Noticed the transmission had been slipping for a couple of days. I made an appointment to take my car into the dealer on 8/3/2010. I had my 3 year old and 5 month old infant in car with me while driving to the dealership to drop off my car. Was on a short strip of the freeway going about 40 MPH when all of a sudden the car began to sound as if it was struggling to shift into another gear. It abruptly stopped then thrust the car forward immediately. My car crashed into the side of the street leaving a scrape on the left bumper. When I arrived at the dealer, the service person told my husband that they would not touch my car since it was 145k miles and was well out of the warranty. They are charging us a $100 diagnosis fee only to figure out what is wrong with it. I called american honda to file a complaint only to get the same "at the mileage that you are at we are unable to cover any cost to repair the vehicle" husband just got a call from dealership stating there are two problems with the car one is with the part that communicates with the car to shift to a correct gear and the other is a problem with the internal transmission. The solution is to replace the transmission. Honda and the honda rep again stand by their admission that they are not responsible for the replacement cost since the car is out of warranty. I can understand if I do excessive damage to my car, but I drive less than 25k a year and only drive locally transporting my family. This is disconcerting and I am very upset that honda refuses to stand by their product! Please investigate as my "crash" could have been more serious and could potentially harm the safety and lives of both my passengers and others on the road. Thank you for your consideration.
2003 Honda Accord transmission complaints
Page 19 of 32: complaints 521 to 550 of 924, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 honda accord. While traveling at 40 MPH, the automatic transmission would not shift into fourth gear and the contact was unable to travel over 40 MPH. The vehicle was neither diagnosed nor repaired for the failure. There were no prior warnings. The current and failure mileages were 146,000.
No known events leading up to the failure. My accord will rev up and wont shift- the car seems as though it is stuck. When driving around a lot of other cars it is very frightening. The failure is that the torque converter failed. I have not had it replaced yet due to costs.
On july 31, 2010, I was driving about 45-50 MPH on a highway. Twice when I lightly accelerated, the car jerked forward as if I had hit the accelerator very hard rather than very lightly. This happened twice that day; nothing like this had ever happened before. My transmission failed the next day on august 1, 2010 while I was on the interstate. It failed very spectacularly. I was driving 70ish MPH (that is the speed limit). I slowed when I approached a car in front of me. When it pulled over so I could pass, I lightly touched the accelerator and the car jerked as if I had hit the brake very hard. I was shocked and scared; I quickly took my foot off the accelerator and let the car slow. I removed my sandal to be sure my foot was only touching the correct pedal and I could feel exactly the pressure I was putting on it; I put my sandal in the seat beside me. I lightly stepped on the accelerator again with my bare foot, and again the car jerked as if I had hit the brake hard. I braked gently and pulled over to the shoulder, stopped and put the car in park. After I calmed from the fear, I shifted into d3 to try another gear (rather than d). I slowly accelerated and in a few seconds the car started jerking as if I hit the accelerator hard, then the engine revved with no engagement of transmission, then it jerked as if I braked hard; all this in a matter of seconds at a slow speed on the shoulder. Again I braked gently, stopped and put the car in park. Last night, aug 1, I had it towed to the dealer where the technician test drove it this morning, aug 2. He told my service advisor the car was frightening to drive; he told my service advisor that the transmission was very bad, that he felt as if he might get whiplash. They gave me an estimate to replace the transmission at $4500.
Driving on the highway and the car would not shift up to a higher gear and motor kept revving. Engine light came on. Will take it to mechanic to see what is wrong.
My 2003 accord ex v6 started experiencing unintended downshift on the 24th of july, after years of great care that follows or beats the recommended schedules. When it happened, the car jerked violently. Lucky I was only hearing horning behind me on a 50km/hr road instead of a crash on a 100km/hr highway. For safety issue I have not driven this car locally or on highway since the problem, except to the honda dealership (experienced the same jerk at low speed about 2 times on average for a 2km trip), who says the entire transmission needs to be replaced. Although online forum is not a completely credible source for information, from what I'm seeing so far a recall on the transmission is warranted. Please consider this a significant safety concern, which I believe is becoming a widespread problem, and I hope you could confirm and agree. Sincerely, 2003 honda accord ex v6 customer.
2003 honda accord with transmission recall performed on second band lubrication problem recalled by selling dealer@ aprox12,000 miles at my request was noted that if transmission had early failure that ho mo co would need to be responsible for repairs incurred and all expenses .then at 78,658 miles transmission began harsh shift from first to second ratio ,also audible turbine noise noted . After reading multiples of same issues blogs from vehicle owners that crashed or barely avoided being in a crash due to inferior transmission designs and internal trans-lubrication problems even after said recall was performed by dealership in n.c. We believe that our 2003 accord is no longer safe to drive / transport passengers as of this day of 07/26 /2010 and request that a complete study which consist of all the affected vehicles be repaired by ho mo co. At their expense for parts ,labor, for all parties in question and all persons that have filed claim with local dealerships and also with all persons so mentioned above that have contacted ho mo co. Customer service. In hope that no one dies!
