Honda Accord Problems 2000-2005

simonsez5 · October 2004

Hi all, for 3 weeks now I've been enjoying by 2005 Accord like hell, I just look forward for the drive everytime. My report so far is pretty much all positive except for maybe 2 things that that bother me a little.

First my radio reception ain't the greatest, all Accords have rear-window integrated antennas right? I thought my 2000 Protege is mush better in that respect, anything I can do to improve it?

My other concern is radio-related as well, when I turn the volume up pass the half-point mark (on the screen), within approximately 20 seconds, the volume will go down on its own, although the marker on the display stays the same?? Is there an explanation for this? Is it normal?

thanks in advance

bd21 · October 2004

Because of the tight clearance between the engine and driver's side wheel well, you need a very unique socket breaker bar combination to loosen the crankshaft pulley nut, so you can remove the timing belt. The tool is a Honda specialty tool only. If you own a machine shop and can weld, you can make your own. Otherwise, you will be visiting a shop to have your belt changed.

anonymousposts · October 2004

The light will come on when you start the car but should go off within a couple of seconds, as you said. It's the system testing itself. Same goes for the ABS light as well I think.

amazon · October 2004

I think the Haynes manual says to lower the engine to get this clearance.

92tbd · October 2004

Hello,
I have a 92 Accord with 175K miles. When shift to "D" the green light keeps flashing even if I shift back to "P" or "R" or any other selection.
Also as I am driving the speedometer drops down to Zero or goes to 130mph. It's acting crazy.

Could this be a computer problem or a lose connection anywhere?? Other than that the car runs as it did the first day. Any thoughts??? Appreciate the help.

amazon · October 2004

I think you have a transmission problem, not an electrical problem...

chucko3 · October 2004

I think the car might have a bad speed sensor.

ncviper · October 2004

OK, I'm new here. I really need to know if anyone is having this type of problem.
When I shift from park to reverse I have about a 2-3 second hesitation before the transmission engages. Going from reverse to drive I get a 2-3.5 second hesitation.
The dealer says its normal.....I say BS. This hesitation is long enongh to run up RPM's on the engine therefore getting a very HARD engagment. I have been told by the service manager that it is the way WE drive. Funny I've had about 25 cars in my lifetime and none have done this. PLEASE any feedback would be great!

jmaxe · October 2004

I drive the same model w/o NAV and I've never noticed a delay of any kind.

ncviper · October 2004

Exactly my point. I have had this at 2 different dealers, both say that there is a pause but it is acceptable. Riggggt!

edscissors172 · October 2004

Just bought a 2005 Accord EX-L 4 cylinder, and the salesman told me to change the oil at 3,000 miles. I know this is the standard for everyone I have met so far, but why does it say 5,000 miles in the manual(this is for severe conditions like mine in NYC, and it also says 10,000 for normal it's on page 203 of the new manual). I called my dealer and he said that I could change it at 3,750 miles for the first and then 3,000 every one after. I do not understand what the Honda standard recommendation is, and if my dealer is full of BS...

hmurphy · October 2004

My 03 EX-V6 didn't do that either.

I recommend calling Honda Customer Relations. In my experience, the corporate reps are more receptive. They can also authorize inspections/repairs in advance, so you don't have to argue with a dealer.

There have been enough issues with the six-cylinder transmissions to warrant taking your concern to the corporate level.

ncviper · October 2004

Well guess what....I have done that. My case worker is Princess. She tells me that since the service manager does not think anything is wrong with the transmission she can not set up an appt with a district manager. By the way, do your power seats have forward "play" in them. Like when you stop a little short do the seats move forward? Say about an 1/4".

justin · October 2004

my seats have always had "play" in them. i hate it, but dealer says it normal. just another lovely Honda quality trait i guess....

2003 EX-V6 power seats.

hmurphy · October 2004

I don't have the car anymore, but it never had "play" in the seats.

kimsk · October 2004

The tachometer points to something like 1500 RPM. And if you drive a car, it will rapidly run or jump out (esp. the reverse gear).

