way you did, and almost didn't buy the Honda, until I looked at the other choices. Their "problems" forums weren't any better, and frequently were much worse.
I bit the bullet & bought an Odyssey. I'd buy another one tomorrow. My doors work, my transmission doesn't clunk, the van doesn't drift right, it's smooth as silk at 90 mph, I get 17mpg city and 24mpg highway (going 80), and the radio is fine (much better with CD). I've only got a little over a year & 14,000 miles on it, but the van is trouble-free. Be aware that people who have problems are much more likely to post, and there are plenty of happy Odsyssey owners out there.
phil47, can you check your page to see if there is a limit on speed that stop the grade logic to kick in? say if I am going downhill at 120 km/h, will it decide not to downshift because of the weight of the van? or will it downshifted (because of braking) and then decided to upshift again (because of the speed)? I am more worry about the "locking and unlocking the converter's clucth" that odyfan describe in msg #642. Please help. Thanks.
Some comments related to your van shopping and how you're now wary about the Ody:
I own a 2001 Ody LX with about 4,000 miles. It's our first, and likely last, minivan (probably won't need one by the time it wears out-- knock on wood). Before buying, I did a lot of research, both on Edmund's posting boards and others (such as Yahoo), and in Consumer Reports (I'm a 15-year subscriber). I looked at crash tests and safety ratings on government and Insurance Institute Web sites. I also read each and every review of the Odyssey that I could find on the Web-- probably totalled about 25, from various magazines and newspapers around the country.
The Ody was the overwhelming top choice of these reviewers through the 2000 model year. Yeah, this didn't take into the account the redesigned Chrysler "Best minivan ever" (their words)-- but from what I've heard, it's more of an incremental improvement in a few areas rather than a sea change. I know one of the reviews I read (a small newspaper somewhere) picked the Chrysler first, probably two others picked the Sienna, and ALL the rest picked the Ody. Not to mention 2 consecutive Edmund's "real world minivan vacation" tests that picked Ody. It was a close call for some reviewers-- not as if every one of them saw the Ody as "head and shoulders" above the rest-- but they picked it first nonetheless.
Not to state the obvious, but as I'm sure you and most other people know, all vehicles can have problems (and most do); and furthermore, a brand-new car with NO problems in its first year or so is relatively new-- cars are complex machines especially these days with all the electronics and computer controls, and there is usually some "shake-out" period where minor production issues come up and are fixed.
That said, so far-- fingers crossed-- I've had zero actual "problems" with our van. Not being speed maniacs (as many posters and most Americans seem to be), indeed not driving too many freeway miles period, we haven't had the van up to 70 mph too often. But the few times we have, I've noticed no "shimmy" or vibration-- the van is VERY smooth at ANY speed we've driven so far. We also have no tranny "clunk". Pull to the right? None at all-- nor to the left either. We have manual doors so no problems related to power doors (I knew from research they were a problem, indeed on EVERY maker's van if you read all the posting boards, and it's one reason I decided to get the LX). Gas tank slosh? Sure-- and I really don't give a rat's patoot. Either the kids are talking or I have the radio on, so it's not very noticeable; it's ONLY noticeable to me with a tank 3/4 full or higher; plus, I've been told by others with minivans that ALL of them have this to one degree or another due to relative placement of the gas tank. Shifting? I'd read about the "weak detentes" etc. and just paid attention from the start to pull forward a little when shifting down to drive so as not to miss it, and NOT pull forward on those rare occasions when I want D1,2, or 3-- it took a few days of driving until it became unconscious, and I now think it's a pretty good "system". The Grade Logic Control isn't perfect-- I'd say there's a little more "searching" back and forth between gears at about 40 mph than other cars I've driven-- but not to the point I consider it important. I usually drive less than 40 in 30 mph zones, and more than 40 in 45 mph zones-- we don't seem to have many 40 mph posted zones in our area.
While I don't count this as a "problem"-- at least not yet-- the only minor "issue" I'd list is that on a few occasions, the van has not started immediately with a quick turn of the ignition, as it should and usually does. It took a 2nd, longer, engagement of the starter to take hold on these occasions. We're in MN-- and "No", this didn't happen on below-zero mornings (which we did have plenty of this past winter)-- it actually happened on somewhat warmer and DAMP days. I think it could be related to dampness. If it never happens in warmer and drier weather, and if it always starts after a second try anyway, I'm not worrying about it. For some of these real minor things, the chance the dealer's repairmen could goof something up while working on it doesn't make it worth the hassle for the chance of having a super-minor "problem" go away.
Note that we DID buy the extended warranty with our Ody, getting the $795 price (thanks to reading about that price in the main Odyssey board here-- our dealer did sell it for that after first claiming $1,200 was their "Internet price" and the lowest Honda would allow them to sell it for). From all the reading I'd done, I became convinced that these big, heavy "mini"-vans just do go through transmissions faster than passenger cars, and if we need a new tranny at 80,000 miles, that will more than pay for the cost of the warranty-- not to mention all the other smaller things it may cover after 3/36,000 expires. If we don't need a new tranny ever, great-- but I'd guess we'll still probably break even on the warranty price in the end if we keep the car until 100,000 miles.
To me, the Ody, while by no means perfect (as others have noted here, the "perfect" minivan has not yet been made-- all have some compromises, not to mention people's ideas of perfect do differ anyway), is very good to excellent. I think it drives and handles amazingly car-like for a big vehicle-- almost no noticeable body lean except on very sharp curves. And of course it's huge inside. The main drawback to me is the gas mileage. Before fully broken in and during cold weather, we had tanks at only 13 mpg for mostly city driving (keep in mind that's also Twin Cities gas with ethanol added, which reduces mpg by about 10% by most people's judgement). More recently, in warmer weather and presumably mostly broken-in by now, we've been averaging 17 mpg again leaning mostly to city driving (probably 40% highway and 60% city on average). I wasn't really expecting better than this, but held out hopes maybe it would exceed expectations in this area. I would be happy with a smaller engine with more "sluggish" accelerat ion and thus probably better mpg, but most people apparently want jackrabbit acceleration these days (and effortless 90 mph cruising as well), so the market responds, and in a 4,200 lb vehicle, thus the low mpg. Unfortunately for people concerned with gas mileage (we're probably in the minority anyway), none of the big 6 cylinder minivans these days does any better overall than the Ody, and most do a little worse (lots of Windstar owners talk about 12 mpg in the city). A co-worker with a 2001 Sienna is getting mileage almost identical to what we get in the Ody-- and the Sienna is 3 or 4 hundred pounds lighter.
