2003 Accord EX Radio problem

The back lighting on my radio/CD player went dark. I suppose it must be a
bad connection internal to the radio?

 

Or something that has been posted and discussed here. Check the archives on
your news server or http://groups.google.com. A number of people have had
success getting Honda to cover the repair.

 

There's a bulletin on this; do a search on the various honda newsgroups,
and you'll find plenty of discussion on it.

Make the dealer replace the radio. If you're out of warranty, you *may*
have to pay the labor, but no matter what Honda will replace the radio.

 

that's not true! I've done several out of warranty that honda would
not pay for at all. A bulletin does not mean they will fix it free
forever, or even eat part of it.
Chip

 

that's not true! I've done several out of warranty that honda would
not pay for at all. A bulletin does not mean they will fix it free
forever, or even eat part of it.[/QUOTE]

But if a customer doesn't ask, then he'll NEVER get it repaired under
warranty, will he?

You forget about the goodwill warranty. You forget about the customer's
relationship with the dealership service department.

Any service manager can authorize the warranty replacement of something
like a radio all on his own, without contacting the zone rep first. It
all comes down to, does he want to?

For a solid customer, a smart manager has no problem doing this. But he
can't do it if he's never asked to do it.

ALWAYS ask on EVERY repair that seems like it shouldn't have been
required. Sometimes the answer is "no". That's perfectly OK. But
you'll never know if you don't ask.

 

I agree with Elmo but would add that after asking - argue and after that
contact Honda regional or national customer service. If the answer is
still no - and we are talking about the radio illumination problem -
save your receipts because this problem is so widespread that Honda will
eventually extend the warranty and reimburse you.

But if a customer doesn't ask, then he'll NEVER get it repaired under
warranty, will he?

You forget about the goodwill warranty. You forget about the customer's
relationship with the dealership service department.

Any service manager can authorize the warranty replacement of something
like a radio all on his own, without contacting the zone rep first. It
all comes down to, does he want to?

For a solid customer, a smart manager has no problem doing this. But he
can't do it if he's never asked to do it.

ALWAYS ask on EVERY repair that seems like it shouldn't have been
required. Sometimes the answer is "no". That's perfectly OK. But
you'll never know if you don't ask.
[/QUOTE]

 

Update

Great news Boris. Your persistance paid off!!
If you remember, mine was still in warranty, barely (35,100 miles, bought it
5 Oct 2002). I sent the dealer an email 1 Oct 05 telling them about the
radio problem, included my VIN number and referenced service bulletin
04-027, where it says "If the customer calls ahead to schedule an
appointment, and the vehicle is in the affected VIN range (mine is...all
2003 GX L4) order the remanufactured audio unit right away so it is
available when the customer comes in." I was alos goin gto take care of a
year old minor recall notice I got for 3 other things, which I was going to
ignore forever if that's all they were going to do, because I hate going to
car dealers or mechanics and wasting a half day or more of vacation time at
work. Any way, despite the service bulletin directive, they absolutely
refused to order the radio first and insisted that I would have to come in
so they could see it with their own eyes. So I got an appointment and went
there on 3 Oct 05 and they did the recall fix in about an hour or so and
said that they would order the radio and call me when it arrived. So here
it is 2 weeks later and I'm still waiting for their phone call.

And get this........the service invoice they gave me when they were finished
(no cost to me) listed the "radio unit" 39175-SDA-A11RM TUNER ASSY. RMD as
having a list price of $976.71............for a used, remanufactured radio,
with what amounts to either an 8 week or at most a 1 year warrenty. And I
thought Bose had the most overpriced radios in the world!

Then to put salt in the wound..........as I was checking out, the guy behind
the counter doing my paperwork told me that my front brakes were down to
about 1 millimeter left. That night after work I got a flashlight and
looked as best I could at the front brake pads. They sure looked like they
had a lot more than a millimeter left. Now, on a lot of cars the inside
pads wear faster than the outside pads because the two halfs of the calipers
don't slide very easily because of accumulated dirt and grime, which makes
the inner pads put more pressure on the disk than the outer pads. So the
next Saturday after I went ot and bought new pads all around, I pulled off
both front calipers and one rear caliper.

The new front pads had 10.5 mm of brake material on them, minus the 2 mm on
the inside pads where the little sheet metal "squeeler" extends up to make
noise rubbing on the rotor to let you know you are down to a couple of mm
left and ought to put new pads on. On the front dirver side there was 7 mm
of pad material left on the inside and 6.5 mm on the outside. On the front
passenger side both inside and outside had 6.0 mm left.

So, using the thinner passenger side of 6.0 mm, minus the 2 mm squeeler,
minus say 1 mm more so I don't have to listen to the squeeler until the next
weekend when I can chage the front pads........that leaves 3 mm to go, which
is conservatively 300% more than Mr. Bad Wrench the car expert behind the
service counter told me!

Since at the time I measured the pads, the car had 35,100 on it, and had
used up 4.5 mm of the available 7.5 mm (or 60%), the whole 7.5mm will be
worn down when the car hits 58,500 miles, and still have 0.5 to 1.0 mm left
before the squeelers stars rubbing. I should have cut off the squeelers.
Then I could take it down to 1 mm left at 81,900 miles. Obviusly, these
figures are different for each car, depending on your driving conditions and
habits.

BTW, the new rear pads were 8.0 mm thick. The thinnest rear pad on the car
was 4 mm thick with a 1.6 mm squeeler, leaving say 2 mm to go, which should
be at about 52,650 miles.

Also BTW, I pushed the calipers in about a millimeter to make them easier to
put back on and got no symptoms of piston sticking and overheating which is
a good sign that the piston boots are keeping the dirt out. The calipers
slid very easily too, which tells me that boots on the side pins were
keeping the dirt out too. Some cars have exposed side pins and they get
cruddy and cause the very uneven wear and result in the inner pads wearing
out much quicker than the outer pads.

So, my new friend "Mr. one millimeter left" again reinforces my decades old
habit of staying as far away as possible from car dealerships and the people
who work in those places.

This is my first trip to the dealer since I bought the car and because they
refused to honor the instructions on their own service bulletin I have to go
back again. I expect to keep this Honda (my 3rd, 2nd new one) until about
2008. I bought it because my last one was about the most reliable car I
ever owned. That 1987 Accord never had a recall. If I have to go back
there again after the radio gets replaced, my next car will be a Toyota. I
heard they are pretty reliable too.

I also got an email from Honda with a questionaire about how great there
service was or wasn't. I'm waiting to get my free used radio installed
before I give them my opinion about my two missed work half days that should
have been just one, and about the brake job they tried to sell me that I
didn't need. Reminds me of the $800+ brake job my poor sister got at the
dealer on her 99 Grand Prix about a year ago. Wonder what they get of a
rebuilt tranny.....$10 grand?

Wayne

 

Wayne L wrote:
dude, call the national customer service number and explain. remain
calm & rational. they will take care od the dealer and take care of
you. you will get your car fixed. then never return to that dealer again.