It only happens when I start the engine when the engine is cold like the first time in the morning or after I park in the garage all day.

After the engine is running for a while, my accord is running smoothly again (the tachometer seems to be back in normal).

Do you think the car has some problem? Or I just worry too much? BTW, this is my first honda. And I really love it.

rcc8179 · October 2004

The relatively high idle is normal for Hondas (and some other makes as well). This warms up the engine faster and, as you know, the idle will return to normal once fully warm.

I was a little surprised too when I first got my 2003--I figured the high idle at startup had gone by the wayside along with the carburetor (I had a 1989 Accord previously). But it is nothing to worry about.

ncviper · October 2004

You dn't have it anymore? So you are one of the smart ones! I may not have this much longer. Too bad I really like EVERYTHING about this car except these two things.(Transmission and seats).

gregoryc1 · October 2004

Listen to your salesman! Change the engine oil and filter every 3,000 miles. Our 2003 Accord has 35,000 + miles on the clock, and since it was new it has received 3,000 miles oil and filter changes. Extended oil and filter changes are a marketing tool. Oil and filters are cheap, engines are expensive. Look at it this way, ---if you drive 12,000 mile a year, at 3,000 mile intervals, that would be four,(4), oil and filter changes per year. (about $100.00 at the dealer). --------A "clean engine" is a happy engine! "Stop and Go Driving" demands frequent oil and filter changes.

xcel · October 2004

Hi Gregoryc1:

___So why dont you change your oil at 1,500 miles or better yet, every 750 miles? A clean engine is a happy engine after all ...

___7,500 mile oil changes for me but I am considering 10,000 on all the vehicles given I use a SuperTech filter and Mobil1 synthetic in each and every one of them.

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes

gregoryc1 · October 2004

Let the engine warm up for five minutes before you put the transmission into gear! In the warm weather, I let the engine run for about five minutes, before I drive away in the morning. In the cold weather, I let the engine warm up for about ten minutes, before I drive away in the morning. If there is ice and snow on the vehicle, I let the engine run, until I have heat in the vehicle to remove the ice and snow from the windows. I don't have a fast idle problem. There are other people on this board who have different opinions on this subject. Our Accord has 35,000 + miles on the clock. The engine is very smooth and quiet. My 4 cylinder engine does not use a drop of oil between oil and filter changes, (every 3,000 miles).

gregoryc1 · October 2004

I don't use Synthetic oil! If I did use Synthetic oil, I would still change it every 3,000 miles, because dirty oil is dirty oil, whether it is "Dino" or Synthetic. The only advantage to Synthetic oil is that it can resist heat better than "Dino" oil. You can change you oil at any mileage that you see fit! It is your engine.

gauger01 · October 2004

Just got my 04 EX-L V6 w/NAV and love it. My salesman told me that I should go by what the manual says....7500 miles. Especially for the first oil change. He says Honda uses a 'special' oil in new engines and I should keep that in there as close to 7500 miles as possible.

xcel · October 2004

Hi Gregoryc1:

___I dont care what type of oil you use either but if you want to change your oil more frequently then even the manual recommends, why not 1,500 or 750 miles then? As you said, a clean engine is a happy engine ;-)

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes

tld · October 2004

I'm looking at an 05 some time soon and have read many posts about the automatic problems but haven't see much about the 03-04 manual trans with the four cylinder. How does this transmission hold up? Does it get much better mpg then the automatic?

gee35coupe · October 2004

for a 04 EX-L stick. That's one thing you "never" hear. Inherent problems with Honda manual trannys.

davester1 · October 2004

Hey everyone,

I have a 1998 Accord with a four cyl. and took it in the shop today and found out my tranny is shot (technically "axle seals leaking due to excessive lateral movement of drive axles caused by failed diffential bearings"). According to my mechanic, the failure was premature and could not have been caused or prevented by me.