I would never badmouth the Sienna and we may have been as happy with it, or close, or maybe even happier? (though I doubt the last) But in our Sienna test drive, I felt the ride was TOO "isolated" for my tastes. The handling was mostly
(Apparently I went over some maximum length-- here's the rest of my message #658)
I would never badmouth the Sienna and we may have been as happy with it, or close, or maybe even happier? (though I doubt the last) But in our Sienna test drive, I felt the ride was TOO "isolated" for my tastes. The handling was mostly car-like, but I LIKE to feel at least some road surface, it gives me more handling confidence-- and the Sienna was pretty plush or isolated. It is a little quieter. If good reliability, isolated ride, and quiet are pretty important to you-- buy Sienna. If plush interior and the most bells and whistles are #1 on your list and other things secondary, buy a loaded Town and Country (and pay lots more than for an Ody, even after cutting your best "deal" on the Chrysler). If an overall mix of good performance, tops in safety ratings, tons of space, at least "decent" expected reliability, and very good value for the dollar compared to other vans (even with Ody at full sticker price) are what you're looking for-- I'd still say you can't do better than Ody, and Sienna probably is 2nd with the notable drawback of less room inside (still "enough" if you mostly haul people and not lots of other stuff).
I don't have my new Consumer Report Auto Edition with me at work today (I usually do!), but I don't remember their listing the '99 and '00 as "below average" for reliability. I think it was "average", as is their prediction for '01 reliability. Sure, I would agree most people do and should be able to expect Honda to do better than that given their history-- but it is a much heavier and larger vehicle than they're accustomed to producing. Hopefully the problems will stay mostly on the minor side.
I'm sure some readers and posters here have done so already, but if you really want to scare yourself, go out and look at the Windstar Problems posting board. Those poor people can only dream of having problems no more serious than gas tank sloshing, shimmying, and cheap stereo speakers. They're too busy getting new engines and transmissions installed every few months to worry about things like that. And, their experiences with Ford dealerships seem at LEAST as bad as what anyone here seems to encounter from the Honda dealers. That's even though Ford owners in general are less picky than Honda owners, in my estimation. Don't get me wrong-- I'm not saying you can't go ahead and expect perfection for $26K; and I don't see a good reason why the Ody should NOT now match other Hondas in reliability (or come darn close) after a few years of production. They certainly SHOULD fix any noticeable shimmies, pulls, or "clunks" and do so without a huge hassle, etc. But all in all, I think it's a good car and the bulk of the postings in the Problem area here are centered around what I'd call relatively minor, if annoying, items. I think someone needing a minivan who can at least not pay OVER sticker price for an Odyssey will probably not regret the decision. Sorry for the length of this post, I tend to be wordy.
Once the grade logic has downshifted the transmission, it will *not* upshift until you press on the accellerator, no matter how much your engine may want to race. It is designed to let the engine take some pressure off of the braking system on downhills; and, thereby save you from burning up your brakes.
On a steeped hill, it should not oscillate. However, on a relatively flat road, cruising with speed around 40-45mph, the weight (hence, momentum) of the van with the help of fuzy "GRAVE" Logic will confuse the PCM to lock and unlock the converter's clutch repeatedly. That is more trouble than its worth to have this feature. It is much better to have a overdrive push button as in Sienna that one can control for engine braking. BTW, the grade logic works wonder with Accord, (i.e, lighter car)
Hi everyone. My 2001 EX Odyssey is less than a week old. When I picked it up from the dealership, I noticed that the gas tank knocks when either stopping the vehicle or starting to move the vehicle from a full stop. In addition, the gas makes a mostly-continuous "sloshing" sound when I'm driving it. I arranged to go to service today. When I came in I was told by the service manager "there is no reason for anyone to come out and listen to the knocking/sloshing....Honda is aware of the problem and there is no fix for it." I told them that I was very concerned since this is a GAS TANK problem....(I have a 3 year old and a baby on the way), and they said there was nothing that could be done. I went home and called Honda.....I was told by a customer service rep that "ALL 2001 Honda Odysseys are experiencing this problem", and all he could suggest was arranging for someone to "put insulation around my gas tank to decrease the noise." I have a friend with a 2001 EX with no such problem and am wondering if anyone reading this can provide me with either suggestions or input as far as their 2001 vehicles are concerned. I have a very hard time believing that ALL 2k1 Odysseys are delivered with this defect, and Honda continues to manufacture them despite their inability to fix it.......not to mention the fact that my friend has no such problem.
Don't worry about it! It is there on all Odys (99,00,01) and you will get used to it after awhile. There is probably nothing the dealer can do to fix it, my suggestion is to turn up the radio and enjoy your new van. BTW, NEVER top off your gas tank when you are refueling! it is dangerous.
My 2001 Ody EX is one week old today and I notice the sound you heard. But I have a 97 Honda Accord that I bought new has the same "problem". The accord is still running and has no problem of the gas tank at all (knock, knock, knock). But I am very interested in the "put insulation around my gas tank to decrease the noise." thingy. Can you give me the name of the Honda rep? I will be happier if Honda actually do this.
Today I met with the Honda Customer Relations Re. from the Denver office. He met me at work at 9:00 AM. this morning, and off we went on our test drive. We got on the local freeway loop and I got the feeling I was about to get the same old story, "this is normal, road vibration, etc.." To my surprise the gentleman said "this road is way to rough, is there a freeway with a better surface we can drive on"? So I led him to a section of I-10 that had been recently re paved. We were chatting about sports when the surface changed from concrete to asphalt, he suddenly stopped talking and started paying attention to the vibration and shimmy that was suddenly apparent. For the next few minutes he didn't say a word, he changed lanes several times slowed down and sped up, then turned to me and asked "is this what your feeling when your driving"? I said "yes this is it". He then down shifted to third gear, tried different lanes and speeds, but the vibration refused to go away. At this point I suggested we turn around before we ended up in Tucson. As we did, he admitted to me that he felt it best between 60 and 75 mph, and the concrete surface did mask the condition to where he was unable to feel it.
I couldn't get him to commit to what he thought the problem was, he said he'd rather a field engineer drive/diagnose what was really going on.
On our return trip he repeated everything he did earlier. And true to form the van vibrated until we reached the concrete surface again. At this point he said that if he thought it were the wheels alone he would OK a set of alloys in a heartbeat. But he felt there was more to it than just wheels. This was the most information I got out of him on the entire test drive. I finally felt some validation. So I agreed to let my van be used as the guinea pig for their testing.
