1998 HONDA ACCORD Complaints

I HAVE HAD SO MANY CORROSION ISSUES WITH THIS CAR, IT IS STRUCTURALLY DANGEROUS. THE CAR HAS 160,000 MILES ON IT BUT HAS BEEN KEPT IN A GARAGE AND HAS HAD THE UNDER CARRIAGE FREQUENTLY WASHED SINCE I LIVE IN THE NORTHEASTERN US. IN THE LAST 2 YEARS I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE BOTH THE BRAKE AND GAS LINES DO TO CORROSION. THE GAS LINE RUPTURED DURING A DRIVE. FORTUNATELY THERE WAS NO FIRE. THE GAS TANK RUSTED THROUGH AND WAS REPLACED. IT WAS LEAKING FOR SOME TIME. THE LEAK WAS NEAR THE HALF WAY MARK AND ONLY LEAKED WHEN OVER HALF FULL AND DURING DRIVING OR GOING UP HILL. FORTUNATELY WE DID NOT HAVE A FIRE. I JUST FOUND OUT THE FRONT SUB FRAME IS COMPLETELY ROTTED OUT AND WILL NOT PASS INSPECTION THIS YEAR. BODY RUST IS MINIMAL AND NORMAL FOR AGE AND THE NORTHEAST WINTERS. THE CLEAR COAT IS PEALING OFF EVERYWHERE. I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH MY FIRST AND PROBABLY ONLY HONDA. LOOKING BACK, I AM VERY LUCKY THAT THE CAR DIDN'T CATCH FIRE AND KILL SOMEONE. *TR

CLUNKING NOISE WHEN GOING OVER BUMPS OR TURNING RIGHT. GOT THE NOISE INSPECTED BY A MECHANIC AND FOUND OUT THAT THE PASSENGER SIDE SUBFRAME IS RUSTED OUT. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1998 HONDA ACCORD. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 30 MPH THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, WHO DETERMINED THAT THE VEHICLE HAD A DEFECTIVE IGNITION SWITCH. THE CONTACT NOTICED A NHTSA CAMPAIGN I.D. 03V423000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: IGNITION: SWITCH). THE CONTACT CALLED THE MANUFACTURER REGARDING THE RECALL. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 140,000.

ON THE DATE SPECIFIED ABOVE UP TO THE CURRENT DATE 11/14/2012 I [XXX]HAVE HAD THIS 1998 HONDA ACCORD EX FOR LESS THAN A YEAR AND I HAVE HAD PROBLEMS OUT OF THIS CAR'S TAKE OFF SPEED. TO FURTHER EXPLAIN THE CAR STRUGGLES TO TAKE OFF, AND WHEN IT DOES AND TRIES TO SHIFT, THE SHIFTING IS EITHER DELAYED, AND OR THE VEHICLE SHIFTS VERY ROUGH. IT IS ALMOST AS THOUGHT THE VEHICLE IS LEAPING FORWARD. THERE ARE EVEN TIMES WHEN I TRY TO TAKE OFF AFTER STOPPING IN TRAFFIC, THE CAR BEHAVES AS THOUGH IT IS IN NEUTRAL WHEN TRYING TO SHIFT FROM FIRST GEAR TO SECOND GEAR. MY ENGINE LIGHT DID NOT COME ON UNTIL LATER INDICATING THAT THERE WAS A MALFUNCTION SOMEWHERE. I PULLED OUT MY CODE READER AND HOOKED IT TO THE OBD OUTLET ON MY CAR AND IT INDICATED, LOW TORQUE SHIFT SOLENOID CIRCUIT. I CHECKED THE INTERNET TO SEE IF ANY OTHER HONDA OWNERS HAD THIS SAME ISSUE WITH THEIR HONDA ACCORDS, AND IT APPEARS THAT I AM NOT ALONE WITH HAVING THE SAME SYMPTOMS. IT ALSO APPEARS THAT HONDA HAS HAD THESE PROBLEMS WITH THE CRAFTSMANSHIP OF THEIR TRANSMISSIONS ON THE ACCORDS FROM YEAR MODELS 1998-2002. HOWEVER, SO FAR FROM WHAT I HAVE RESEARCHED ON THE WEB THEIR HAS BEEN NO ACCIDENTS OR FIRES REPORTED YET. I AM URGING THE NHTSA OR SAFERCAR.GOV TO IMMEDIATELY INVESTIGATE THIS ISSUE. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE THAT I BELIEVE NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED. ALTHOUGH MY CAR IS A 1998 MODEL, THEIR HAVE BEEN CUSTOMERS WHOM HAVE HAD THEIR VEHICLES HAVE TRANSMISSION FAILURES WITH MILEAGE AS LOW AS 56000. THIS TYPE OF MILEAGE OF 56000-117000 MILES FOR A TRANSMISSION TO FAIL IS NOT NORMAL. ESPECIALLY IF THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN VERY WELL MAINTAINED, WITH MAINTENANCE RECORDS TO BACK IT UP TO DATE. ANYWAY, PLEASE INVESTIGATE BEFORE SOMEONE GETS SERIOUSLY HURT OR EVEN KILLED. I DON'T WANT ANYONE OR HONDA TO SUFFER LIKE FIRESTONE TIRES DID A FEW YEARS AGO. COME ON HONDA, FIX YOUR PRODUCT THAT YOU HAVE BEEN STANDING BEHIND. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

