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2008 Honda Accord Coupe and Sedan
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Comments
Does this now become a safety issue?...if someone is following you on a dark road at night and the tail lights flicker does the other driver think you are "brake checking" him?
And last but not least why doesn't the 6 cylinder accord do it?..its a built in design defect.
The 6-cylinder Accord probably has a different alternator.
It's not a TV. This doesn't look like a major problem. The lights on my truck are worse than that. They strobe with the engine. If someone is brake checking you, the lights would get brighter, not dimmer. If Honda were to take the car back, what would you buy? You could end up with a car that has more/major problems that are more serious than flickering lights.
My car did the same thing, it always did it. but I never even thought anything of it, until people starting discussing it here. This totally seems normal to me. Honestly, thought nothing until people here starting talking about, maybe it is worse on the 2008's. Not sure. but not sure of the video either. Honda Accord's have been doing this since way back, years. The clip video seemed like a normal Honda Accord. I could see why others might really make an issue of it, so why Honda has not actually just fixed it, tweaked it, after all this time, I am not sure. But, this is normal, or typical of an Accord 4cyl.
I am sure the actual engine guts have not changed that much when put in the 08. Just tweaked. I wouldn't think there is much more electronics to run than before to cause this supposed problem for the 08.
Again, it was on my 06, even when I drove it home for the first time, never noticed it. Be glad you have a Honda right now. But, I can understand you wanting it fixed.
since the bar is so high for Honda. Normal to me though. The sound of a typical Honda engine.
I would still buy the Honda Accord today! I'll trade ya!
For all you people on these forums that tell us that we dont have a problem maybe this will change your mind. If you do have the problem and it annoys you ffile for arbitration and go after honda. If enough cars are bought back honda will eventually find a FIX for the headlight problem.
This can be done and KP proved it....congratulations KP its been a long time coming. I absolutely salute your tenacity in this issue.
You would have thought Honda would fix the issue, considering it has been going on for years. It has to be a simple fix. Since, they take the perfection approach to their cars, you would think an employee driving the car would notice and get it on high priority.
I am glad the issue is slowly be acknowledged/fixed by Honda. If they want to keep their reputation up, they'll fix it. I can understand why you all are upset by the issue.
But, remember, compared to other cars with much, much worse problems than this, this problem looks better if you were to get an issue.
Best of luck.
Thanks,
Jonathan Wahl
Corporate Communications
Edmunds Inc.
MODERATOR /ADMINISTRATOR
Need help navigating? kirstie_h@edmunds.com - or send a private message by clicking on my name.
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I personally don't like anything Honda has in their lineup and sadly my next car won't be a Honda.
I asked them why a radiator fan would begin to cycle on and off within 20 seconds of the initial start on a 20-degree morning? Answer from Honda, it is normal. Pure crap! Normal operating temp is 210 - 220 degrees, so it takes a bit to reach that temp on a cold morning.
The flickering headlights, exterior lights, etc, are the direct result of the fan cycling on and off every 20 seconds or so. Now, why would the fan need to operate this way, especially in very cold weather? The fan runs to cool the motor. The radiator fan on the 08 Accord seems to run off and on constantly for no apparent reason.
Thus, the dealership continues to play dumb. An example of Honda’s concern for their customers, I had to bring them two TSB's, (Technical Service Bulletins), for a third gear problem on my 2007 Honda Civic SI that had only 3000 miles on it. The TSB FROM HONDA stated that third gear needed to be replaced. When I called the dealership, they told me there were no TSB’s postetd. I googled it and in 30 seconds I found the TSB, printed it and took it to Honda. The service writer says, "Wow, we've never seen that before". Again, pure crap. Well, they replace third gear at 3000 miles on the car.
So, here’s our dealership that we count on for honesty and integrity telling me that there isn’t a problem when there absolutely was. That is just an example as to how Honda is dealing with the 2008 Accord issues as well. They will deny it from sun up to sun down until enough people complain or a class action suit is set into motion. I would just like to know how "KATANA" got a check from Honda? This seems impossible. In 20 years of being in the field, I've never seen that done.
Often it is not the dealer, it is the entire company that behaves that way. The dealers are TOLD to stonewall the customer; be polite and do NOTHING. Fixing issues cost $$ specially when you make 380-400K of these cars a year. Japanese are not used to spend money of fixing issues. Which dealer wants to be the one that says " We know this is a problem, we get tons of complain just like yours and we don't have a fix for it yet or we are not willing to fix it?!!"
with cold engine and temp below 30 degrees, unless the defroster is on that turns the A/C compressor on, the fan should not come on. As you said this is not normal, it is an incorrect/misrouted sequence for operations. In older cars, the compressor would not even come on if the temp was like 30 degrees and that is the way it should be.
Joe
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWfYIIG8tC0
This will be going to the board with me. If you have any questions you can leave a message under the video.
Ign SW ON
Drivers temp full cold
Press and HOLD the OFF button
Press the rear window defogger button 5X within 10 sec.
Self test will begin.
Test uses 88 (Driver side) and 88 (Pax side) as code identifiers.
If you see no pieces of the 88 either side, test is good.
If you see bits and pieces of 88 either side - check the service manual for problem identification.
Honda has geared the engine shorter (which means higher RPMs per MPH) so that it can more easily jump into VCM mode, using less fuel. If the gearing was taller, the engine wouldn't be able to stay in VCM mode as much, because it wouldn't have enough power at low RPMs to run in 3 or 4-cyl mode. Your Pilot doesn't have VCM, so it is always running 6 cylinders, so the lower RPMs make more sense in that application.
I know Honda uses this logic, because the Odyssey vans that have VCM run about 200-300 RPM higher at 60 MPH than those without VCM.
Regarding your old Legend...it was a smaller, slightly lighter vehicle about 60 fewer horses. It also is rated at 17/21 under today's standards (where your V6 Accord is rated 19/29) so I'm slightly skeptical that your driving style is the same. Not sure where the differences are. 22 MPG is the EPA estimated combined average for your vehicle, so you aren't far off from where you should be in your new car.
Best,
TheGraduate
Cannot help you on the lights, though.
Good luck! I have an 08 6spd Accord coupe with aftermarket wheels/tires.
Paid $22,500 new and sold it 15 months 9K miles later for $20,500. While Accord has the sharpest exterior ( heavily borrowed from BMW 3 and 5 series) and exceptional resale value, I would seriousley consider Mazda 6 or Nissan Altima before buying an Accord.
The seats are too narrow and Honda hasn't figured the seats right yet. I was not impressed with how the car bounced over slight highway bumpy roads with its 17" wheels and low profile tires......and that confusing transmission kept holding gears and downshifting on slight uphill driving on the only 570 highway trip we took.
Honda should benchmark Mercedes for seat contour and comfort. My 2001 E430 has the most comfortable seats of any car/truck/SUV I have ever owned.
Joe
Doesn't seem like a big deal to me. I'm about to buy a new Accord to replace my 04.
Sure. Turn off the headlights before you go to bed. Then, no more worries.