I should know early next week when to expect an engineer to be calling on me. Hopefully this is a step in the right direction to getting to the bottom of this nagging problem.
I have reported about my sister's 00 Ody EX on numerous occassions in the past about all the problems she was having and how she was trying to get the van bought back under the lemon law. Her most serious problem was a loud popping noise that was felt as a bad shudder in the steering wheel whenever she took a turn in the van when it was cold or it was weighed down. The dealer basically took everything apart in her front suspension trying to locate the problem. They lubed and than later replaced all the bushings, but to no avail. She was told that there could be a problem with the actual steering rack, but it was too expensive to fix so it would be the last thing they would try. She has lived with this bad popping sensation since last summer, making her scared for her safety (it felt like something broke in the front end everytime it happened). Finally, just last week, in a last ditch effort before Honda would be required to buy back the van, they hooked up some kind of listening device to the steering rack and heard all sorts of troubling sound effects coming from it. They elected to replace the entire steering rack unit. As of now, she has had no more problems with the steering. The troubling thing is that they ran her in circles for so long, knowing that the rack was suspect, but only replaced it right before Honda was about to give her a brand new van. That is some poor customer service if you ask me. I'm just glad she can finally feel safe in her van again. Hopefully, it will begin to live up to the Honda name. Other problems of note was a dead battery after only 6 months, frequent problems with the power doors (not closing all the way, setting off the beeping alarm constantly while driving down the road when the door was fully closed, and one of the doors opened on its own while backing out of the driveway), and alignment problems with every single door (sticking and rubbing like some old junker). Her van has spent a month at the dealer in the 13 months that she has owned it and her problems started after only 5000 miles. Needless to say, her Honda has been far from reliable and its build quality is less than stellar. Her advice to anyone who wants an Ody is to get the LX, because she absolutely hates the power doors and would trade with anyone's LX in a heartbeat.
Greetings! I have just discovered this board, so please forgive me if this question has already been asked/answered. I have had my 2001 Odyssey EX now for just a few days, and have noticed some weird behavior with the electrical system. Firstly, the day after I get it home from the dealer, I open the passenger-side door with the remote, and it opens halfway. I hit the button again, and it closes. I hit it again, it opens halfway. I open it from the dashboard button. This issue doesn't seem reproducible thus far.
Secondly, when closing the Rear Cargo Door, it shuts firmly, but when I go to lock the Van with the remote, it will not lock. I open the drivers doors and see that the the light in the dash that indicates that the rear door is open, so it will not lock, and the lights will not go off - lovely. I think I'm a nucklehead and re-shut the door and check again - same thing. I end up doing this about 15 more times shutting the rear door with increasing intesity. Eventually I have to manually lock the van from the inside, and all is OK.
This seems very odd behavior for a van with less than 300 miles on it don't you think? I plan on keeping track of when all this happens so I can report the frequency to the dealer in case I have to go in for repairs.
Haven't seen this one posted yet. Have a 99LX with over 36,000 (meaning out of warranty.) For a month now when I fill the tank, the gas gauge only goes to 3/4 full. Then, over a few days it drifts up to full. Last night when I filled it, it went to full, then within 5 minutes, drifted down to 3/4 full. Can't rely on gauge to know when it's time to refill anymore! Taking it in when out of town next time (local dealer is useless and won't go back there ever.)
Although the van is out of warranty, do not give up trying to get this repair done for free. With previous cars, I have succeeded on occasion. It sounds like you have a bad fuel sensor. If the dealer won't cover it for free, contact the regional district rep. Your dealer will give you his/her name. And by the way, act very pissed!
My 99 EX will be out of warranty within 6 months and I am considering getting the extended warranty. Please repost where the lowest price can be attained. Thanx.
The door problem sounds like it needs to go the reset procedure (it's in the manual). Give that a try.
The rear hatch problem may be that, although it looks closed, it's not quite latched (I had this problem). You can check it by trying to open it w/o lifting the handle to see if it opens an inch before catching (which is what is used to do to me). If this is happening, you can try adjusting the rubber bumpers on each lower corner of the hatch to make it close more securely every time (which is what worked for me). It took just a few minutes.
Bought a new 00 Odyssey EX late '99. Had first problem with elec. doors by 8/00. Since then, have had car back to Honda 5 times for problems with both doors. Most recently, had problem with right door. Day after repair, hit a small pothole and door cam ajar and won't seal anymore (alarm goes off, whole nine yards). On Friday of this week, tranny freaked out. Car starts off in overdrive bucking like crazy until you hit speed. Lastly, beautiful Granite Green paint scratches if you look at it the wrong way. Thus far, Honda service has been fairly responsive, although the repairs have not solved problem. Now it's time to go to customer relations. The car's a lemon and I need a major response or a new car. Any suggestions? Anyone gotten good response from customer relations? Any tips? Thanks.
"Really!? How so? I do it with every fill up, especially when I'm in an area where the gas is less expensive. Never have had a problem"
Well, the gas station owners probably hated you. If you spilled the gas while topping off, you were risking his business and other people around you at the time. Few people realize that we are driving a bomb with us every day. Now, onto the contruction of a fuel tank. In order for fuel to be drawn out, the tank has to be vented throu vent lines. The vent lines lead to charcoal canister which traps gasoline vapors before they were released into our atmosphere. those vent lines are for gasoline vapor, not liquid fuel. When you topoff your tank, guess where the extra liquid fuel ended up to?, your tank's vent lines. The result will be possible fuel leak or damage to your EVAP system, not to mention damaging to our environment. We just elected a irresposible leader, that does not mean we have to follow his lead on carelessness to our environment:)
BTW, anyone who drives an Ody undoubtedly has experience with the static shock. Do ground yourself first before reaching for that pump. Damn! whoever said driving is safe and enjoyable.
We have a 1999 Honda Odyssey EX. When we are going down the interstate, there is a "howling" noise that comes from the front sides of the van, around the doors. It sounds like someone is blowing across a pop bottle - very loud and annoying!! Does anyone or has anyone else had this problem? If you have, what was the problem. We have had it into the Honda dealer a couple of times, but naturally, when the van is there, it won't do it. It seems to happen more when we are on the East-West interstate. Any ideas??
Has anyone noticed a light, ratcheting noise coming from the steering rack while turning the steering wheel at a dead stop. It doesn't appear to be a seriously loud noise, just barely noticeable but I can detect it each time I try to reproduce it. Is it a "normal feature" on the Odyssey?
I installed Honda crossbars on the roof of my '01. After returning from our trip I could not remove the mounting clips (the ones that slide on the track) from one side. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks
I just bought a brand new LX a week ago. When I got home I noticed the rear drum brake housing (both sides of the axle) were very rusty. After checking with my dealer, my dealer agreed with me that it shouldn't look that rusty and tried to replace them with new ones. Then service department was told by the Parts department that the new housing is also of the same type of metal and would rust with time. The dealer did more checking with someone from the Honda Engineering Department and was told that only EX model has the drum housing that would be "rust resistant" and looks dark and shiny. Does anyone know if what I have learned is accurate? Is there any independent source that I can verify the above information?
I don't know about the EX's. Both rear drums and knuckles of my 2000 LX are full of rust. One of this weekend, I am going to remove the rear wheels and painting them.
I also have steering wheel vibration at 65-70 mph. After 3 trips back to the dealer the problem still was not fixed. My van has 12,400 miles on it and the outer edges of my tires are wearing ,so I took it back a fourth time and the dealer said that this was normal wear and he could find no problems with the front end. Talked to the service manager and he agreed that I should not have to replace tires at 15,000 miles and that he would talk to Honda about my problem. He also told me that he does not know of any one else having this problem. Sometimes I wonder if these dealers see just how far they can take a person before helping them? Any one with the same problem or any advice I could use your help. Is there a time limit on the Lemon Law?
They are not painted on the LX, since they are hidden behind the steel wheels; and, therefore, they *shall* rust. Since the EX drum shows through the alloy wheels, they are painted to prevent rust.
Odyfan, if you're going to paint yours, be sure to use a product like Rustpho or similar (should be available where you can purchase automotive paints) to clean and prep the surfaces prior to painting. These products contain phosphoric acid, which will both remove the rust and leave a very light phosphate coating on the surface to which the paint will form a good bond. If you don't do this, the paint will flake and peel. (FWIW, metal finishing is how I earn my living.)
gareyg et al with vibration - I just found out I lost my arbitration with Honda with regards to the vibration. Apparantly it is normal. A harmonic distortion that occurs at highway speeds. Good luck to all of you who can feel the vibration and to those of you who don't, I wish I was one of you.
Fight them under your lemon laws. Worst thing that can happen is you end up with a vibrating van with a real good warrenty that Honda will stand behind. To all those who do fight I hope you have better luck than I in getting results in the US. In Canada I needed to prove it was a manufacturing defect but since all Odysseys supposedly have the vibration it is thus not a defect but a characteristic of the vehicle.
gareyg we are having identical tire wear problems on our 99 Ody EX. Despite getting all of the rotations at 7,500 as honda advises, we started seeing excessive tire wear on the outside edges of the Firestones at 20,000. We searched through several months of posts and saw other Ody owners with the same problem. Yet some Firestones are lasting 50,000 plus miles. Could it be the pull to the right problem so many Odys have that is causing the tire wear on some? So far have had no luck with getting Honda to replace the tires. They are giving us the complete runaround.
Our other vehicle is a 92 Civic now with 174,000 and still going strong. In 1993 I was at the Honda dealership for a 15,000 mile oil change. They noticed the tires were wearing and volunteered a free set of Michelins, saying Honda realized they had placed poor tires on the 92 Civics.
Things have sure changed with the customer service we are now getting from Honda.
If they could replace bad tires on a $9,000 Civic it sure seems they could help us out on a $26,000 Ody!
Hi all! Back Again, We have had our Odyssey for 6 weeks now, Absolutely love it, it was worth the wait!
In my Ody manual, and every where else the fuel tank capacity states 20 gallons, have filled up at least once a week since our purchase, at the pump it seems to top off at 12 gallons, seems impossible to have an 8 gallon reserve. Anyone else encounter this out there?
We have a '99 LX with 40K. The Firestone Affinities are in need of replacement, largely due to the excessive wear on the edges also. The center of the tires seem to have a fair amount of tread left. This is the "classic" example of what low tire pressure can cause. I normally don't drive the car, but have found the tire pressure quite low at times. Perhaps this is the reason that there seems to be varied experience with these tires. I see similar comments on Tirerack.com (as I shop for new tires).
Finally, I'm about to buy to Michelin X-ones (or Sam's version), but have thought about the Michelin Symmetry and Goodyear Aquatred 3's also. Anyone have any comments on any of these tires? I had a set of the orginal Aquatred's on another mini-van once. The tread life was absolutely miserable. They are claiming much better performance now for some reason.
Thanks for the advice! I was only kidding when I mentioned that I'd paint them.:) The rear drums are subjected to high heat all the time due to braking. Regular paint will not hold up, and high temp paint requires oven baking to work properly. The rust won't affect the vehicle's drivability anyway.
imhip: Sorry to hear that you lost. I can't believe that after all you went through the arbitraitor went with Honda's flimsy excuse of "it's normal"? I don't believe I've seen any vibration complaints from EX Ody owners. And not all LX Ody owners have the vibration as far as I know. You would think with enough LX owners complaining and going to arbitration that Honda would take notice of how many unhappy customers they have and do something about it. Maybe we all need to get together and file a class action law suit. Once again I am sorry you lost your case.
gareyg: If you are experiencing wear on the outer edges of your front tires and the dealer is telling you there's nothing wrong, may I suggest you go to an independent front end shop and get a second opinion. If they tell you the alignment is within specifications then there is a problem with the suspension geometry that Honda missed. But if there is a problem, get before and after printouts of the alignment and bring them with the bill back to your Honda dealer. Outer edge wear is usually caused by to much camber, improper toe-in, or under inflated tires(under inflation will cause tires to wear on both the inner and outer edges). As far as my van is concerned no noticeable tire wear, but I'm on my second set of tires in less than 7000 miles. As far as Honda's customer service is concerned it is deplorable. My best advice is if you can't get anywhere with your local dealer, call the American Honda Customer Service office for your area. I believe you can find the number for your area office at http://www.honda-odyssey.com/ under news link. Good luck and don't give up until you get some satisfaction.
I have the Symmetrys on my EX with 12K miles and very even wear after one rotation. I keep 35 psi in the tires. I would not buy Symmetrys for my replacements when the time comes because I feel they are noisy on any road surface except fresh asphalt. I'd trade long wear for a quieter ride any day.