I BOUGHT THE CAR FROM A DEALERSHIP. AND IT WAS OK AT FIRST THAN CHECK ENGINES LIGHT CAME ON AND I GOT IT CHECKED OUT LONG STORY SHORT THE DEALER REPLACED IT. BUT I MESSED UP MY WRIST BC OF THE JERK FROM THE VEHICLE. AND NOW A YEAR AND A HALF LATER MY TORQUE CONVERTER GOES OUT AGAIN AT 245,000 MILES WHICH MEANS YOUR TRANSMISSION IS OUT TOO. I BEEN ALL OVER THE WEB WHY HASN'T NHTSA MADE HONDA RECALL THEIR TRANSMISSION WHEN ITS EFFECTING SO MANY PEOPLE. I'M NOW ABOUT TO BE OUT OF A JOB, AND HOME. I'M BEGGING NHTSA DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS 2000-2003 WEREN'T THE ONLY YEAR TO HAVE A DEFECTIVE TRANSMISSION PROBLEM 1999 ARE TO. I THINK THERE IS NO BETTER PROOF THAN RESEARCH. IF U GOOGLE TRANSMISSION PROBLEM HONDA ACCORD/ODYSSEY 1998-2002 HAVE BAD ISSUES WITH THE TORQUE CONVERTER CODE P0740. PLEASE RESOLVE THIS ISSUE TRANSMISSION SHOULDN'T GO OUT AFTER 50,000 MILES. SAFETY WISE: THIS PAST WEEK I ALMOST HIT TO SEMI TRUCK BC IT JERKED FORWARD I COULD'VE DIED. AND BEING ON THE HIGHWAY N THE MIDDLE IS A DANGEROUS SITUATION WHEN IT YOU AND YOUR FAMILY. ANOTHER ISSUE IS THAT PEOPLE WANTED TO KNOW THE ISSUES WITH THE CAR THEY ARE BUYING CARFAX ONLY STATS RECALL. I PREFER A RECALL LIKE A THOUSANDS OF OTHER PEOPLE BUT IF YOU CAN'T, AT LEAST MAKE HONDA COME UP WITH A BETTER SOLUTION A BETTER TRANSMISSION HAVE THEM ADD A TRANSMISSION FILTER. *TR

PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THIS HAS HAPPENED ON MULTIPLE DATES RANGING FROM 1999-2012. I THOUGHT IT WAS COVERED THROUGH NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID #: 98V018000 BUT I DID NOT USE THE CAR ENOUGH TO RECOGNIZE A PATTERN UNTIL 2002. I THINK AT THAT TIME, THERE MAY HAVE BEEN SEVERAL THOUSAND MILES IN 2002 WHEN I BEGAN TO USE THE CAR ON MORE ROUTINE BASES. THERE ARE TWO OCCASIONS THAT CAUSE THE ISSUE TO ARISE. WHILE I AM DRIVING, THE STEERING COLUMN WILL LOCK UP CAUSING AN ISSUE TO SHIFT FROM GEAR TO GEAR AND THE MOBILITY OF THE CAR. AS THE STEERING COLUMN WOULD LOCK AND CAUSE THE HORN TO MALFUNCTION AND NOT MAKE A SOUND AND THE LIMIT MY MOBILITY TO PARK THE CAR. MOST STREETS THAT I DRIVE ARE NOT ON AN INCLINE BUT THERE HAVE BEEN FEW OCCASIONS, WHERE IF THE CAR WAS ON A SLIGHT INCLINE, IT WOULD BEGIN TO ROLL. I WOULD USE THE GEAR BRAKES TO PREVENT AN ACCIDENT. ANOTHER ISSUE INVOLVES ANOTHER PATH (OCCASION) WHICH CAUSES THE STEERING WHEEL TO LOCK WHICH CAUSES MALFUNCTIONS IN THE HORN AND THE INTERLOCKING INCIDENT. IF I AM DRIVING AND IN THE STAGES OF PARKING MY CAR, THE STEERING COLUMN WILL LOCK AFFECTING THE ABILITY FOR ME TO CHANGE GEAR AND MY ABILITY TO ADEQUATELY MOBILITY WHEN PARK. THIS HAS OCCURRED MORE FREQUENTLY NOW BUT IT HAS OCCURRED IN 1999. WHEN I WAS ADVISED OF THE INTERLOCK RECALL, I THOUGHT THIS WAS ADDRESSED. ONCE THIS OCCURS, THE CAR CAN ONLY BE UNLOCKED WHEN I DRIVE WHEN I PRESS DOWN OF THE HEAR CHARGER, PUT THE KEY IN THE SLIGHT COVERING THE GEAR CHANGER AND MOVE THE STEERING WHEEL. BETWEEN NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID #: 03V423000 AND NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID #: 02V120000, I THOUGHT THESE ISSUE WAS ADDRESSED. WHEN I CALLED HONDA TODAY AND SPOKE TO [XXX] 800-999-1099 EXT [XXX], THE RECALL IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE VIN SOI WANTED TO MAKE SURE THIS WAS ACKNOWLEDGED FOR INCIDENTS FOR MY CAR MODEL & VIN. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

1998 HONDA ACCORD COMPLETE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FAILURE AT 91,150 MILES. INCIDENT BELOW RESULTED IN NEAR COLLISION WHEN MY VEHICLE PULLED OUT TO MERGE INTO TRAFFIC AND VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE MORE THAN APPROXIMATELY 15 MPH. OTHER VEHICLE HAD TO SLAM ON BRAKES TO AVOID SIDE COLLISION. I HAVE A 1998 HONDA ACCORD LX, 4- DOOR, 4 CYLINDER, AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. AT APPROXIMATELY 91,000 MILES, I NOTICED THAT THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION STARTED TO "SLIP" SHIFTING FROM FIRST GEAR INTO SECOND GEAR, ESPECIALLY RIGHT AFTER THE VEHICLE WAS JUST STARTED. THIS ISSUE WOULD GET WORSE UNDER MEDIUM TO HEAVY ACCELERATION. HAVING HAD ANOTHER 1997 HONDA ACCORD LX, 2 DOOR, AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, THAT FAILED AT 66,000 MILES, I SUSPECTED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WAS FAILING ON THIS 1998 HONDA ACCORD LX. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO COTTMAN TRANSMISSION FOR EVALUATION, AND THE TECHNICIAN TEST DROVE THE VEHICLE IMMEDIATELY AFTER STARTING UP THE VEHICLE IN THE MORNING. THE TECHNICIAN CONFIRMED THE SEVERE "SLIPPAGE" FROM FIRST INTO SECOND GEAR AND RAN DIAGNOSTIC TESTS ON ALL THE ELECTRIC COMPONENTS, INCLUDING AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SOLENOIDS. UPON COMPLETION AND ADDITIONAL EXAMINATION OF THE PROBLEM, THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WAS FAILING, AND REQUIRED A TOTAL REBUILD. ONCE THE HONDA ACCORD AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WAS REMOVED FROM THE HONDA ACCORD AND TAKEN APART, IT WAS NOTED THAT THE INTERNAL METAL FILTER WAS PLUGGED WITH METAL SAVINGS, THE CLUTCH BANDS WERE BURNED, AND AN INTERNAL ELECTRIC SWITCH WAS DEFECTIVE. EXPECT NO HELP AND/OR COMPENSATION FROM HONDA CORPORATION AS PURSING THAT ROUTE HAS BEEN FUTILE. IT WOULD SEEM THAT HONDA CORPORATION HAD BEEN OVER CONFIDENT IN THE SALE OF HONDAS IN THE UNITED STATES, THAT THE "QUALITY" OF THEIR PRODUCT NOW SUFFERS. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1998 HONDA ACCORD. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE AT THE DEALER FOR A SAFETY INSPECTION, THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE FRONT FRAME WAS CORRODED AND THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE AXLE SHAFT BOOST WAS FRACTURED. AS A RESULT, THE FRAME AND AXLE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE TECHNICIAN ADVISED THE CONTACT THAT THE VEHICLE SHOULD NOT BE DRIVEN. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 200,000.

