2002 Honda CR-V EX from North America - Comments

Well, I am the latest victim I guess, to the Honda CRV Compressor problem. My air quit today, here in Phoenix AZ. It was only 109 degrees. My dealer is quite a drive away, so I pulled in to a Sears. They looked at it, and told me it was probably my compressor. The repair man told me that Honda has a major problem with their AC compressor. He advised me to call Honda America even before contacting my dealer. (Which I can't do until Tuesday, due to the Holiday). Then of course I come home tonight and serch the net, and find page after page of complaints about Honda's CRV's and the compressor. = So, I guess I need to brace myself for a possible fight. And fight I will!- Honda should have recalled, or have a standing order to fix all of them at no cost. They obviously know they have a problem. I will contact the news stations and an attorney if I have to pay one dime. Will keep y'all posted. -

Yup... me too! Air compressor blew up and contaminated the system on my 2004 CR-V. Have been calling Honda of America since August 12... no help or info from them yet... (currently Sept 4). When I first called I said: "I'm calling about an expensive problem with my CR-V... can you guess what it is?" He said "uhhh... the air compressor?".

At the dealership they claimed never to have encountered this problem before..."Well, gosh it happens sometimes... I've never seen it... etc..." Made me think that it was like getting struck by lightning or hit by a meteorite... very rare... just my bad luck.

Then you enter "Honda CR-V air compressor complaints" into a search engine and you can find 180 identical complaints in 2 minutes...

I am a peaceable 'live and let live' sort of guy and have never sued anyone before... but if Honda doesn't step up on this it is time for a class action lawsuit.

It should not cost me 15% of my car's value to repair an air conditoning problem that was caused by a known faulty design.

Turns out this is the number one complaint of CR-V owners. They had been selling these cars with this defect for at least 3 years to unsuspecting drivers. They never issued a recall or advisory.

I bought my Honda 2002 new and I am also a victim of the Honda A/C compressor blow up. The first time this happened I had about 55,000 miles on my car and Honda "fixed" my compressor in July 2005 at minimum cost to me. Now 2 years later and 90,000 miles on my CRV the compressor has blown again. This time I am looking at $1200. This is my 4th Honda and I will not buy Honda again.

Maybe there are only 180 complaints out of some 500,000 plus CRV's. Kind of like the McDonalds lady suing over coffee.

When driving down the interstate in Kansas this weekend, my car began to squeal; then a clunk, clunk; then no cold air out of the A/C. I didn't think an A/C could cost so much money, but a local mechanic quoted me $1200-$1300 to repair the problem. He said he already had called the local dealer to check on parts for me (he wasn't up to fixing the problem) and they said it was a common problem, but they could offer no help on the cost of repairs.

I was on the fence about whether to trade in my 2002 Honda CR-V with 110K miles for a new car. I was waiting until my husband who is away in the military could return and help me with the car buying decision. Ugh!

I don't want to put any money into this car that is not worth $7K in "good" condition, but how am I going to get anything for trade with a huge mechanical defect like this?

Would be all for organizing some sort of nationwide effort to take Honda to task for such a shady business practice. I won't be buying another Honda in the future.

2002 Honda CRV...61000 miles blew AC on 9/4/2007. Checking with dealer and corporate office now.

TM Norman Oklahoma

Bought a 2002 Honda CR-V EX from a local Lexus dealer this summer with just under 31,000 miles. Today the return trip home from work was horrendous, with temps in the high 80's, I had no a/c for the 1st time. Stopped by my mechanic who told me he thought there might be a problem w/the compressor clutch. So I called the dealer. Am awaiting a reply... the future does not look too good, given all the problems everyone else has had w/their Honda a/c's. A recall is in order! Where are you Honda America?

Cleveland, OH.

Cost me $459.86 for new AC system-Honda paid the rest of it, always call corporate Honda and get a quote/answer before repairing thru dealership.

