I have a 2001 Odyssey and I've been very pleased with mine. I'm surprised by all the comments I've seen, but many of the complaints seem to be for 1999 and 2000 models. In my book, rule #1 is never buy a 1st year production model. Even Honda can get it wrong. Has anyone attempted towing something in the high end of Honda's recommended weight range? I'm considering buying a boat, but I have reservations about using the van to tow it. Most of the boats are in the 4000 pound range with trailer.
We have owned our 2000 Oddy since new and have only had a problem with one of the elect sliding doors (fixed under warranty).
At 37k miles I am about to get new tires and am concerned about all the talk of vibrations (there was a lot of concern about this back in 2000 also).
One of the comments I came across back in '00 was to make sure that the torque on the wheel lugs was correct. Don't know if it will help, but what can it hurt to check?
Otherwise we love the van. I am an ex-mechanic so I am very critical of repair shops (yes even the dealers) and do my own maintenance when needed. So far life with our Oddy has been good. And we LOVE the retractable back seat!
Bought a new Honda Odessey van (2001), choice of color and all th whistle and bells on it. At 20,000 miles transmission
started leaking oil, told that they will replace the transmission free and have changed my front brake pads twice and not the back yet till three times the front equals the back
brake shoes. At 45,685 miles, same original Michelin tires
and thinking of changing them soon to equal or better tires.
I have noticed regarding the vibration and have always taken the Honda service mgr for a ride on my van regarding
steering vibration. He recommended alignment for free and I have been pleased with it except watch those dealer mechanics who do not put the right nuts and bolts in the right places or too busy drinking coffee, b'cause they think that you will not look under there. I have decided to change my own fully synthetic oil change and noticed things either no tightened or not fitted/missing bolts. Since the Honda service dept are my somewhat friends, I still recommend that you verify and check your ownself. You know money doesn't come cheap when you purchase any car and pay after your warranty expires or still under warranty. It's for your safety and your family's that you value more. It's not like that we are millionaires and can just throw money away to buy a ferrari or whatever your budget allows. My only recommendation is to sometimes be more careful where or who you take your car to and have a second opinion or check it yourself. I guess I should join the Road and Trend Magazine Edotor's Column. Just kiddin'. Good Luck to you all and God Bless your Families.
I have a 2000 Odyssey. Minor problems fixed under warranty, brake problems as well, but fixed.
Keep it in the garage, but recently noticed beginnings of rust on rear side close to wheel wells.
Seems too soon to be developing rust!
I've had my 2001 Odyssey for only 2-1/2 years and the back hatch is rusting already! Can you believe it? It is a garage van. Does anyone else have this yet? Also, the driver side door really sticks and they've "fixed" it x2 now with no change. What do you think the warranty should cover for the future of the rust?
I have an '02 Odyssey. Bought new. Now has 18k+ miles. My complaint is the integrity of the body and the brakes. Tons of rattles and squeaks from day one. After the third trip to the dealer they fixed most of the problems with the rattles and squeaks. Still have one major rattle left. The brakes pop when going from forward to reverse to forward. Dealer and American Honda say this is normal. The local Midas shop says there is excess play in the brake pads and calipers. Can you imagine an automobile manufacturer that claims to excel in automobile engineering saying something as basic as a brake system that is not performing properly is "normal" and should be acceptable? American Honda Customer Service is a joke! Absolutely the worst customer service experience of my life. It must be nice that an automobile manufacturer can be so smug in these economic times that they don't have to provide reasonable customer service. I cannot recommend a Honda Odyssey based on my experience. I'll have to live with this van until I can afford to replace it, but I won't consider another Honda product.
I have a 2000 Odyssey since new, 50k miles on it now. I to have had ongoing problems with the front rotors warping, can't seem to get around them warping soon after having them turned or replaced. I've had problems with the sliding doors not closing properly, they have now been adjusted so tight that they are very difficult to open at times. The one thing that has bothered me the most is the plastic trim throughout, I've had several different pieces replaced due to warping and stripped fasteners, others have had foam injected behind to keep them from rattling. We also keep finding screws on the floor of our van and the dealer has yet to be able to identify where any of them have come from. About 7 have been found to date of varying types and one miniature bungee cord. Have found also that the body panels dent very easily whenever hit by others doors. Lots of little problems that tend to annoy a person, but the drive train, suspension, function, and mileage are all excellent.
Got a 1999 LX with 88K on the odometer and overall have been pretty happy with it despite the fact that it was a 'first year' model. They only made 60K of them the first year and then supposedly upped the production in 2000 to nearly double that (too fast too furious?). I've had none of the break/balancing issues that seem to be plaguing the 2000/2001's, although I've noticed that the Pirelli tires I replaced them with vibrate for a few miles untill they get warmed up. Once warmed up, it is smooth. I got 65-70K out of one pair of the tires that came with the car (Michelins) and 80K out of the second pair. I originally replaced them with the Michelin Semitry tires, but after two defective tires I bailed for the cheaper Pirelli, and except for the warm up seem to be wearing well. I have the steel wheels.
The one problem that is plaguing me now is the AC system. Dealer is telling me I need comppresor, expansion valve, evaporator (leaking), and the ubiquitous dryer. I priced all the parts myself for $550 (rebuilt compressor, evaporator and expansion valve are Honda and the dryer is aftermarket). I'm trying to get them to pop for labor and I supply the parts. My '86 Accord had 14 years and 160K on it with nary an AC problem to be found -- I did add freon once. Still, seems like a premature failure and yet, I don't see too many others having similar problems, so maybe it is isolated.