2003 honda accord v6 transmission failure. Car rev's but doesn't engage, especially in overdrive/3rd/4th/5th gears. The issue came on pretty suddenly. Still waiting for an estimate on the repairs; honda had a recall on it in 2004/5, but has since expired, and is unwilling to assist in the repairs.
Complete transmission failure. Our daughter was lucky not to have been killed driving on a crowded outerbelt when the honda accord just quit. Local dealership recognizes a huge problem with this model, but corporate honda is just waiting for a tragedy to occur. Just spent $1100 on new brakes, and now they want $4000 for new transmission. We are going to fight this. Honda is pathetic.
The transmission on my '03 accord v6 (97k miles) started to fail when driving home from work on 7/22/2010. I couldn't reverse and on a busy road I couldn't exceed a speed limit over 35-40 MPH. I took it to my mechanic that evening, who said the problem was due to the failure of the pressure sensor solenoid a. I had to wait 3 hours for the new part to be delivered, but when my mechanic replaced the part, the problem still preceded. So, I went back to my mechanic, who finally found out the problem was due to my transmission. Currently my family of 5 has only one car and are being forced to pay both for a rent car and a new transmission.
My 2003, v6 honda accord started slipping between 2nd and 3rd gear. It becomes pretty dangerous when merging onto interstates and driving in traffic. There is a safety recall on the transmission. My vehicle was in the shop several times and the dealer never mentioned the recall. Once I had transmission problems and found the recall myself, I took it into honda and showed them the safety recall. They looked at the transmission and said I need a new transmission but said they weren't responsible because the discoloration wasn't right. Even though the extra heat burnt the transmission oil and caused some failure in the transmission. Coincidentally the second gear is what is messed up. The honda america rep told me that they were looking for a "catastrophic" problem with the transmission for them to be responsible. I guess that want you to drive with the problem until this occurs and then they will replace it.
2003 honda accord transmission failure, trouble shifting into 3rd gear ~ dangerous no doubt, especially while driving with my 2 children in the car. This problem caused damage to my engine as well.
Driving my family home from vacation on crowded interstate 287, the car suddenly and without warning rapidly decelerated creating a real hazard for occupants in my car as well as vehicles behind. The fault was a defective transmission that had jumped into 2nd gear on it's own. Furthermore, the cost of repair effectively totals the vehicle. I received no help or even consolation when I contacted american honda.
2003 v6 honda accord with 104,000 miles fails to shift into third gear occasionally. I started having trouble about two years ago, when I had about 70,000 miles on it, with the sudden down shifting. I took the car to my dealer in philadelphia. They tested it and took me for a road test with no evidence of a problem. While on vacation that summer I had my first experience with the trans not shifting into third gear so I took it to the nearest dealer, avalon nj, and had them test it. Again no evidence of a problem. I told the mechanic to take it home with him for a couple of days in hope that he would find something but no luck again. I have been to two dealers and to aamco and no one can find the problem. From my perspective, if it works sometimes it probably isn't mechanical. The fact that the on board computer does not retain the code is at least part of the problem. Honda doesn't seem to take any responsibility for its failure to provide a reliable vehicle, which is why like so many others I bought the thing in the first place. Moreover, no one will even say they know what is wrong with since the error does not register in the onboard computer.
While driving on the freeway all of a sudden my engine light came on , and the gear indicator located on the dash, the green light that showed that the car was in drive started blinking. Then come to find out this car is know for transmission failure, regardless of the maintenance the care received from the dealer.
My 2003 honda accord v-6 with automatic transmission surged to 6500 RPM's and then lost all compression while driving on the interstate. My wife had been complaining of similar problems while driving in town but never lost the drive train. I was lucky I was able to get over to the side of the road without being hit. The mechanics at the dealership told us this was a problem in this model year accord, and after contacting american honda motors, they are not going to help out with the repairs due to the fact they have not recalled the vehicle for this problem. This could have LED to a serious injury if I had been in heavy traffic at the time.
2003 honda accord v6 transmission fails. It is very unsafe, car stalls at 20mph with no warning and shifts violently. Lucky to avoid 2 crashes.