I live in the California desert and one of the things I truly liked about my 02 crv was the a/c. Not anymore! before hitting the road last week, I turned on my a/c and it responded with a funny noise from the hood for a few seconds. I turned to a concerned facial expression and to my dismay, hot air started blowing from my vents. Neatless to say, my whole mood changed from decent to bad. I started thinking repair costs, how to deal with typical 100+ degree temps and how my 2 1/2 year old son will react to this oven on wheels. I'm active duty military stationed in 29 Palms, Ca. By reading these comments, I'm realizing how much the cost is to fix this problem, and I don't know how I will come up with the money. I bought this car because of its good reputation and the safety of my son came first. I just hope Honda can take the responsibility for this serious issue since its so prevalent in 02 crv owners. Wish me luck.

Saying there is only 180 comments and comparing that to the Mc Donalds law suit is wrong. There are more than 600 posts on Edmunds, and that is only the people that posted. Who knows how many other people have had to deal with this that haven't been on the Internet.

I own a 2002 CR-V, it has 91,000 miles. A/C quit blowing yesterday. I was praying it was the fuse, now reading all of this, I will pray there are no fragments ruining more.

So, should I call Honda or go to a local repair shop? We have a dealer in town, I'm pretty sure they will say the same things you all have experienced. I can't afford over $1000.00+ in repair costs. I agree that Honda should have had a recall. We need to get the word out. I am willing to join together to get Honda to step up.

This is my first Honda. I also found out that noise from the rear differential is common to CR-V's, and will need the fluid replaced.

I was thinking about a 2002 - 2004 CRV, well not anymore thanks to the comments.

And regarding the McDonalds comment, poster needs to learn some facts about the case. I would say receiving third degree burns and needing skin grafting from the coffee would be an issue...

My 2002 CRV compressor just blew up and had to have the whole A/C unit replaced at $3700!!! Honda covered most of the expense except for $500. They said the car was over 5 years old (with only 57,500 miles) and that it was up to me to take responsibility for full ownership. Why should I be responsible for a defect in manufacturing? They said that I had the opportunity to purchase an extended warranty, but did not. I told them the reason I bought a Honda is because it is known to be a vehicle of quality, and that is why I paid more for a Honda than an American car. I've owned Hondas for a long time and currently own a 2003 Acura MDX with no problems. I was shocked to learn about this known defect and Honda not making good for the whole fix. If I wanted to pay for an A/C in a car with only 57,500 miles, I should have bought a Ford!

Add me to the list of 2002 CR-V compressor issues... I have a trusted service man in my town who works only on Hondas. The first thing he said is that he's seen A LOT of this problem.

I'm hoping Honda makes an official recall because of this problem and reimburses all who have paid over $1000 to make the repair.

I will never buy a Honda ever again! My air conditioner went out... some how lasted until 120,000 miles.. I had an extended warranty, but only for 6 years, 100,00 miles! So, it did no good paying extra for it. My compressor went out, same thing... contaminated the entire system, the dealership said it would cost $2600! I don't have this kind of money to spend on a repair!

I went back and forth with American Honda and they only agreed to pay half the amount. I still couldn't afford it. I tried to go the cheaper route and went with a different repair... make sure you get it fixed, if you do, with Honda parts. I went through two compressors with this repair and the second caused my serpentine belt to break while driving and then my car was un-drivable! This car was a 2003, I had less than a year and a half to pay on it, and now it was going to cost me even more to fix! I would have had to fix the air conditioning to be able to fix the serpentine belt!

I would have been putting more money into the thing and only increasing the value of the car by $800! So, I traded the piece of crap. I only got the pay off from the dealership because of the condition it was in... but I was done with it!

I am VERY disappointed in Honda. I bought this car thinking I was buying a reliable, well made car. And Honda won't stand behind their mistakes or products. Therefore, I will never buy another Honda! I traded for a very nice 08 Nissan Versa, and my payments are $50 LESS and I get 41 MPG Highway miles! I would advise anyone who is having this problem to get out while you can, don't let more problems happen like me! TRADE IN and cut your losses!