NHTSA Complaint #10172041 — 1999 HONDA ACCORD

MY HUSBAND AND I BOUGHT A 1999 HONDA ACCORD EX IN 2002. NOT LONG AFTER BUYING THE CAR WE NOTICED THAT THE CAR ACTED SLUGGISH WHEN GOING FROM A STOP. IT WASN'T THAT MUCH OF A PROBLEM SO WE DIDN'T DO MUCH ABOUT IT OTHER THAN ADDING HEET TO THE GASOLINE THINKING WE HAD BAD GASOLINE. THEN WE STARTED NOTICING A SORT OF GRINDING NOISE WHEN WE WOULD START THE CAR WHICH CAME FROM THE KEY IGNITION. THE CAR WOULDN'T START SO WE WOULD TRY AGAIN AND THEN IT WOULD START. THIS YEAR 2006 WE STARTED HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE CAR STALLING WHEN WE WOULD STOP AT STOP SIGNS. WE TOOK THE CAR TO A MECHANIC AND WE PAID FOR NEW SPARK WIRE AND PLUG. SOON AFTER THE CAR STARTED STALLING AS WE WERE DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY! WE IMMEDIATELY TOOK CAR TO A HONDA DEALERSHIP WHERE WE WERE TOLD OUR CATALYTIC CONVERTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED! MY HUSBAND DIDN'T THINK THIS WAS THE PROBLEM SO WE DIDN'T HAVE IT REPLACED. THE CAR KEPT ON GETTING WORSE ALMOST CAUSING A COUPLE OF ACCIDENTS WHEN IT WOULD QUIT GOING DOWN THE HIGHWAY. WE THEN HEARD OF A RECALL ON 1999 HONDA ACCORDS THROUGH CONSUMER REPORTS. WE MADE AN APPOINTMENT WITH THE HONDA DEALERSHIP AGAIN BUT WERE TOLD WE WOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR THE REPAIR SINCE OUR CAR WASN'T INCLUDED IN THE RECALL! WE CALLED HONDA CORP TO FIND OUT WHY IT WASN'T INCLUDED AND WERE TOLD THEY RECALLED ONLY CERTAIN MAKES AND MODELS AND OURS WASN'T ONE OF THEM. WE OF COURSE WENT AHEAD AND HAD THE IGNITION SWITCH REPLACED. WE CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHY HONDA DIDN'T HAVE OUR MODEL AND MAKE RECALLED WHEN WE COULD HAVE BEEN IN A SERIOUS ACCIDENT. AT THE VERY LEAST WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN TOLD OF A PROBLEM SO WE COULD HAVE REPAIRED IT RIGHT AWAY. WE DID KEEP THE IGNITION SWITCH. WE JUST HAD THE CAR REPAIRED BUT HAVEN'T HAD ANY PROBLEMS WITH IT STALLING. *NM