A few weeks ago the amber "idiot light" lit-up in the dashboard of my wife's 2002 Honda Odyssey minivan.
Naturally she was concerned, she took it in to the Honda dealer and after paying for a diagnostic test, received the verdict -- "You need a new transmission. Estimated cost is $3600." *gulp!*
Now I know what you're thinking: "it's a nine-year-old vehicle John, you can expect things to need replacement" -- true, but the car has only been driven 73K miles and it has led a very gentle life -- not to mention that there was previously a safety recall for the vehicle's transmission -- and the transmission's 2nd gear had been replaced back in 2004 due to that safety recall.
"Which gear is failing now?" you ask, yeah, 2nd gear again, what a coincidence!
Upon exploring the online world, surprise-surprise, many owners of the same vehicle have faced similar problems.
Here is a simple search on Google: http://www.google.com/#sclient=psy&hl=en&source=hp&q=2002+honda+odyssey+transmission+problem&aq=3&aqi=g5&aql=&oq=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=9651d7334bd74320
A few entries from www.carcomplaints.com: http://www.carcomplaints.com/Honda/Odyssey/2002/transmission/transmission_failure.shtml
A few entries from www.hondacarforum.com: http://www.hondacarforum.com/honda-2/10033-honda-odyssey-2002-transmission-problems.html
One more site - www.odysseytransmission.com: http://www.odysseytransmission.com/ProblemCases?msgId=632 << 116 owners of 2002 Honda Odysseys have posted their experiences on this site
Complaining to American Honda resulted in my case being eventually being handled by a Regional Manager named "Walter". I will refrain from making any comments about Walter's personality, or lack thereof ...
At the end of the complaint process, and due to my couple decades of loyalty to Honda vehicles, American Honda's final offer was to cover 55% of the cost of the new transmission, even though they did not acknowledge any problems with 2002 Honda Odyssey transmissions. That left me paying 45% of the transmission cost and after also adding-in replacement costs for some failing suspension components, brought the bill to a bit over $2200.
I will end my rant with a summary.
I have continued buying Honda (and Acura) vehicles over the years because of their solid reputation for quality and reliability. Through this episode and the follow-up research I described however, it has become apparent that Honda has had numerous quality problems with the transmissions on its minivans -- yet it is failing to acknowledge these problems.
Basic business practice Honda: when you have a problem, you acknowledge it and you fix it (your problem means you pay for it), you thank your customers for their loyalty and you hope they will consider your response in the future and remain loyal to your brand.
I will soon be replacing our Honda Odyssey -- do you think I will buy another Honda vehicle?
I don't think so Honda -- and you have no one to blame for it than your own shameful behavior.
Naturally she was concerned, she took it in to the Honda dealer and after paying for a diagnostic test, received the verdict -- "You need a new transmission. Estimated cost is $3600." *gulp!*
Now I know what you're thinking: "it's a nine-year-old vehicle John, you can expect things to need replacement" -- true, but the car has only been driven 73K miles and it has led a very gentle life -- not to mention that there was previously a safety recall for the vehicle's transmission -- and the transmission's 2nd gear had been replaced back in 2004 due to that safety recall.
"Which gear is failing now?" you ask, yeah, 2nd gear again, what a coincidence!
Upon exploring the online world, surprise-surprise, many owners of the same vehicle have faced similar problems.
Here is a simple search on Google: http://www.google.com/#sclient=psy&hl=en&source=hp&q=2002+honda+odyssey+transmission+problem&aq=3&aqi=g5&aql=&oq=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=9651d7334bd74320
A few entries from www.carcomplaints.com: http://www.carcomplaints.com/Honda/Odyssey/2002/transmission/transmission_failure.shtml
A few entries from www.hondacarforum.com: http://www.hondacarforum.com/honda-2/10033-honda-odyssey-2002-transmission-problems.html
One more site - www.odysseytransmission.com: http://www.odysseytransmission.com/ProblemCases?msgId=632 << 116 owners of 2002 Honda Odysseys have posted their experiences on this site
Complaining to American Honda resulted in my case being eventually being handled by a Regional Manager named "Walter". I will refrain from making any comments about Walter's personality, or lack thereof ...
At the end of the complaint process, and due to my couple decades of loyalty to Honda vehicles, American Honda's final offer was to cover 55% of the cost of the new transmission, even though they did not acknowledge any problems with 2002 Honda Odyssey transmissions. That left me paying 45% of the transmission cost and after also adding-in replacement costs for some failing suspension components, brought the bill to a bit over $2200.
I will end my rant with a summary.
I have continued buying Honda (and Acura) vehicles over the years because of their solid reputation for quality and reliability. Through this episode and the follow-up research I described however, it has become apparent that Honda has had numerous quality problems with the transmissions on its minivans -- yet it is failing to acknowledge these problems.
Basic business practice Honda: when you have a problem, you acknowledge it and you fix it (your problem means you pay for it), you thank your customers for their loyalty and you hope they will consider your response in the future and remain loyal to your brand.
I will soon be replacing our Honda Odyssey -- do you think I will buy another Honda vehicle?
I don't think so Honda -- and you have no one to blame for it than your own shameful behavior.
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