Table 1 shows one common unknown or other related problems of the 2003 Honda Accord.
| Problem Category | Number of Problems |
|---|---|
| Unknown Or Other problems |
The car acted like it was 'missing' gears, but this went away. I started to enter the freeway ramp and increase speed and the car did it several times again ('missing gears', reving but not moving forward like it should) and was almost hit by several cars trying to get me to move. I was unable to get the car to move, so I immediately used gps to locate a service station. I was able to drive the to the repair shop, but the car symptoms continued to get worse, which was a significant safety hazard! no check engine lights came on at all! I was able to make it to the driveway of the repair shop, but they had to push the car into the bay to review it. The repair place determined that the transmission has an internal problem, which is very commom with 2003 Honda Accords. I only had 89,900 miles on the car. I have owned several Hondas and have never had problems such as this. However, Honda knows that this is an ongoing, safety hazard but has done nothing to address these ongoing issues (outside of the class action lawsuit requirements). I will be looking at new cars and Hondas will not be on my list! I am asking the us department of transporation to please thoroughly review the history of transmission issues with these cars and require appropriate consumer protection by Honda.
While driving on busy street the car violently shifted into first gear at about 25 miles per hour, luckily there were no other cars behind me at the time, had there been this issue could have caused an accident. After this incident the car had intermittent issues with the transmission slipping out of gear. I took it to the Honda dealership and was told the transmission was failing, causing the issues. After researching, I found that this was a common problem with 2003 Accords.
The console light which displays the radio/cd player, and all temperature controls (ac, heat, defroster, etc. ) does not work. I understand the warranty was extended to seven years or 100,000 miles whichever comes first. Unfortunately, I have exceeded those limits. However, this is a safety problem/defect and should be fixed. The dealer quoted a price of $1,000.
While merging onto i75 off of square lake rd north of detroit, transmission momentarily failed then engaged with a jolt in a low gear making this normally routine maneuver quite treacherous. Luckily there was no accident or injury. Shortly thereafter transmission underwent complete rebuild at my cost. I have since discovered that this malady is quite common with this model and year at approximately this mileage.
While driving at 40mph, my 2003 Honda Accord violently down shifted (mimicking the effect of slamming on the brakes). I slowed to 30mph and the car continued to violently down shift, slipping in and out of gears. After backing up, the car seemed to have a delay when I shifted into drive. Once it engaged it jerked into gear. I originally noticed problems when I first purchased the car of rough transition between first and second gear and also while down shifting. The dealership told me that no fail codes showed on the computer and that it was common but there is nothing wrong with the car. This is a scarey issue as it could have caused a collision with the violent halting force.
For 2 days upon startup in the morning the transmission appeared to slip when shifting from reverse to drive. The third day at the speed of 55 mph I began to accelerate and found that here was no power. I backed off the gas pedal, tried again and got nothing. I downshifted and tried to accelerate once more. I felt the transmission slip into gear. For the next 5 miles it went in and out of gear and then nothing, no transmission at all. The car is now at a Honda dealership. Honda of America had me tow it there and get a damage assessment and the cost of the repair. The dealer diagnosed the transmission failure and gave a repair cost of $4,000. Including tax. Honda of America has offered us $1,000 toward the repair due to our perfect maintenance record on the car. This car had the transmission fixed in the 2004 recall by Honda. This car only has 75,000 miles. Honda of America refuses to acknowledge that this is a problem very specific to this make and hear of the Accord. Honda of America refuses to to acknowledge the thousands of other Hondas' with the exact same problem and all seem to have between 70-90 thousand miles!!!!! the Honda dealer told me " I better take the one time offer of $1,000 from Honda of America" leading me to believe I had to make a decision. Upon further investigation I have 30 days to make a decision. I am a former Honda owner and have never had a problem like this and firmly believe I should never have a problem like this with a Honda automobile.
I was driving to work today and my car began to downshift into 1st gear when I was running about 45 miles per hour. It began jerking and after pulling over it would not go into reverse. If I had been on the freeway, this could have caused a serious accident. This is a major complaint with 2003 Honda Accord owners. Something needs to be done.
