CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2003 Honda Accord suffers from widespread transmission failure & problems with the stereo backlight failing. 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.
The stereo backlight problem has been an issue since these Accords were only a few years old. Honda eventually issued a recall which covered the repair for 7 years/100k miles, which was nice while it lasted but now that period is over. Honda initially was replacing the entire radio ($800) but eventually began replacing just the PCB which at ~$300 is much cheaper. That sounds like a deal, but keep in mind we're talking about a backlight bulb that costs $2 to fix in most other cars.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
7 / 0
Average Mileage:
109,175 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
While driving on the interstate I experienced a sluggish jolt. The RPM's reved up and the car was having trouble switching from 2nd-3rd gear. My mechanic and a transmission expert stated the the transmission is going out and not worth repairing based on several same year make/models he has encountered. This along with the motor mounts needing to be replaced will cost me approximately $5000 my complaint is after researching this issue on-line I have found hundreds of Honda 2003 Accord owners with the same exact issue, some of them move severe. Honda did a patch job recall the summer of 2004, but clearly the problem has not been fixed as I now have the same issue associated with the recall. Why isn't Honda taking responsibilty?
Transmission began to slip between 2nd and 3rd gear. This is similar to many other complaints on this make and year vehicle. Honda should be ashamed of making such garbage and not stepping up to the plate and fix it at no cost to the consumer. I will never buy another Honda vehicle ever again. I urge others to take the same stance so Honda learns their lesson.
The transmission in my 2003 Honda Accord V6 violently downshifted into 1st gear while traveling at 45 mph. This appears to be a common complaint and issue with this vehicle and is a definite safety issue. I had my 18 month old son in the back seat when this happened and another vehicle narrowly missed colliding with the rear of my car. Luckily I wasn't on the highway yet or this could have been truly catastrophic. This is an issue that need to be addressed asap before some is seriously injured or worse.
I was driving my 2003 Honda Accord ex (V6) on the freeway at 65-70mph. As I was driving, I noticed that the car rapidly began to decelerate at sporadic intervals. I was nearly rear-ended a few times, with cars having to Dodge me on both sides. This happened over a period of 3-4X within 5-10 minutes as I tried to exit the freeway. I stopped at a gas station and there was no check-engine light on or anything visibly wrong with the car, such as tires etc. On my way home, I had to stomp on the gas in order to get it to drive at 60+ mph. The car made loud buzzing sounds the entire period, as I struggled to maintain 60+ mph. When I got home and parked the car, it came to my attention that I was unable to reverse the car. I learned that this transmission issue was not addressed by Honda as requiring a recall. Despite my problems and the reports of countless others, Honda will not pay for a new transmission. This will cost me over $2500 for repairs/replacement. I am absolutely furious, especially knowing that this is a common issue with the 2003 model. I spoke with a local Honda dealer and they will not take care of the charges. Considering this car has only 76K miles on it and is 8 years old, this is an absolute nightmare since I faced a god-awful commute home with my car breaking down and so much uncertainty of whether it would even make it home.
- San Jose, CA, USA
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My transmission failed while driving today. Driving across the hwy the car suddenly downshifted violently. After that, the car would skip gears and downshift at will. I drove home with the car stuck in first gear. The car is an automatic.
At around 107,000 miles, I noticed my transmission leaking fluid very rapidly. In addition, the front end of the car started vibrating violently between 50mph and 60mph.
In 2008 the transmission froze up on the freeway while going 65mph. 3 years after having the transmission replaced, the rebuilt transmission goes out again while driving on the freeway. Seems to be a bad design with the Honda Accord 03 V6 transmissions. I just found out that there was a recall in '04, but never received any notices.
The contact owners a Honda Accord 2003 V6 was driving at 30 mph. The contact owner was unable to accelerate to shift from second gear and take the mechanic and as a result the transmission needed to be replaced. We contacted the manufacture but they could offer any assistance because the transmission wasn't locked. This situation has been happening for a while and we need it fix right away! we know the first owner of the car had the same problem but the company said they fixed the car and it would work fine. Only it wasn't fine its repeating the same problem over and over again. Its a accident waiting to happen!
The contact owns a 2003 Honda Accord. The contact was driving approximately 50 mph when the vehicle began to decelerate independently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing where the technician stated that the transmission would have to be replaced. The approximate failure mileage was 90,000.
As I was driving my car one the merritt pkwy all of a sudden the car was loosing speed and the car did not want to move at all. I was nearly hit in the rear by oncoming vehicles because my car stood stuck on a two lane pkwy.
2003 Honda Accord V6 transmission failure in the middle of traffic, almost caused an accident but fortunately this was on a road with a slower speed limit. 3 out of 4 engine mounts are broken. I have owned this car 8 months and the estimated repair is $6000. I have found several websites and forums where this appears to be a problem for 2003 and 2004 transmissions on the Accord. Most drivers just stalled on the highway/road they were traveling on and this is a serious safety concern. How can these cars continue to be sold where this is a common problem.
