CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2003 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 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 was replacing 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.
1.2
hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
150,000 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.
Purchased 2003 Honda Accord used from Toyota dealership October 2005. Noticed strange sound coming from vehicle and gears would shift strangely within a year later. Took Honda according to dealership for servicing and questioned sound several times, Honda insist it was other items that was wrong with vehicle but never referenced transmission. Gears on car started slipping and the shift changing got worse as if it did not want to shift into 2nd gear. As I was driving on interstate, car stop pulling and when I would push the gas, the engine would rev up and the RPM would basically go off the meter (high). Car would not pull in drive or reverse, as if it was in neutral. When checking transmission fluid, it was greatly discolored (black). I turned car off and restarted car and was able to get car to pull before jerking strongly then going back in the rev engine/not pulling state. Because the failure did not occur near dealership and dealership mechanics was closed, I had to have car towed to a transmission specialist who informed me that there was chipping in the transmission (the dark discoloration) and overheating which in turn caused major damage to the transmission. Transmission had to be rebuilt, and the torque, pump and other transmission parts had to be replaced. Transmission specialist did state that the recall was either not done, parts were faulty, or service wasn't sufficient and did cause the long term transmission failure
- Lithia Springs, GA, USA
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- Lithia Springs, GA, USA