I BOUGHT THIS CAR USED WITH 53k MILES, ONE OWNER THINKING I'D HAVE A RELIABLE CAR FOR MY WIFE. FIRST I FOUND OUT THAT IT'S BURNING A QUART OF OIL EVERY 1K MILES WHICH IS ACCEPTABLE TO HONDA THEN I HAD TO SPEND $600 FOR A TIMING BELT SERVICE AND NOW THE TRANSMISSION DELAYS SHIFTING INTO 2ND GEAR THEN SHIFTS HARD, ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON AND THE GEAR INDICATOR FLASHES AND THE CAR WON'T MOVE! I HAVE TO SHUT THE CAR OFF AND RESTART IT TO BE ABLE TO MOVE. SOUNDS LIKE A REAL HAZARD TO ME! IT DOES DRIVE BETTER AFTER WARMING UP. NOT SO SURE I'D BUY ANOTHER HONDA AFTER THIS EXPERIENCE.

problem has been getting steadily worse - was not aware of any problems with this vehicle until a friends suggested that I check with Google - the check engine light comes all the time, and stays off kfor a while and then comes back on - several places have checked this out, but cannot find out what is the problem - some says the oil needs to be changed, some say it may have a transmission or shifter problem, some can't say - some say nothing is rong - this car has had problems shifting and lurches at times, and hesitates at times. Really need to know what is the problem with the check engine light, and what needs to be done to fix this - if there is a transmission recall.

I would appreciate any assistance that kcan be done to fix this once and for all. It would have been nice to have received anhy information int he mail about the recall - but since we have had nothing, and since the area Honda deals have told us nothing, it makes me wonder if you were trhying to sweep it under the rug................

The car has been a good commuting car for many years (I bought it used in 2004), and this is the most significant problem that has emerged. Noticed after freeway driving, and back on normal streets and stopping at red lights or stop signs, the car hesitates and jumps a bit to get into gear. Took it to certified Honda repair place (not Honda dealer) that I have been taking my Honda and cars (have had two in the past) and Toyota truck to. They are a good repair place and charge lower than the dealer (but still not cheap). Paid $110 just to have a drive the car, check trans fluids by mechanic. Report was appears to be a transmission problem but couldn't tell for sure until got into it. Est of $3,400 to repair/replace transmission (more than car is worth). I declined, and just picked up the car.

In the market for a new car, and was considering Honda, again, but with these problems and poor customer service on this known problem by Honda, will be considering other makes ( i.e. Korean & American cars) that have gotten so much better in reliability. What happened to Honda's reliability? Guess the Japanese are slipping. Sorry Honda, good bye (It's not me ....its YOU).

Richard

San Diego

My husband's Accord i sso horrible. I hate riding in it or driving it. Sometimes it has good days. Those days are becoming few and very far between. The transmission is still shifting but, it jerks badly. Mostly between 1st thru 3rd gear. Seems to jerk hardest from 2nd to 3rd. Someone mentioned solenoids possibly being the problem. We are thinking about looking into this. At this point we are just waiting for it to completely lay down on us. We have been faithful to the Honda and Acura car companies. He has owned 5 Hondas (2 were destroyed in wrecks) and I have owned 3 Hondas and 2 Acuras. We love them so much but this problem is very frustrating and disappointing.

Bought car new in 2002 and had a 7 yr extended warranty and since i drive very few miles ,the problem didnt get noticed until well into my warranty in 2006 but my car only had 22,000 miles on it!The dealership replaced it under warranty at no cost with a refurbished transmission and i was assured I'd have no problems....well less than 28,000 miles later the technician noticed what i thought i was imagining,a slipping and sloppy shifting transmission!!! In the technicians notes he stated"the transmission has a late shift from 1st -2nd and a sloppy shift from 3rd to 4th"

I spoke with the service department and he told me that the warranty was well over (even though i was only at the 50,000 mile mark and was going to need a second transmission all with no guarantee how long that would last.He told me his manager would call me but I took from his demeanor that nothing would get done on that end.I cant truly afford a new car but pouring money into what i consider a lemon will not be satisfactory either...any ideas?

in 2006 took the Honda back to the dealer-this time they found that the transmission was horrible-not good. they replaced it for nothing-however in one month I had to take the car back becasue same problem occured. They said the first re-built transmission they put in the car in Nov 2006 was no good so they put a different one in the car. Within a week the car was having sever problems again-had to take it back to the shop. When the transmissiong was changed they broke the plate in back of the transmission. They blamed me and said i had to have been in an accident for that plate to get broke. I explained it wasn't possible for me to get into an accident and have it fixed in a week and that they could check any system they wanted because I had never had an accident; They again had to fix it. So another week without my car.

took my car back-although the car has 137,000 miles on it the transmission was replaced 4 years ago by Honda four years ago so there is only 60,000 miles ont his transmission. I was assured by the Honda service that this transmission would last 200,000 miles no problem and after having my transmission replaced twice already i never imagined this would happen again. Today I took car to the dealer and they can't do anything. The mechanic was very kind and explain that due to the age of the car they couldn't do anything. He did however say that my car was in excellent shape-nothing else was a problem. Of course when the transmission is out what good is the rest of the car.