My transmission failed while driving on my way to work the morning of Nov. 16th with no warning whatsoever. Luckily I was not in an accident due to the fact I was unable to control the car because the rpm's were all over the place and the vehicle would only rev but not go any further. Therefore I immediately had to pull over in fear of causing an accident. I have researched the past few days how many other 2003 Honda Accord owners have had the same problem with their transmissions and there should really be a recall done by Honda. The transmission should not be going out at 76,000 miles. My car is currently being repaired at an independent transmission shop with an estimated cost of around $3400. I hope to recover some of that cost from Honda but further action needs to happen to ensure more people with similar year vehicles do not have to experience this as well.
Since July 2011 , my 2003 Honda Accord lx v6 experienced sluggish in the transmission. Sometime, suddenly, my car felt like someone slammed on the brakes causing me to jerking forward. It happened a few more times, then in September 2011, I brought the car in the dealer for the transmission service. I told the dealer service advisor about the symptom, after the dealer flushed the transmission fluid, then told me that the car sometime sluggish, replaced the fluid will fixed this. The problem got worse, more noise, jerking when the car automatically shifting, in November , the traction control system engaged,and the engine check light were illuminated. The car was slow to move. Brought the car to the dealer again on 11/14/2011, the dealer told me that the car "needs linear shift solenoid and brake light switch, parts had to be ordered, and the car can be drive !!! I drove the car home, it was so bad that I had to let the car sit waiting for parts. On 11/29/2011, the dealer replaced the linear shift solenoid and the brake light switch, then told me that the problem was fixed. Got the car home, the next day , I only drove about 5 miles, the noise and all the symptoms came back. I had to brought the car back to the dealer again. This time, they consulted with the Honda company technical service. After several days, the dealer told me that Honda technical service determine that the power train (transmission) is causing the problem; I need a transmission replacement, and it cost $3900. 00. Called Honda customer service to register a complain about Honda service. This definitely need a recall.
While traveling on the freeway the transmission jumped down to first gear, resulting in my car suddenly decelerating to a speed of 20 mph. I was very fortunate to not be rear ended and have since had to replace the transmission. I know this is a known issue with this model and year Honda, however I did go through the original process of the manufacturer recall. I have done research on this model and it seems it is a prevalent problem. Honda will not acknowledge the issue.
While driving on the interstate I experienced a sluggish jolt. The rpm's reved up and the car was having trouble switching from 2nd-3rd gear. My mechanic and a transmission expert stated the the transmission is going out and not worth repairing based on several same year make/models he has encountered. This along with the motor mounts needing to be replaced will cost me approximately $5000. 00 my complaint is after researching this issue on-line I have found hundreds of Honda 2003 Accord owners with the same exact issue, some of them move severe. Honda did a patch job recall the summer of 2004, but clearly the problem has not been fixed as I now have the same issue associated with the recall. Why isn't Honda taking responsibilty?.
2003 Honda Accord v6 transmission failure in the middle of traffic, almost caused an accident but fortunately this was on a road with a slower speed limit. 3 out of 4 engine mounts are broken. I have owned this car 8 months and the estimated repair is $6000. I have found several websites and forums where this appears to be a problem for 2003 and 2004 transmissions on the Accord. Most drivers just stalled on the highway/road they were traveling on and this is a serious safety concern. How can these cars continue to be sold where this is a common problem.
Transmission failed.
I have a 2003 Honda Accord ex v6. It has been serviced as per instructions in Honda owners manual. . Read more...
Driving on the highway in traffic, my 2003 Honda Accord v6 suddenly dropped into first gear suddenly slowing my travel from 55 mph to 35 mph. I narrowly avoided being hit by the vehicle behind me by turning off onto the shoulder. The Accord then downshifted and continued to jump suddenly between second and third gears. The Accord showed no dashboard indications that something was wrong but continued to drive changing gears sporadically. My car was taken to a local Honda dealer where I was told the transmission needed to be replaced entirely but would cost more than the vehicle was worth.
The transmission in this vehicle is faulty.
