CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2009 Honda Accord has several serious defects – poor brakes, excessive oil consumption, & uncomfortable seats.

BRAKES: There was a class action lawsuit against Honda in 2010 for premature & excessive brake wear. See our page on Honda's brake problems for more info.

OIL CONSUMPTION: Honda issued a TSB about this in late 2011, claiming it could be fixed through a software update to the VCM (variable cylinder management). There are class action lawsuits pending. See our page about the Accord oil consumption.

UNCOMFORTABLE SEATS: Owners have consistently reported uncomfortable seats with the entire 8th generation (2008-2012) of Honda Accords. Complaints range from back pain to leg circulation problems due to bad lumbar support, cushioning, & seat angle. Complaints aren't limited to only a certain body type -- the seat comfort problems are from a wide spectrum of owner height & weight. The common theme we hear is "we never noticed this during the test drive." Unfortunately for unwary buyers, the seat pain is noticeable after 15-20 minutes.

6.6

fairly significant
Typical Repair Cost:
No data
Average Mileage:
42,450 miles
Total Complaints:
14 complaints

Most Common Solutions:

  1. not sure (9 reports)
  2. strip old paint off and repaint (4 reports)
  3. repainted top of car completely (1 reports)
2009 Honda Accord body / paint problems

body / paint problem

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2009 Honda Accord Owner Comments

problem #14

Aug 232017

Accord LX-P 4 cyl 2.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 70,658 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

There are crow feet cracks on my hood, trunk, doors, and fenders, completely awful and should be fixed by Honda

- Kenneth T., Garden Grove, CA, US

problem #13

Oct 012013

Accord LX 2.5L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 60,000 miles

Our family bouaght a 2009 black Honda accord from a co worker in late 2013. The car i knew well and the social worker that owned it bought it locally and brought it to dealer for every oil change ect as needed.

The car has a major problem with the black paint. It has small alligator cracks in the black paint on the roof, hood, top fenders, trunk. The person i bought it from i spoke to last week. She said that she noticed it in 2011 2 years old. I brought it to my dealer who i have bought Hondas from in 1989,1994,1998,(2003 another dealer). At first the dealer said this car was repainted....I explained ABSOLUTELY NO WAY...I know the car and the person i bought it from. I bought it to a local body man i know and he explained this car was never painted and that this is in the factory paint. He said it needs to be stripped and repainted. The dealer @ Honda in Shelton CT said that he agreed that the car was not painted and that he never saw something like this.

5 weeks ago we got some work done at the dealership and they said they would have a REP from Honda see it. Well as of last week they said that for some reason my concerns were not directed to the HONDA REP. My dealership was very accommodating and they set up an appointment this Friday 8/14/15 for the REP to review.

There was a reason I stopped buying Honda after our 2003 CRV purchase from Honda there was a problem with the right tire wearing out in 12 or 14 K miles...they said it was because of my driving ...but bloggers said the same thing or problem they were having also..there was problem with the strut tower? I feel Honda did not stand by my 2003 CRV and thus did not buy a new Honda again...

MY hope is the REP realizes that this is factory problem when the car was painted. We do LOVE the car but it looks so dull, it is not fair, a cars paint should last more than 2 years...I WILL TELL YOU what the Rep says this week. Who Knows they may or may not be helpful?..................

Update from Oct 30, 2015: AUG. 2015 .......................There has been a conclusion to this problem.
In late July/Aug. we met the regional Honda Representative at the Shelton CT Honda dealership. Along with the body shop manager ( John), they inspected the car. They could clearly see that the car had small alligator cracks inside the paint thru out the whole car ,mainly on top of hood, trunk, roof.

During our conversation I indicated I got a price from a body in Bridgeport Ct for 2000 dollars to strip the paint on top blend to the sides and repaint the car. The Representative ( Joked) hey get that price we can't do it for double that money ( 5 grand minimum) .

THE HONDA REP......... CALLED IN A HALF HOUR......... later called my cell phone and said they would be willing to PAY HALF of the amount to paint the car. It took me some time to set it up and afterward brought the car back to the Shelton CT Honda dealership for them to inspect my painted car.

Next they contacted the regional representative to inspect the work which had been done via email and photos taken. It took a little longer than i anticipated but i received half payment from honda.

