CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2002 Honda Accord suffers from widespread transmission failure, subframe rust, & problems with the airbag system (SRS). We recommend avoiding this model year like the plague.
The transmission begins slipping & eventually has to be replaced, typically soon after 90,000 miles & with a repair cost of over $2,000. Transmission failure has been a huge problem for the Accord & several other Honda models all through the early 2000s model years. Honda extended the transmission warranty to 93 months/109k miles for the 2000-2001 Accord as a class action lawsuit settlement, but owners of other Accord model years with transmission problems are out of luck.
Subframe rust near the front passenger side wheel has become a problem recently, due to the poorly positioned A/C drain hose directly above that area. Repair cost to the subframe is over $2,000.
The SRS warning light likes to come on due to a defective seat belt sensor -- typically the driver's side. This sensor is covered under Honda's lifetime seat belt warranty, but some dealers charge a $100+ "diagnostic fee" or tell customers the entire SRS unit ($800) is bad.
7.9
pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$2,340
Average Mileage:
99,550 miles
Total Complaints:
190 complaints
Most Common Solutions:
honda should recall 2002 accords to replace defective tranny (79 reports)
honda should replace transmission at no charge (41 reports)
not sure (29 reports)
transmission needs to be replaced (13 reports)
Honda replaced the transmission at no cost (10 reports)
The transmission on our 2001 Honda Accord was replaced without cost after many visits to the service facility (Honda City Levittown, NY) during which the technicians said there was nothing wrong with the transmission (approx. 80,000 miles on the car). Our 2002 Honda Accord began slipping and bucking so badly in June 2010 after a trip from OH to NY that it almost put us through the windshield. Brought it into the same service facility where they said the transmission was fine and replaced the fluid. They told us that if the transmission was bad that the engine light would go on. The car ran a little better for a while. Now it slips all the time. We took it back today (Feb. 2011) and now they say "Yes the transmission is slipping and is really shot between 2nd and 3rd." Cost for a rebuilt Honda transmission is $3100 and they will graciously take 10% off the price.
I complained to the dealer who told me I should contact Honda directly to see what they will do for me. He offered me a 2011 Accord for a good price but told me that I would be foolish not to purchase an extended warranty for $1,395. He even likened it to purchasing medical insurance. Why should I have to purchase an extended warranty to cover the cost of a know defect? We had 1992, 2001, and 2002 Honda Accords. We just purchased a 2010 Accord this past August because we read that the transmission problems had been solved. Our son is going through the same stalling tactics with his 2002 Accord transmission problems with the same dealership. All of our children have purchased Hondas? What can I do about the transmission cost? How can Honda treat loyal customers this way? Honda's response will determine what brand our next car will be.
Update from Feb 16, 2011: After contacting corporate Honda, I was assigned a case number and a rep contacted me within 24 hours. I explained the problem with the car and our history with Honda. The rep contacted our service manager and then called me back within two more days. The offer was a 50:50 split of the cost fort a rebuilt transmission. This seemed reasonable due to the 80k + miles on the car. The transmission comes with a three year warranty. I was told that we were given the offer because we were loyal Honda customers. When we made an appointment to bring the car in, one of the technicians said that no one pays full price for a new transmission. The technician at Honda City, John, who was in charge of our car during its stay went out of his way to make an additional repair to the battery cables and tray while the car was there - no charge. Honda City went out of its way to be helpful once corporate contacted them. While I am very happy with how this was resolved, I must agree with some of your other readers have said. This is a known defect, and no one should have to go through all this trouble just to get the transmission fixed.
i have had several different makes and models of Asian cars over the years , including various Honda accords and civics. .. and all of them ive run up over 250,000 miles on the odometer before i sell em off and find another with less miles. all of my previous cars were manual transmission though.. this is my first automatic accord. and the problem that I'm experiencing is hard shifting of the transmission between 1st & 2nd , and very hard transmission engagement from a rolling ( 10-30 mph approx.) start. thank goodness im a decent shade tree mechanic, as i cannot afford to have a mechanic fix the problem.. so bottom line IMHO.... if you want a reliable Honda, buy one with a manual transmission. sucks i had to learn this lesson the hard way.. :(
Dealer said it would cost $4,700.00 plus taxes to replace transmission. Called Honda for a goodwill discount and they opened a case for me. Dealer called back saying they were contacted by Honda and that they could do the work for $2,968.00 plus taxes. I still think that's outrageous considering the numerous cases of transmission problems with other 2002 Accords!