If so, any luck getting Honda to fix it? I have a case number and am going to get a 2nd opinion from a local dealer (took it to independent Honda mechanic initially)and see where it goes from there. I am aware of the tranny issues with the V-6, but maybe it goes beyond that???

talon95 · October 2004

Follow the manufacturer's recommendations for oil changes. Nobody knows the engine better than the manufacturer... after all, they designed and built it. Check out their descriptions of normal and severe service. If you have any reason to think that your driving habits constitute severe service, err on the side of caution and follow the severe schedule.

bd21 · October 2004

It's worth a shot, but knowing Honda has I do I would say you are out of luck. They did give all Accord transmissions a 7 year/100,000 warranty for free for 2000 & 2001. Good luck, but be prepared to take it to a transmission shop at your own expense. Don't go to the dealer. You can have your transmission repaired with a lifetime warranty at several independent shops for significantly less.

gregoryc1 · October 2004

Do you have an extended warranty on this vehicle? (We have a 7 year 100,000 miles warranty on our Accord). ----- Did you service the transmission every 30,000 miles according to the Honda Owner's Manual? ----- Did you have the vehicle service at the appropriate mileage intervals, (15,000 - 30,000 ----etc by a Honda dealer? Do you have service receipts to prove this service? ------ How much mileage is on the clock? Our 2003 4 cylinder Accord is 20 months old, and it has 35,000 + miles on the clock. To date, it has had two fluid changes done to the automatic transmission, and all major services performed on the vehicle. (15,000 & 30,000) No problems with the transmission. It shifts VERY smooth. I would take this problem to the dealer who services your Accord. If you don't have an extended warranty, and you do not have the service receipts, I don't think you are going to be successful getting Honda to pay for this issue! -----Lots of luck.

gregoryc1 · October 2004

Good idea! Thanks for the suggestion.

hmurphy · October 2004

ncviper,

I sold it due to recurring brake problems. I really liked it, but I didn't want the continual hassle. The transmission recall on top of the other issues spooked me too.

imidazol97 · October 2004

How many miles do you drive your car in a month?

edscissors172 · October 2004

wow, you guys are scaring me. This is my first Accord ('05 Accord EX-L 4 cylinder) and I got the basic 3 years/36,000 mile warranty. I decided that I will upgrade a little down the line to the better one, since my finances did not allow me to go with the more expensive ones. But all these transmission issues are enough to get one worried, I wonder if there is anything I can do to prevent, or protect myself from something like this. I love my car, it is beautiful inside and out, and I probably wouldn't change it for a Camry, Passat, or anything in the same line. The quantity of quality that the 05 Accord EX-L is by far a better bargain than any one in that class. But my question is should I be worried about this Tranny issue. Should I call the Manufacturer and express the concern? Isn't there a lemon law in NY that includes tranny issues also? http://www.nationallemonlawcenter.com/new-york/index.htm
Looks are deceiving and I do not want to find out down the line that I was stuck with a lemon, because a 25 grand lemon is enough to get Bill Gates mad.

justin · October 2004

just keep an eye out for problems. for 05 Honda claims to have fixed the automatic transmission problems. but, they have had known V6 automatic transmission problems since 1997. all you can do is hope for the best.

for what its worth, mine has performed flawlessly for almost 15k miles. 2003 V6. when they did the recall work last Friday, they looked inside, said "its all good". no gear issues at all.

good luck with the 05!

edscissors172 · October 2004

Well, I don't know yet since I kept my 99 OLDs intrigue and use that as the mileage tank. I just have 110 miles on my Accord and probably will only use it on the weekends, since here in NYC it is impossible to drive to work. But a good estimate can be something around 500 miles a month at maximum. I just finished getting off the phone with Honda @ the 800 999 1009 number on the website. They said to change it at 5000 miles like the manual says, I also brought up the concern about the transmission and that a couple of people I've heard of had problems with the Accord 04's and the 03's. They expressed to me that they did have a recall on the 04 Accord transmission case and that ALL RECALLS ARE COVERED BY THE MANUFACTURER AT NO COST FOR THE LIFETIME OF THE VEHICLE. So the conclusion is that if your transmission is shot and it is not the fault of your driving habits or just bad service, Honda will replace it problem free, and thats that. Thank goodness that I joined this site, if not I would never have thought about it and probably would have gotten screwed, but it's great that we can communicate and help each other.

sanerlou · October 2004

Hi, whonew8

Have you got your car pulling problem fixed? My 99 Honda Accord LX has the very similar problem as yours. I have done alignment twice, I am wondering what else I need to do to fix my problem. Thanks!