HONDA SAID..............." THEY AGREED ON 9/10/15 TO REFINISH 2009 HONDA ACCORD AS A ONE TIME GOODWILL GESTURE."

I Would say that the Honda Representtiive ( Walter) and (John) Body shop manager were very accomodating, and even though the process bogged down at times they were true to there word.

I hope this helped out any others with the same issues. My Body guy i would say did a B+ job............ could Honda dealership have done better, SURE.................but most likely at double the cost....................Again I have a better Feeling regarding Honda and exspecially the way i was treated by thier representitives.

- shuflu, Trumbull, CT, US

problem #12

Jan 012015

Accord

  • Automatic transmission
  • 90,000 miles

The white paint on my 2009 Honda Accord is peeling off in big chunks all the way down to the beige under-layer. It started on the channels around my rear windshield. I then noticed spots on the trunk, drivers side door and roof. This is unacceptable! After consulting a local repair shop, it was determined that the paint is not adhering - MANUFACTURER ERROR!

- Emily K., Portsmouth, VA, US

problem #11

Jul 172013

Accord EXL 3.5L V6

  • Manual transmission
  • 20,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The paint began to crack around the rear windshield and it began to spread onto the panels. The best way I found to stop the spread was to apply some touch up paint on the edges so that water would not get under and therefore allow the peeling to spread even more.

- Alejandro A., Perth Amboy, NJ, US

problem #10

Sep 072013

Accord LX

  • Automatic transmission
  • 56,000 miles

My 2009 Honda Accord's paint is starting to look chalky. It is white and has very little shine to the car. Additionally the paint is peeling on the channels around the rear window. The paint is also damaged around the right rear light. I took it to the Stokes Honda in North Charleston today. The service manager is going to contact Honda about the paint and my steering column needing to be replaced. After reading some of the posts I guess I shouldn't get my hopes up that Honda will acknowledge this is unacceptable for a car that I bought brand new less than 4 years ago. I really hope that my dealership can get this resolved for me. I should hear something next week. Of all the cars I have owned ( Ford,,Nissan, Toyota, Chevrolet) I've never had a paint problem before. Fingers crossed for quality customer service from Honda and the Stokes Honda Dealership.

Update from May 20, 2014: My request to have the paint addressed was denied. Honda did cover 75% of my steering column replacement. Given Honda's history with paint, I am going to wait and see if they end up recalling the 2009 honda because of bad paint.

- wildersc, North Charleston, SC, US

problem #9

Feb 092013

Accord LX 2.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 40,000 miles

I purchased a white 2009 Honda Accord Coupe in president day 2009. Recently, I found that the paint started to flake off of in the rear window channels of passenger side. The crack now is getting bigger and bigger. I learned on line that there is a big problem with PAINT ADHERENCE on Honda vehicles. It is really awful thing since I liked this car a lot before this problem coming out. Don't know what to do now. It ruined everything of this car.

- Hong C., Westborough, MA, US

problem #8

Aug 012012

Accord LX 3.2L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 66,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

2009 METALLIC Silver...very noticeable and the paint job looks cheap and like a beat up car.

- Lydia Z., Ormond Beach, FL, US

problem #7

Jun 052011

Accord LX-P 2.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 21,000 miles

Just like what some other owners had reported, paint coming offer were the corner of the tail light meets the car. Just crappy quality I guess. What a shame, I really like this car, and was hoping to keep it for a long time...hope it won't develop rust and falls apart.

Come on Honda! This is the 4th problem found on our 09 Accord. Maybe a little too much on the cost cutting??

- Michael M., San Lorenzo, CA, US

problem #6

Sep 192012

Accord Coupe

  • Automatic transmission
  • 40,100 miles

We purchased a white 2009 Honda Accord Coupe with 39000 miles on it back in August 2012. This is a used car. About 2 weeks after purchase the paint started to flake off of the roof of the car and also flaking off in the rear window channels. Took the vehicle back to Premier Honda of New Orleans and of course they say we have a clean car fax. This is not worth the paper it is printed on by the way. The dealership holds the car overnight for a Honda regional manager to come by and look at it. My paint and body shop owner says there is a big problem with PAINT ADHERENCE on Honda vehicles. He says just check out the complaints on the internet and Honda is not standing behind these problems. To re paint the car they said only way for sure to get the paint to adhere to vehicle is sand down the whole car and start again. The dealership paint and body man agreed that would be the only way to fix the issue. However the dealership nor Honda will pay for this to be done. So before you buy a honda please become very well informed and ask a lot of questions and read a lot of automobile forums.

