10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 7
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
84,006 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.

2003 Honda Odyssey transmission problems

transmission problem

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2003 Honda Odyssey Owner Comments (Page 13 of 17)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #92

Sep 012008

Odyssey

  • 95,000 miles

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

Transmission shudder at low speeds and low power. Dealers can't identify problem or fix it. Car shudders on regular basis and new egr valve, fluid changes tune ups make no difference. Known transmission problems make me nervous of the reliability of the trans.

- The Villages, FL, USA

problem #91

Oct 102008

Odyssey

  • 115,100 miles
2003 Honda Odyssey, check engine light, tcs light, transmission fail to engage 3rd gear 50% of the time. Error code P0740. Had the oil jet kit installed on Aug 4 2004.

- Laughlin Afb, TX, USA

problem #90

Aug 192008

Odyssey

  • 83,639 miles
Check engine light came on at the same time as the tcs light with no other physical symptoms. Transmission fluid was "a little" low and "dirty" so authorized replacement of the transmission fluid. 24 hours later, the gears began sticking in between 2nd and 3rd gears with the engine just revving, lights came back on. Could not accelerate. Code on computer said transmission needed to be replaced/rebuilt. Have yet to pay to have it fixed due to cost and apparent issue with the safety of Honda Odyssey transmissions 2003.

- Superior, CO, USA

problem #89

Jun 062008

Odyssey

  • 101,563 miles

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

Transmission broke down I had to to tow it to a Honda dealer and get it repaired. It cost me $3200.

- Portage, MI, USA

problem #88

Mar 282008

Odyssey

  • 74,000 miles
I have a 2003 Odyssey that I bought in Jan 03. At 74,000 miles and 1.5 months after the extended warranty expired, the transmission needed to be replaced. At the dealer I was informed that the recall recommendation had been completed previously and there's nothing else that could be done. I had previously taken the van in complaining that it was not driving right and felt like it was shuttering. The tech inspected and found nothing. I was told the tech thought it probably was the way I drove it. It ended up that it wasn't "my driving", it was the transmission slipping. The transmission was replaced. At the time the transmission was replaced it was noted that motor mounts also needed to be replaced due to breakage. This was the 2nd time in less than 12 months they needed to be replaced.

- Winter Haven, FL, USA

problem #87

Aug 222008

Odyssey

  • 82,000 miles
I own a 2003 Honda Odyssey which currently has 82,000 and I purchased an extended warranty to 75,000. On 11/3/04 I took my car to the dealership per the safety recall for the automatic transmission second gear inspection. At that time my car had 29,000 miles on it. The dealer installed an oil jet kit. Per the recall, cars under 15,000 miles were to get the kit and cars over 15,000 were to be checked for heat discoloration, which indicates possible damage and if found, if found, the dealer was to replace the transmission. No where on my service receipt does it indicate that the inspection ever took place. In June 2005 I had problems getting the car in and out of gear and took the car to be serviced and Honda claimed they could not find a problem and again there was no indication that they checked the transmission for heat discoloration. I continued to have problems but reluctant to take the car back since they claimed there was not a problem. In Dec. 2006 while still under warranty, I took the car back again still complaining about the transmission and the gears being difficult. Honda claims it had something to do with the brake light switch, replaced the switch and said the gears were working ok. I was on the highway on the way to the dealership to get a different problem corrected when the car stopped accelerating. I was able to get off of the highway but was stuck in the center lane of another very busy road and had to wait 30 minutes be towed to the dealership. Now with 82,000 miles I am told the transmission needs to be replaced. I feel Honda was completely aware of this defect and I could have been in a serious car accident. Honda is not willing to take responsibility and so I am forced to lodge a complaint.

- Kennesaw, GA, USA

problem #86

Aug 192008

Odyssey

  • 115,000 miles

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

I had no warning that something was wrong until I was driving on the pa turnpike today and all power was shut off. I immediately got to the side of the road and had the van towed and I was told that I needed a new transmission. I just read that there was a recall and unfortunately, I never got any mail informing me of a possible problem with the transmission. Now I am stuck with a 3,000 bill to replace the transmission.

