Odyssey mileage lifespan question

I own a 1992 Dodge Caravan that has 150,000 miles on it and I have not had
any transmission troubles. I tow a small camper with it, and it has a tranny
cooler installed.
I am planning to purchase another minivan and I
am considering a 2001 Honda Odyssey with about 50,000 miles on it. When is
the expected lifespan of the Odyssey? If it is well maintained that is. I
figure I got lucky with the Caravan, but it had the tranny cooler in it from
the start. Are Honda Odyssey known to last 150,000 or more before the tranny
goes? Any information from owners appreciated.

 

I hate to say this, but in your situation you should stay far, far away
from pre-02 Odysseys. And even with an 02-04 Odyssey, don't tow.

So, no. Odysseys aren't known for going even 30K miles before the
tranny goes, not until the 05 models.

Honda really, really blew it with the auto transmissions hooked to V6
engines from model year 98 through 04, on both Accord and Odyssey (less
so on 03-04 Accords). I say that being a diehard Honda owner from way
back, and an 02 Odyssey owner. I'm holding my breath that we caught my
tranny in time with the recall, before any permanent damage was
done--but I won't be surprised if we didn't.

I also don't plan EVER to pay for ANY tranny repairs on my van. I've
been a Honda customer for too long, and a customer of my dealership
service department for too long (20 years), to allow Honda to pull this
crap on me. I put my faith in them, and they blew it. If my tranny
causes problems 150K miles from now, I won't pay. Honda will. I am
resolved on that.

 

Look at www.odyclub.com and you will see the poor performance of the Ody
transmissions.

 

: In article <zxm1e.21664$I16.7620@trndny03>,
:
: > Are Honda Odyssey known to last 150,000 or more before the tranny
: > goes?
:
: I hate to say this, but in your situation you should stay far, far away
: from pre-02 Odysseys. And even with an 02-04 Odyssey, don't tow.
:
: So, no. Odysseys aren't known for going even 30K miles before the
: tranny goes, not until the 05 models.

Some, not all. My '01 Ody has more than 41,000 miles on it and NO
transmission problems so far.
:
: Honda really, really blew it with the auto transmissions hooked to V6
: engines from model year 98 through 04, on both Accord and Odyssey (less
: so on 03-04 Accords). I say that being a diehard Honda owner from way
: back, and an 02 Odyssey owner. I'm holding my breath that we caught my
: tranny in time with the recall, before any permanent damage was
: done--but I won't be surprised if we didn't.
:
: I also don't plan EVER to pay for ANY tranny repairs on my van. I've
: been a Honda customer for too long, and a customer of my dealership
: service department for too long (20 years), to allow Honda to pull this
: crap on me. I put my faith in them, and they blew it. If my tranny
: causes problems 150K miles from now, I won't pay. Honda will. I am
: resolved on that.

Good luck.

Paul

 

Second the "some Oddys" idea. I have 78,000 on my '00 EX and no
problems with the transmission. There were some problems and Honda
notified those in the affected group they would cover the transmission
through 100,000. At least that's what my notification said.

 

You shouldn't say pre 02..... because the 98 and earlier Odysseys are great,
other than being underpowered when fully loaded. They have drivetrain
similar to 94-97 accords, and the 98's even have vtec to help a little with
the power problem.

 

--------------------------

Clearly, you already have a horseshoe . . .

I can't say about the towing part, but my neighbor had a '98 with well
over 400,000 Km on it when he sold it last summer. That's over 250,000
Miles. He never had anything out of the ordinary done to it. I believe
he got a good buck for it too, (like 3 x)compared to a Caravan of that
mileage (disposable transportation). :-(

'Curly'

 

Pardon, but the US 98 Odyssey is a far, far different beast than the 99
on up models.

There's absolutely no comparison.

You couldn't pay me to take a 99-01 Odyssey.

 

-----------------------

OOps, my mistake . . His was a '99 (second generation). Ours is a '98
with the V-tec in it.

'Curly'

 

Why does Consumer Reports give the 2nd generation Odyssey high marks if
there are tranny problems??

 

Because even when there's an acknowledged problem, it only affects a
small percentage of vehicles; even the huge Chrysler transmission
problem affected only a small percentage of those vehicles - but they're
the ones you hear about.

