NHTSA Complaint #11139513 — 2002 HONDA ODYSSEY

TRANSMISSION TORQUE CONVERTER CLUTCH CIRCUIT P0740 AND P0430 - NEEDS NEW TRANSMISSION. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT IS ON TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT IS ON AND DIAGNOSED ERROR CODES P0740. TRANSMISSION FAILS TO ENGAGE, SLIPS WITH NO DRIVE POWER. PROGRESSIVELY GETTING WORST. REQUIRES REPLACEMENT OF TRANSMISSION AS PER DEALER AT COST OF $5,900. THIS SAME PROBLEM HAS AFFECTED SEVERAL 100,000S OF 2002 TO 2004 HONDA ODYSSEY VANS AND OTHER HONDA MODELS WITH SAME TRANSMISSION. HONDA KNOWS ABOUT THIS PROBLEM WITH THESE MODELS AND STILL HAS DONE NOTHING TO REPAIR THEM. HONDA ODYSSEY TRANSMISSION PROBLEM IS WIDELY KNOWN AND DISCUSSED AT LENGTH ON ONLINE HONDA FORUMS AND AT DEALERSHIPS, TO A POINT WHERE NOBODY IS WILLING TO BUY THESE USED VEHICLES AT BLUEBOOK MARKET VALUE. THE COST ASSOCIATED WITH A TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENT IS $5900, IN EXCESS OF CURRENT VEHICLE MARKET VALUE. ON FURTHER INVESTIGATION, HONDA HAS AN ACTIVE RECALL FOR ODYSSEY TRANSMISSIONS UP TO MODEL YEAR 2001. THIS HAS BEEN IN PLACE SINCE YEAR 2003, WHEN THE 2002 HONDA ODYSSEY WAS RELATIVELY NEW, HENCE NOT INCLUDED IN THIS RECALL, EVEN THOUGH THE TRANSMISSION IN 2001 AND 2002 MODEL YEAR ARE SAME. TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE HONDA KNEW OF THIS TRANSMISSION DESIGN PROBLEM WHICH CONTINUES PAST MODEL YEAR 2001. THEY USED THE SAME TRANSMISSION TILL MODEL YEAR 2004. I WOULD LIKE HONDA TO RECALL ODYSSEY TRANSMISSIONS FROM 2002 TO 2004 AS WELL AND REPAIR THEM UNDER WARRANTY. SEVERAL OTHER HONDA VEHICLES MODELS ARE ALSO IMPACTED BY THIS POOR TRANSMISSION DESIGN. THEN WHY HAS HONDA NOT DONE ANYTHING TO HELP ITS CUSTOMERS. I WOULD LIKE NHTSA INVESTIGATE FURTHER LEVERAGING ON THE 2001 HONDA ODYSSEY RECALL TO EXPEDITE A RESOLUTION FORCING HONDA TO RECALL FOR REPAIRS. THANK YOU.