#6394 of 8509 re: steering test by whonew8 Dec 05, 2003 (10:53 am)

car has gone off to the left as well as to the right with steering wheel fixed in place. Also hard to find a time to hold it still because I constantly have to correct the steering to stay in my lane. I'm pretty sure I know what road crown is. I am testing on some relatively level roads. Either way, this car is still going left and right on its own on roads where it should track straight. Also, before Honda did the subframe shift, the car was drifting to the right 50% of the time and occasionally to the left. All of my tests are on sections of road that were fine with my previous cars.

I am trying to diagnose because the service manager told me he was going to realign the car a 5th time to fix the wavering back and forth. When I picked up the car after the fifth repair (fourth alignment)which included the subframe shift and an alignment, the service manager told me they corrected for road crown so if I drive in the left lane, the car may drift left - he also said the car was driving straight down the road. When I called him the next day to say it did different things on every highway, his response was - see, there is the problem, every road is different, you can't expect us to align a car to drive straight on every road. He then said if I brought it in, he would take out the road crown adjustment and that was about all he could do.

I had a car that drove straight on all these roads before. Oh what a feeling.

I will continue to test drive

luvmyaccord5sp · October 2004

Howd'ee.

Wondering if anyone has any thoughts on excessive engine vibration in the 7th gen (2003-2005) Accords? I know there was a TSB that fit for it on all automatic accords but mine is a 5 speed. Any time it is @ idol and there is load put on the engine (i.e. A/C or radiator cooling fans) it begins to vibrate more than normal. Now keep in mind it has always done this since new and only under large loads (not headlights or such). There is a different set up for vibration dampening between the automatic and the 5 speed (the auto tranny has "active dampening" where the 5 spd doesn't) so I can see why the TSB applies to only one version. Makes the most sense that the culprit would be the engine mounts but am I the only one who is having this problem (is it a problem!)? All other cars (4 cylinders) I have been in have no noticeable vibration when the A/C kicks in... so this seems odd, but it may just be a 5 speed "trait"

Thoughts, any? My dealer (great guys BTW) say they think it may be normal. I am obviously going to test drive a 5 speed 2004-2005 but they are hard to come by!

-D

FYI got the clutch TSB done, man it's like driving a new car!!! Kinda spooky cuz I have to relearn where my clutch engages :P

luvmyaccord5sp · October 2004

Has anyone needed to code a new key for their 2003-2005 Accords yet? Is there a cheep-o way rather than the dealer?! hehehe

edscissors172 · October 2004

I read somewhere that Manufacturers try not to make TSB's public because it is bad for business, and only let it be known to the dealers. Also I read that it is important to report to Honda any issues you have on your new car and make sure it is known, and if any one else is having the same issues that it be made public so that it can become a TSB. Now the problem arises when someone does not report an issue and just doesn't want to make a big deal out of it, it screws up the system for future buyers and themselves, because it gives the Manufacturers immunity and they don't have to report what isn't a widespread problem. So my conclusion is, if we are having all these issues it is nice to try to fix it, but lets raise hell to Honda if we have Tranny problems so that it can be known before hand. Since there are so many concerns, is there an accessible way on the net that we can view Technical Service Bulletins on the Accord.

ramida · October 2004

I'm fed up with this clutch -- very springy when releasing after shifting to 2nd gear. As the clutch is released, I can feel the car (or clutch?) either springs up or hesitates (just like having a hiccup), creating a rough, interrupted acceleration. It pisses me off big time! I brought this crap to the dealer one time, but they completely misunderstood my description of the problem so they ended up telling me there is no problem with the clutch. Damn it, I may need to bring this car to them again!

Has anyone heard about TSB 02-002 M/T Clutch Noise/Notchy Feel?

What does notchy mean?

