1991 HONDA ACCORD Complaints

THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE AUTOMATIC SEAT BELT ON MY 1991 HONDA ACCORD LX SUDDENLY STOPPED WORKING. I TALKED TO A SERVICE MECHANIC AT THE HONDA DEALERSHIP AND HE SAID THAT THE LIFETIME WARRANTY ON SEAT BELTS DD NOT COVER AUTOMATIC SEAT BELTS. IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT A LAPBELT ALONE IS NOT ENOUGH TO PROTECT A PASSENGER IN THE EVENT OF A COLLISION. CURRENTLY I CAN NOT AFFORD THE COST THAT THEY QUOTED FOR REPAIR AND I AM DRIVING THE CAR WITHOUT A FUNCTIONAL SEAT BELT. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1991 HONDA ACCORD. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH, THE SEAT BELT LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER WHERE THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT AN ELECTRICAL FAILURE CAUSED THE SEAT BELT LIGHT TO TURN ON. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 123,382 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 123,800. UPDATED 01/13/11*BF UPDATED 01/24/11*JB

FOR THE PAST 8 YEARS, BOTH THE DRIVER'S AND FRONT PASSENGER'S SHOULDER SEATBELTS SIMULTANEOUSLY BEHAVE ERRATICALLY. SEVERAL TIMES A YEAR, THE FRONT SHOULDER BELTS HAVE DONE ALL OF THE FOLLOWING, THEN HOURS OR DAYS LATER RETURNED TO NORMAL. ----- (A) FAILED TO DISENGAGE WHEN CAR STOPPED AND DOOR OPENED, AND REMAIN PERMANENTLY ENGAGED FOR SEVERAL HOURS OR SEVERAL DAYS. ----- (B) FAILED TO ENGAGE WHEN I ENTERED AND STARTED THE CAR, THEN REMAINING PERMANENTLY UNENGAGED FOR SEVERAL HOURS OR DAYS. ----- (C). DISENGAGED WHILE I DROVE THE CAR, SENDING THE SHOULDER BELT OVER MY ARM. ----- WHEN THE SEAT BELT REMAINS DISENGAGED, I MUST EITHER PUSH THE SHOULDER BELT BEHIND THE STEERING WHEEL OR DISCONNECTED IT. AFTER A FEW YEARS OF THIS, THE MECHANISM CEASED BEEPING, AND THE DUMMY LIGHT CEASED LIGHTING FOR THIS PROBLEM. ----- HONDA TOLD ME THESE SEAT BELT PROBLEMS ARE NOT COVERED BY WARRANTY. THREE YEARS LATER, I WAS TOLD THE SEAT BELT CONTROL UNIT WAS THE PROBLEM AND WOULD COST $730. NUMEROUS OTHER PEOPLE HAVE SEEN THE SAME PROBLEM, AND BECAUSE OF THE HIGH $700 COST DISCUSS HOW TO DISABLE VARIOUS PARTS OF THE SEAT BELT SYSTEM, HTTP://WWW.TOPIX.COM/FORUM/AUTOS/HONDA-ACCORD/TOE3QOLCUR8BQTB4P. *TR

SEAT BELT WARNING LIGHT AND WARNING BUZZER SOUND CONTINUOUSLY. PASSENGER SIDE SHOULDER SEAT BELT REMAINS LOCKED IN REAR POSITION AND WILL NOT TRAVEL. HONDA REFUSED TO HONOR LIFETIME WARRANTY ON SEAT BELT OPERATION STATING THAT THESE PROBLEMS ARE "ELECTRONIC" AND NOT SEAT BELT WARRANTY ISSUES. PARTS AND LABOR TO CURE THESE PROBLEMS ESTIMATED AT IN EXCESS OF $1,000. DUE EXPENSE, ONLY SOLUTION IS TO DISCONNECT SEAT BELT WARNING SYSTEM AND DISABLE PASSENGER SIDE SHOULDER BELT. *TR