Since the purchase i’ve experienced continual transmission problems. Upon speaking with the dealership I was assured all was fine. You can imagine my surprise when I received notice of the transmission recall (NHTSA 04v176000). Upon repair, in September 2004, I did not notice repair improvement, and continued to detect the rough grind of transmission shift and a whining sound. In 2009 I experienced a catastrophic transmission failure to which I had sought repair. In December 2010 I experienced another transmission failure. I have just now experienced my 3rd transmission failure, July 2011. My power steering pump had always had a faint whine, but Honda services never identified it as concerning. The problem progressively became worse until Honda finally suggested a repair, but informed me that the component was then out of warranty and would be a costly repair. I decided to delay repair until June 2011. Ac problems manifested in September 2005 and required replacement in April 2008. My center council clock and temperature display has been flickering, dimmed, and absent since 2009. The interlock stuck issue first materialized in 2008 and serviced in July 2010. My airbag warning light has been active since 2008 with an occasional but repetitive tcs alert; and my headlamp glass has been hazed since 2005. The paint deterioration is ridiculously embarrassing, the leather seating began showing wear 2 years in, my seatbelt doesn’t return to the original released position, head liner has water leak stains, cd player stopped working, exposed wiring is visible at the driver door hinge, i’ve gone through 3 batteries, countless tires, one cracked windshield, and I have always suffer from poor radio reception and occasional navigational signal roaming issues. In these times of thrift conscious fuel consumption, I utilize my nav tools to monitor my driving activity. I’m stunned to report I get a fuel economy of 24 mpg highway, not the 31 mpg as sticker reports.
I was driving on maryland route 270 at 60mph when the car violently jolted and wheels locked for a second putting me into a split second skid. Almost had a devastating crash with my family in the car. Apparently the transmission went from 5th gear to 1st gear on its own. Thankfully I made it back home driving about 10mph with the car still jolting back and forth. As I was backing the car into a parking spot the vehicle went in reverse just fine but after pulling forward and attempting to reverse again the car did not back up. When I turned the car off and back on again I was able to move in reverse.
2003 Honda Accord, v6. Transmission failed with no warning, while turning left. This could have easily led to a serious accident. After inspection mechanic states that the failure has all of the typical characteristics of the failure of the 2003 Accord transmission. It will cost me 3,800 to repair (with only 94,000 miles on the car and a perfect maintenance record at a Honda dealership). But I just feel lucky that we survived. This is a very dangerous failure. There was zero warning of a problem until I was left with the transmission neutral with cars headed at us going 60+ mph. Thank god the other drivers were paying attention and slammed on the brakes. One oncoming driver went into the ditch.
My 2003 Honda Accord v-6 engine had been acting different for a year now. It is automatic. When I started going I had to go really slow to let my car shift into each of the 5 gears. Then one day when I was driving it would not go ito 2nd gear so I finally decided to take it in and have it looked at it had 150,000 miles on it . The Honda dealer told me I needed a new transmission. I payed 3,800 dollars to have it replaced. I have read many complaints of others who have had the same problem, when will Honda be responsible for the bad transmissions in their cars? we payed 25,000 for the car and expected to get alot more mileage for our money than this. I've gotten better mileage out of my Ford focus 1999 that I'm still driving and never had any problems with it. My cost for it 11,000.
The clear coat is delaminating/peeling from the paint coat on my 2003 Honda Accord. I went to the dealer and was told by the service manager there is nothing they can do, I meet with the customer service rep. This week. I believe that this delamination and peeling must be a factory defect and should be corrected by Honda.
The night of February 22 while my family and I were driving down the highway our Honda Accord 2003 transmission downshifted very violently almost causing us to have an accident. We all yelled and had to stop the car on the side of the road for a while. It was very scary! it was like the car was unmanagable at that moment. Somehow my husband managed to drive the car home very slowly because we were close. The next day he took the car to the Honda dealer. They told us that the transmission looked really bad and need it to be changed, of course after we pay pay them $4,080. 12!!! we have take good care of our car and this is terrible! now the car is inside our garage and we still have to pay for it. To our surprise, after google Accord's transmissions on the internet, we found many complaints from other Honda owners that experienced the same problem. We are shoked by Honda's lack of responsibilty and support!! this is a safety issue and we believe they should consider people complaints and recall the cars. It will be very sad if someone have an accident and die on the road because of the Honda transmission failure. We hope that this will be investigated and fixed by Honda. Thank you.
I have owned a 2003 Honda Accord since new and now have 71000 miles on it and twice I was notified by letter from Honda of potential problems. I have one of the stated problems now but not covered by the warranty that was extended if it occured. The display does not work for the radio/hvac system. The local dealer from whom I bought the car said to do some research about the problem. I have. I am not competent to do the work and the problem is expensive to remedy. I will not be able to reset the code for this device to operate should the battery need to be disconnected because the led display does not work.
In larger city after many red lights, the warm transmission began slipping when the light turned green. This has continued to happen. The problem now is intermittent but I think can become quite serious. I received no sympathy from the dealer. From the internet I see many similar complaints and all have no resolution from Honda.
27sep04 I took my 2003 Honda Accord in to fuller Honda in chula vista, CA for recall work. They "installed an oil jet on transmission second gear inspection" under the recall. 22oct09 my 2003 Honda Accord experienced multiple transmission problems. While leaving from work, I had difficulty getting my vehicle into gear. Eventually I was able to get it into gear and started driving home via a California interstate during rush hour traffic. Upon attempting to merge onto the interstate, my Honda went into "neutral" gear. All it would do is "rev" and I could not get it to go into gear in either forward or reverse. Now my vehicle was stranded in the middle lane of a san diego interstate during rush hour traffic. Since I was unable to exit my vehicle as other cars were speeding by on both sides, I had to call the chp for assistance. Chp responded 45 minutes later and assisted in towing my Honda to the shoulder. I then had my Honda towed to the closest Honda dealer. The service clerk apologized for my “problem� bus failed to mention about this transmission problem being a common issue with 2003 Honda Accords. He told me that since the transmission should not have failed with only 70k miles on my vehicle that Honda would pay for 50% of the parts and 25% of the labor. Even after the “discount�, my total charge for replacing my transmission was $2531. 31. My “near death experience� on the san diego freeways was free of charge.
I was smelling the rotten egg smell that many other claimed to smell. I had the catalytic converter changed but the smell comes back from time to time. The seat slide forward and then backward when applying brake.
I have a 2003 Honda Accord. Recently the back light on the radio went out. The radio still works, but the display does not. My car is out of warranty, so it is not covered. When I called the Honda dealership, they quoted me $600 to repair it because the entire unit must be fixed. After doing an internet search on the topic, I found that my 2003 Accord is not the only one with this problem.
On 2003 Honda Accord le v6 w/o navigation system. Radio/cd/heating/ac control panel is dark, cannot read controls. Not knowing the status of defroster can lead to fogged windshield.
Told by dealer to ignore 'maintenance required' light in 2003 Honda Accord.
Within the first year of owning my Honda Accord (black pearl) the paint pitted all over, not just on the hood. Honda north in MA as well as the CA office claimed it was road rash --- it was all over the car - areas that would be hard-pressed to get any stone/road debris. They refused to remedy the problem also, I just now learned that the power train has been recalled. I did not receive any notice whatsoever.
Honda 2003 Accord is equipped with a "design defect" of costly and potentially harmful, from a safety standpoint, defect. The lower "grill" on the front bumper is designed in such a way that any road debris smaller than a 16" x 8" concrete block can enter and damage a fully-exposed and unprotected ac condenser. It is clearly unprotected from the harsh outside elements. The ac is an integral part of the safety of this automobile in that to clear the windshield from any moisture on the inner surface, the ac must be acting in proper fashion. If a car's inside glasses "fog-up" with moisture , the only solution is to turn on the moisture wringing ac unit, regardless of the temp of the air, the dehumidifier effect of the ac conditioned air is an absolute necessity. The current design of the grill/condenser leaves it vulnerable to be easily damaged by a bit of gravel as small as a bb pellet. There is not any screen or deflector in place forward of the condenser to prohibit any errant road missiles from damaging the condenser thereby creating the safety hazard of a fogged windshield and more, a simple screen or deflector could and should be installed to protect the safety feature of this car.
This is my third Honda and after purchasing my 2003 Accord coupe ex manual, I don't know if I will ever purchase another Honda!! I bought it because my previous cars had no major problems, they only went to the mechanic for their suggested maintenance and oil and tire changes. With my new Accord, I have only experienced problems. It began with a rattling in the rear speakers, then the side speakers. Which the dealer tried to fix to no success. Then the trim on the windows was bubbling, which they were able to replace. Soon after I began noticing my breaks shudder and went to the dealer to be told that "well MA'am, the problem has to get worse before we can see what's going on"! great I have to break down on the side of the road before they can fix it. Lets not forget the recall on the intake air breather pipe. Then today, and this has sent me over the top, my car overheated. The temperature gauge was on the red-line for hot! I pulled over, opened the hood and noticed green fluid all over the engine. Called the dealer and they said they would have to tow it and take a look. I have owned the car since April (5 months) and been to the dealer 5 times. After reading the other complaints I am afraid of what might happen with the shuddering of the brakes. . . Will they stop working not allowing me to stop and be the cause of a potentially fatal accident? I hope not!! Honda needs to do something about these problems ASAP!!.
On one of my visit to the dealer to complaint about my the brakes on my car I also complained about the fact that my car makes noise when I am driving on surface that should not make my car sound like their doors are not put on correctly. I thought because it was new it was just a new car squeak but when I drive with the radio off I can hear this noise and I can just imagine what it will sound like when the car is not so new. When I drive in any other vehicle I listen for this sound and I don't hear this noise but as usual the dealer cannot find it. I will be taking in my car for the same brake problems again. On 9/12/203. This will be the fourth time. The first time was on Nov/6/2002,and they resurface the rotors. The second time was on Feb/1/2003, they replace both front disc. The third time may/01/2003, they replace brake pads. The pads are very high and the rotors are thick. There is no sign of warp or roughness that I can feel whem I inspect the brakes and I am some what familiar with brakes.
Yes this is a followup to complaint #10080452. If you have had similar problems please email @ onnipotente1@hotmail. Com and let me know what was done in your case. Thanks.
In the month of February I bought a Honda Accord, everything was fine until the end of may when I noticed a clicking noise coming from the front of the car every time the car stops, I took it to the Honda dealer where I bought it and after a few hours, I was told that the clicking of the car is characteristic of this car, I told them that it didn't have it when I bought, then I was given a print out where Honda talks about the "clicking or ticking at idle" for this type of car, I have asked other person with the same type of car and he doesn't have this noise, I have taken it to another dealer under Honda's customer service request and the dealer said that all cars have that noise, I know for a fact that none of my previous cars had that noise. Since this is not consider a defect or a problem by Honda, they offered me a free oil change as a "good will". This car is costing me over $27,000, Honda can call this noise anyway they want, but I did not buy a car to have some noise after only 4 months of having the car, they also admit is a problem in the bulletin when they say "characteristic problem", the honest thing from Honda since they knew this since December 2002 and I bought the car in February 2003, should have been to inform me about the possibility of having this noise in the car, and I would have made the decision of not buying the car, I have been to two dealers, called Honda customer service 3 times and I have only been offered a free oil change, I hope this agency can help me to deal with Honda, I know this may not be a safety issue but I don't think Honda should get away with hiding information from potential customers and then when they get called just act like there is no problem. Thanks, ml I only see report defective equipment that was included with the vehicle at time of purchase but this noise wasn't there when I purchase the car.
I have had my 03 Accord for 5 months now and have had it to the dealers more then 10 times for various problems. The first problem I had was, the car was hesitating when I would start the engine. I would have to hold the key for more then 5 seconds. I brought my car in to the dealer and they said they ran tests and could not find anything wrong. Eventually they told me it was normal because if I had the air cond. Or heat on it would take a few seconds for it to start up. I also was having a bad rotten egg smell. Once again they said nothing was wrong and that it was the gas that I was getting, somethin about the water deposits in it. But I've tried different gas stations like they said and it still smells. I had my car in for creaking sounds in my dash board, and they actually found some pilliars loose and fixed that problem. The molding on my passenger and driver side windows was crinkling from the heat and the sun so those had to be replaced. A recent problem I have now is there is a leak in my power steering. I told my dealer I was contacting Honda and they said to deal w/ it thru my dealer and not get them involved, but this is ridiculous that I am having all these problems w/ a brand new car!!.
