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Comments
On the highway it had a catastrophic failure, the transmission failed completely, with smoke pouring out of the engine compartment. Mileage 170,000, four years after, I am awaiting to see what Honda will do for me.
Obviously with the number of posts, the recalls etc.., there is a design flaw. Although I am not a fan of government intervention, when it comes to consumer affairs such as this one, I believe the government should push a "lemon type law" to cover such issues. Car companies still need adult supervision when it comes to public exposure to a bad product which causes the general public (based on these posts) to become prey to unscrupulous repair shops and misinformation resulting in the public being seemingly "ripped off'.
on odyclub.com, there are some posts for tranny failures in the 100k miles range just in a couple of days. So it's a very common problem and it might be a safety issue.
It will be good for the government (NHTSA) to step out for the safety issue rather than individual customer to deal with Honda case by case.
When it suddenly fails, the car cannot move. It's definitely a safety issue.
I have the similar problem with 2003 Honda Odyssey EX (transmission failure). Honda motors refused to fix transmission. My family always bought Honda cars and vans. According to Honda mechanics, Odyssey transmissions have problems. Honda does not admit their mistake, nor they offer free transmission if your van exceeds the 100,000 miles.
Honda needs to do better for their customers. My family and I came to conclusions that brand loyalty does not help us. We need to consider other car manufacturers.
NO MORE :sick: :sick: HONDA ODYSSEY VAN
I have been told that changing the trans fluid every 30,000 miles with Amsoil trans fluid will keep trans much cooler and may prevent repeat failures. Anyone heard or tried this ?
Therefore, what are the exact conditions for the warranty/free replacement agreements? I saw several numbers 109k miles, 100k miles, etc. Does it also depend on the age of the car? Does it only apply for the original owner?
We only drive about 10k/year. So if we won't have to pay for transmission fixes up to 100k miles, I might consider buying one.
Any help is appreciated, links to web pages, etc.
Thanks very much!
It seems strange that that 2002 has only 32,000 miltes on it. I would check this out further. It's quite possible it's mileage is 132,000 miles.
See also OdyClub.com for excellant forums.
also http://www.carcomplaints.com/
Our van was running great until we hit 45k. Then we had all the symptoms that people talk about, the light, the stutter between 2 and 3, and sometimes, 1st gear.
I went round and round with Honda of America. We had previously owned 6 Hondas...and that meant nothing to them. All the previous Honda's were purchased at a Honda dealer---but, because THIS Honda wasn't, Honda of America said, "I could take their offer, or they would recend it."
I will NEVER, NEVER buy another Honda.
If I were you, I wouldn't buy a 2002 Honda. You WILL have transmission problems---and Honda will not help you.
After the repairs were done, I sent out a letter to Honda of America asking them to better stand behind their faulty product and requested a 90/10 split. Stay tuned!
I can understand that sometimes XEW!!@# happens. They need to provide better customer serivce when it does. They are failing.
The first tranny failed at 77,700 and Honda paid for it. Now, 42,000 miles later, the second one is gone. Is it unreasonable to ask for a transmission to go more than 42,000 miles?? They obviously gave me someone else's problem transmission!
We've had Toyotas go 170,000 and had no problems! My neighbor has a Toyota now with 200,000!
The Honda rep, through the dealership, has asked us to make him an offer that would "be fair"! How about a Honda Odyssey that lives up to its reputation and price!! What has anyone else paid for the second transmission?? The car now has 120,000 miles on it and I was hoping to get at least 180,000-200,000. I can't buy another car right now! Help me negotiate with Honda! Help! :lemon:
Sorry for your situation. But according to Charles Villenueva, they would look at a 2nd failure on a case by case basis. Contact him (Honda of America has a 800 number and a fax number on their website), and you can certainly use my name (Peter Kim). ONLY some VIN's had extended warranties to 109K. See if yours was a part of the extended warranty.
Basically, everyone knows (Honda just won't admit it) that it's a faulty transmission. They won't fully stand behind their product and will handle these claims on an individual basis in order to mitigate their crappy product.
