Car Repair/Save my sanity question

[Elmo T]

Mrs. Elmo is off to OC, MD for a week with the kids. I get to stay home and work (or enjoy the quiet, depends on your view). She calls from Dover, DE to say that the TCS light and check engine light have come on - from previous experience, I know this is bad.

I call my local dealer who is less than sympathetic and says he has no clue. She goes to the Dover Honda dealer who says transmission is toast.

Here is the rub:

2003 Honda Odyssey
#1 Transmission goes at 37K. Of course, warranty is up at 36K. Lots of phone calls, but Honda covers it.

#2 Goes at 97K. More phone calls. Dealer says it is covered - not sure how, but we don't pay a dime. New transmission along with 3YR unlimited mileage warranty.

#3 Transmission goes at 128K, but under the 3 years.

When DE calls dealer here, they say no record of any repairs. I am forced to drive to dealer and wave the paperwork in their face.

#3 transmission was said to be "honda parts" but turns out to be compatible, but not Honda. In either case, we are forced to deal with warranty company to get the thing repaired.

Mrs. Elmo is on her way with rental car and the van sits in DE.

So.... what to do???? Local dealer is less than cooperative - essentially saying we can't complain as we haven't paid for repairs (4th !!!!). I called Honda of America and the representative used that voice reserved for small children and crazy people. Not their parts - to bad for you (my words).

PA Lemon laws appear to cover only the first year.

Seems like warranty will cover repair, but I feel like this is a Honda design problem. 2 Honda transmissions and 1 aftermarket are ka-blammo??:rolleyes:

Any thoughts on where to turn? Should I be expecting more and how to get it?

[Gnam]

No soup for you. :p

http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/9246/hondak.png

You might try a transmission shop instead of the dealer to get more options and pricing. I would also suggest you stop entering the van in tractor pulls. ;)

[Elmo T]

No soup for you. :p


Even if it qualified, we are not in the position to buy now. Mrs. Elmo joined me on the public payroll - and not in the good way. :(

Thing is, the most that van hauls is the weekly grocery run. Interweb is full of Honda Odyssey transmission horror stories. The only silver lining here is the transmission will be replaced by the Delaware folks - not my local dealer. As Mrs. Elmo put it bluntly the last time: Are you giving us crappy parts or do you do crappy work? ;)

[oddlycalm]

Really sorry to hear that. Having it replaced free of charge never makes up for the aggravation and inconvenience but it's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick which is what often happens.

Bottom line is as long as they have replaced it at no charge you aren't going to get much traction legally or with an consumer protection agency. Honda knows they have a fatal design issue or they wouldn't have comped the replacements in the first place. Sucks. :thumdown:

oc

[cameraman]

I suggest an accidental fire....:laugh:

[Elmo T]

I suggest an accidental fire....:laugh:

You aren't the first person to suggest that.

I found this gem today, just in time to crank my blood pressure back up.

Welcome to the Odyssey Transmission site, where you will find a lot of useful information for dealing with your Odyssey transmission problems. (http://www.odysseytransmission.com/) :saywhat:

[dando]

Mrs. Elmo is off to OC, MD for a week with the kids.

Wrath of the tranny gods is what ya git for going to the wrong OC, yo. ;)

http://www.odysseytransmission.com/images/odyssey.gif

:gomer: :shakehead

-Kevin

[Elmo T]

Wrath of the tranny gods

-Kevin

Just gets worse. The aftermarket warranty folks say their contract is with my local dealer. They won't pay dealer in DE to fix it. :saywhat:

[FTG]

If you want your transmission to work, don't buy a Honda.

[Elmo T]

If you want your transmission to work, don't buy a Honda.


So I've learned. ;):shakehead

http://i30.tinypic.com/2i7u4n4.jpg

[Don Quixote]

http://www.odysseytransmission.com/images/odyssey.gif

:gomer: :shakehead

-Kevin
What a cluster****. :shakehead

[Gnam]

some more info from another owner: (http://forums.automobilemag.com/70/6556907/technical-discussion/2003-honda-odyssey-transmission-problems/index.html)


I called my shop and asked how long they needed to rebuild and authorized the work. I asked for them to save all parts. I picked up the car four days later. The shop gave me the parts. They told me there was no evidence of overheating, but that the clutches were shot. The clutch surface material de-laminates, gets chopped up, and winds up clogs the filter, and restricts fluid flow. Over time the transmission would starve for oil and overheat. As the filter is internal, there is no way to get it out without removing the transmission from the vehicle. Nice design.

Wonder if synthetic transmission fluid would make any difference.

[Elmo T]

Wonder if synthetic transmission fluid would make any difference.

There are all sorts of owner patchwork fixes on the net. Most essentially talk about a full transmission service at each oil change to keep the gremlins away. :rolleyes:


As the filter is internal, there is no way to get it out without removing the transmission from the vehicle. Nice design

And taking out the tranny requires front end alignment after the install. Of course, NOT covered by the warranty.

To keep your scorecard up to date: AAA will be towing van from Dover back to PA because warranty folks will only permit original tranny installer to do the replacement. And while the warranty covers 3 days of rental, the standard shipping time for tranny is 5 days. Good thing it didn't break in FL.