The gas tank issue is well documented in these pages. The tank is 20 gallons but the reserve light comes on with as much as 8 gallons left. Honda of America has told me in writing there is no fix for this.
Thanks for the note. One consideration in new tires for me was to see if we could get a quieter tire. The Odyssey seems to have a fairly high level of road noise, some of which may be the tires.
On post 683 I was very frustrated with the vibration problems with my odyssey at 60-70 mph well it turns out that after my fourth trip to the dealer the service manager told me that he would talk to Honda about my problem. He did and the next day he called and said he would replace the Firestone tires on my LX with Michelins. He said that Honda was aware of this problem and that the new tires usually fix the vibration. I hope he is right,at least its a step foward. I hope the new tires do the trick will keep you posted.
I had the same problem with the vibration, as I have posted earlier, on my 2001 LX. Took the van in and had a balance and tire rotation. The dealer told me that one tire was "off" by 1 pound, and another was off by 1/4 pound. I'm not really sure what that means, but I have not had any more problem now after about 300 miles of driving since the balance. I remember some of you saying this fix might last a while, but not for long, so I am ready to go back in the minute it starts again, if it does. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
I am really sorry that imhip lost in arbitration. What do you do now? Go for a lemon law?
I am considering buying a minivan and I opted for the Odyssey, mainly because of some of the rave reviews that I had read. Also, my two main criteria were roominess and reliability. The Odyssey fulfils the first criterion very well. After reading about the recurring transmission problems on American minivans (the Windstar and Dodge Caravan in particular), I thought my mind would rest easy, given Honda's track record of reliability.
However, after reading some of the posts in this forum, I am confused. Although it still appears to me that the problems experienced by Odyssey owners are less severe and less frequent, it still seems to have its own share. I am paranoid about safety/reliability because it is primarily my wife with our son who is now six months old who is going to drive the van.
We have already put down a refundable deposit for a 2001 Odyssey LX after test driving it and liking it. The dealer gives a lifetime guarantee on the powertrain as an added incentive provided you get the vehicle serviced at their location. Am I making the right choice by going in for an Odyssey if reliability (my definition of reliability: no major problems. I am not bothered about problems like rusting exterior, etc.) is my prime criterion? Is there any other minvan out there which would give me better odds on reliability?
In response to #688 to Ody Tire wear by Fried2, I would suggest the Michelin X-one's. I have them on my 93 Accord EX and they are very quiet, and with about 55,000 miles on them they still have plenty of tread left. They were a little expensive at $90 a tire but you get what you pay for. My mom has a 2000 Ody EX with Michelin Symmetry's and they seem to be wearing ok, they are just a tad too noisy on the highway though. I don't know a whole lot about Goodyear but we have always had Michelin tires on our cars and have been very pleased with their quality.
In response to # 697 my mom has a 2000 Ody EX and is very pleased with it. She has about 27,000 miles on it and the only problem she has had was an alignment issue which was fixed. If you get the Ody LX make sure they put Michelin Symmetry tires on it because the Firestone tires are cheap in my opinion. I think the Ody is one of the best minivan's on the market right now even though it has a few flaws. Many of the problems in the 99 models were fixed in the 2000 and 2001 models. I come from a Honda family and I think they have one of the best reliability records of any car. We have owned two Dodge Caravans and they were nothing but trouble. You may want to try the Toyota Sienna even though it is a little smaller than the Ody. I think Toyota and Honda are about tied when it comes to reliability. Before you buy the van check out a few Honda dealerships, if possible, to see which one has the best customer relations. Many dealerships are very professional and want you to enjoy your new car, and others could careless about you after you drive the car off the lot. Hope this helps.
To c8user: Re: Vibration, Validation - Get rid of your Odyssey while it is still worth top dollar. When I read your post I thought I wrote it, as I have had almost the same experiences. After eight trips to the dealer and and having tires changed to Michelins and wheels to alloys my shimmy/vibration was improved but still evident especially on smooth black top highways. The short story (I don't like to type)is I owned a 2000 LX and owed $19,000 on it. I received $20,000 trade in value when I traded my Odyssey for a new 2001 Toyota Sienna LE. I bought the Sienna three weeks ago and find it to be great so far. I test drove a different Sienna on the highway at speeds from 60 - 85mph (on both cement and asphalt) before I bought one and the ride was smooth. I have only 250 miles on my Sienna and the owners manual recommends staying below 55mph for the first 1000 miles, so I don't yet know if my Sienna will be smooth at 70-75mph. I've had it up to 60mph a couple of times and have had no problems. I will keep you posted. If you need any more details you can e-mail me at rianno777@aol.com.
Do any of you happy owners (door problems, gas sloshing, transmision noise, rear washer sprayer (they do suck) feel like your wheels are out of balance all the time or that you need an alignment?? That is what those of us with the vibration are feeling. Harmonic vibration.
I have exhasted my means of dealing with the vibration here in Canada. We have no lemon laws. Can't sue once you have arbitrated. I maybe down, but Honda has to deal with me for the next 4 years or 75,000 KM. They also still owe me a test drive on the highway to show me that the other Ody's vibrate. Don't know what happens if it doesn't. Perhaps I will make them an offer to buy it.
Has anybody had this vibration go away without selling the van?
Phil47? Didn't you have problems before on a 99 before 01EX or am I confussing you with someone else in Calgary?
Do all Ody's have this problem? (I don't think so but Honda is telling me all Ody's do. There are only 5 of us in this forum who seem to have a problem with it) Anybody try or hear of Dynamic balancing using a Hunter GSP 9700 or does anyones mechanic have one? It is suppose to balance the rim and tire assembly for both the up/down tire out of round (static vibration, normal tire balance) and the side to side (dynamic vibration, sidewall stiffness) as well as match the low spot in the rim with the high spot in the tire for a more uniform fit. In the US you can do a search for the nearest location. I am currently awaiting word from the Hunter.com (very informative web page) for a location of one of these machines in Toronto so I can blow some money to see if this works.
For now, unless someone can convince me otherwise, I will keep my GG LX (Fern in Canada just like the interior) vibrator and hope the vibration will either become a non issue (like the gas tank slosh, I actually heard that the other day but I really had to listen for it) or something will break on the van and I will be vindicated (fat chance, somehow it will be normal wear)
Comments
I bit the bullet & bought an Odyssey. I'd buy another one tomorrow. My doors work, my transmission doesn't clunk, the van doesn't drift right, it's smooth as silk at 90 mph, I get 17mpg city and 24mpg highway (going 80), and the radio is fine (much better with CD). I've only got a little over a year & 14,000 miles on it, but the van is trouble-free. Be aware that people who have problems are much more likely to post, and there are plenty of happy Odsyssey owners out there.