Good luck.
Sue
Edward Newbegin
Berkeley, CA
Second transmission was paid for by Honda at 77,700 miles. It failed this past Saturday at 120,000 miles or after only 42,000 miles. We've settled with Honda paying for 50%, of course that means that we are paying 50% too, or about $1550 out of our pocket.
We also thought we were set when they put in the second transmission. HAH! We have maintained the van meticulously--always at the dealer, even oil changes and tires. I got 100,000 miles out of the original front brakes! But I couldn't get that many miles out of either transmission! They now tell me that they are going to "flush" the system several times to make sure there isn't anything there. Makes you wonder if they did that the first time? If so, maybe we wouldn't be out $1550.
I also was also only given a 12 month/12,000 mile warranty on the 2nd transmission. The Service Manager told me that if I'd paid anything for it--even $1, I would have gotten a 36/36 warranty!! Beware!! Of course, I'd have paid a few dollars for the longer warranty!!! No one told me!
We bought a Honda to get away from things like this. I had a Chrysler van that had transmission problems and now get stuck again!!! Honda's were more expensive but we thought we were paying for quality. Think I'll buy American next time and at least have a clear conscience. The ratings on American brands are at least as good, if not better, these days.
Keep us posted on your negotiations.
Susan
in Ohio
In today's morning commute driving, it sounds like the same symptom as the 1st one, and the 2nd one.
I asked America Honda if the remanufactured one was re-designed.
They said yes.
How come they repeat the same mistake?
http://www.nhtsa.gov/
Based on all these testimonials, I definitely will look for other mfg...for future purchases and maybe even think about going back to manual transmissions. I just hope that my new transmission will at least last the 3/36 warranty. I just would not rather deal with Honda again. They are cordial enough...just irritating and that won't change. My wife definitely likes MiniVans. Toyota Sienna will likely be our next purchase when this crappy tranny breaks again.
Hey...it just takes one bad experience, and since we all have many options in autos, I for one will be putting Honda way down on my list.
After reading some of this blog I am not encouraged and certainly shouldn't be surprised by the failure of my van's transmission, but I was! Yesterday my Honda dealer delivered the news that we needed to replace the transmission on our 2003 Odyssey and it would cost $4,360 + tax (about $4,600 total). The van has 88,000 miles. About 2,000 miles ago we were out of town and the "D" light started blinking. We drove to a Savannah, GA, dealer who did a $500+ transmission repair on some 3rd gear part. That will put our exposure at $5,100 total for this transmission!
We owned two Chrysler vans before this Honda and "stepped up" to the Odyssey to avoid the bad transmission experiences in the Chryslers (almost calculated failure every 75,000 miles).
Our Honda dealer said he has placed a call to American Honda to see what, if any, assistance they will provide. He was "not hopeful" since he said they are being less accommodating these days. The argument is that we have enjoyed 88,000 miles of use over 6 years and that the car came with a 3yr/36,000 mile warranty. He did state that he thought the transmission should last longer than 88,000 miles, but the decision to assist was not his. He also said such a request for assistance needed to be initiated by the dealer which has now been done. Maybe we'll hear today what they say.
Since this car's transmission warranty was not extended like its 2001 cousin it should have been included under the government's Clunker program!!
Don't buy a Honda if you are looking for long term trouble free ownership.
Good luck. My Regional Customer Svc Mgr from Honda Charles Villenueva implied that transmissions should last about 120K so you might get the 50% offer.
Peter Kim
Basically, the dealership's service manager was the "go-between" and we kept everything polite. He had just replaced two transmissions (the first time) in vans at 120,000 miles and Honda had paid 25%, so he wasn't too hopeful that we'd get more. He did advocate for us and had known the Honda rep for over 20 years. We never did talk to the rep and the service manager was quite surprised we got as much as we did. Of course, I feel that we shouldn't have had to pay anything since the second transmission only lasted 43,000 miles! I wonder how long this one will last??? I'm afraid to take it on a long trip.
