2002 HONDA ODYSSEY Complaints

OUR 2002 HONDA ODYSSEY BEGAN EXPERIENCING TRANSMISSION "SLIPPING" WHILE DRIVING. IT SEEMS TO OCCUR BETWEEN SECOND AND THIRD GEARS ON OUR AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. IT IS MUCH WORSE IF YOU TRY TO RAPIDLY ACCELERATE TO PASS SOMEONE OR TO MERGE ONTO THE HIGHWAY FROM AN ON RAMP. IN THIS INSTANCE IT OCCURS EVERY TIME, OFTEN JERKING AND FORCEFULLY THROWING ONE'S HEAD AND NECK BACKWARDS IN A WHIPLASH LIKE MOTION AS THE VAN DOWNSHIFTS. SINCE THIS IS THE PRIMARY CAR FOR MY WIFE AND CHILD IT GREATLY CONCERNS ME. AS THE VAN SLOWS WHILE ACCELERATING I'M CONCERNED THEY WILL BE STRUCK FROM BEHIND. RESEARCH SEEMS TO SHOW THAT HONDA HAS KNOWN OF A DESIGN FLAW WITH THESE TRANSMISSIONS FOR QUITE SOME TIME BUT NO RECALL HAS BEEN ISSUED. AT LEAST NOT THAT I'VE BEEN ABLE TO FIND. THE LOCAL DEALER HAS ONLY OFFERED A REFURBISHED TRANSMISSION COSTING BE 3000 DOLLARS WITH THEM ONLY PAYING 300 DOLLARS. *TR

2002 HONDA ODYSSEY TRANSMISSION FAILURE. WE STRONGLY BELIEVE THAT HONDA HAS DESIGN PROBLEMS. DESPITE THEIR ATTEMPTS TO FIX THE PROBLEM BY INSTALLING A FUEL PUMP TO LUBRICATE THE GEARS, THE TRANSMISSION (TORQUE CONVERTER) HAD A MASSIVE FAILURE. INITIALLY, HONDA AGREED TO PAY FOR 50% OF THE REPAIRS BUT RETRACTED THE OFFER AFTER WE VOICED CONCERNS ABOUT VARYING VERBAL REPAIR ESTIMATES PROVIDED BY THE DEALER. THE DEALER WOULD NOT PROVIDE THE REPAIR ESTIMATE IN WRITING EVEN AFTER ASKED TO. WE REQUESTED HONDA TO PAY FOR THE PART AND WE WOULD PAY FOR THE LABOR. HONDA'S POSITION WAS THAT THEY WOULD RATHER 1) RETRACT THE OFFER AND 2) NOT HELP WITH DEALERS PRICING OR BUSINESS PRACTICE BECAUSE THE DEALERSHIP WAS INDEPENDENTLY OWNED AND OPERATED. LISA PRAK, A REGIONAL MANAGER WITH HONDA SUGGESTED WE COULD CALL BBB AND FILE OUR COMPLAINT. HER SUPERVISOR SUGGESTED WE CONTACT THE NHTSA BUT THEY WOULD NOT PARTICIPATE IN THE REPAIRS. *TR

I BOUGHT THE VAN IN JAN 2007 WHEN THE MILEAGE WAS 46000 MILES. I HAD THE TRANSMISSION FLUID FLUSHED TWICE SINCE. I STARTED HAVING ISSUES WITH MY VAN NOT GOING INTO 3RD GEAR IN JAN 08. I TOOK THE VAN TO THE DEALER A COUPLE OF TIMES BUT THEIR SERVICE REPS COULD NOT REPRODUCE THE PROBLEM. THEY ASKED ME TO COME BACK WHEN IT BECAME WORSE. ON APRIL 1ST, THE SAME THING HAPPENED AND THIS TIME THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. THE MILEAGE WAS 61,000. I DROVE STRAIGHT TO THE DEALER AND AFTER RUNNING DIAGNOSTICS, THEY SAID THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THEY SAID THEY CALLED HONDA ON MY BEHALF AND THAT HONDA OFFERED TO PAY 50% OF THE COSTS. I CALLED HONDA AND OPENED A CASE FILE. THE CASE MANAGER SAID HE'LL GET BACK TO ME IN 2 DAYS BUT CALLED ME AFTER A WEEK. IN THE MEANTIME, I ASKED THE DEALER TO PERFORM THE REPAIRS. *TR

AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FAILED 2ND TO 3RD GEAR IN TRAFFIC JAM WITH MY CHILDREN AND WIFE ON INTERSTATE 95 WASHINGTON DC ONLY 53500 MILES ON MY 2002 HONDA ODYSSEY MINI VAN. *TR

TOTAL TRANSMISSION FAILURE AT 61,211 MILES. COMPLETE TRANSMISSION REBUILD REQUIRED. *TR

PURCHASED A 02 ODYSSEY ON 5/06 TWO YEARS LATER TRANSMISSION FAILS WILL NOT SHIFT FROM 2ND TO 3RD PROBLEMS STARTED ABOUT ONE MONTH EARLIER BUT THEN JUST STOPPED ALTOGETHER TOWED IT TO NALLEY HONDA IN UNION CITY GA TOLD ME THAT IT WOULD BE 4,500 TOLD THEM THAT THIS IS RIDICULOUS THAT HONDA KNOWS THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THEIR TRANSMISSIONS WITH ON 78,000 MILE IT SHOULD NOT FAIL THAT THERE ARE 100'S IF NOT THOUSAND OF COMPLAINTS ONLINE ABOUT THE 99-03 ODYSSEY TRANSMISSION THAT THEY'RE LUCKY I DID NOT GET INTO A CRASH, THEY SAID THE WOULD TALK TO THE REGIONAL MANAGER TO SEE IF THEY CAN ASSIST, STILL WAITING FOR THEIR RESPONSE ALSO FILED COMPLAINT WITH HONDA USA CASE IS BEING REVIEWED BY THEM AS WELL TO SEE IF THEY WILL HELP THERE SHOULD BE A CLASS ACTION LAW SUIT AGAIN HONDA KNOWING THERE IS A DEFECTIVE DEVICE IN THEIR CARS I'M SURPRISED HOW THEY JUST LET PEOPLE DRIVE KNOWING THAT THEY CAN LOSE POWER AT ANY TIME CAUSING AN ACCIDENT OR DEATH WILL BE BUYING A TOYOTA AS SOON AS THIS MATTER IS RESOLVED YOU WOULD THIN NHSA WOULD HAVE DONE SOMETHING BY NOW!!! *TR