Transmission on my '03 honda accord v-6 (118k miles) started slipping as I was driving home last week (7/1/2010). Took it to my local repair shop to have the transmission serviced, but within 2 days, the transmission completely failed as I was driving 2 miles from my home in the middle of a major road. Since the failure, I've found volumes of information online attesting to identical transmission problems with the '03 accord and other honda vehicles of similar age and wear. Additionally, the tow-truck that took my car to a transmission specialist and the mechanic at the transmission shop each provided similar experiences with an epidemic of transmission failures on '03 accords that are just outside of the manufacturer warranty. I will be writing a very strongly worded letter to honda corp. Expressing my displeasure. Cost of replacement $2235 for a car that's only 7 yrs. Old, with only 118k miles on it. Unacceptable.
I was driving on the highway going at least 65 MPH, I noticed that my trans started slipping very bad. It felt like I was hitting my brakes on and off at 65 MPH. I had no idea what the problem was. I took it to the dealership and they told me that the trans was dead. I was shocked...a honda trans dead!!!. I had complete trust in my car, after all, it is only 7 years old with barely 100,000 miles on it. I could have been killed on the highway because of the bad trans. After searching on the internet I found that there were tons of people complaining about faulty trans on the automatic 2003 accords and that there was service bulletin "recall" issued from honda to fix a broken 2nd gear in the trans. So after calling the toll free honda america corporate people, they told me that my car was already taken into a honda dealer and had this 2nd gear replaced by the previous owner. So basically according to honda, they did their part by repairing the 2nd gear, and even though the transmission is now broken with barely 100,000 miles, there is nothing honda will do to cover the cost of a new transmission. I requested a goodwill repair but the person (reggie) nor his supervisor marla foster give me answers on how many of these type of calls were coming in or if they could assist me with the repairs. He basically said the local dealer would need to address this. After not getting anywhere with honda america I was assigned case #[xxx]and immediately he proceeded to close the case with no solution to my problem. I am very disappointed that honda isn't doing more to address this with loyal, long-term customers, knowing the transmission problem is a consistent issue with this model, as well as a potentially very dangerous situation. This is the 2nd honda accord I have owned and both my kids presently own honda accords. Part of the reason I spent more to get a honda to begin with was to get the reliability, quality. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
My husband was driving to work on a very busy highway when his car violently jerked and then went instantly from 70mph to almost a complete stop. He was able to coast onto the shoulder and wait for a tow truck, but this could have easily been a very serious accident given the high speeds. He has been complaining of back and neck problems since the incident which seems to be a direct result of the car jerking abruptly during the sudden downshift. We have been told that the transmission needs to be replaced. Please investigate the transmission failures for the 2003 honda accord! This is obviously a defect in this model and needs to be recalled and repaired. Our car is currently at a honda dealership awaiting repair. We have submitted a request for goodwill assistance and have not yet heard back on the outcome of that.
2003 honda accord v6 transmission failure while turning into oncoming traffic. Almost hit by oncoming traffic. This definitely is a safety issue with this model. Burning smell in car. These cars need to have a recall in regards to transmission.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 honda accord. The contact was driving approximately 65 MPH when the vehicle independently down shifted to first gear. The previous owner received repairs under the federal safety agency campaign id number: 04v176000 (power train: automatic transmission). The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the transmission gears were replaced as compliant with the recall. The failure recurred within one year. The failure mileage was 85,000 miles and the current was 121,000.
I am the owner of a 2003 honda accord ex v6. On yesterday, 6/23/2010 ,I was driving to work on the highway, during rush hour,when my car started to choke and slip. It felt like someone was pushing and pulling the car. The rpms were going up to 4-5 when I tried to accelerate. Naturally I was scared. My car was disrupting the flow of traffic, but thankfully no one hit me. I had my car towed to northwest honda in owings mills md on that day. Nw told me that my transmission needed to be replaced due to an internal malfunction. This was unusual because I bought a certified preowned honda in 2005 and I had all of my regularly scheduled maintenance done at that dealer. Lastly my car gave no warning of possible defects , no lights etc. After doing research I found out my year/model of honda accord is notorious for transmission defects and several people have had similar experiences. I'm sure some may have even been in an accident. Honda did a recall on the at in 2004, but that was only to fix the gears and prevent the transmission from locking. That does not fix the transmission problem from slipping and defecting without warning. My car is slightly out of the manufactured warranty which expired in on 11/15/2009. My extended warranty expired 01/01/2010. I obviously took the precautions to avoid this type of incident. I am now without coverage for this defective part. Honda offers good will assistance but it is granted on a case by case basis and is not a guarantee. I do have a claim in with honda. I feel honda should be held liable for their product before someone get seriously hurt or injured, much like the toyota recall. This is an ongoing issue that must be addressed. Thankfully I am without physical harm, mentally I was shaken up. The situation could have easily been worst. Please check online for the numerous complaints on this car. It is a serious issue. Honda should be required to recall all 2003 accord transmissions for safety reasons. Thanks.
