Sway Bar problems of the 1999 Honda Accord

While trying to get cv shafts replaced, I was informed that my front subframe rear crossmember, specifically the passenger side, had rusted completely through the top half and was thus unsafe to drive. Upon closer inspection, the same area that rusted away is directly below the air conditioner drain pipe. It stands to reason that this drain pipe directs water right onto the sub frame in this section, which would cause it to rust out faster than the rest of the frame. My supporting evidence for this is as follows: 1) there are 316,000+ miles registered on the odometer and the vehicle was not garage kept. What this means is that surfaces exposed to road debris, salt, and water should be equally as rusted. 2) the driver side of the subframe is completely intact. 3) the affected portion of the subframe is actually the superior (top) aspect which is directly below the drain pipe, as opposed to the inferior (bottom) aspect, which is closer to the road. Just 2 months before I took my vehicle to this independent shop for cv shaft service, I had a Honda dealership, specifically classic Honda located in streetsboro, ohio perform a front sway bar bushing service and I received a complementary inspection. For those unfamiliar with the sway bar bushing location, the bushings are held against the front subframe rear crossmember via brackets that bolt in. What this means is that the Honda technician who serviced my vehicle looked at the damaged subframe. Not only did they fail to detect this issue during the service, they also failed to detect this issue during the inspection for which I specifically requested that they look at the steering and suspension to assess safety. If this subframe would have failed while I was driving, it would have caused catastrophic failure of the steering and suspension, taking away my ability to control the vehicle as well as throwing debris.

I was alerted to a potential problem with the subframe of my vehicle that has caused me to park it. The problem is that the rear subframe has rusted to the point that it is broken in three places. The rear subframe is located in the rear part of the engine compartment and supports the engine and front suspension. I was driving this car for an unknown length of time in this condition. I was informed that this is a safety concern and that the car should not be driven. The portion of the subframe that attaches to the sway bar is completely broken loose from the frame. The location of the rust is under the outlet of the air conditioning condensate drain. This is the only location where the sub frame is rusted. The distilled water coming out of the air conditioner is corrosive to metals. In my opinion this is a design defect that could have been repaired using a very modest cost hose, fitting and perhaps a clamp to re-route the condensate drain away from the structural members of the car. Repair of this problem has been quoted at $1600. The car is unsafe to drive. The center for auto safety has requested a recall of these vehicles. Many of these cars are still on the road and tend to be driven up to 200,000 miles. This flaw is not readily detectable and is definitely a safety concern. At a minimum owners should be made aware of the potential problem.

Car squeaks consistently from the left rear side when car is cold. Brought to dealer in Nov. 2000 and they replaced the sway link bar due to the link being broken. Car still squeeks. I have brought the car back on 5 different ocassions and they can not fix the problem or recognize the problem.