CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2004 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 ever 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 replaced 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:
2 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
100,817 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.
I was driving down a city road and the vehicle started to accelerate on its own and it did not want to shift gear. I was able to apply brakes but the car continued to accelerate to very high rpms. I had no choice but to turn the shut off the car midway and pull-over. While stationary and car shut off on side of the road I tried to turn it back it and it automatically jumped to high RPM and was never able to change gears from park to drive or anything because the car would take off. After 45 minutes of letting the car figure itself out, it stopped revving too high RPM and was able to go back home. The issue has stopped but now when I start the car up and switch from park to drive the car has a delayed engagement. Also, now my steering wheel locks up ever once in a while and when making turns randomly. I have checked power steering and no leaks or any sign on a repair that needs to be completed.
My vehicle died going up a small hill for no reason.... like it stalled but I had to restart the vehicle... also the stereo doesn't work I think it could be electrical or the ignition switch" seen on youtube I'm not the only one that this is happening to. It stalls almost and doesn't propel in fifth at I have to down shift and go back to 5th and tei again... sometimes it works other times I try 2 or three time to keep it accelerating. The hill thing was scary. What did it mean"
The contact owns a 2004 Honda Accord. When starting the vehicle, an abnormal grinding noise could be heard from the engine compartment. The failure occurred without warning. The dealer and manufacturer were not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
- Heath, TX, USA
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I'm driving 427 South (toronto) late evening, and I approach someone who is driving 80 km/hr, so I decide to overtake the car. I change a lane, accelerate for couple seconds, and when I release a gas pedal, my car doesn't slow down, it continues to accelerate on its own, and engine is running violently, it reaches max rpms (I think it's 5000 rpms), and than a computer drops rpms down. So, nothing is pressing a gas pedal, and the engine pulling like crazy, car is accelerating, and highway is over in 5 seconds. I touch a gas pedal - it is soft, but it's springing back when I release it, and there is no a bottle or a carpet stuck in between, I check cruse control - it is not on, so I press brakes and try to slow down the car with brakes which is not easy because the engine is still running on max rpms and pulling a car, you can feel it. So, I stop eventually at the side of the road and shut down the engine. The next day I checked under the hood for the problem, and I discovered the next. There is a part of a car called a throttle, that regulates air intake in the engine, and this way speed of engine is regulated too. The throttle is regulated by two cables. One cable (not a wire) goes from a gas pedal, and it's attached to a metal bracket on a throttle. Another cable (not a wire) goes from cruise control, and it's attached to a plastic bracket on a throttle. So, plastic deteriorated over time, and cruise control cable broke off and jammed the throttle on the max opening when I was driving on the highway. I think Honda has to do a recall to fix this situation because it is a safety issue. When something brakes in your car and you cannot start a car, or when something starts squeaking or rattling, and you have time to go to a mechanic to fix it - it's one story, but when you drive and you car accelerates on it's own - it's a different story.
I did tune up my car because is run not good. The ball joint broke good the happen on street in repair get new ball joint and new axle both thing for drivers side used car had a good on gas mileage but after start giving bad mileages. Many time tune up. After that car not pick speed. One day I did google search. I find Honda recall for transmission over one million. I call Honda dealer about transmission recall he say need up date software but they don't have recall about this yet. But they have recall airbags was which haven already done. Now my car have problems with transmission, ball joint axle, smoking. Radio not works another I hope. I get recall soon. I wasn't know that to file complaints. Now I know and I helps other.
The contact owns a 2004 Honda Accord. While driving at approximately 40 mph, the vehicle stalled and an unknown warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 139,865.
While driving on the interstate the RPM needle began oscillating rapidly between low and high numbers and the car was in a distressed state. I pulled onto the shoulder and drove slowly to an exit at which pointi had to stop at a redlight. Once green, I attempted to accelerate forward without success. The car would not engage in any gear, including reverse. I called the police who pushed me out of the road to a safe location. The Honda facility I use for maintenance advised that I have a total transmission failure. I called Honda America and was told that it was not in the best interest of the company to assist.
The contact owns a 2004 Honda Accord. While driving at various speeds, the vehicle independently accelerated without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the throttle box needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 137,000.