- Allison Park, PA, USA

problem #85

Aug 142008

Odyssey

  • 86,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Honda Odyssey. The vehicle was repaired according to NHTSA campaign id number 04V176000 (power train:automatic transmission); however, the contact is currently experiencing the failures described in the recall. Whenever he places the vehicle into drive, the gear indicator light begins to flash while the vehicle is turned on. The vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealer. The current and failure mileages were 86,000.

- Elk Grove, CA, USA

problem #84

Jul 302008

Odyssey

  • 99,000 miles
Transmission failure at approx. 99000 miles. Had transmission fluid changed and 2 weeks later transmission began slipping between 1st and 2nd gear. Took it to dealer and was told it would be a $4400 repair including the ECU. Honda paid half of remanufactured transmission as well as ECU for "goodwill" even though we were initially told that they would contribute nothing. Transmission fluid had been changed twice during ownership. Transmission was also serviced with the earlier Honda recall. Failure occurred out of town while on vacation - had to leave the car in neighboring state and return home in a borrowed car.

- Gilbert, AZ, USA

problem #83

Jul 012008

Odyssey

  • 83,500 miles
The transmission on our 2003 Honda Odyssey is failing - won't engage 3rd gear. You try to accelerate, the RPM's increase, but the vehicle just coasts. It's getting worse. The local dealership "cannot duplicate the problem" and refuses to acknowledge a safety issue.

- Raleigh, NC, USA

problem #82

Jul 012006

Odyssey

  • 84,000 miles

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

I am the original owner of a 2003 Honda Odyssey (purchased October 2002). In summer of 2004, I received a recall notice regarding the transmission, and potential failure of transmission. I took my vehicle to a Honda dealer for inspection and repair. Was informed that there was nothing wrong with my vehicle, and no repair was necessary. In July 2006, with approx. 84,000 miles on the vehicle, my transmission failed while I was driving on the freeway, causing transmission fluid and oil to splatter everywhere inside and outside the vehicle. There was smoke coming out of the engine, for approx. Half an hour. The vehicle was towed to a dealer 90 miles from my home. After negotiations with american Honda, a rebuilt transmission was installed and was covered by Honda. Now, just over two years and 40,000 miles later, the exact same thing has occurred. Am attempting to negotiate with Honda to take care of this problem. On both occasions, was traveling with children in the car, and was forced to compromise their safety as well as mine, while waiting on the side of the freeway for over an hour.

- Oak Creek, WI, USA

problem #81

Aug 032008

Odyssey

  • 125,000 miles
I am the original owner of a 2003 Honda Odyssey (purchased October 2002). In summer of 2004, I received a recall notice regarding the transmission, and potential failure of transmission. I took my vehicle to a Honda dealer for inspection and repair. Was informed that there was nothing wrong with my vehicle, and no repair was necessary. In July 2006, with approx. 84,000 miles on the vehicle, my transmission failed while I was driving on the freeway, causing transmission fluid and oil to splatter everywhere inside and outside the vehicle. There was smoke coming out of the engine, for approx. Half an hour. The vehicle was towed to a dealer 90 miles from my home. After negotiations with american Honda, a rebuilt transmission was installed and was covered by Honda. Now, just over two years and 40,000 miles later, the exact same thing has occurred. Am attempting to negotiate with Honda to take care of this problem. On both occasions, was traveling with children in the car, and was forced to compromise their safety as well as mine, while waiting on the side of the freeway for over an hour.

- Oak Creek, WI, USA

problem #80

Jul 132008

Odyssey

  • 111,500 miles
We have a 2003 Honda Odyssey van with approximately 111,000 miles on it. Several months ago I noticed a longer delay from the time I would put it in reverse to the time it actually went into reverse. Then, just a couple of weeks ago the transmission slipped between 2 and third gear while accelerating to get on the freeway. We took it into our local Honda dealership and they said that they could not duplicate the problem and everything looked fine. The same slippage has now happened twice more in the last week. This mileage is a little low to have transmission problems so I started to do some research on the internet. To my surprise there are thousands of people with this same problem with the same year and model of van. The cost to replace the transmission away from the dealership was quoted to me at $2,700. Seems to me that Honda knows there is a problem and something should be done about it.