Only three days after having purchased a new 2003 Accord, I noticed that the console was overheating. When I put my fingers under the console, it was so hot that it could blister skin. There was also a horrible intermittent burning smell. After the car makes this terrible burning smell, I get a headache. Upon my second visit, the dealership acknowledged the problem and replaced the console. On the way home, the new console overheated again. Also, the horrible intermittent burning smell is still present. Honda America has refused to replace my vehicle or give me a refund. The sales manager at the dealership, hendrick\\'s Honda cars of hickory, has given me misinformation about my state\\'s lemon law by telling me they are entitled to 10 repair attempts when the lemon law says they are only entitled to 4. The dealership now says that they are trying to reduplicate the problem. Further, even though three people at the dealership, including a mechanic, have witnessed the overheating and burning smell, the \\master mechanic\\ has told me that if something was burning or overheating that I would have equipment failure. This is not true and any good mechanic should know this. It appears to me that they are trying to deny that the problem still exists. The company claims that no one else has reported this problem. Your web page hit home with me because Honda certainly has trouble admitting that their cars have problems. I want to let everyone know that buying a Honda is a bad idea!.
They are selling me a lemon and fool me around with excuse. The engine light have been on six time during this two year. The first three time the engine light on, I did not have duplicatin code. Sum up the six time report, I have two times code 0700 and two times code 1705. I called Honda because they authorized this dealer to sell thie car, however, they told me since the dealer do the modification on the car (add the auto starter in the car), they don't responsible on any problem that related to autostarter, even they authorized tham to sell their car. Then I talk to the assistant manager, he is very sacratic, he ask me the detail how I use the autostarter, my answer was perfect, seem to be nothing wrong. As well as he told me the last engine light on was a year ago, I told me I have not use the autostarter for a year, because I decided to leave my baby with my mother-in-law, but I use the autostarter recently. Then he blame me, perhap it could be as simple as losing the gas cap, or you use pc or cellphone in the car trigger the engine light. Then I ask him what is the list of action I cannot do in the car, he told me he has the list, but he cannot find it. I ask the service rep can I have the summary to what you did for the past six time fixing, service rep told me that summary will not reflect the detail of what happen, only the date and your name. Here is the list of problems my car has: check engine light on 6th time, Dec 2002, code 700 customer statres cd changer is inop, April 2002 balancing 2 tires on Dec 2001, miscommuncate check engine light on 5th time, Nov 2001, malfunction a/t sensor check engine light on 4th time, sept 2001, code 1705 repaired rear bumper assembly, Nov 2001 check engine light on 3rd time, June 2001, code 0700, 1705 auto start doesn't work check engine light on 2nd time, March 2001, code 900 check engine light on 1st time, Jan 2001, code 1456.
1. Windshield area in front of driver creaks in cold, dry weather. Creak occurs on rough pavement and turns. 2. All side windows rattle on rough pavement. 3. Excessive wind noise on front side windows when car is moving at 40mph or above.
I have had my 2003 Accord ex in the dealer's shop well over 15 times for various reasons. The front windshield rattles and has been looked at 5 times and cannot be rectified. The cd player would not load cd's properly and have had the stereo replaced. Now the cover to the stereo will not stay in place. The stereo has been looked at 4 times and has to go back in a 5th time to have the cover replaced again. The brakes have been looked at 5 times, since the first week we bought the car. The first 3 times they could not find anything wrong. The 4th time, they had to resurface the rotors because they were warped. At this visit, there was only 9,000 miles on the car. The 5th time we took the car in, it had 12,000 miles and the rotors needed to be resurfaced again. Now the brakes are grinding and squealling again. This is now the 6th time we have had a problem with the brakes. The seal around the door gave way at around 5,000 miles. The door seal seems to be very thin and does not hold up very well. We purchased an after factory anti-theft device. My wife's fob failed to deactivate the device. I realize that this is an after factory installed device, but the Honda dealer should back what they sell.
Faulty speedometer/odometer when purchased new 2003 Honda Accord v6. American Honda would not help saying that since the pdi was done the part failed at the dealer site. The dealer, autopark Honda in cary, nc would not replace the car after my delivery because it doesn't fall under lemon law, even though I pointed the problem out to them within 18 hours of driving car home.