I own a 2001 Ody LX with about 4,000 miles. It's our first, and likely last, minivan (probably won't need one by the time it wears out-- knock on wood). Before buying, I did a lot of research, both on Edmund's posting boards and others (such as Yahoo), and in Consumer Reports (I'm a 15-year subscriber). I looked at crash tests and safety ratings on government and Insurance Institute Web sites. I also read each and every review of the Odyssey that I could find on the Web-- probably totalled about 25, from various magazines and newspapers around the country.
The Ody was the overwhelming top choice of these reviewers through the 2000 model year. Yeah, this didn't take into the account the redesigned Chrysler "Best minivan ever" (their words)-- but from what I've heard, it's more of an incremental improvement in a few areas rather than a sea change. I know one of the reviews I read (a small newspaper somewhere) picked the Chrysler first, probably two others picked the Sienna, and ALL the rest picked the Ody. Not to mention 2 consecutive Edmund's "real world minivan vacation" tests that picked Ody. It was a close call for some reviewers-- not as if every one of them saw the Ody as "head and shoulders" above the rest-- but they picked it first nonetheless.
Not to state the obvious, but as I'm sure you and most other people know, all vehicles can have problems (and most do); and furthermore, a brand-new car with NO problems in its first year or so is relatively new-- cars are complex machines especially these days with all the electronics and computer controls, and there is usually some "shake-out" period where minor production issues come up and are fixed.
That said, so far-- fingers crossed-- I've had zero actual "problems" with our van. Not being speed maniacs (as many posters and most Americans seem to be), indeed not driving too many freeway miles period, we haven't had the van up to 70 mph too often. But the few times we have, I've noticed no "shimmy" or vibration-- the van is VERY smooth at ANY speed we've driven so far. We also have no tranny "clunk". Pull to the right? None at all-- nor to the left either. We have manual doors so no problems related to power doors (I knew from research they were a problem, indeed on EVERY maker's van if you read all the posting boards, and it's one reason I decided to get the LX). Gas tank slosh? Sure-- and I really don't give a rat's patoot. Either the kids are talking or I have the radio on, so it's not very noticeable; it's ONLY noticeable to me with a tank 3/4 full or higher; plus, I've been told by others with minivans that ALL of them have this to one degree or another due to relative placement of the gas tank. Shifting? I'd read about the "weak detentes" etc. and just paid attention from the start to pull forward a little when shifting down to drive so as not to miss it, and NOT pull forward on those rare occasions when I want D1,2, or 3-- it took a few days of driving until it became unconscious, and I now think it's a pretty good "system". The Grade Logic Control isn't perfect-- I'd say there's a little more "searching" back and forth between gears at about 40 mph than other cars I've driven-- but not to the point I consider it important. I usually drive less than 40 in 30 mph zones, and more than 40 in 45 mph zones-- we don't seem to have many 40 mph posted zones in our area.
While I don't count this as a "problem"-- at least not yet-- the only minor "issue" I'd list is that on a few occasions, the van has not started immediately with a quick turn of the ignition, as it should and usually does. It took a 2nd, longer, engagement of the starter to take hold on these occasions. We're in MN-- and "No", this didn't happen on below-zero mornings (which we did have plenty of this past winter)-- it actually happened on somewhat warmer and DAMP days. I think it could be related to dampness. If it never happens in warmer and drier weather, and if it always starts after a second try anyway, I'm not worrying about it. For some of these real minor things, the chance the dealer's repairmen could goof something up while working on it doesn't make it worth the hassle for the chance of having a super-minor "problem" go away.
Note that we DID buy the extended warranty with our Ody, getting the $795 price (thanks to reading about that price in the main Odyssey board here-- our dealer did sell it for that after first claiming $1,200 was their "Internet price" and the lowest Honda would allow them to sell it for). From all the reading I'd done, I became convinced that these big, heavy "mini"-vans just do go through transmissions faster than passenger cars, and if we need a new tranny at 80,000 miles, that will more than pay for the cost of the warranty-- not to mention all the other smaller things it may cover after 3/36,000 expires. If we don't need a new tranny ever, great-- but I'd guess we'll still probably break even on the warranty price in the end if we keep the car until 100,000 miles.
To me, the Ody, while by no means perfect (as others have noted here, the "perfect" minivan has not yet been made-- all have some compromises, not to mention people's ideas of perfect do differ anyway), is very good to excellent. I think it drives and handles amazingly car-like for a big vehicle-- almost no noticeable body lean except on very sharp curves. And of course it's huge inside. The main drawback to me is the gas mileage. Before fully broken in and during cold weather, we had tanks at only 13 mpg for mostly city driving (keep in mind that's also Twin Cities gas with ethanol added, which reduces mpg by about 10% by most people's judgement). More recently, in warmer weather and presumably mostly broken-in by now, we've been averaging 17 mpg again leaning mostly to city driving (probably 40% highway and 60% city on average). I wasn't really expecting better than this, but held out hopes maybe it would exceed expectations in this area. I would be happy with a smaller engine with more "sluggish" accelerat
ion and thus probably better mpg, but most people apparently want jackrabbit acceleration these days (and effortless 90 mph cruising as well), so the market responds, and in a 4,200 lb vehicle, thus the low mpg. Unfortunately for people concerned with gas mileage (we're probably in the minority anyway), none of the big 6 cylinder minivans these days does any better overall than the Ody, and most do a little worse (lots of Windstar owners talk about 12 mpg in the city). A co-worker with a 2001 Sienna is getting mileage almost identical to what we get in the Ody-- and the Sienna is 3 or 4 hundred pounds lighter.
I would never badmouth the Sienna and we may have been as happy with it, or close, or maybe even happier? (though I doubt the last) But in our Sienna test drive, I felt the ride was TOO "isolated" for my tastes. The handling was mostly
I would never badmouth the Sienna and we may have been as happy with it, or close, or maybe even happier? (though I doubt the last) But in our Sienna test drive, I felt the ride was TOO "isolated" for my tastes. The handling was mostly car-like, but I LIKE to feel at least some road surface, it gives me more handling confidence-- and the Sienna was pretty plush or isolated. It is a little quieter. If good reliability, isolated ride, and quiet are pretty important to you-- buy Sienna. If plush interior and the most bells and whistles are #1 on your list and other things secondary, buy a loaded Town and Country (and pay lots more than for an Ody, even after cutting your best "deal" on the Chrysler). If an overall mix of good performance, tops in safety ratings, tons of space, at least "decent" expected reliability, and very good value for the dollar compared to other vans (even with Ody at full sticker price) are what you're looking for-- I'd still say you can't do better than Ody, and Sienna probably is 2nd with the notable drawback of less room inside (still "enough" if you mostly haul people and not lots of other stuff).