The transmission on my 2003 honda accord ex-v6 has failed. The car was running fine, and then it started slipping when shifting gears. It would not accelerate from a stop without jerking, making it very scary to drive in traffic. When cruising at a relatively constant speed, it would downshift unexpectedly creating what I would consider very dangerous driving conditions. The diagnosis was complete failure of the inner workings of the transmission, and it must be replaced. This is a 7 year old car with 91,500 miles. It has been carefully maintained, including manufacturer recommended maintenance.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 honda accord. While driving at approximately 60 MPH, the vehicle violently jerked approximately three times. The contact moved the vehicle from the roadway and had it towed to a local repair facility. The contact was informed that the transmission would need to be replaced. The transmission has yet to be replaced. The failure and current mileages were 120,000.
We have a 2003 v6 honda accord. When putting the car in reverse we were hearing a noise that sounded like a saw operating. Took the car to the same honda service station that we have been using since purchasing the car. They said it was the rear brake pads and rotors that were causing the noise so they replaced them. The noise actually did go away. Then about a week later when my husband was driving he felt the car "buck". In addition the car would not always go into reverse. Took it to the dealer who said we needed a new transmission. The car is currently at dealer as we await the parts. I am very concerned since many people have written about this problem and have said that even when the transmission is replace the problem happens again. Why isn't someone forcing honda to do something about this??they are not replacing these transmissions at no cost to the consumer!
2003 honda accord 5-speed automatic transmission lock-up problems..... Transmission will lock up on 2nd gear, and wont upshift. Car just turned 80k on the odometer. All regular servicing and regular maintenance done by ase certified honda mechanic, all records and paperwork on file . From current reports and recall notice from honda north america, it is a recall and a safety concern. When dealership was informed of problem, they stated that they would have to contact their representative at honda of north america and get back to us if we qualify. This is after the fact that the oil jet kit.... Was already installed and stated that "problem was corrected" well the problem wasn't corrected.... Thus the transmission locked-up.... Well, notice came back from the dealership, that honda of north america isn't going to honor the recall notice and replace the transmission as stated.... Effectively "were on our own" ! Why should we have to pay for a defect and a major safety defect at that, where honda is accountable for? So now, like the 300+ other complaints for the same problem... We now have to decide what were going to do.... Honda of america... Why can't you keep your word.... ! Looks like this is the last honda I ever buy or my friends or family.... Another thing, you would think that honda of america, would at least compensate us with a rental car, till the problem is taken care of? Would they? Nope...... This is your mess-up. Honda of america.... You designed the car.... Fix your mess-up!!!!!!!!! The federal safety agency... Is their anything that you guys can do to light a fire under american honda motor company? I do wish we had dug deeper into buying the 2003 honda accord ex... Our autocheck or carfax said nothing about problems or concerns or even a flag about the recall on the 5-speed automatic transmissions in the 2003 honda accords. Now our family is in a real difficult situation, and not alot of options. Bad public relations american honda motor company.
2003 honda accord: purchased 2/18/2006 as a certified preowned vehicle. Powertrain warranty: 10/18/2009 or 100,000 miles on 6/3/2010 at 84,288 miles - we finally got the diagnosis of powertrain failure (we had brought in two other times complaining of same problems.) honda dealership service dept. Gave quote for $4,000. Told to call honda USA for goodwill repair.
Tl*the contact owns 2003 honda accord. The first failure occurred on august 21, 2007. While driving 15 MPH the vehicle would shift from 2nd gear into neutral. He drove onto the emergency lane, shut the engine off and restarted it. The vehicle began to function normally. The dealer stated that there was nothing wrong with the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated they needed to keep the vehicle overnight to perform a diagnostic test. The dealer stated that the vehicle needed a new transmission. The vehicle was not repaired when the complaint was filed; however, the diagnostic test were not complete. Honda manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 60,000 and the current mileage was 80,000. Updated 10/27/10.
On sunday, june 6, 2010, I was driving my 2003 honda accord (approximately 50,000 miles) on the highway at about 65 MPH when it suddenly slammed itself into low gear and screeched to a stop. The car then shifted itself back into drive and I attempted to get onto the shoulder of the highway. It slammed into low two more times before I was able to get on the shoulder and put the car in park. I put on my hazard lights and drove down back streets at 20 MPH to get home. The next day, a friend drove the car to the car dealer (I purchased the car less than 2 months ago) and though he was only driving 25 MPH, the same thing happened to him twice. The car has been at the dealership since. After doing some research and finding that there are a number of complaints with this same problem, I spoke with the mechanic at the dealership. He agreed that the only safe repair was to replace the transmission with a 2005 as that year did not seem to have this same manufacturer's defect. However, I am being required to pay 50% of the labor and parts for this repair. This is unacceptable due to the short amount of time I've owned the car, no revelation on the part of the dealer regarding this defect, that it is a manufacturer's defect and that I was injured due to the problem it caused.
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