Other than that,my wife just drives it... all over the place! Though some on the list here have had some problems, which is not insignificant, overall it is still better that the alternative... Chrysler, Ford (been there done that!), Chevy, Mazda et. al. They all have shown to have SERIOUS drive-train problems, as well as many others -- though to get complete quality!
I've owned a 2000 Honday ex odyssey for 3 years now. It has 30K miles on it. I've brought the car in for all regularly scheduled maintenances. So far, I concur with others on some of the maintenance problems:
- sliding doors rattle and stick (more so in cold weather) to the point of being unable to open.
- the motors controlling the rear windows needed replacement
(under warranty)
- the brakes wore out after 30K ($160 to replace). Is this normal wear and tear?
- there appears to be vibration in the front wheels at higher speeds. It seems that some are solving this problem by replacing the tires with Douglas tires?
Would others recommend getting the extended care warranty at this point? If so, where to purchase one?
Thanks.
I bought a new odyssey back in July of 2000. At 46k miles, I have yet to have any problems worth noting on the vehicle. I've driven across the country - through rain and snow without any problems. Overall for anyone considering the purchase of a new odyssey it's a good van that won't let you down if you treat it well. However, the competition has recently improved with the new sienna and quest coming out. At this point I don't think a used odyssey is a good idea because the car seems sensitive to abuse (forgetting to change the oil, etc.) and most people out there are guilty of that.
Honda knows ALL about the door problems! It's the way they're made. I know, I worked in a plant that made the chassis to ship to Alliston to build them. There's almost no training of employees and the ones that are competent have stopped caring. The door problem has to do with a known problem on line. Partly it's the track and partly the sensor. They build it differently whether you order the power doors or not and they constantly screw up the changeover. Basically this problem is a manufacturing defect due to the incompetence of their management. I actually quit over this and other issues. I had supervisers telling me to fix equipment I hadn't even been trained to operate!!! This plant was designed for 300 to 350 vehicles a week and they were pushing out 650 to 700 while shooting for 800!!! This would have been about 2000 so it makes sense. Honda's problem is their plant in Shelburne can't make the part and everyone else (Customers) pay for it!!! I'm not saying this because I have some issue with Honda (I couldn't care less now that I've escaped!!!) I'm saying this because it's the absolute truth. I'd even buy one myself if they weren't CRAP!!! If you really want one, buy the first generation, I would. Den.
I took the day off of work to go and purchase my 2003 Honda Odyssey while the kids were in school and I could concentrate. As always, I wanted to test drive the actual vehicle I was purchasing. Took it out on the highway and as soon as I got up to 55 mph I loosened my grip on the steering wheel and the car immediately veered to the left. At lower speeds, the car immediately veered to the right. I explained this to the sales manager and he said it must be the road or could just need an alignment or tire check that they could fix. I asked if I could test drive the 2004 model to see if it was the vehicle or the road. Again, same thing, got up to 55-60 mph and the van veered left and low speeds, veered to the right. The sales manager couldn't believe it! He said we are selling these things like hotcakes so it can't be a flaw. I told him that's because 9 times out of 10 most customers don't take their hands off the steering wheel to realize this is happening. The salesman that was with me also confirmed it. I left the dealership practically in tears, without my new vehicle. After months of INTERNET research, books, test drives, etc. I thought I finally found my vehicle. I ended up going down the street to test drive the Toyota Sienna and it stayed straight for a long time before it veered left or right. I still would have preferred the Honda, but how could you purchase a brand new vehicle that already had a service order on it??? My husband knows that is the van I really want and said for the $6,000 difference between the Sienna and the Honda, we could change the tires twice a year and still be ahead (ha ha ha). Now I'm back to square one. Do I go back to the SUV search or do I bite the bullet and pay the $5-6,000 difference and purchase the 2004 Toyota Sienna? However, I refuse to pay MSRP (2 out of 3 dealers would not move off MSRP).
I own a 2000 Odyssey bought new, always garaged. Same problems with brakes and rotors. Warped rotors, squealing rear brakes when backing out of garage. Rotors and pads repaired by Honda dealer at 30,000 miles for about $450 now are gone again at 74,000. Electric doors work MOST of the time. I love the vehicle, BECAUSE my other one is a 1999 Dodge B150 full size van. I won't try to describe IT's problems in mixed company. Getting a new Sienna next week.
I bought my wife a 2004 Odyssey EX LRES last November. Like a fool, I did not go on a test drive with this exact car, I went in a demo car. Mistake #1. Anyway, picked up the car and within days, I had the same expericne as you, the car could not figure out how to drive in a straight line. It pulled all over the road. In the left lane, driving at 65, it changed lanes by itself in under 2 seconds. The factory rep., service mgr, and general mgr went on a test ride. They could not beleive it! Since I had been in six times in two months for this, the service mgr put in writing on the form that he did not feel safe in the vehicle and all attempts were made to repair the car. Long story short, Honda repurchased the car and gave me another one... it drives straight, but the steering wheel vibraites at 65 pmh... it has been balanced 4 times and has 2 new front tires on it. I am at the point where I will trade it in for the Sienna and just take the beating. What has happened to America's supposed trouble-free car??? Any info. on the balancing will be helped. Let AH know that you will fight them all the way... I must say that throughtout the whole thing the dealer was awesome and AH was very good to work with as well. The service mgr felt that I had the "in my hand" and I am just sorry that I ever picked up the second one.
I have a 2000 odyssey that I purchased last year with 90000 miles on it. I now have 110000 and am happy with it so far. The only problem I had was a shake in the steering right when I got it. The problem was corrected with two new front tires. After a lot of complaining the dealer reimbursed me for them and no problems since. I would not buy another Honda again, I love their cars, but the dealers suck to deal with. My next van will be a sienna.