I don't have my new Consumer Report Auto Edition with me at work today (I usually do!), but I don't remember their listing the '99 and '00 as "below average" for reliability. I think it was "average", as is their prediction for '01 reliability. Sure, I would agree most people do and should be able to expect Honda to do better than that given their history-- but it is a much heavier and larger vehicle than they're accustomed to producing. Hopefully the problems will stay mostly on the minor side.
I'm sure some readers and posters here have done so already, but if you really want to scare yourself, go out and look at the Windstar Problems posting board. Those poor people can only dream of having problems no more serious than gas tank sloshing, shimmying, and cheap stereo speakers. They're too busy getting new engines and transmissions installed every few months to worry about things like that. And, their experiences with Ford dealerships seem at LEAST as bad as what anyone here seems to encounter from the Honda dealers. That's even though Ford owners in general are less picky than Honda owners, in my estimation. Don't get me wrong-- I'm not saying you can't go ahead and expect perfection for $26K; and I don't see a good reason why the Ody should NOT now match other Hondas in reliability (or come darn close) after a few years of production. They certainly SHOULD fix any noticeable shimmies, pulls, or "clunks" and do so without a huge hassle, etc. But all in all, I think it's a good car and the bulk of the postings in the Problem area here are centered around what I'd call relatively minor, if annoying, items. I think someone needing a minivan who can at least not pay OVER sticker price for an Odyssey will probably not regret the decision. Sorry for the length of this post, I tend to be wordy.
BTW, the grade logic works wonder with Accord, (i.e, lighter car)
Happy driving.
My 2001 EX Odyssey is less than a week old. When I picked it up from the dealership, I noticed that the gas tank knocks when either stopping the vehicle or starting to move the vehicle from a full stop. In addition, the gas makes a mostly-continuous "sloshing" sound when I'm driving it.
I arranged to go to service today. When I came in I was told by the service manager "there is no reason for anyone to come out and listen to the knocking/sloshing....Honda is aware of the problem and there is no fix for it."
I told them that I was very concerned since this is a GAS TANK problem....(I have a 3 year old and a baby on the way), and they said there was nothing that could be done.
I went home and called Honda.....I was told by a customer service rep that "ALL 2001 Honda Odysseys are experiencing this problem", and all he could suggest was arranging for someone to "put insulation around my gas tank to decrease the noise."
I have a friend with a 2001 EX with no such problem and am wondering if anyone reading this can provide me with either suggestions or input as far as their 2001 vehicles are concerned. I have a very hard time believing that ALL 2k1 Odysseys are delivered with this defect, and Honda continues to manufacture them despite their inability to fix it.......not to mention the fact that my friend has no such problem.
If anyone can help, I'd really appreciate it!!
BTW, NEVER top off your gas tank when you are refueling! it is dangerous.
Happy driving
We got on the local freeway loop and I got the feeling I was about to get the same old story, "this is normal, road vibration, etc.." To my surprise the gentleman said "this road is way to rough, is there a freeway with a better surface we can drive on"? So I led him to a section of I-10 that had been recently re paved. We were chatting about sports when the surface changed from concrete to asphalt, he suddenly stopped talking and started paying attention to the vibration and shimmy that was suddenly apparent. For the next few minutes he didn't say a word, he changed lanes several times slowed down and sped up, then turned to me and asked "is this what your feeling when your driving"? I said "yes this is it". He then down shifted to third gear, tried different lanes and speeds, but the vibration refused to go away. At this point I suggested we turn around before we ended up in Tucson. As we did, he admitted to me that he felt it best between 60 and 75 mph, and the concrete surface did mask the condition to where he was unable to feel it.
I couldn't get him to commit to what he thought the problem was, he said he'd rather a field engineer drive/diagnose what was really going on.
On our return trip he repeated everything he did earlier. And true to form the van vibrated until we reached the concrete surface again. At this point he said that if he thought it were the wheels alone he would OK a set of alloys in a heartbeat. But he felt there was more to it than just wheels. This was the most information I got out of him on the entire test drive. I finally felt some validation. So I agreed to let my van be used as the guinea pig for their testing.
I should know early next week when to expect an engineer to be calling on me. Hopefully this is a step in the right direction to getting to the bottom of this nagging problem.
Will keep everyone posted.
I have had my 2001 Odyssey EX now for just a few days, and have noticed some weird behavior with the electrical system. Firstly, the day after
I get it home from the dealer, I open the passenger-side door with the remote, and it opens halfway. I hit the button again, and it closes. I hit it again, it opens halfway. I open it from the dashboard button. This issue doesn't seem reproducible thus far.
Secondly, when closing the Rear Cargo Door, it shuts firmly, but when I go to lock the Van with the remote, it will not lock. I open the drivers doors and see that the the light in the dash that indicates that the rear door is open, so it will not lock, and the lights will not go off - lovely. I think I'm a nucklehead and re-shut the door and check again - same thing. I end up doing this about 15 more times shutting the rear door with increasing intesity. Eventually I have to manually lock the van from the inside, and all is OK.
This seems very odd behavior for a van with less than 300 miles on it don't you think? I plan on keeping track of when all this happens so I can report the frequency to the dealer in case I have to go in for repairs.
Any suggestions or comments would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Mark
Really!? How so? I do it with every fill up, especially when I'm in an area where the gas is less expensive. Never have had a problem.
Steve
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Vans, SUVs and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
The rear hatch problem may be that, although it looks closed, it's not quite latched (I had this problem). You can check it by trying to open it w/o lifting the handle to see if it opens an inch before catching (which is what is used to do to me). If this is happening, you can try adjusting the rubber bumpers on each lower corner of the hatch to make it close more securely every time (which is what worked for me). It took just a few minutes.
Well, the gas station owners probably hated you. If you spilled the gas while topping off, you were risking his business and other people around you at the time. Few people realize that we are driving a bomb with us every day.
