2002 Honda Odyssey: engine overheating

Filed Jan 8, 2015 · Transmission · 62,000 miles · TX

I am the original owner of a 2002 honda odyssey van. On 11/07/2014, van failed to accelerate and the malfunction indicator was on. I had van towed to the local honda dealership. The service dept. At dealership said ecl code was p0730 & the transmission needs to be replaced. The approx failure mileage on van was 62,000 miles. I had to pay $3500 for having the honda dealership rebuilt the transmission. The dealership told me that 3rd gear had heat discoloration & is burned up along with the clutches. I have the photos & also the damaged parts that were replaced by the dealership. Since I had low mileage I contacted honda but they refused any help saying warranty period on van had expired. I also contacted honda's recall dept, since I felt that the burnt 3rd gear was related to transmission overheating problem per 2004 honda recall for 2001 to 2004 vans. Honda said that recall was for 2nd gear & my discoloration was on 3rd gear. This is like splitting hair; since internal damage to transmission was due to the root cause of transmission overheating. I feel with single owner & low mileage of van & with the heat discoloration of transmission parts, honda is responsible for the premature failure of transmission due to heat buildup. Therefore, honda should pay me for my cost to rebuild the transmission. The 2004 recall letter clearly states "if heat discoloration exists, the dealer will replace transmission". That letter further states "this work will be done free of charge." I feel honda is refusing to honor the intent of the 2004 recall letter.

Filed Dec 2, 2014 · Transmission · 62,064 miles · TX

I am the original owner of a 2002 honda odyssey van. On 11/07/2014, van failed to accelerate and the malfunction indicator was on. I had van towed to the local honda dealership. The service dept at the dealership said the ecl code was p0730. They said transmission needs to be replaced. The approximate failure mileage on van was 62000. I had to pay around $3500 for having the dealer rebuilt the transmission. I had the service advisor take photos of the damaged transmission. The service advisor told me that the 3rd gear has heat discoloration & is burned up. In addition he said, clutches were burnt up. I have the photos of the 3rd gear discoloration & also have the damaged parts that were replaced by the dealership. Since my van has low mileage, I contacted honda but they refused any help saying warranty period on van had expired. I also contacted honda's recall dept, since I felt that the burnt 3rd gear was related to transmission overheating per 2004 honda recall related to 2001 to 2004 vans. Honda said that recall was for 2nd gear & my discoloration was on 3rd gear. This was like splitting hairs; since internal damage to transmission was due to the root cause of transmission overheating. Honda refused to take any ownership of transmission failure & refused my plea for any assistance with the $3500 I had to pay honda dealership for rebuilding the transmission. I still feel, with the low mileage on my van & with the heat discoloration of parts inside the transmission, honda is responsible for the premature failure of transmission & the cost to the rebuilt the transmission. The 2004 recall letter clearly states "if heat discoloration exists, the dealer will replace transmission". The letter further states that "this work will be done free of charge". I truly feel honda is refusing to honor the intent of the 2004 recall letter.

Filed Aug 7, 2012 · Transmission · 90,045 miles · IL · fire

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 honda odyssey. The contact stated that the transmission failed while traveling 70 MPH. The contact stated that there was a smell of transmission fluid burning prior to the transmission overheating. The vehicle was repaired october 2004 under the federal safety agency campaign id number: 04v176000 (power train: automatic transmission) for the transmission oil jet. The vehicle was recently taken to the dealer who advised that the transmission needed to be replaced. The failure and the current mileages was 90,045.

Filed Jul 2, 2009 · Transmission · 48,765 miles · NY

2002 honda odyssey with 48,000 miles has an overheated transmission and needs replacement. The mechanic states that alot of these vehicles have had this problem. He advised me to contact honda service for warranty service. Honda service at plaza honda told me there is no warranty for my transmission. Web blogs have shown many honda owners trying to participate in a class action suit against honda to be responsible for these repairs.

Filed Feb 9, 2009 · Transmission · 89,000 miles · NJ

Vehicle exhibits problem with automatic transmission slipping when shifting from second to third gear resulting in revving of the engine and loss of acceleration and causing traffic obstruction. Internet research has shown that a model years 2002 through 2004 of this car have similar issues. Hard shifting from first gear to second gear and then slow engagement of the third gear. A spokesperson from honda america has made a comment about the "third gear clutch pack" disintegrating and contaminating the transmission. As of yet, honda has been replacing transmissions only if owners have complained sufficiently and can prove that the dealers have performed maintenance. Other persons who have maintained cars themselves have had to bear the replacement costs of nearly $4500 if they cannot prove that the vehicle has been maintained by a honda certified facility (I.e. Dealer). A previous recall for the second gear overheating issue has not reduced the likelihood that the transmission longevity would improve. I would like honda to admit technical issues with their transmission design and offer to replace the defective part (transmission).