Are these guys available for hire? I have a freebie for target practice...

RBD1mzY42JA

[B3RACER1a]

I work for a large Honda OEM parts manufacturer. Just so you won't kill me, I will come out and say we don't have any of our parts on your transmission. :D

From what I got from your story, the dealer who replaced tranny #2 didn't go through Honda and went to a 3rd party reman tranny. It was probably a place that specialized in that model's transmission (not there is a design flaw or anything :gomer:).

Does your paperwork show where this tranny came from at all, or does the dealer who replaced it know where it comes from? If so, they need to get into contact with that company.

Since the dealer seems less than receptive, just remind them that a warranty is a warranty no matter how many times its been replaced. Work your way up the ladder. If that is the service manager, talk to his boss.

I've dealt with this before although be it from a different angle, but just run it up the ladder till you get someone who has ears. It works for me 99% of the time.

Good luck!

[Indy]

Yet this is the minivan which has put just about everyone else out of the minivan business. I have heard many stories of their lemon transmissions. Why do people buy them?

[JLMannin]

Yet this is the minivan which has put just about everyone else out of the minivan business. I have heard many stories of their lemon transmissions. Why do people buy them?

When I purchased my Toyota minivan in 2002, Odyssey's were selling FOR OVER STICKER - that's right, if I wanted one, I had to get into a bidding war. I promptly walked out of the showroom.

Honda must have done a good job managing this issue, as this thread is the first time I have heard of the Odyssey tranny issue.

[Methanolandbrats]

When I purchased my Toyota minivan in 2002, Odyssey's were selling FOR OVER STICKER - that's right, if I wanted one, I had to get into a bidding war. I promptly walked out of the showroom.

Honda must have done a good job managing this issue, as this thread is the first time I have heard of the Odyssey tranny issue.

A friend was the head mechanic at a local Honda dealer. Honda has always done secret recalls. They had a lot of ignition problems years ago and when you went in for routine service they just swapped out the bad parts. You stay ahead of bad press that way.

[Andrew Longman]

You stay ahead of bad press that way.

You also keep your customers happy.

On my first Odyssey, had a problem with the transmission. Didn't require replacement and didn't show any symptoms, but they replaced proactively some innards.

The few problems we've had, in or out of warranty, have always been handled for free.

[Elmo T]

A friend was the head mechanic at a local Honda dealer. Honda has always done secret recalls. They had a lot of ignition problems years ago and when you went in for routine service they just swapped out the bad parts. You stay ahead of bad press that way.

Just back from the road trip to Dover to pick up the gang. Van is on a flatbed to the local dealer herr.

This is our story, to a point. They've fixed everything quickly and with only minor aggravation in the repair. The obvious problem is the frequency. We are not talking about a minor problem. My concern, and the fight from here out will be, what is our long term situation with this transmission. I want a life time guarantee on the transmission. As long as I get free transmissions, I will be reasonable happy. :saywhat:

[TravelGal]

Oy. I asked TravelGuy about this and he said essentially what B3 said. At some point you migrated from Honda parts to compatible parts.

If a Honda dealer did that, you could have their whatsies in a sling if you wanted to.

Also agree that this is the first I've heard of it and of the secret recalls. I got a mass mailing notice about possible transmission problems on my Acura. I wasn't having any but on the next service I reported that I was so that it would be on my car's maintenance record. Just in case I ever needed a replacement, you understand. ;)

[Elmo T]

From what I got from your story, the dealer who replaced tranny #2 didn't go through Honda and went to a 3rd party reman tranny. It was probably a place that specialized in that model's transmission (not there is a design flaw or anything :gomer:).

Does your paperwork show where this tranny came from at all, or does the dealer who replaced it know where it comes from? If so, they need to get into contact with that company.



#3 came from H&A Transmissions (http://www.hnatrans.com/index.htm), as in Honda & Acura. That is all they make. :saywhat: Big demand there???

#3 was installed by the dealer who said it was all Honda parts being installed. The dealer also said the install was fully covered and it was at no cost to us. The provided the warranty paperwork, same can be found on H&A site.

At the time, to get 3yr/unlimited mileage on a van with 97K seemed like a step in the right direction. Now #3 blown and the new install will only be covered until 3/2010.

It is all still up in the air. Mrs. Elmo is home now and will begin her assault on all she believes to be culpable in this mess. :rofl:

[B3RACER1a]

#3 came from H&A Transmissions (http://www.hnatrans.com/index.htm), as in Honda & Acura. That is all they make. :saywhat: Big demand there???

#3 was installed by the dealer who said it was all Honda parts being installed. The dealer also said the install was fully covered and it was at no cost to us. The provided the warranty paperwork, same can be found on H&A site.

At the time, to get 3yr/unlimited mileage on a van with 97K seemed like a step in the right direction. Now #3 blown and the new install will only be covered until 3/2010.

It is all still up in the air. Mrs. Elmo is home now and will begin her assault on all she believes to be culpable in this mess. :rofl:

Hide!

http://www.failfunnies.com/images/gif/ninja-fail.gif

:D

[Methanolandbrats]

Have you considered Cash For Clunkers?:gomer: