Automatic Transmission Cooler Problems of Honda Pilot

Since the transmission was replaced at 12,181 miles in June 2019 on a 2018 Honda Pilot elite, other issues have popped up. The forward collision system has gone off twice on a 2 lane state highway. In both cases, I was on a 2 lane highway going about 50 miles an hour with no cars in front of me for at least a mile or two, no vehicles coming the other way, on a straight part of the road, nothing in the road and nothing on the side of the road. The dealer said that it didn't happen to them when driving the car, so there's nothing to fix & Honda corporation said the dealer couldn't find anything to fix. One night when driving on the interstate it it stopped raining but was very muggy and there was moisture on the windshield the automatic wipers did not come on and the defrost did not work - this was over the course of several hours of driving trying different temperatures on defrost and nothing helped. Even with the wipers on manually, visibility was poor. Also, one day after the car had been sitting all day I drove it 20 miles and the car did not cool down - I had to run the air conditioner on full blast the whole time. The car is not cooling like it should! of course, when they tried it out it had actually already been driven 20 miles to the dealership with the air in early morning and then the Honda service department tested it out, there was cool air and said it's blowing just fine now.

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Transmission cooling mechanism in lower part of radiator failed causing transmission fluid to leak into the radiator and mix with coolant. Introduction of antifreeze into the transmission caused damage which would require replacement of transmission, radiator, hoses, flush the engine, etc. Even with this amount of repair, increase failure rate of water pump, heater core or any rubber seal or gasket exists. A quick google search as well as a search on this site reveals that this is a known problem which has never results in a recall. My Pilot had just under 134,000 miles and now is undriveable. The repairs cost more than the vehicle. Please issue a recall so that there may be some relief for owners who have been left stranded by this known problem.

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Problem with transmission making "squeaking/chirping" noise when shifting between 2nd & 3rd gear. Also rough ride at highway speeds as if engine was misfiring. Local Honda dealer service representative indicated design flaw for 2016 Honda Pilot touring model involving transmission cooler. Seals fail in cooler allowing engine coolant to mix with tranmission fluid and transmission fluid to enter cooling system. Complete transmission replacment and cooling system detergent flushed was performed. Vehicle had 37,009 miles when taken to dealer. . . Just out of warranty. Dealer completed repairs for no cost as "good will gesture". Ongoing concern that oil contamination in cooling system may have caused unknown damage.

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2016 Honda Pilot touring - chirping sound appeared at 19,000 miles followed by shuddering and difficulty shifting between 28-32 mph. Got diagnosed at the dealership - transmission cooling unit failed, leaking transmission coolant into the transmission unit. Dealer is currently replacing with a remanufactured part. The transmission manufacturer zf friedrichshafen ag has recalled the transmissions. Honda USA is now responsible to recall the vehicles which they have not done. Honda is unsympathetic and can only recite the warranty. I feel my vehicle is unsafe to drive and the value has been substantially impacted.

Had a sudden failure of the transmission cooling portion of the radiator causing a loss of power to the rear wheels while driving on the highway at 70 mph. If this had happened on a busy freeway it would have been very dangerous. Upon doing an internet search I see that hundreds of 2005 Honda Pilots have suffered the same sudden failure of the exact same part causing the same condition. This usually results in damaging the transmission and costing thousands to repair. This is absolutely a safety hazard. Honda refuses to acknowledge that any problem exists. It is plainly evident that a manufacturing defect of this part exists. Any engineer who examines the data of hundreds and hundreds of accounts posted on the internet must come to the same conclusion. This is defective! this is dangerous! owners should be partially compensated for the expense of repair. Honda should be held accountable for a knowingly defective part.

I was on a circular on-ramp to a highway. My vehicle started losing power upon acceleration so the engine revved but car slowed down. I made it off the ramp to the highway and was able to pull off to the shoulder. The car has an automatic transmission so I thought maybe it wasn't clicking into place properly but it was. I noticed a puddle of fluid. I had it towed to a mechanic who said that the transmission cooling line blew out & the radiator will have to be replaced along with the adapter because there are no threads left on the radiator to grab the connector. He said it was something that's not supposed to happen. It was a mechanical failure. I have read several posts on line on a number of web sites from owners with this same problem. Most people have also replaced their transmissions because the radiator and transmission fluids ruin both when mixed together. My car is still at the mechanics, so I don't know about the transmission yet, but the posts indicate that the car is never the same. I was lucky that I had enough juice to pull over to safety. Apparently there are no recalls from Honda in spite of the numerous complaints that I've seen. Repairs are expensive & this problem seems to occur mostly within the 100,000 mile range, give or take. If I get rid of the car before or after fixing it, it would only be a problem for the next consumer & that's not really fair. I feel that Honda should reimburse current owners for transmissions and radiator replacements on those cars that have had the problem and recall/repair the parts on the ones that haven't. I feel that this is an important issue because my car could have come to a complete stop on the highway and caused a serious & potentially fatal accident. Honda needs to take responsibility for this defect before someone gets hurt or killed. Thank you in advance for your attention to this matter.

On 01//10/13 I was driving my 2006 Honda Pilot, and heard really bad noise coming from under the hood. My car slowed down and I barely made it home. Upon arrival home, we checked transmission fluid and found it to be nonexistent. In the morning we added some transmission fluid and with great difficulties I took my car to a dealership. Service department got back to me with the results of testing telling that they got two readings on the computer: internal transmission failure and catalytic converter failure. I took it to another transmission shop. They have taken transmission apart and declared catastrophic failure. ?initial inspection of vehicles transmission found extremely audible ?grinding? noises from vehicles transmission in park & neutral positions. Also, delayed engagement in drive & reverse positions. Vehicles transmission fluid level was good but fluid condition was extremely overheated and very dark in color. (this is an added fluid on the day I took it to a dealership ) upon transmission removal, disassembly & internal inspection, abc found transmissions main input shaft bearing failed catastrophically and spread ball bearings and metal debris throughout the entire transmission causing damage to many internal components including the transmissions case(s), torque converter & cooling system. This transmission is not able to be economically rebuilt due to the severe damage to the case(s) and major internal components. I don?t know if transmission had some internal defect from the beginning or failure happened later on, but I do believe that such a massive damage to my transmission parts could?ve been avoided or minimize should service department been more diligent in their maintenance process and should Honda be more upfront about continues problems their transmissions exhibit.

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On a 3 hour trip, driving at highway speed when engine power dropped to allow only 30-40mp and approximately 6000 rpm. After cooling down, it was able to get back to highway speed. Next day, the exact same issues started occurring. Had it towed back to dealership. Dealership indicated that the transmission had blown and it would cost approximately $5,000 to replace.

2005 Honda Pilot with 106,750 miles. I was stopped at the red traffic light, when the light turned green, vehicle would not move. I changed gears from park to drive and vehicle would still not drive. Vehicle towed to nearest Honda dealer. Dealer informed me that there was a leak in the transmission cooling line in the radiator. Coolant fluids mixed with transmission fluid. Dealer will replace radiator($400), refill coolant, replace thermostat, atf lines, changed atf fluid 3 times to remove contaminants. Total labor $685, total parts $800++. I've been searching online and this seems to be a major issue with Honda Pilot, Acura mdx and Honda ridgeline. Radiator/transmission cooling line leak is a safety issue especially when driving in an interstate highway.

Transmission cooling portion of radiator failed causing transmission fluid to leak into the radiator and mix with coolant. Transmission drained and caused car to stop. Introduction of antifreeze into the transmission caused damage to the transmission resulting in need to replace transmission.

Traveled ~15 miles at highway speed. Exited highway onto secondary roads thru a busy town. Traveling approx 30 mph. Car shuddered and speed dropped to about 10 mph. Transmission wouldn't shift out of low with rpm approaching 4000 rpm. Stopped at light, car stalled all sensor lights came on and flashed. Got it restarted, had to put in low to move. . . Got it moving at ~3500 rpm, went a block to get off the main road into parking lot. Cooling fan running, but temp gauge showed no issue. Puddle of brown fluid formed under passenger side front of engine. Looked like fluid sprayed through front passenger side of engine compartment no indication on sensor lights or temp gauge that anything wrong prior to stall and all sensor lights came on. Had car towed to Honda. . . They diagnosed as 2 transmission cooling lines burst mixing the transmission and cooling fluid. Fix options. . . 1) flush cooling & tranny system 5-7 times, replace radiator, filter, and lines for $1600-1800 but won't know if transmission needs replacing. 2) full replacement of radiator, lines and transmission $3800 or if option 1 chosen and subsequently transmission needs to be replaced it would cost the initial $1600-1800 plus an additional $4000 for a total of approx $5800. No indicator from dealer of the problem history for this vehicle. Had previously complained about shudder and the dealer replaced a wheel bearing first, then when kept complaining they replaced my rotors saying the rotors had warped . . . After being resurfaced only ~3600k miles prior. Learned lesson. . . . Investigate any problems on -line before you accept the dealer explanation.

The contact owns a 2005 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the cooling line that lead to the transmission burst, causing the vehicle to stall. The dealer diagnosed that the lines and the transmission would need to be replaced. The manufacturer denied any assistance with repairs to the failure. The dealer was in the process of repairing the vehicle. The failure and the current mileage was 106,700.

Noticed vehicle left a large puddle in the driveway. Checked under hood and it appeared something had leaked/sprayed in the engine compartment towards the passengers side. Took to mechanic. Diagnosis of problem (paraphrased as best as I can recall)- transmission cooling part failed and leaked into radiator causing trans fluid and antifreeze to mix, flow through engine and spray out. Mechanic stated it's something he doesn't see often and it's a major repair (think 1k). A quick search of the internet shows this is an issue with 05 Honda Pilots and that Honda is not taking responsibility for it. This is obviously a design flaw or defect and they are doing nothing. Hopefully the problem was caught/addressed in time to repair without having caused additional major damage to my engine. Unacceptable.

Transmission would not engage into reverse, notice a pink-brown fluid in the driveway. Had Pilot towed to dealership where Pilot was bought & serviced. Informed transmission cooling lines in radiator had disintegrated, causing transmission fluid to leak into radiator & radiator fluid into the transmission. When asked how this could happen to a 6 yr old Pilot with only 59 k mileage no one had the answer. Recommendation was new radiator & 2 transmission flushes, cost $906. 29. I asked for some kind of assistance with the cost of the repair, because of the year, mileage & all schedule services were performed @ the dealership. Here comes the alabama shim-sham. I was informed to call Honda of n America. Honda offered me $300 towards the repair cost,I said the offer was unacceptable, they offered $450, that was unacceptable. A few days later Honda called back offering 400, I asked what happen to the 450 offer, they offered 450 again. I informed Honda I needed an offer of 600, they agreed, I'm waiting for the check in the mail. 4 days after I took the Pilot from the dealer repair shop the transmission went. Dealer informed me replacement cost would be $5200. Informed dealer I should not be charged because disintegrated transmission cooling lines caused the transmission problem. Here comes the alabama shim-sham again. Dealer & Honda would pay $2500, I was to pay remaining cost $2700. I informed them that the offer is unacceptable. Dealing with Honda & dealer they stated the new cost to me would be $500, I informed both I need a better offer than that, the next offer was for me to pay $250, I accepted that offer. Honda has a problem with the 05 Pilot transmissions & transmission cooling lines. They know it but won't admit it. Transmission cooling lines are disintegrating @ the 5 - 6 year mark regardless of the mileage. Something needs to be look at for the reason why.

Vehicle (2005 Honda Pilot, 118,000 miles) became immobile due to transmission slippage. Left wife and two small children stranded. Vehicle towed to dealer. When vehicle driven by service tech, it overheated. Had not done this before. Determined that transmission fluid coil within radiator had likely failed causing coolant to enter transmission and transmission fluid to enter cooling system. Coolant causes surfaces of clutches in transmission to be compromised. Could not get any help from american Honda in making repair, nor from dealer (where car was purchased). Traded car in on a 2006 Pilot.

The contact owns a 2003 Honda Pilot. The vehicle was involved in recall #04176000 concerning the power train:automatic transmission. The cooling hose was replaced. The failure mileage was 76,000. The vehicle began having difficulty shifting gears. The failure mileage was 90,000. The vehicle would only shift into neutral or drive. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle as needing a new transmission. The dealer stated they were not liable as it was unclear if the failure was due to the previous recall. The dealer was willing to apply the part for free but will charge for labor. The purchase date and engine size were not available. The current mileage was 94,000. The consumer provided the repair invoice as well as the recall notice. The consumer was told an oil jet kit was already installed in the vehicle. Updated 05/13/tr.

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