I have 89000 miles on my '01 Odyssey EX, and nary a hiccup; although I
paid the $800 for the extended (to 100,000 miles) warranty, in my case
it will simply have been for peace of mind. I got it because of the
large number (not percentage, mind you) of complaints I had read
concerning the automatic doors. Again, in my case, no problems whatsoever.

You can buy a Dodge and drive it a quarter of a million miles without
problems; you can buy a Honda and have thousands of dollars in repairs
and replacements before 10,000 miles. But in both cases, the odds are
pretty high against it. This is as true specifically for minivans as it
is for the general line of vehicles. As they say, your mileage may
vary. Good luck.

RFT!!!
Dave Kelsen

 

Paul and Elmo,

Have you any experiences with Honda approving and paying for repairs outside
of warranty period. I have a major concern that has happened just outside
(one month out of a 3 year warranty). I am waiting on a decision from Honda
but the dealer seems to think that there is a good chance of the repair
being covered as 'good will' and 'repeat customer management'. I will
probably stick with a honda for my next car regardless - but I would
appreciate not having to pay around $2k for a poor quality part that should
not have broken.

I have had no problems with my Honda apart from this part that broke 35 days
outside of the new car warranty period .I was never offered an extended
warranty when the vehicle reached the end of the period. I thought about it
just after I bought the car but I didn't do anything about it, out of sight
out of mind - i certainly would have bought this if I thought about it
around the end of the warranty period or was reminded about it.

Thanks - and any advise appreciated.

 

I have. Extensively. But then, I and my family are loyal Honda owners,
and loyal customers of one dealership--for many years now.

You're going in the right direction.

Word has it that the dealership service manager has latitude in OK'ing
repairs under a certain dollar amount, for regular customers. He can
make the gray area swing either way. After not paying $300 for a new
idle air control valve last week (34K miles but 6 months outside of
warranty time), I believe that.

One reason I'm the Honda customer I am today is because of some
experiences I had years ago. My then-fiance needed a car; we were both
in college, and I was on my second 79 Civic. Honda had recently replaced
the gas tank on my car (despite it having over 100,000 miles and me
being the umpteenth owner), because the tank and its straps were
designed badly and the design encouraged rust-through on the tank

Based on this great service from American Honda (through the dealer, but
it was an American Honda decision), my wife bought a 79 Civic that came
up for sale. A few months later, her gas tank exhibits the same
problems. I say, no problem, Honda fixes that. We take it to a dealer--a
different dealer, near her house--and explain the problem, tell them
that it's covered under a Honda goodwill warranty and that they should
check with Honda on this. This is on a Friday.

At 4:15pm, she calls me crying; it seems the dealer told her that her
car was ready, it would be $200. "What about the Honda warranty where
they buy the $160 gas tank and I pay only for labor?", she asked. "Oh,"
they say. "We never called Honda on that. If you want to wait until
Monday to get your car, we can call them then. Or you can get it now and
pay us the full $200."

I calm her down and call the Honda zone office nearby. Remember, this is
4:15pm on a Friday. I explain the story to the guy at Honda, and he says
"That's crap. Hold on." He puts me on hold for about 5 minutes, then
comes back and says, "Go and pick up your car, it'll cost you the $40
for labor. It's handled." We go and get the car, and the service manager
is miffed at us. "Went over our heads, didn't you?" she said. Absolutely.

I've got several stories like that. American Honda takes care of its
customers.

And that's why I know I'll never pay for any transmission repair in my
current van--because Honda knows they screwed up, and they *will* take
care of a customer who is loyal to Honda and who is loyal to the
dealership service department.

 

Elmo

Honda called me today and have agreed to pay for the new aircon compressor
and the repairs.

Well done Honda!!

 

We have an 02 Odyessy and pull a small Starcraft with a 10' box. We haven't
had any problems towing. We have the trans cooler and heavy duty power
steering cooler. We did have a recall last summer on the transmission and
the inspection showed that there was scorching due to the design not to the
towing. The whole transmission was replaced...in addition they recently
under recall install an "improved power train module". The transmission
problems are regardless of towing. We are upgrading to a 12' box w/electric
brakes a I feel comfortable pulling it with the Odyssey.

 

How many miles did you have on it at the time?

I had 30K miles on mine, and it showed absolutely no scorching (I
actually took the pictures myself, as this was my tech's first time and
he's not a camera person, so I set up the camera).

Honda said that the scorching was generally due to miles. If you had
high miles, I'd agree with you. If you had low miles, watch out...