- Goleta, CA, USA

problem #79

Apr 032007

Odyssey

  • 50,000 miles
Transmission is starting to shift from one gear to the other hard. Sort of feels like a jump in the transmission. I've researched and noticed Honda has extended the warranty period for Honda Odyssey transmissions in previous model years for the same reason. In our 2003 they have not yet extended the warranty and I'm concerned ours will fail within the next 10,000 miles. Honda has owned up to putting in bad transmissions in the 2002 and prior years and they extended those warranties. My 2003 is now showing signs of a bad transmission. I hope filling this complaint helps to support other 2003 Odyssey complaints on transmissions.

- Midlothian, VA, USA

problem #78

Jul 252008

Odyssey

  • 57,000 miles
Transmission slipped into neutral several times while driving. I took the vehicle into the Honda dealer and they found dirty transmission fluid but could not find a transmission problem. The said the problem was due to dirty fluid. One week later the same problem occurred and the transmission warning light came on. I took the car back to the dealer and they told me I needed a new transmission for $4210. The car has only 57,000 miles on it.

- El Cerrito, CA, USA

problem #77

Feb 162008

Odyssey

  • 80,565 miles
We were parked at a store. When we went to leave, the car would stall when it was put into gear-- any gear. It kept stalling try after try. We had it towed to the Honda dealer and they determined that we needed a new transmission. There was no indication before this time that there was any problem with the car or transmission. We called Honda corporate to complain that the transmission shouldn't need to be replaced with only 80K miles on the vehicle. We knew of the warranty extension for the 2000 and 2001 models because of transmission issues so asked for some "goodwill assistance". we paid $1540.70 which was 60%. it is obvious that the transmission issue from the earlier models did not get fixed for the 2002 and 2003 either and Honda is trying to cover it up by helping with partial payment of the transmissions.

- Elkridge, MD, USA

problem #76

Jul 152008

Odyssey

  • 129,000 miles
Transmission failure, violent downshifting during driving at normal speeds.

- Bush, LA, USA

problem #75

Jul 102008

Odyssey

  • 77,000 miles
2003 Honda Odyssey with 77,000 miles began to make grind and rattling noise with noticeable blipping of rpms earlier this year. Sound become consistent in July. Local dealer examined the car and determined that the entire transmission had to be replaced. NHTSA records and numerous internet sites note this type of transmission failure on 2001-2003 Odyssey models. Neither dealer or Honda usa would admit that the transmission was defective, but the dealer offered to replace the transmission with a remanufactured unit for $1,000 "with Honda's help."

- Alto, MI, USA

problem #74

Jul 182008

Odyssey

  • 58,200 miles
On 07/18/2008, at about 1:30 P.M., the transmission failed on personal 2003 Honda Odyssey while wife and daughter were traveling on busy highway (southbound 163 transition to westbound 52) in san diego ca. Freeway side rails didn't allow motoring public to safely pull off freeway. Wife smelled odor of burnt oil and van began slowing down. Lucky for wife and daughter, a recreational vehicle (rv) traveling behind the van saw wife turn on emergency/hazard lights. Realizing van was in trouble on transition ramp, the rv ran interference to slow down other speeding traffic overtaking van from behind. Wife was able to coast safely off freeway to next safest opportunity to completely get off freeway. Without the help of the rv, van could've easily been rear ended due to the transmission failure. Van was towed to temecula ca and initial garage estimates are total transmission failure. Transmission needs to be replaced.

- Murrieta, CA, USA

problem #73

Jul 102008

Odyssey

  • 77,000 miles
Auto transmission failed on a 2003 Honda Odyssey Honda paid for the part, the transmission customer paid for installation.

- Mahwah, NJ, USA

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