MY 2002 HONDA ODYSSEY STARTED SHOWING SIGNS OF TRANSMISSION PROBLEM AROUND 83,000 MILES. IT WOULD GO THROUGH ITS CYCLE IE; 1ST, 2ND, THEN IT WILL START SLIPPING. SLOW THE VAN DOWN BELOW 20 MPH TO GET IT ENGAGE BACK INTO 2ND THEN HOPE THAT IT WOULD ENGAGE INTO 3RD. AMERICAN HONDA WOULD ONLY COVER PARTS BUT WE WOULD HAVE TO COVER LABOR. THIS IS A INSANE OFFER. WITH SO MANY ODYSSEY'S OUT THERE WITH THE EXACT SAME PROBLEMS AS THE '99-'01 TRANSMISSION RECALL THEY HAD FOR THOSE YEARS. VERY APPALLING. DISGUSTED WITH HONDA CUSTOMER RELATION TEAMS. CASE MANAGER IS EVEN WORST. THEY JUST DON`T CARE. HONDA NEEDS TO DO A MAJOR RECALL ON THE VEHICLES. *TR

MY 02 HONDA ODYSSEY TRANSMISSION FAILS TO SHIFT FROM 2ND TO 3RD GEAR OCCASIONALLY. WHEN TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP, THEY CAN'T GET IT TO REPLICATE IT'S POOR SHIFTING PERFORMANCE. I HOPE THAT A RECALL IS MANDATED BEFORE ANYONE IS REAR ENDED AND KILLED OR SEVERELY INJURED DO TO THE MALFUNCTION OF THIS TRANSMISSION. *TR

I HAD THE OIL JET KIT REPLACEMENT FOR ISSUE 04V176000 DONE PREVIOUSLY. HOWEVER, AT ABOUT 63,500 MILES, MY TRANSMISSION FAILED. ALTHOUGH THE DEALER IMMEDIATELY OFFERED THAT HONDA WOULD PAY HALF AS A "GOODWILL" GESTURE, I THINK THAT THIS FAILURE WAS PREMATURE AND PREVENTABLE. FROM PAST EXPERIENCE WITH HONDA VEHICLES, I EXPECTED AT LEAST 100,000 MILES WITHOUT SUCH A MAJOR PROBLEM. I SUSPECT THAT THE COURSE OF ACTION TO RESOLVE ISSUE 04V176000, NAMELY INSPECT THE TRANSMISSION AND REPLACE IF DAMAGE WAS FOUND, ALLOWED TOO MUCH LEEWAY FOR HONDA TO MERELY INSTALL THE OIL JET KIT AND HOPE THAT THE WARRANTY WOULD EXPIRE BEFORE THE TRANSMISSION FAILED COMPLETELY. ALTHOUGH HAVING HONDA PAY HALF WAS BETTER THAN PAYING NOTHING, I'M EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTED THAT I HAD TO PAY ANYTHING FOR SOMETHING THAT, FROM ALL RESEARCH THAT I'VE DONE, APPEARS TO BE A DESIGN DEFECT THAT WAS KNOWN BY HONDA. *TR

TRANSMISSION ON MY HONDA ODYSSEY BEGAN TO SLIP AT ABOUT 45,000 MILES. TOOK THE VAN TO THE DEALER FOR SERVICING AND THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT TELL WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS AND SENT US BACK OUT ON THE ROAD AFTER THEY TOLD US THE WARRANTY ON THE DRIVE TRAIN HAD BEEN EXTENDED TO 100,000 MILES. WENT BACK IN AT 60,000 MILES WITH THE SAME PROBLEM, ENGINE REVVING BETWEEN GEARS, LOSING POWER ETC. TOLD US A VALVE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AND SERVICED THE TRANSMISSION. THEY ALSO TOLD US THE WARRANTY HAD NOT BEEN EXTENDED ON THE 2002 BUT ONLY ON THE 1999-2001'S. AT 70,000 MILES THE PROBLEM BECAME WORSE AND ENGINE LIGHT AND TCS LIGHT STARTED POPPING ON. TOOK IT IN AGAIN AND THEY SAID THE TRANSMISSION WOULD HAVE TO BE REPLACED. AFTER CALLING HONDA USA THEY AGREED TO PROVIDE THE NECESSARY PARTS IF WE PAID $1000+ FOR LABOR. I FOUND OUT LATER THAT THERE IS A DEFECT IN THE TRANSMISSION. THAT THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HAVE HAD THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THE 2002 MODEL AND THAT THE NHTSA HAD ISSUED A RECALL ON THE 2002 TRANSMISSION. YET HONDA DID NOT INFORM ME OF THIS THE TWO TIMES I CAME IN AND TOLD THEM I WAS HAVING TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS. BOTH TIMES THEY SENT ME AND MY FAMILY BACK OUT ON THE ROAD IN A DEFECTIVE VEHICLE. *TR