CarComplaints.com Notes: The 1999 Honda Accord suffers from widespread transmission failure, subframe rust, engine shuts off while driving, & peeling paint. 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.
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.
Engine stalling while driving in the 1999 Accord is typically caused by a defective ignition switch -- inexpensive to repair (under $200) but dangerous.
Peeling paint has also been an issue for these Accords. Most of the complaints are with darker paint colors -- especially green & blue.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
56,988 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.
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 45 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The failure occurred on numerous occasions. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, who diagnosed that ignition switch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The approximately failure mileage was 110,000. D
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. The contact stated that while driving 55 mph the vehicle lost power as unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was placed into park and turned off. The vehicle was restarted three minutes later and resumed normal operations. The failure occurred on ten different occasions. The manufacturer was contacted and did not provide a remedy. A local mechanic diagnosis on the vehicle was that the ignition switch was faulty and needed to be repaired. There were no repairs completed on the vehicle. The failure mileage was 191,000 and the current mileage was 194,000.
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. The contact stated that while driving 45 mph, the vehicle stalled and the engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart after four attempts. After restarting the vehicle, the vehicle decelerated in speed and stalled. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the ignition switch needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 106,960 and the current mileage was 106,660.
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled without any warning. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who diagnosed that the ignition switch was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 100,000 and the current mileage was 150,000. Updated 08/28/12 updated 08/29/12
The engine shut off twice on that day while I was driving. Fortunately, there was no accident but might have been in a serious accident. I searched the internet and found out some old Honda models had these kind of problems and it was caused by a defected ignition switch. I contacted a local Honda dealer but there was no active recall regarding of this problem. I got my ignition switch replaced in a mechanic shop.
- Princeton, NJ, USA
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The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. The contact stated that the vehicle suddenly stalled while driving 50 mph. The contact had to pull over to the side of the road and restart the vehicle. The contact replaced the spark plugs, spark plug wires, distributor cap, and the fuel pump. None of the repairs remedied the failure. The contact did not take the vehicle to a dealer or mechanic. The contact noticed a recall associated with NHTSA campaign id number 02V120000 (electrical system:ignition:switch) and notified the manufacturer. The manufacturer stated that the vehicle was not included in the recall due to the VIN number. The failure mileage was 105,000. Updated 06/06/12 the consumer stated that the car may start one day, but not start the next day. Updated 06/07/12
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord LX. The contact stated that while braking to a complete stop, the vehicle stalled with the illumination of all of the instrument panel warning lights. The contact was the able to turn the vehicle as it resumed normal operation. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where it was diagnosed as needing the ignition switch replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 147,000. Updated 05/11/12 updated 05/15/12
1999 Honda Accord. Consumer states vehicle had a power surge and RPM, speedometer and oil gauges went to zero then flickered back on the consumer stated after having the distributor replaced, the same problem happened again one day later, only the vehicle stalled. The consumer stated with no where to pull off, she placed the gear in neutral, tapped the reverse and completely damaged the reverse gear. The repairs were made to the vehicle. However, the vehicle stalled again. The consumer did some research and discovered a recall, but it was supposedly fixed once before. An inspection revealed the ignition switch was faulty. The consumer stated there was nothing ever wrong with the distributor or the reverse gear, but it was the ignition switch that was the problem all along.
The NHTSA should be aware that Honda has failed to notify many Accord owners of a potentially dangerous problem, namely, an ignition switch that may cause their cars to quit at any time and at any speed. NHTSA recall 02V120000 of May 16, 2002 included the 1997-1999 Accord; however, Honda claims many of these Accord, including ours, were excluded due to their vins and will not replace the switches without charge. Our 1999 Accord ex recently experienced this problem and examination of the old switch (photos included in a letter to the NHTSA) showed that deterioration of the switch contacts caused the switch to reach a temperature sufficient to melt the solder on the V+ white wire/switch bond. Replacement of the switch remedied the problem. When the switch fails the car quits immediately and the driver is left with no option other than to pull to the side of the road -- which at high speed and in congested traffic may lead to a serious/deadly collision. Updated 08/17/11.
1999 Honda Accord. Consumer writes in regards to a safety recall notice for an ignition interlock the consumer took the vehicle to the dealer to have the recall repair completed. However, the dealer encountered a problem when the key became stuck in the ignition and they had to wait for a shop foreman to research the issue. The dealer informed the consumer that since the key was stuck in the ignition, they were going to charge him 2 hours of labor to diagnose the problem. The consumer stated that should have been included in the recall since the problem was apparently related to them trying to fix the ignition. The dealer informed the consumer there was a pre-existing issue with the shifter and that the 2 free hours no longer applied. The dealer later contacted the consumer and informed him the cost would be $650 to replace the shifter mechanism.