CAR SUDDENLY SHUTS OFF ON ITS OWN WHILE DRIVING; ALL ELECTRICAL GOES OFF EXCEPT FOR CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, ABS LIGHT, OR NONE AT ALL. HAPPENED 3 OR 4 TIMES, SOMETIMES AT FREEWAY SPEED, CAR RESTARTED FROM NEUTRAL A FEW MINUTES LATER. TAKEN TO HONDA DEALER & DIAGNOSED WITH A FAULTY TRANSMISSION MODULE, REPLACED FOR $450. YET THE PROBLEM JUST RECURRED NOT LONG AFTER THAT REPAIR. THIS CREATES A SERIOUS ROAD HAZARD & POTENTIAL FOR CRASH & SERIOUS INJURY, AS SUDDENLY & WITHOUT WARNING, THE VEHICLE SHUTS DOWN & CANNOT BE CONTROLLED WITH ANY ACCELERATION, POWER STEERING OR NORMAL BRAKING. THIS VEHICLE HAS ALWAYS BEEN MAINTAINED METICULOUSLY, SINCE NEW, PER RECOMMENDED SCHEDULE WITH HONDA DEALERSHIPS. BROWSING THE INTERNET SHOWS THIS TO BE AN UNUSUALLY COMMON, SERIOUS & DIFFICULT TO DIAGNOSE ISSUE WITH HONDAS & ACURAS FROM ~1997-2002. *TR

AT THE APPROX MILES STATED ABOVE, MY HONDA ACCORD BEGAN TO STRUGGLE SHIFTING FROM FIRST TO SECOND GEAR. IT WAS AS THOUGH THE CAR WAS LOSING POWER. ALSO AT TIMES THE CAR NOT ONLY STRUGGLE TO GET INTO FIRST GEAR BUT WHEN IT SHIFTED IT WOULD SHIFT ROUGH, AND THE CAR WOULD PLUNGE OR GALLOP FORWARD. I RESEARCHED SEVERAL WEBSITES AND BLOGS JUST TO SEE IF ANY ONE ELSE HAD EXPERIENCED THIS SAME PROBLEM. AS IT TURNS OUT EVERYONE HAS EXPERIENCED THE PROBLEM ON THE HONDA ACCORD 1998-2002 MODELS. SO SINCE THIS WAS NOT JUST ME, I CONTACTED HONDA HEADQUARTERS ABOUT THIS ISSUE TO SEE IF THEY WOULD BE OR HAD ISSUED A RECALL ON THIS VEHICLE REGARDING THE TRANSMISSION. THEY STATED THEY HAD NOT, HOWEVER, I FEEL THEY NEED TO BECAUSE THIS IS A HAZARD, AND A MAJOR PROBLEM. WHEN THE CAR STRUGGLES TO GET INTO FIRST GEAR WHILE TRYING TO GET INTO TRAFFIC, THE CAR CAN LOSE POWER, WHICH CAN POSSIBLY CAUSE SOMEONE TO LOOSE CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE. AND AS A CONSEQUENCE AN ACCIDENT MAY OCCUR, RESULTING IN SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH. I ASK THAT THE NHTSA PLEASE IMMEDIATELY LOOK INTO THIS ISSUE. I HAVE READ BLOGS AND COMPLAINTS ALL OVER THE WEB REGARDING HONDA AND THIS PROBLEM WITH THE HONDA ACCORD TRANSMISSION SOLENOID, DATING BACK AS FAR AS 1990-2002. HONDA APPARENTLY HAS KNOW ABOUT THIS PROBLEM, AND HAS FAILED TO BE COURTEOUS ABOUT FIXING IT. ALTHOUGH MY CAR IS OLD, I STILL FEEL HONDA SHOULD BE HELD LIABLE FOR A FAULTY PART ON THE TRANSMISSION. TO CONTINUE WHERE I LEFT OFF WITH HONDA, I HAVE TALKED TO THEM 4 DIFFERENT TIMES AND IN DIFFERENT MONTHS REGARDING THIS ISSUE, IT SEEMS THEY ARE NOT INTERESTED IN CORRECTING IT, UNLESS THEY ARE FORCED TO DO SO. THE LADY OVER THE PHONE DID NOT EVEN OFFER ANY TYPE OF COMPENSATION FOR THE REPAIR. SO NOW IT SEEMS IT IS ALL UP TO ME AS THE CONSUMER. NHTSA, AGAIN, PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS IMMEDIATELY. *TR