SPORT MODE LIGHT FLASHES THEN TRANSMISSION DOES NOT ENGAGE IN GEARS. IT STARTS TO MAKE A WHINING SOUND ,CAR MOVES SLOWLY WHEN GAS IS PRESSED. HAPPENS MORE WHEN WEATHER IS HOT. POSSIBLE PROBLEM: TRANSMISSION CONTROL UNIT (TCU). *TR

SEATBELT WARNING LIGHT AND CHIME SUDDENLY STARTED TO ACTIVATE EVEN WHEN THE SEATBELTS ARE CONNECTED.THIS OCCURS EVERY TIME THE CAR IS IN USE. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO FIX THIS PROBLEM OR WHAT PARTS TO REPLACE. *TR

IN NOVEMBER 2005, THE DRIVER SIDE AUTOMATIC SEATBELT ON MY 1991 HONDA ACCORD COUPE (EX) STARTED MALFUNCTIONING AND WOULD NOT RETRACT TO THE DRIVING POSITION. THERE WAS AN ANNOYING BEEPING SOUND ASSOCIATED WITH THIS MALFUNCTION. THE LOCAL HONDA DEALER (IN ST. THOMAS VI) INFORMED ME THAT THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS, AND QUOTED 4 PARTS COSTING OVER $1,411.62, AND THEY COULDN'T GUARANTEE ME THAT THESE REPLACEMENTS WOULD WORK. SO THEY DISCONNECTED THE SEAT BELT MOTOR (UNDER THE PASSENGER SEAT), MANUALLY MOVED THE SEAT BELT INTO THE DRIVING POSITION, AND ALSO DISCONNECTED SOME OTHER SEAT BELT ELECTRONIC PART BEHIND THE DRIVER SEAT NEAR THE HANDLE AND STORAGE COMPARTMENT OF THE BACK SEAT, BEHIND A SORT OF PANEL IN THAT AREA. OVER TWO YEARS LATER IN 2008, THE DRIVER SIDE LAP BELT RELEASE BUTTON BROKE AND FELL INSIDE THE SEAT BELT CLIP PREVENTING ME FROM LOCKING THE SEAT BELT IN PLACE. I STARTED RESEARCHING THE PROBLEM ON LINE AND FOUND THERE WAS A VOLUNTARY HONDA RECALL FOR THAT PROBLEM. I HAD TO FIGHT WITH THE DEALER TO GET THEM TO ADMIT THAT THIS WAS A PROBLEM THEY SHOULD FIX, AND THEY DID; BUT FORCEFULLY STATED THAT THE AUTOMATIC SEATBELT PROBLEM WAS NOT COVERED. IN LOOKING IN THEIR COMPUTER SYSTEM, I REALIZED THAT THEY HAD MISREPRESENTED THAT "I CHOSE NOT TO FIX THE AUTOMATIC SEAT BELT PROBLEM" IN 2005. I REFUTED THE ACCURACY OF THE STATEMENT. I WAS BILLED $26.38 AND RECEIVED NO SPECIFIC DIAGNOSIS SO I DEMANDED A QUOTE TO FIX IT. THAT'S WHEN I WAS TOLD IT WOULD COST OVER $630 FOR THE PART AND $50 OR $75 FOR THE LABOR. I HAD TO INSIST THAT THEY GIVE ME AN ESTIMATE WITH THE PART NO. IN CHECKING WITH ANOTHER DEALER, I WAS ABLE TO BUY THE PART FOR $362 (INCL. S/H). I PAID THE LABOR TO DEALER TO HAVE IT PUT IN, AND THE PROBLEM WAS FIXED. ABOUT APRIL 2009, I STARTED GETTING OCCASIONAL BEEPS AND STICKING OF THE SEATBELT AGAIN, BUT IT WOULD RESET ITSELF. SINCE LAST WEEK, AROUND DEC. 2, 2009, IT'S STICKING CONSTANTLY. I CAN'T PAY FOR THIS AGAIN; HONDA SHOULD PAY. *TR