Consumer writes in regards to a Honda switch recall the consumer stated there was a recall on his vehicle to replace the ignition switch because it was defective and it could cause the engine to stop. The consumer stated the engine had been stalling for a number of years, but only when the vehicle was at a complete stop. However, within the past month, the vehicle stalled as he was driving. The consumer took the vehicle to the dealer only to be told the part had already been replaced. Therefore, they were no longer claiming any responsibility. The consumer had to pay for the repairs.
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. The vehicle would stall or the contact had trouble starting it during hot weather conditions. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the contact was advised to replace the electrical system. The vehicle was not repaired. Approximately 2 years later the vehicle began to stall while driving approximately 55 mph in cold weather. Upon restarting the vehicle, the contact was able to continue driving. The manufacturer stated that the vehicle was not included in the recall associated with NHTSA campaign id number 02V120000, electrical system:ignition:switch. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 68,972 and the current mileage was 88,972.
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. While driving the vehicle at 35mph and other various speeds the engine would cut off. There were no warning lights before vehicle shut off. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated the ignition switch was the cause of the failure. There was a recall NHTSA#02V120000; component: Electrical system: Ignition: Switch but the dealer informed him his VIN was not included in the recall. The cost for the repairs would be $600. The manufacturer was called and also informed him his VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was 80,000. Updated 12/29/10 updated 01/03/11
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. The contact was driving 25 mph when the vehicle stalled without any warning. The contact was able to restart the vehicle after several minutes. Th dealer performed a diagnostic on the vehicle and discovered that the ignition switch was faulty. The ignition switch was replaced. The contact referenced NHTSA campaign id number: 02V120000 (electrical system:ignition:switch ) and was advised by the manufacturer that his VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was 205,000.
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. The contact stated that his vehicle had a faulty ignition switch. The vehicle would not start after he made several attempts repositioning the key. Once he got the vehicle started he drove to the dealer but his vehicle was not included in the recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The Honda manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 224,000.
Engine to stall without warning, increasing the risk of a crash. Upon investigation, I discovered on the internet that there was a recall notice issued for this exact item in June 2002 (and the recall item was fixed by previous owner in October 2002. The dealer and Honda of America both told me that if the recall had been completed, they are no longer responsible, even though evidently the repair has the same defect originally identified in the recall. Below is a copy of the recall notice: Recalls for the 1999 Honda Accord electrical & lights: Electrical system:ignition:switch campaign number: 02V120000 dates manufactured: 05/1998 to 08/1999 number of vehicles affected: 1,000,000 model years affected: 1997, 1998, 1999 date owner notified: 06/2002 defect summary: On certain sedans, coupes, hatchbacks, and sport utility vehicles, electrical contacts in the ignition switch can degrade due to the high electrical current passing through the switch when the vehicle is started. Consequence summary: Worn contacts could cause the engine to stall without warning, increasing the risk of a crash. Corrective summary: Dealers will replace the ignition switch. Owner notification began June 14, 2002. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact Honda at 1-800-999-1009 1-800-999-1009 or Acura at 1-800-382-2238 1-800-382-2238. Recall notes: Customers can also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-dash-2-dot 1-888-dash-2-dot (1-888-327-4236 1-888-327-4236 ).
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. The contact was driving approximately between 55-65 mph when the engine stalled without warning. The vehicle was towed to his residence. The vehicle was driven after the first failure occurred and the failure continued to occur intermittently. The contact stated that NHTSA recall campaign id number 02V120000 (electrical system: Ignition: Switch) was related to the failure; however, the dealer and manufacturer informed him that his VIN was excluded from the recall. The contact experienced the identical failures as mentioned in the recall. The vehicle had not been repaired when the complaint was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 125,000.
Occasionally the car has died while driving on city streets or interstate. The tach drops immediately to zero and I think all or most of the dash lights come on like they would with the key in the start position. When I try to restart the car, it starts and runs for about one second then dies again. Sometimes, it will take four or more attempts before it will keep running like normal. It does this when the car is cold or hot and has done this in intersections. There was a recall for this problem (NHTSA no. 02V120000) for 1999 Honda Accord, but Honda says my VIN was not included, therefore I am not covered.
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. While driving at 35 mph, the vehicle suddenly lost power. The contact referenced recall 02V120000 (electrical system:ignition:switch) when he called the manufacturer but was informed that the vehicle was not included. The contact called the dealership but was offered no assistance. The contact also stated that when the vehicle was in gear, the key was able to be taken out of the ignition. The contact was awaiting a callback from the dealer for a possible solution. The current and failure mileages were approximately 85,000. Updated 10/27/10.
The contact owns a 1999 Honda Accord. While the contact was driving approximately between 35-40 mph the engine stalled without warning. The vehicle restarted and continued normally. The failure occurred intermittent. The authorized dealer was notified where the technician stated there was a prior recall repair performed under NHTSA campaign id number 02V120000 (electrical system: Ignition: Switch). The failure was related to the recall defect. However, the remedy repair was insufficient. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Washington, DC, USA