NHTSA Complaint #10485279 — 2008 HONDA ELEMENT

I REPLACED THE TIRES ON MY NEW 2008 HONDA ELEMENT ON 10/21/2007 AT 869 MILES SINCE THE TIRES THAT THE CAME WITH THE VEHICLE HAD POOR TRACTION IN RAIN. A MONTH LATER, THE TPMS LIGHT CAME ON AND I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER ON 11/26/2007 AT 1056 MILES. HONDA OF SEATTLE CONCLUDED THAT THE SYSTEM JUST NEEDED A RESET AND PROCEEDED WITH DOING SO. SEVERAL DAYS LATER, THE TPMS LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN SO I TOOK IT TO HONDA OF SEATTLE ON 12/05/2007 AT 1161 MILES. THEY FOUND THAT ONE TIRE SENSOR WAS NOT SENDING OUT A SIGNAL SO IT WAS REPLACED. SEVERAL WEEKS LATER THE TPMS SENSOR CAME ON AGAIN SO IT WAS TAKEN TO HONDA OF SEATTLE ON 01/04/2008 AT 1840 MILES. THIS TIME HONDA OF SEATTLE REPLACED ANOTHER TPMS SENSOR AND THE TPMS RECEIVER UNIT, HOWEVER THE TPMS LIGHT WAS STILL ON. AT THIS TIME, HONDA OF SEATTLE CONCLUDED THAT THE NEW TIRES THAT WERE INSTALLED (ELSEWHERE) HAD TOO MUCH CARBON IN THEM THUS BLOCKING THE SIGNALS FROM TPMS SENSORS AND THEREFORE THE PROBLEM WOULD NOT RESOLVE ITSELF UNTIL THE TIRES WERE REPLACED. FIVE YEARS LATER, SINCE I WAS WANTING TO REPLACE THE TIRES AGAIN, I TOOK IT TO HONDA OF SEATTLE TO CONFIRM THEIR PREVIOUS DIAGNOSIS THAT THE TIRES WERE A PROBLEM. NOW THEY STATED THAT THE TPMS LIGHT WAS ON DUE TO THE FAILURE OF ALL FOUR SENSORS RELATED TO WATER CORROSION. THEY REPLACED ALL FOUR SENSORS ON 09/25/2012 AT 28206 MILES. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, THE TPMS LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN AND HONDA OF SEATTLE FOUND THAT ONE OF THE NEW TPMS SENSORS HAD FAILED SO THEY REPLACED IT ON 10/03/2012 AT 28317 MILES. AFTER THAT, WITH NO LIGHT COMING FOR WEEKS, I FELT COMFORTABLE THAT THE TPMS PROBLEM WAS FINALLY CORRECTED AND REPLACED ALL FOUR TIRES ON 10/20/2012 AT 28518 MILES. HOWEVER ON 11/11/2012 THE TPMS LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN AND THE CAR WAS TAKEN TO HONDA OF SEATTLE ON 11/14/2012 AT 28691 MILES. TWO OF THE NEW SENSORS HAD FAILED AGAIN AND WERE REPLACED. *TR