Honda service manager said he was "almost killed on the highway" driving my car: First incident: 9/19/2011 (mon evening) car lurching irregularly at highway and town speeds; difficulty getting into gear and trouble reversing. Took it to dealer that night. 9/20/2011 (tues): Dealer reported not being able to detect a problem. Nothing came up on diagnostics. No service light was on. Dealer asked to keep it one more day. 9/21/2011 (wed): Dealer still unable to detect a problem, they drove it around but claimed nothing unusual. Service manager asked if he could drive it home. I ok'd. employer annoyed. Second incident: That night the service manager, drove it home, because it wasn't acting up at the garage, and diagnostics showed nothing. There were no warning lights. He, [xxx], said he "almost went through the windshield on the highway" on his way home. He said repeatedly that he was almost killed. That's right the Honda service manager said he almost was killed!!! which is what could have happened to me or any other Honda Accord owner. If this happened in inclement weather, I'd be dead in a ditch (it's new england so those days are coming). The car lurched at highway speeds and at low speeds. It lurched speeding up and slowing down. If I put the car in neutral, and just applied some gas to the pedal, the tachometer (RPM) needle jumped around all over the place. Only until the service manager got it back to the service garage (9/22) did any service lights come on. How convenient. Their proposed solution: Step one: Replace transmission fluid (material, parts, labor) = $120 step two: Replace transmission solenoid (parts labor, etc) = $500 failing that: Step three: Replace entire transmission. Est. Cost: $4300 total potential cost: Approx $50.... or my life. This is a significant safety issue and a recall is in order and asap. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
My wife was driving her 2003 Honda Accord when all of a sudden it shifted into neutral.. she turned the car off and a few minutes later turned it back on. It went for a short distance and did the same thing again. It took her three hrs. To get home from work. When the car violently stopped she was almost hit by a truck who was behind her. She could have been seriously hurt. I feel Honda is responsible to replace the transmission after reading the thousands of similar complaints regarding this faulty transmission. Recalls should have been done and the tranny fixed before this problem occurred. Honda new the problem and failed to recall these cars.
The contact owns a 2003 Honda Accord LX. The contact stated that the vehicle would not drive in second gear unless the vehicle was on an incline. The vehicle was not inspected by a dealer nor repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 134,000. The VIN was unavailable.
We noticed hesitation in shifting from second to third gear. It seemed as if it would slip into neutral. After approximately 5-10 seconds it would shift into third. The transmission was checked and flushed in early 2011. This car has been maintained according to industry standards. After discussing the problem with various mechanics, it was determined that third gear was going out. Driving to repair location the transmission failed. The car went from 65 mph on the highway to stuck in second gear after the engine warmed up. This car was part of the recall in the summer of 2004 and the repair was made. However, after researching the Honda 2003, it appears as if this is a continual problem and Honda is aware of the faulty transmission yet does not assist in the cost of repair.
The contact owns a 2003 Honda Accord. The contact was driving 20 mph when the vehicle exhibited a loud, abnormal knocking noise. The contact was unable to accelerate of shift from second gear. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the second gear had burned and as a result, the transmission needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance. The manufacturer advised that because the transmission was not locked, the vehicle would not be repaired under NHTSA campaign id number: 04V176000 (power train:automatic transmission). The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 150,000.
Coming back from the airport, going home on belt parkway, the transmission stopped functioning properly out of a sudden, without giving any hints before, totally unexpected. It didn't go to the 2nd gear, stuck in 30mph. After anxiously drove back home trembling, found the reverse did not work either. The vehicle had to be turned off and restarted again to gain back the function of reverse. After research the on the web, and read through so many comments of Honda Accord 2003 owner, this seems very much related to the Honda Accord recall incident in 2004. It is believed Honda didn't fix the problem permanently back in 2004. It was a temporary fix trick, and right now many of the Honda Accord 2003 owners are suffering from Honda's failure to fix its defective product.
I was driving on the highway and my car suddenly downshifted I was thrusted forward and back. I continued to drive home attempting to slow at a light it shifted so hard the tires squealed. The car continued to shift very hard between first and second gear for about 1 mile until I got home. As I was looking on the internet for a transmission I came across a web site and learned there was a recall for second gear in 2004 that I was never notified about. I dropped it off for first thing in the morning at the dealership, that afternoon I received a call stating they drove my car around the block and there was nothing wrong with the transmission and I could come get the car when I refused due to recall, I was told they would need a few days to get the recall repair parts. I was fine with that considering I was too afraid to drive the car and I was getting a ride to and from work for the last two weeks anyway. The very next day they called and said they fixed all recalls, and drove the car again and the transmission was fine. When I went to pick up the car I wanted to make sure they inspected second gear per recall they told me they did take a picture but would not offer proof. They also told me second gear would not fix my transmission after they tell me there is nothing wrong with it.I do not believe they inspected my transmission at all. I think they just replaced the parts they needed to get the recall done I cannot help but think if I received this recall six years ago I may not be going through this now! by all the complaints on this site and many others this is a known problem. What is going to take for Honda to make it right? I am now stuck with a car I an too afraid to drive!!!!!!!!!!!
While driving my 2003 V6 Honda Accord coupe (automatic) the transmission violently jerked the entire vehicle forward and downshifted to a lower gear. This occurred during rush hour and almost caused the vehicle behind me to rear-end my vehicle. I immediately turned on my flashers and made my way to a parking lot. I left the vehicle there overnight and had it towed to a Honda dealership for inspection. They advised me that they could not identify anything wrong with my transmission and everything was working properly during their tests and could not duplicate the problem.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Kirkland, WA, USA