Thanks!

ramida

davester1 · October 2004

I did buy an extended warranty, but it was a six year, 100K warranty and it expired last April. Talk about bad luck/bad timing...

My car ran great and shifted very smoothly until last week.

The tranny service was done every 30K as indicated in the owner's manual. The 30K was done at a local garage and the 60K was done by an independent shop specializing in Hondas. I've seen a few older posts on here with the same issue, so hopefully Honda will own up to it.

davester1 · October 2004

I'm doing my part, first call I made after hearing the news about my tranny was the Honda Customer Service Center and have been assigned a case number. Should hear back from them tomorrow, if not I'll follow up and see where it goes. I'm giving them a chance; we'll see what Honda does with it.

gee35coupe · October 2004

They give some assistance. I doubt they cover the whole thing though.

whitecloud1 · October 2004

I don't know of a way to have the key recoded except at the dealer. I think that's good really.
I don't like the price but buying the EX-L means that you get two keys anyway. Keep one in a safe place so you don't lose it. The dealer registers the key in the Honda tracking system and there is less chance of someone making a key that will work your car. It's good security.

mitsu3 · October 2004

I have a 2003 Honda Accord. At 36200 miles, I hear rattling sound coming from the door/windows. The car now has 37800 miles on it and the rattling is still there. I contacted the dealer about this and was told that Honda would not pay for this since it is already over 36000 miles. Anyone else having this problem? And how did you get Honda to fix this at no cost to you? I believe Honda should pay for this. Yes, it is over 36000 miles already but the car is not even two years old.

edscissors172 · October 2004

Well guys as long as problems keep occuring, lets keep complaining, they have to listen to numbers and if we complain in numbers they will have to. I don't know about you guys but I just bought my accord, my first honda, the reason I bought it was that everyone that I know that owns one is very happy with theirs. But I paid 25 grand for something and I expect to get my money's worth, no matter what it is. I don't care what anyone says, that all cars experience issues here and there, by now cars should be problem free. For all of us Honda owners, we have invested in something and now we deserve something in return, so Honda is going to have live up to their rep. The only way for us to make sure that they are accountable is by complaining and making a scene then they will fix the issues in the future. So far I am happy and have not had any issues, but I will keep on top of Honda if I have to, for the sake of all Honda owners, it's our consumer rights, the same as we have in everything else here. I mean, yeah I haven't had any issues but I will not be happy to find out my tranny blew and I'm gonna sit back and relax.

justin · October 2004

i am sorry to say that you are probably out of luck. they have a hard enough time fixing rattles when the cars are brand new. i wouldn't think they are gonna touch yours. is yours a two door? or 4 door? there are a few TSB's for rattles that they could look into. but you don't want to pay them to just go digging around looking for new ones.

rumpletzer · October 2004

I've got a 2004 EX-L model Accord, and I notice that the radio reception on it isn't all that great either. It was very obvious when I was given a Chevy Malibu rental last week (which I hated). It has an integrated antenna as well, but the radio station reception in my normal driving areas was noticeably better. I'd love to know if there's a way to improve the reception on my Accord.

I don't have the volume dampening problem with my car. I've not paid a lot of attention to the features of the stereo, but you may read the manual and see if it has an automatic volume feature. I've had rental cars and portable CD players with this feature. My understanding is that it's suppose to maintain a safe (or constant) volume, and it can be disabled. I haven't noticed the feature on my Accord's stereo, but you might look for it.

ncviper · October 2004

hmurphy.....I haven't had any brake problems...YET! Thanks for your replys. I am going to repost this msg.
I meet with the Honda Rep. next week so
I really need to know if anyone is having this type of problem.
When I shift from park to reverse I have about a 2-3 second hesitation before the transmission engages. Going from reverse to drive I get a 2-3.5 second hesitation.
The dealer says its normal.....I say BS. This hesitation is long enongh to run up RPM's on the engine therefore getting a very HARD engagment. I have been told by the service manager that it is the way WE drive. Funny I've had about 25 cars in my lifetime and none have done this. PLEASE any feedback would be great!

Honda Accord Problems 2000-2005

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