- Stephen H., Mobile, AL, US

problem #5

Jun 042012

Accord EX

  • Automatic transmission
  • 38,000 miles

click to see larger images

paint cracks paint cracks

My 2009 Honda Accord also has the paint chipping at the tail lights. We take care of our cars - washing them, sweeping them out etc and it is annoying to think the paint is just coming off around the taillights. Never again Honda!!

- Robin H., Centerburg, OH, US

problem #4

Nov 012011

Accord Chrome V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 55,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I noticed numerous spidery type spots in my car hood, trunk and top of my 2010 Honda accord. I took my car to a reputable paint and body shop to inquire about what I was seeing. One of the owners said that the problem was in the first layer of manufactured paint and the problem was extending to the outer clear coat. I was told that this is definitely a problem created at the time of manufacturing of the car. I took my car to Rock Hill Honda dealership in Rock Hill, South Carolina. I was told by the service manager that he would not look at my car unless I signed the service order stating that this was an estimate. I explained to him that I was not there for an estimate but for a complaint related to a manufacturing defect in the paint on my car. He insisted that I signed for an estimate or he could not look at my car. I explained to him that I would sign this document but I would not be paying any money related to this complaint. I waited in the customer service waiting room for approximately 30 minutes when I was called back to discuss the problem with the paint. He showed me a magazine with bird droppings and stated my problem happened because I had either parked my car under a tree or a bird had flown by. I quickly realized that the blame was put back in my ballpark. I decided that I will contact the area manager first before moving up the ladder to see if they will acknowledge the problem which has apparently been noted as far back as 1998. This is the first Honda that I have purchased and I am sorry to say that I am quickly learning that Honda does not appear to care about serving its customers or taking ownership of problems they create.

- vhernandez, Camden, SC, US

problem #3

Nov 012009

Accord EX L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 5,000 miles

I feel like the paint is cheap and the least little think chips it.

- mhgibson, Crozet, VA, US

problem #2

Aug 032011

Accord EX V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 17,245 miles

After washing our 2009 Honda Accord EX, I noticed the drivers side door had some sort of blemish on the paint. After carefully examining it, and using swirl/scratch removal, I determined the blemish was underneath the clear coat. Signs of paint cracking, and there is absolutely nothing I can use on it, to alleviate the problem. Waiting for 'Honda District Area Manager' to call me for an appointment for inspection. The issue with the tail lights 'resting' on the body panel, is a whole other issue -which does not even cover 'bird dropping' stains all over the car.

The photo is a reflection of the driver side door.

- Lorenzo C., Indio, CA, US

problem #1

Oct 092009

Accord EX-L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 15,000 miles

I AM A CAR KING, I LOVE MY CAR SO I TAKE CARE OF THEM BETTER THEN MY SELF.I FOUND THAT AROUND BOTH REAR TAIL LIGHT CORNERS THE PAINT WAS FLAKING . IT LOOKED LIKE THE CARS TAIL LIGHTS WHERE GRINDING IN TO THE PAINT . THAT CAN ONLY MEAN 2 THING THAT THE CAR WAS HIT AND REPAIRED BY THE DEAL AND I DID NOT KNOW OR OEM DEFECT. IT'S AT THE DEAL WITH ALL THE OTHER PENDING PROBLEMS . THE BODY SHOP NEED TO LOOK AT THE CAR TO SEE WHY THIS IS HAPPENING . BUT THE SERVICE WRITER TOLD ME MOST LIKELY THEY WILL HAVE TO REPAINT THE WHOLE BACK HALF . I SAID IF THATS THE CASE HELL NO. LAWYER TIME.LEMON LAWS. PEOPLE IF YOU ARE HAVING PROBLEMS LAWYERS ARE FREE THEY MAKE DEALERS PAY FOR EVERYTHING ,JUST GO ONLINE AND FIND ONE.

- Kiran M., San Diego, CA, US

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