The whole thing really stinks because we purposely got rid of a Chrysler van that had had the transmission problems and bought the Odyssey to avoid problems! We paid more for the Odyssey than an equivalent Chrysler and ended up with the same problem. Of course, I never paid a penny to repair the Chrysler!
Good luck. I hope this helps.
Thanks!
Thanks!
If anyone has any other suggestions on how I might recover part or all of the repair costs, I would be totally delighted.
thank you!
Of course it makes sense to stay with the dealer if Honda is paying a chunk, but if they are blowing you off, how much cheaper is it to have an independant transmission shop or mechanic do the job?
I assume that the local tranny guy would end up getting the exact reman unit that Honda slaps in (assuming again that they don't bother to rebuild themselves), and usually dealers are quite a bit more expensive for "routine" work.
I also wondered if a good mechanic can bench rebuild one? I remember about 10 years ago when I had a Woyager being in the shop watching a mechanic redo the guts of a minivan tranny (thankfully not mine!)
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Ampco also offered to rebuild the xmission at their shop for about $2400, but they said they could not guarantee that they would be able to rebuild it and might have to put in a 'new' rebuilt one. I didn't want to take that chance.
This website has a link to the Jasper Engines website on the left side of the page:
http://www.odysseytransmission.com/
I am convinced this "ounce of prevention..." is well worth the cost. Although it shifts fine, my transmission starts to make what I can best describe as a a growling sound after long drives towards the end of the service year. The fluid change quieted this last time and I take that as more evidence that fluid maintenance is an issue. My mechanic assures me that it is, and changing it is cheaper than buying a transmission. I guess I'll see if I keep it as long as my last van; a 90 Toyota Previa that ran to 225K. I hope this helps.
Hondas. Nice cars, crappy automatic transmissions, questionable customer commitment. I never had isses with Honda transmissions when I had the manual trannys.
After much research I concluded that:
1. Honda trannies are under-designed.
2. The Honda fluid doesn't do a good job of keeping the tranny alive and well.
After much research, I switched to using Amsoil synthetic transmission fluid and had my dealer change it over 3 "drain-and-fill" methods. While initially they tried to scare me in to not using the fluid, they performed the service, each time reporting that the old fluid being drained out looked a lot cleaner.
The shift quality has improved considerably and I think the tranny will last longer.
I also had my Acura dealer use the same fluid in my Acura TL 2005 tranny with the same result (no issues with my acura before or after - still on original tranny). What was even more interesting was that the Acura dealer did not try scaring me in to not using it and also after looking at the results on my vehicle, use the same fluid on other acura's that are just starting with tranny issues and and reporting good results.
Note that the Amsoil fully synthetic fluid is about the same or cheaper than the honda fluid and from research it is the only tranny fluid that claims compatibility with the honda fluid (meaning it has similar or same additive packages).
I am not advertising for Amsoil here. I have no stake in Amsoil or their products other than their good use in my honda ody 05 and acura tl 05.
I hope my story helps someone save money and headaches with honda tranny issues.
One thing is certain I will rethink my decision to buy a honda again. I have had many issues with my ody 2005 (motor mount, a-pipe, power-steering pump and more) most of which were fixed under goodwill after the std warranty was way past expiration by my dealer (a fantastic dealership with a great service manager who helps customers out).
I just called to complain about the issue and now they are saying they need to replace torque converter..... guys watch out with Hondas.... the van is not even two years old and it needs torque converter replacement.
Are you saying you took the car in for an oil change and they did other work on it without your knowledge or permission and that was a software update? The software update didn't work right and your van was shaking. Now it needs a torque converter, which may have been related to the reason they tried the software update in the first place but it's going to require a replacement instead of them fixing it, temporarily perhaps, with the software update?
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
If it turns out to be the EGR valve, you might also check this article to make sure that it's done the right way (different vehicles shown, but same principle likely applies).
http://accuratecars.com/blog/2008/11/25/insufficient-egr-flow-on-honda-and-acura- -cars-accurate-automotive-says-save-money-and-do-it-right-the-first-time/
Thank you