NHTSA Complaint #10569144 — 2006 HONDA ODYSSEY

THE POWER STEERING PUMP IN OUR ODYSSEY STARTED MAKING A LOUD SQUEALING NOISE, AND AT SOME LATER TIME, THE STEERING WHEEL BEGAN TO VIBRATE. THE STEERING PUMP NOISE WAS INTERMITTENT, AND OCCURRED AT LOW AND IDLE SPEEDS ONLY. THERE WAS NEVER A LOSS OF STEERING CAPABILITY, BUT THE SHIMMY IN THE STEERING WHEEL LEADS TO DRIVER DISCOMFORT AND DRIVER FATIGUE. HONDA HAS SINCE REPLACED THE POWER STEERING PUMP AT A REDUCED COST TO US, BUT THE NEW PUMP HAS NOT SOLVED THE STEERING WHEEL SHIMMY. THE SHIMMY IS VERY SIMILAR TO THE EFFECTS OF A BENT WHEEL OR A OUT OF BALANCE TIRE, BUT DIFFERENT WHEELS AND DIFFERENT TIRES, IN ADDITION TO MULTIPLE TIRE RE-BALANCES HAVE FAILED TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM. THE STEERING SHIMMY OCCURS ONLY AT SPEEDS ABOVE APPROXIMATELY 62 MPH, AND SEEMS TO OCCUR AFTER ABOUT 70 - 100 MILES OF DRIVING. WITHIN THIS DRIVING SCENARIO, THE SHIMMY CAN GET VERY BAD, AND THEN AT TIMES COMPLETELY DISAPPEAR. BUT FOR MOST OF THE TIME, THE SHIMMY IS PRESENT. AT SPEEDS BELOW 55 MPH, THE VEHICLE BEHAVES VERY WELL. I'M NOT SURE IF THIS PROBLEM IS UNIQUE TO MY VEHICLE, OR IF OTHERS HAVE EXPERIENCED THE SAME ISSUES. IF IT IS GENERIC TO THE VEHICLE DESIGN, THEN HONDA NEEDS TO PROVIDE ODYSSEY OWNERS WITH AN ECONOMICAL SOLUTION. SHOULD THE PROBLEM PERSIST, I WILL HAVE NOT CHOICE BUT TO SELL THE VEHICLE BECAUSE, ASIDE FORM THE POTENTIAL SAFETY ISSUES, IT DOES NOT PROVIDE THE DRIVING COMFORT THAT WE NEED. *TR