CarComplaints.com Notes: The 1998 Honda Accord suffers from widespread transmission failure, peeling paint, & subframe rust. We recommend avoiding this model year like the plague.
The transmission begins slipping & eventually has to be replaced, typically soon after 100,000 miles & with a repair cost of over $2,000.
Peeling paint has also been a huge issue for these Accords. Most of the complaints are with darker paint colors -- especially green & blue.
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.
8.2
pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$2,490
Average Mileage:
108,650 miles
Total Complaints:
126 complaints
Most Common Solutions:
repaint entire car (66 reports)
not sure (33 reports)
Honda should fix/repaint or reimburse owners for lost value (15 reports)
to keep me as a honda owner i want re-embursement (5 reports)
The clear coat finish is peeling on the roof in about 5 spots and on a few other spots on the car. This happened fairly quickly from the first indication - within months of the first spot starting. the spots range in size from a quarter to over the size of a dollar bill.
I was getting ready to take it to the paint shop this week to have them recommend a repair.
has anyone tried GUARDIAN AUTOMOTIVE PAINT PROTECTOR? Someone recommend that - but i think that is a BEFORE remedy.
When I purchased this car my first question was about the paint as I was trading in one Honda for another and my old Honda had the same problem. I was assured that the newer Honda was made in such a manner as the paint had been dealt with and that I should not have any problems. They lied. The paint is fading on the front hood, the roof of the car, side panels as well as the trunk. I was told I must repaint the entire car in order to avoid rust from developing.
I too can't afford to repaint my car or buy a new one and it just pisses me off that I have a great car with lots of miles left that looks like crap! I bought a Honda specifically for the quality of the vehicle it is and I can't believe that the honda company is letting me down over a simple fix! REPAINT MY CAR!!!!!!!!!!!!
Paint is peeling from the roof of my 1998 green Honda Accord. The car is low mileage and kept garaged most of the time. I spoke to the service department at the Honda dealer today and they said Honda has no plans and no responsibility under the warranty to remedy the problem. He made no attempt to report the problem to Honda. While I can drive the car and it looks good (don't look at the top too closely), it will affect the resale value when I sell. This is the 3rd time we have had a Honda auto with failing paint in our family. Will I buy another Honda--not on your life!!
mine is dark blue but i got the same problem.. roof has a prety much white mark, i went to shop and they tell me because the clear cloat is starting damage, then they give me a solution to repaint whole body. they offered me $1700..... HONDA should responsible for this problem!!
- ray89,
Philadelphia, PA, US
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Having kept the car in the garage, I can't understand the problem with the paint on my GREEN 1998 Accord. Every other 1998 GREEN Accord on the road looks just as bad as mine. This is definetly a manufacture defect. Why don't they recall the vehicles? It certainly doesn't help their sales if their cars don't look good.
I've got a 1998 Honda Accord EX V6 coupe that I bought about 4 years ago. About two years ago (winter '06), I noticed that the paint on the roof of the car was peeling off. It started both in front of and on the backside of the moonroof in the center of the car. Since then, the paint on the top of the car is about gone and it is starting to peel (turn white) all around the trunk, the hood and most "edges" of the car. I have taken it to the dealership and they told me the car was most likely repainted and that whoever did the job did not do it correctly. I don't believe that the car has been repainted and that this is a factory job. Has anyone had any luck with getting Honda to accept responsibility?
The paint began peeling from our dark green 1998 Honda Accord a few years back. Recently it began peeling from the roof. It isn't just peeling, but has white splotchy marks all around where the clear coat has come off. The car drives well, but it is ugly and annoying. Frustrated that this is an obvious factory defect (look at all the complaints from this color car) and Honda is taking no responsibility.
I also have a green 1998 Honda Accord and the paint job is horrible, also bought a 2005 Accord and see no signs of paint fading just yet, but someone asked what we could do and we can file a class action lawsuit, I contacted the dealership and they told me a new paint job would start at $3,000. They have truly lost their damn mind. If enough of us get together we can get this resolved.
I am having the same problem with my 1998 GREEN Honda Accord. Almost all of the paint on the trunk, roof and hood is off of the car. It is a horrible advertisement for Honda! I too cannot afford to paint this car. It is clearly Honda's problem and Honda needs to fix it!
what is it with the dark green 98 Accords? Clear coat is peeling off all over the car. I can't afford to have a new paint job put on this car, and I also can't afford another car. If more people make Honda aware of this then maybe they will do something about it.
Anybody had any luck with Honda helping on repairing clear coat failure on 98 Honda Accords? Mine started to fail around 5 years ago on a well maintained car that I bought new and had about 50k miles on at the time I first noticed the failure starting on the trunk lid and roof.
The paint job on my green, 98 Accord is absolutely horrible. The clear coat is pealing off on the roof, hood, sides, and trunk. The only part that is not pealing is the doors. It looks horrible and I really wish the manufacturer would do something about it. This car has become an embarrassment to drive.
Our paint seems to just be disappearing from our 98 green honda accord. It has been kept in the garage so it is not due to it being parked outside. Almost EVERY Green Honda I see on the road has the same defect? Is Honda doing anything re: this issue? It is CLEARLY a defect on Honda's part. Any suggestions?
The paint problem (looks like it has been eaten away) on our 98 Accord EX started out on the backside of the roof and then has slowly over the years spread like a fungus all over the car. It's at a point were my wife just wants a new car because the appearance looks horrific.
I seem to have the same problem others report. Some random, and some very distinct, patterns of peeled clearcoat on, mainly, top surfaces of car. As others have mentioned: this is clearly a factory problem and definitely diminishes the appearance and value of the vehicle.
The clear coat is coming off of my hood the roof and now the back of the car. I went to the Honda dealership in Concord NC and they told me there was nothing they could do to help me. Every car I see this make, model and color is like mine. Is there someone we can call about this problem. I cannot afford to have my car painted but it looks awful!!! Honda should be doing something to correct this problem.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
The clear coat finish is peeling on the roof in about 5 spots and on a few other spots on the car. This happened fairly quickly from the first indication - within months of the first spot starting. the spots range in size from a quarter to over the size of a dollar bill.
I was getting ready to take it to the paint shop this week to have them recommend a repair.
has anyone tried GUARDIAN AUTOMOTIVE PAINT PROTECTOR? Someone recommend that - but i think that is a BEFORE remedy.
- Tim L., Frederick, MD, US