NHTSA Complaint #11683004 — 2009 HONDA ODYSSEY

Honda installed a VCM (Variable Cylinder Management) in this engine which shuts down the back three cylinders to save fuel when the car warms up. You’ll know when it kicks in when you see ECO on your dash. When the cylinders shut down it starts an abnormal wear and tear on those cylinders. High oil consumption, fouled plugs, the need to repair the back three cylinders and misfiring of the engine are some of the problems. Honda did repair some vehicles if they experienced rough running and misfiring on those cylinders because they knew the issue was the VCM. However, when my 2009 Honda Odyssey started having those problems in 2024 they wouldn’t fix the problem and stated it was too late to fix the engine. The timeline, according to Honda, had passed to repair the damaged engine. I never received a recall for this known safety issue. The engine would cut out and the engine light would come on and it sputtered down the road on three of the six cylinders. Honda knew this was a problem but they wouldn’t fix my engine. If I had brought it in years earlier they would have fixed the known problem with the VCM but they wouldn’t deactivate the VCM to prevent it from destroying the repaired engine. The price to fix the engine was over $4200. I feel they should have repaired the engine and then deactivated the VCM by bypassing the the temperature sensor to prevent it from going into ECO MODE VCM. The safety of the occupants was at risk due to the lack of acceleration and the ability to drive the vehicle in a normal manner. I feel a safety recall is justified and the sensor should be deactivated to prevent further damage to the engine.