The issue with the 2002 Honda Accord transmission occurred most recently on the 405 freeway while traveling to UCLA. The engine light appeared as well as a blinking gear indicator, along with severe jerking motions. I quickly exited and coasted as much as possible to a nearby gas station.
The malfunction of such a highly defective transmission in traffic could have been fatal, fortunately it was not. Perhaps if there were a fatality or fatalities, Honda would be more proactive in recalling or compensating it's owners as did Toyota in recent time.
This is a known issue and Honda should be recalling it or fixing it. Called Honda of America and they said they wont be able to do anything and told me to call the service manager to have them call the district manager. I also see posts of people who got it fixed and them some who has the same issues being turned away. If they fix one, they should be fixing all others as well. I will never own another Honda again!
- Victor C.,
Washington, DC, US
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Have always loved hondas until now. my 2002 honda accord transmission started failing at 79,000 miles. I had a 98 honda accord that ran over 300,000 miles never had to replace the tranny. Told it will cost about $3,000 to fix. Called and asked for a good will repair and was told there is no warranty on the vehicle or recalls and there was nothing they could do. Started doing research and realized the 02 hondas are known for this problem. Started doing more research and realized Honda's do not represent their past reputation. Sounds like a lot of cars of newer years are having problems too. Shame on you Honda. We should go on CNN and tell the world how bad honda is really getting. I will never own a honda again! Everyone - Hyundai has really stepped up and they offer a 100,000 mile warranty.
Honda Transmission slips only after 120,000 miles. I am the original owner of the car, and they will not help in anyway to repair. I even offered to split the cost.
Car hesitates and jerks in shifting in low gears. Check engine light with P0780 code for shift malfunction. Flushing of transmission fluid and replace with new still have same problem.
My transmission is going out on my 2002 Honda Accord SE Coupe. It rides very hard and slips/jerks while driving. The D4 light has been flashing as of late and the check engine light has also come on. This appears to be a systemic problem with Honda and should be fixed by them at no cost.
i had 3 civics.Only 1 accord.I can not believe Honda wont admit the problem with accord transmissions.I was at the dealership.They sold me the tranny fluid to change it and said there is no known problems!!!COMEON...
Honda dealer told me this is a $3000 transmission replacement "fix" that I need. The car runs fine and I suppose would continue to run with this very annoying issue for years. Seems like 65,000 miles is a little low for a car to need a new transmission. At any rate, I asked my mechanic and he said it's a known issue (even if Honda doesn't admit so) -- I'll be attempting the "good will repair" route next.
THE CATCH here is that to pass the yearly safety inspection, the computer has to be reset and the car has to be driven 30 miles very conservatively as to not trigger the issue. I here the NTSB won't issue a recall. So if I understand correctly, they don't consider something needed to pass a safety inspection a "safety" issue -- makes absolutely no sense. If only there was an official agency monitoring the monitors.
This is my first of two Hondas (2007 S2000), and I may not purchase another. I wish someone would make a good affordable/dependable car again.
OK....warranty expired on the transmission I have put in February 2009 (of course) and now the damn transmission is slipping AGAIN!!!! Thinking that some kind of "lemon law" should apply here. You won't EVER see me buying another Honda!!!! My son is driving this one now & I have bought a Toyota. We will not replace this lemon with another Honda...EVER, EVER, EVER!!!
Just to add insult to injury, I was on my way to Florida with my 3 children for a vacation. We had to rent a car for the week and drive back down to Florida from Georgia the following weekend to pick up the car, so I was also out expenses for the rental car & gas money to return to Florida.
The car is only 8 years old!! This is a Honda with 94,000 miles on it. The car would hop at stop signs or lights and then the check engine light came on. The torque converter came apart and there were metal shavings in the transmission oil. $2,000 to fix with a year warranty only. Could not afford $2,500 for a 3 year warranty.