Now, onto the contruction of a fuel tank. In order for fuel to be drawn out, the tank has to be vented throu vent lines. The vent lines lead to charcoal canister which traps gasoline vapors before they were released into our atmosphere. those vent lines are for gasoline vapor, not liquid fuel. When you topoff your tank, guess where the extra liquid fuel ended up to?, your tank's vent lines. The result will be possible fuel leak or damage to your EVAP system, not to mention damaging to our environment. We just elected a irresposible leader, that does not mean we have to follow his lead on carelessness to our environment:)
BTW, anyone who drives an Ody undoubtedly has experience with the static shock. Do ground yourself first before reaching for that pump.
Damn! whoever said driving is safe and enjoyable.
happy driving
dc_sports_rule "Honda Accord Problems Part 2" Apr 8, 2001 5:28pm
dc_sports_rule "Honda Accord Problems Part 2" Apr 10, 2001 7:50am
Steve
Host
Vans, SUVs and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
Thanks
Happy driving
Odyfan, if you're going to paint yours, be sure to use a product like Rustpho or similar (should be available where you can purchase automotive paints) to clean and prep the surfaces prior to painting. These products contain phosphoric acid, which will both remove the rust and leave a very light phosphate coating on the surface to which the paint will form a good bond. If you don't do this, the paint will flake and peel. (FWIW, metal finishing is how I earn my living.)
Fight them under your lemon laws. Worst thing that can happen is you end up with a vibrating van with a real good warrenty that Honda will stand behind. To all those who do fight I hope you have better luck than I in getting results in the US. In Canada I needed to prove it was a manufacturing defect but since all Odysseys supposedly have the vibration it is thus not a defect but a characteristic of the vehicle.
Our other vehicle is a 92 Civic now with 174,000 and still going strong. In 1993 I was at the Honda dealership for a 15,000 mile oil change. They noticed the tires were wearing and volunteered a free set of Michelins, saying Honda realized they had placed poor tires on the 92 Civics.
Things have sure changed with the customer service we are now getting from Honda.
If they could replace bad tires on a $9,000 Civic it sure seems they could help us out on a $26,000 Ody!
Back Again, We have had our Odyssey for 6 weeks now, Absolutely love it, it was worth the wait!
In my Ody manual, and every where else the fuel tank capacity states 20 gallons, have filled up at least once a week since our purchase, at the pump it seems to top off at 12 gallons, seems impossible to have an 8 gallon reserve. Anyone else encounter this out there?
Finally, I'm about to buy to Michelin X-ones (or Sam's version), but have thought about the Michelin Symmetry and Goodyear Aquatred 3's also. Anyone have any comments on any of these tires? I had a set of the orginal Aquatred's on another mini-van once. The tread life was absolutely miserable. They are claiming much better performance now for some reason.
The rust won't affect the vehicle's drivability anyway.
Happy driving!
gareyg: If you are experiencing wear on the outer edges of your front tires and the dealer is telling you there's nothing wrong, may I suggest you go to an independent front end shop and get a second opinion. If they tell you the alignment is within specifications then there is a problem with the suspension geometry that Honda missed. But if there is a problem, get before and after printouts of the alignment and bring them with the bill back to your Honda dealer. Outer edge wear is usually caused by to much camber, improper toe-in, or under inflated tires(under inflation will cause tires to wear on both the inner and outer edges). As far as my van is concerned no noticeable tire wear, but I'm on my second set of tires in less than 7000 miles. As far as Honda's customer service is concerned it is deplorable. My best advice is if you can't get anywhere with your local dealer, call the American Honda Customer Service office for your area. I believe you can find the number for your area office at http://www.honda-odyssey.com/ under news link. Good luck and don't give up until you get some satisfaction.
I had the same problem with the vibration, as I have posted earlier, on my 2001 LX. Took the van in and had a balance and tire rotation. The dealer told me that one tire was "off" by 1 pound, and another was off by 1/4 pound. I'm not really sure what that means, but I have not had any more problem now after about 300 miles of driving since the balance. I remember some of you saying this fix might last a while, but not for long, so I am ready to go back in the minute it starts again, if it does. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
I am really sorry that imhip lost in arbitration. What do you do now? Go for a lemon law?
Will keep you posted.
However, after reading some of the posts in this forum, I am confused. Although it still appears to me that the problems experienced by Odyssey owners are less severe and less frequent, it still seems to have its own share. I am paranoid about safety/reliability because it is primarily my wife with our son who is now six months old who is going to drive the van.
We have already put down a refundable deposit for a 2001 Odyssey LX after test driving it and liking it. The dealer gives a lifetime guarantee on the powertrain as an added incentive provided you get the vehicle serviced at their location. Am I making the right choice by going in for an Odyssey if reliability (my definition of reliability: no major problems. I am not bothered about problems like rusting exterior, etc.) is my prime criterion? Is there any other minvan out there which would give me better odds on reliability?
Thanks.
Do any of you happy owners (door problems, gas sloshing, transmision noise, rear washer sprayer (they do suck) feel like your wheels are out of balance all the time or that you need an alignment?? That is what those of us with the vibration are feeling. Harmonic vibration.
I have exhasted my means of dealing with the vibration here in Canada. We have no lemon laws. Can't sue once you have arbitrated. I maybe down, but Honda has to deal with me for the next 4 years or 75,000 KM. They also still owe me a test drive on the highway to show me that the other Ody's vibrate. Don't know what happens if it doesn't. Perhaps I will make them an offer to buy it.
Has anybody had this vibration go away without selling the van?
Phil47? Didn't you have problems before on a 99 before 01EX or am I confussing you with someone else in Calgary?
Do all Ody's have this problem? (I don't think so but Honda is telling me all Ody's do. There are only 5 of us in this forum who seem to have a problem with it) Anybody try or hear of Dynamic balancing using a Hunter GSP 9700 or does anyones mechanic have one? It is suppose to balance the rim and tire assembly for both the up/down tire out of round (static vibration, normal tire balance) and the side to side (dynamic vibration, sidewall stiffness) as well as match the low spot in the rim with the high spot in the tire for a more uniform fit. In the US you can do a search for the nearest location. I am currently awaiting word from the Hunter.com (very informative web page) for a location of one of these machines in Toronto so I can blow some money to see if this works.
For now, unless someone can convince me otherwise, I will keep my GG LX (Fern in Canada just like the interior) vibrator and hope the vibration will either become a non issue (like the gas tank slosh, I actually heard that the other day but I really had to listen for it) or something will break on the van and I will be vindicated (fat chance, somehow it will be normal wear)