Comments: 1-15, 16-18
In the 50 months since I drove it off the dealer's lot, I've put 98850 km (mostly highway) on my '03 CRV. It's had more than it's share of problems including:
• replacing timing belt at 48000 km
• rear brake pads & rotors at 42000 km (not on warranty)
• front brakes and rotors at 56000 km (not on warranty)
• rear struts, linkages, etc at 80,000 km (not on warranty)
• driver side seat belt defective
• rear hatch door hinges almost rusted through (Honda is resisting covering this under warranty)
• passenger door latch failure.
There is a periodic strong smell of burning rubber that my independent mechanic believes it to be the rear window wiper motor and encourages me to be prepared for a vehicle fire some day. Honda insists there is nothing wrong, that it emanates from the rear exhaust in snowy or wet road conditions.
My Honda Service dealer has been horrible to deal with, arguing about everything and refusing to cover most everything. One out of every three service trips, they forget to do things on the work order or do goofy things like rotating the tires when I told them I had just had new tires installed. It was pretty obvious they were new tires - they still had the little nubbies. Wouldn't have been so bad, had they not charged me for the rotation.
Oh, and the mileage is no where near what is advertised.
I won't own another, despite liking the size, the roominess and the handling.
My wife is on her 3rd (98,01,03) & probably last CRV. She's very brand loyal (8 Hondas so far), but it might be time to look elsewhere. We're very careful & keep all of our vehicles in immaculate condition (no abuse). What we've noticed is a decline in each subsequent Honda we purchase. Might have something to do with where they're being assembled. Our current '03 has had 6 window regulators replaced, 2 pwr window switches replaced, a new a/c unit replaced (after only 7 months of ownership), various trim pieces replaced (too many to list) & our head-unit replaced. Thank goodness for extended warranties! In the past, we never felt the need to purchase any type of ext. warranty with a Honda...unfortunately, they've become like every other car maker. This includes Toyota, who is having their share of problems. I'm not saying Honda aren't worth considering...they're just nowhere near what they used to be!
2003 CRV automatic with 88,000 miles. The rear door plastic has fallen apart, but aesthetics are not that important to us.
AWD is terrific for skiing.
Just went into dealer at 88k miles for first serious problem - A/C just stopped. $1000.
Note: A Comments RSS Feed is available.