I RAN INTO A FRIEND, WHOM ALSO OWNED A 2002 HONDA ACCORD, SHE TOLD ME THAT MOST 2002 HONDA ACCORDS HAVE HAD BAD TRANSMISSIONS. SHE THOUGHT I KNEW ABOUT ALL THE TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS AND REPORTS ON 2002 MODELS. SHE THEN STATED THAT SHE HAD PAID SO MUCH MONEY INTO REPAIRS THAT SHE ULTIMATELY BROUGHT A TOYOTA. SO, NOW HERE I AM HIGHLY FRUSTRATED WITH MY TRANSMISSIONS PROBLEMS. I DON'T WANT TO SPEND OVER $2000 IN REPAIRS. I LOVE MY HONDA, I REALLY DIDN'T ANTICIPATE TO HAVE THESE PROBLEMS NOW. NOW THAT I HAVE VISITED THIS SITE, I KNOW I'M NOT ALONE.
I have owned Honda Accord all my life; this is the 4th. All have lasted way beyond the
200 k. NOT this one it started shifting hard close to 100k. I called Honda and they are not being helpful. I've been checking, not only on the internet but also with other 2002 Honda owners. Lots of transmission problems. What do we need to do to get a class action lawsuit? Please is there a lawyer out there that can help us???? Honda should pay, if not all, at least 1/2 minimum.
I can not believe that Honda corporate has not made a full recall of this car. My mechanic knows about this issue being a wide spread one and that many Accords and Civics are affected.
My transmission is slipping and shifting hard and the repair shop says it will cost about $2200 to rebuild the transmission. I can't drive the car very far for fear of complete transmission failure. I hope Honda will live up to it's reputation and fix it.
After reviewing the comments on this site,I realized I am experiencing the same transmission issue with my 2002 Honda Accord which has approximately 93,000 miles. I bought this car new. Very disappointing considering I have owned Honda's for the past 25 years. I have been holding off buying a new car until the spring but unfortunately I have been experiencing transmission problems and just had this confirmed with my mechanic. He said this is a known issue with the make of car and to either replace the transmission or replace the car. Now that I know this is a known issue and Honda is not going to do any sort of recall, I will be looking at cars other than Honda. I am extremely disappointed.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
The transmission on our 2001 Honda Accord was replaced without cost after many visits to the service facility (Honda City Levittown, NY) during which the technicians said there was nothing wrong with the transmission (approx. 80,000 miles on the car). Our 2002 Honda Accord began slipping and bucking so badly in June 2010 after a trip from OH to NY that it almost put us through the windshield. Brought it into the same service facility where they said the transmission was fine and replaced the fluid. They told us that if the transmission was bad that the engine light would go on. The car ran a little better for a while. Now it slips all the time. We took it back today (Feb. 2011) and now they say "Yes the transmission is slipping and is really shot between 2nd and 3rd." Cost for a rebuilt Honda transmission is $3100 and they will graciously take 10% off the price.
I complained to the dealer who told me I should contact Honda directly to see what they will do for me. He offered me a 2011 Accord for a good price but told me that I would be foolish not to purchase an extended warranty for $1,395. He even likened it to purchasing medical insurance. Why should I have to purchase an extended warranty to cover the cost of a know defect? We had 1992, 2001, and 2002 Honda Accords. We just purchased a 2010 Accord this past August because we read that the transmission problems had been solved. Our son is going through the same stalling tactics with his 2002 Accord transmission problems with the same dealership. All of our children have purchased Hondas? What can I do about the transmission cost? How can Honda treat loyal customers this way? Honda's response will determine what brand our next car will be.
Update from Feb 16, 2011: After contacting corporate Honda, I was assigned a case number and a rep contacted me within 24 hours. I explained the problem with the car and our history with Honda. The rep contacted our service manager and then called me back within two more days. The offer was a 50:50 split of the cost fort a rebuilt transmission. This seemed reasonable due to the 80k + miles on the car. The transmission comes with a three year warranty. I was told that we were given the offer because we were loyal Honda customers. When we made an appointment to bring the car in, one of the technicians said that no one pays full price for a new transmission. The technician at Honda City, John, who was in charge of our car during its stay went out of his way to make an additional repair to the battery cables and tray while the car was there - no charge. Honda City went out of its way to be helpful once corporate contacted them. While I am very happy with how this was resolved, I must agree with some of your other readers have said. This is a known defect, and no one should have to go through all this trouble just to get the transmission fixed.
- K. O., Wantagh, NY, US