Filed Feb 4, 2009 · Transmission · NY

2002 honda odyssey ex has a transmission problem. Consumer states that the dealership said the only solution is to replace the transmission. Consumer wants to know why no recall or some other solution? *nj the consumer stated the transmission was slipping. The seals and bushings needed to be replaced and the internal filter was clogged with debris from the lining on the plates that wore off due to normal friction from the paper-like lining which caused the transmission to overheat and slip.

Filed Jul 19, 2007 · Transmission · 81,000 miles · NV

Vehicle transmission overheated and locked into 2nd gear while on highway going 75 miles an hour. Technician that looked at the transmission said that the fluid was burned due to getting too hot, which caused it to go into fail mode. There was previously a recall on the transmission (04v176000) which has these same symptoms. When the recall came out we had the transmission recall worked performed by the dealer. It appears that there is still a problem with this transmission. We've had the transmission replaced and the dealer refused to take any responsibility. They state that transmission fluid burnt up due to use not servicing it every 30,000 miles. The owners manual says to only check the fluid every 30,000 and to service it at 75,000 miles. We've had the fluid check at every other oil change. So the last time the transmission fluid was checked was 10,000 miles before this incident.

Filed Apr 19, 2006 · Transmission · 91,000 miles · OR

Our 2002 honda odyssey ex is canadian manufactured. We purchased it from a oregon honda dealer 12/2001 with only 38 mi. On it. We were not told about the "grey market" or it's implications, and have never received any recall /safety information on this vehicle. The dealership said they couldn't get it for me. I contacted the dealership owner and finally the service dept. Got information on a transmission problem recall, and performed the service in sept. 2005. The canadian honda campaign number is k16; the federal safety agency bulletin number is 04v176000. The dealership service dept. Told me replacement of a lubricant part for second gear was needed. I never saw the bulletin itself until yesterday when I found it online. Now I know that the bulletins suggested replacing the part for vehicles with under 24000 km (15000 miles) and for vehicles with more kms/miles- ours had over 60000 miles -doing an inspection to see if there was discoloration on the gears from overheating, and if so, replacing the transmission. The explanation on both bulletins is that heat buildup occurs between the counter shaft and the secondary shaft second gears eventually leading to gear tooth chipping or gear breakage. The service dept. Now says the transmission is "full of metal", in spite of the revision to the oil cooler return line. I found out there is a 7yr/70,000 mile warranty on 2002 odyssey transmissions in canada and america ; honda canada says our model doesn't qualify, but couldn't tell me why. American honda says that the recall work was done and this new problem is not related to the recall problem. Yet 6 mo. Later we have a transmission full of metal, exactly what the recall work was meant to prevent. Neither manufacturer accepts responsibility. This is a definite safety factor - a transmission that is unreliable and unpredictable is hazardous, and renders the car undriveable.

Filed Aug 11, 2005 · Transmission · 86,000 miles · IN

My '02 honda odyssey is now on its third transmission in 86000 miles the first was replaced at 3000. Last failure occurred on interstate while going through hills of chattanooga, tn. Traction control came on and brakes started to fail due to the large amount of transmission fluid ejected from vehicle. Luckily was able to control van and move off of roadway. Honda replaced entire transmission but has not reimbursed for other expenses. This vehicle has a significant overheating problem in the transmission causing failure.

Filed Nov 6, 2004 · Transmission · 45,000 miles · FL

As reported by many other honda odyssey 2002 owners, the automatic transmission would pop out of 2nd or 3rd gear and into neutral. Engine would rev up when given gas but with zero acceleration. About 6 times this happened over a 2 month period. By manually switching to a low gear and then back into automatic drive the transmission behaved properly. A few days ago the engine check light lit up, as well as the maintenance light. We took into dealer and were told an error code of p0730, incorrect gear ratio, was being reported by the vehicle's diagnostic circuitry. This is a very dangerous failure. Dealer said a new transmission was needed, for some $4,500. After complaining that it is not acceptable for a 2-year old car's transmission to fail, even if our mileage was over the 36,000 mile warranty, dealer called honda and offered us a reconstructed transmission if we would pay $1,028 for the labor only. We accepted before reading all these similar complaints on the internet. We were also told that the onboard computer had to be replaced, since that is always done when the transmission is replaced. A reconstructed transmission, was explained to us, is replacing all internal mechanisms of the transmission but keeping the same exterior casing we had. We were told this was unrelated to the 2nd gear overheating problem. We are grateful to the dealer and honda for lowering our repair costs, but now feel that this is a known problem and a recall should be done before someone gets killed because of it. Therefore we will ask honda for our $1,028 back before pursuing the matter legally.