NHTSA Complaint #10511341 — 2009 HONDA ACCORD

DRIVING ON HIGHWAY AT 55 MPG NOTICED VIBRATION COMING FROM ENGINE. FELT LIKE ENGINE MOUNTS HAD FAILED. WHEN I PULLED INTO OUR HOME DRIVEWAY IT FELT LIKE I WAS DRIVING A DIESEL POWERED CAR. I NOTICED OIL LIGHT GLOWING. CHECKED OIL LEVEL, NOTHING SHOWED ON DIP STICK. UNDER 3000 MILES SINCE LAST OIL CHECK. TOOK TO DEALER AND COMPLAINED. CHECKED FOR OIL LEAKS-NONE. FLASHED ENGINE MANAGEMENT WITH UPGRADE SAID SERVICE BULLETIN FROM HONDA SHOULD FIX ISSUE. KEPT CHECKING OIL LEVELS AT EACH GAS FILL UP. NOTICED A QUART OF OIL USED AROUND EVERY THOUSAND MILES OF MIXED DRIVING. BY 50,000 THAT HAD DROPPED TO USING A QUART OF OIL EVERY 600 MILES AND BY 56,000 MILES A QUART OF OIL EVERY 500 MILES. ENGINE RAN ROUGH ALL THE TIME AND BLEW SMOKE. NO VISIBLE ENGINE LEAKS FROM DYE TEST. ENGINE OIL WOULD TURN BLACK WITHIN 1000 MILES AFTER AN OIL CHANGE AT DEALER. DEALER INSTIGATED OIL CONSUMPTION TEST EVERY 1000 MILES. USED 2.5 QUARTS OF OIL. AT 58,000 MILES DEALER RECEIVED PERMISSION TO REPLACE MOTOR WITH NEW SHORT BLOCK FROM HONDA AND REMANUFACTURE HEADS WITH ALL NEW PARTS. THIS WAS AFTER DEALER TORE DOWN THE MOTOR AND CONFIRMED IT WAS SHOT. SCORED BORE AND DESTROYED RINGS, AND BLACK OIL SLUDGE IN MOTOR. ENGINE OIL HAD BEEN REPLACED AT DEALER WITHIN HONDA RECOMMENDED INTERVALS. NEVER HEARD OF A HONDA MOTOR FAILING AT 58,000 MILES IN MY LIFE. NEW MOTOR RUNS GREAT AND CAR IS LIKE NEW AGAIN. I'M GLAD THE ENGINE FAILED WITHIN THE 60,000 DRIVETRAIN WARRANTY. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS TO REPLACE IF HONDA DID NOT COME THROUGH WITH A NEW ENGINE. READING ON THE INTERNET THAT THIS IS AN ALL TO COMMON PROBLEM WITH 2008, 2009 4CYL ENGINES. THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL OF THESE ENGINES, AS IN THE 2011 MODEL YEAR HONDA UPGRADED ENGINE PARTS AND THE NEW MOTORS DO NOT DISPLAY THE SAME PROBLEMS AS I EXPERIENCED WITH MY ENGINE. *TR