THE CAR DIES WHILE DRIVING IT. WHEN I TRY TO START IT AGAIN, IT TRIES TO TURN OVER BUT AFTER ABOUT 30 MINUTES IT WILL START. THIS OCCURS SEVERAL TIMES IN A DAY. I REPLACED THE BATTERY CABLES AND IT SEEMED TO WORK FOR A FEW DAYS BUT STARTED DOING IT AGAIN. THE RPMS WOULD REV PAST 5000, I WOULD LOSE POWER AND THE CAR WOULD DIE AGAIN. *TR

THE AUTOMATIC SEAT BELT ON THE PASSENGER SIDE FAILS TO RETRACT THEREFORE CAUSING UNSAFE DRIVING CONDITIONS. DUE TO THIS DEFECT IT ALSO CAUSES A DASH SEAT BELT WARNING LIGHT TO BLINK AND CONSTANT ALARM TO SOUND. ANOTHER PART OF THIS SITUATION IS THAT HONDA HAS A LIFETIME SEAT BELT WARRANTY THAT STATES: "HONDA WILL REPAIR OR REPLACE, AT ITS OPTION, ANY HONDA SEAT BELT COMPONENT THAT FAILS TO FUNCTION PROPERLY DURING NORMAL USE. THIS WARRANTY INCLUDES PARTS AND LABOR CHARGES." YET WHEN I ASKED TO HAVE MY PROBLEM FIXED THEY SAID THAT THE "SEAT BELT MOTOR" IS NOT A "SEAT BELT COMPONENT" AND IT IS AN "ELECTRICAL COMPONENT". HOWEVER, WHEN THE PART IS SEARCHED FOR ON ALL DEALERS SITES IT IS LISTED UNDER SEAT BELT COMPONENTS AND IN THE SEAT BELT PARTS DIAGRAM AS #12, PART #81831-SM4-A03. *TR

A MICHELIN DESTINY 195/60/15 TIRE WITH DOT # HONDA-F5AX-5005 FAILED WITHOUT WARNING WHILE TRAVELING ON CA-94E IN SAN DIEGO AT APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH. THE STEEL BELTS SEPARATED FROM THE CAP PILES IN THE LEFT REAR TIRE ON MY 1991 HONDA ACCORD EX COUPE CAUSING THE SIDE WALL OF THE TIRE TO RUPTURE AND THE TIRE TO SUBSEQUENTLY DISINTEGRATE. I WAS ABLE TO PULL OFF THE ROAD SAFELY AND DISCOVERED THAT THE OUTER SIDE WALL ON THE LEFT REAR TIRE HAD COMPLETELY SEPARATED FROM THE TIRE. NO OBSTRUCTION IN THE ROAD WAS OBSERVED PRIOR TO THE TIRE FAILING AND THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DAMAGED BY THE TIRE FAILURE. ALL FOUR TIRES WERE PURCHASED NEW ON 07/31/2006 FROM DISCOUNT TIRE COMPANY. MILEAGE ON THE TIRES AT TIME OF FAILURE WAS APPROXIMATELY 59,000. REMAINING TREAD WAS MEASURED AT 1/8". THE TIRES HAD BEEN ROTATED EVERY 5000 MILES AND AIR PRESSURE WAS LAST CHECKED SEVEN DAYS PRIOR TO TIRE FAILURE. SUBSEQUENT INSPECTION OF THE REMAINING THREE TIRES IN DAYLIGHT REVEALED SLIGHT CRACKING IN THE SIDE WALLS OF EACH. DISCOUNT TIRE REPLACED ALL FOUR TIRES WITH MICHELIN HYDROEDGE TIRES UNDER THE 80,000 MILE PRORATED WARRANTY FROM MICHELIN, HOWEVER, I WAS STUCK FOOTING 3/4 THE COST OF THE REPLACEMENTS. THE DEFECTIVE TIRES HAVE BEEN SENT TO MICHELIN FOR FURTHER INSPECTION. *TR