Hi, the Honda knock sensor harness wire is made with low-grade material, which is getting snapped or cut due to engine heat or attracting vermin as per blogs dirveaccord.net, odyclub.com as being soya based. The part number for Accord V6: P/N 30531-rca-A00 H/C 7134133 or Odyssey, Pilot: P/N 30531-P8F-A00 H/C 5878327. This wire cost is $5-$6 but it takes about $600 to $700 to replace in local dealership with engine malfunction happening with P0325 code which indicates knock sensor malfunction. The sensor failing suddenly with out warning is causing untold hard ships to all the Honda owners and its needs to be fixed immediately to avoid severe engine damage and over heating. So I am requesting NHTSA to investigate and request Honda to issue an recall of this small 3inch wire and avoid headaches to the common people. I also see lot of people with Acura, Honda Accord, ody have reported with Honda of this problem from year 2004 and find below is a copy of the letter from a blog. That it was reported with Sept 10,2004 with case no B012004-09-07011 to american Honda motor co.,1919 torrance blvd.,torrance, ca 90501 acurazine.com/forums/problems-fixes-114/knock-sensor-chewed-mouse-mice-eating-wires-mouse-ate-my-TL-merged-threads-554357/ the url is: www.Acura-TL.com/forums/showt...2&page=1&pp=25.
While I were driving locals, I notice a sudden drop in speed and spike in RPM. When I tried to accelerate, only RPM would go up and the car would not shift to higher gear. This happened without any warnings. No engine light. Nothing. If this happened in the freeway, it would have been very serious situation. I also noticed numerous 2003 2004 Honda Accord owners to have similar problems. This is definitely manufacturer's fault. I had to rebuild the transmission which came out to be $1820. This is serious situation.
While driving home from work I came to a red light, as I proceeded to hit the gas the car started to jump and would not accelerate. I was hitting the gas the engine would rev and the RPM's were super high but the car would only go about 5 mph with the ending revving really loud. After about a few seconds of hitting the gas and only going 5mph the car would finally jump into gear and go. Every time the car would come to a stop and then have to go again that's when it would happen over and over again. That night we decided to take it for a test drive and that's when the engine light came on and the "D" shift light was blinking and the "tca" light came on. There is seriously something wrong with the car when the day before the car drove like new. We looked up the recalls on online for our vehicle and see that there is one out for the auto transmission. Just weird all the sudden this would happen and there is a recall out in that. Please help!
My daughter was driving on the freeway and without stepping on the gas, the car kept accelerating. When she tried to brake to slow down, the car would shudder and kept trying to accelerate. It was not a floor mat problem. She got up to 85mph!! she had to down shift (automatic transmission) to try and slow down to get off the freeway in yorba linda, ca. Thankfully, she got off safely and managed to stop the car. She had aaa tow the car home. Even the tow truck driver could not get the car in neutral and said he felt the car revving. Sounds just like the Toyota incidents, but was not aware of Honda having this issue. This is very serious!!! so very grateful that my daughter did not get hurt or injure anyone else. I know this is not a mistake of pressing the wrong pedal. Is there any other problems with Honda like this? we will be towing the car to our mechanic soon.
The car went crazy revving up and down on its own. Driving on the highway, it felt like the car would be applying the brakes on its own only to rev up again but felt like it was on neutral, then the gear would shift abruptly. At the intersection, once the light turned green, the engine would not proceed no matter how light I applied the gas pedal (I didn't want to "drown" it), it felt as if it were in neutral - only to speed up on its own. It felt like the car didn't know whether to speed up or slow down - the gears would jump from one to another on its own. Horrible!
The contact owns a 2004 Honda Accord. The contact stated that while driving 10 mph, grey smoke emitted from the engine compartment and from the rear of the vehicle. The contact mentioned that the malfunction indicator warning lamp was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The technician diagnosed that the head gasket was blown and the engine would need to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was no longer under warranty. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 166,000. Updated
The contact owns a 2004 Honda Accord. The contact stated that when driving at speeds over 50 mph, the vehicle would shake violently. The dealer was contacted and advised that the engine mount needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 110,000 and the current mileage was 126,539.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Tuscaloosa, AL, USA