I called Honda Customer Care Center-nice CSR person I spoke with but she put me on hold to check my issue. She came back and said she couldn't do anything. She knew I was very upset becaseu I was crying. I am beyond destraught over this so she said she would send it on to the case manager. She said they could not guarantee any resolution and because of the age of the car and the mileage on the car she didn't think anythikng would be done. I asked what is the cutoff mileage and age- this is where it threw me-she said it is a case by case basis. Ok who decides which case gets fixed? How can you do case by case. I have not had a single transmission that has last for 70,000 miles-and I have had three.

Honda had a loyal family that bought Hondas for 25 years but no more. My loyalty has gotten me no where. I have been Honda's greatest cheerleader but I will no longer do that. As much as I can I will warn all not to buy Honda.

So Mad! I bought my 2002 in 2005 with 36k miles. When I hit 40k, I noticed a minimal jerking when at a stop. I took this to my mechanic, (Luis N Sons Automotive), a certified honda mechanic and was told I needed a new transmission. After a few strings were pulled, I had a brand new Honda Transmission, covered by warranty. I recently hit 120k, and my D4 light was flashing, and transmission was SLAMMING into gear and slipping.Called my mechanic, and he said I needed a new tranny. I dropped 1,800.00 to have my tranny rebuilt. Same problem with my wife's 1997 accord. I buy these cars because I need a car I can rely on for my job. I feel so embarrassed making fun of my friend that had a Toyota corrola. I also had problems with my catalytic converter, and cooling fan. WT Fin F!!!!!!!

June 2010 I took my car to the mechanic to have my transmission rebuilt. I picked it up a week later and it ran O.K for a week. At that point it started to slip and jerk again. I took it back to the same mechanic who guaranteed the job he had done for 1 yr. However,upon him diagnosing this issue he claimed it did not fall under the warranty of the transmission that it needed 2 coils replaced along with the ground wire repaired. He quoted the work at $500.00. I immediately took my car elsewhere and had it done for $40.00 (the cost of 2 coils). Another week later the slipping and jerking AGAIN. Was told it was another coil. After another week AGAIN, This time they claimed it was the brain. I was so fed up and felt like I was getting the run around. So I researched these cars and found the shift position solenoid is known to go bad so I purchased 1 and had it replaced. The car ran fine for about a month than again it started acting up. After driving at high speed on the expressway I proceeded to get off my exit and upon passing the toll could not move. My car would not go into any gear except reverse. I had to drive home from the xpressway in reverse with my 11 MONTH OLD SON! Do u know how much I could have gotten in trouble by law enforcement for this? Not to mention how extremely dangerous. Would honda have payed my traffic tix or my hospital bills if something had gone wrong? Anyway I took my car back to the mechanic who did the trans rebuild after having my car for 2weeks I picked my car up and he claimed the converter was bad (BULLSHIT). Sorry for the profanity but by this time I'm done w/mechanics. After getting my car would u believe me if I said it was STILL SLIPPING AND JERKING? Not as bad but it was. So I took it somewhere else I had never been and didn't mention the previous work done to the vehicle. Just said it was slipping and I needed it checked. He called me 2hrs later to come up and look at what he had found which was a leak through the left front axle seal,transmission fluid sprayed all under my undercarriage and after re-filling it,it will just spray out again. Supposedly this is all due to the differentials. I was quoted for this job at $3,899.00. Was told Honda is very aware of this defect. So much that they take the transmission u send in and repair it right awaynso when another defected one is sent they can send ur repaired one out as a replacement. Honda has really let me down.

Despite my reservations my dealer insisted that I service the 2002 Accord transmission every 15,000 after 35,000 which seemed ridiculous and costly but I went along with. Basically they charged me a bunch of money to keep my transmission from going out during warranty. My car apparently has an odometer discrepancy so it has closer to 98K than 101K. I had complained how the car shift and jumps when braking when cold while the car was in warranty (around 75K) but was told by my dealer that was normal. Unfortunately they did not record that on a service slip so it's my word against theirs. Now the transmission stalls in the middle of intersections, and you have to hold the brake down hard at stops to keep it from jumping into the car ahead of you when cold. The dealer wants $4300 to replace the transmission and after complaining to Honda they offered to cover part of it and get it down to $2800. All of this is bogus pricing of course because I can have a local garage that specialized in Honda's do it for around the same price and they offer the same or better warranty. When I purchased the car the salesman told me that the powertrain would last 300K with no problems as long as kept up with maintenance...... hardly. The regular maintenance on this car has been the most expensive on any that I have ever owned, with that amount of regular service this car should have lasted me to 200K with ease. I will not buy a Honda product again, their quality and reputation are a mirage and their dealers are not interested in protecting or standing up for the consumer.

My '02 Accord has had a light transmission slip problem for a few years now. Under moderate acceleration, it would lightly slip between gear changes. (Engine RPMs go high, hard shift into new gear). This also happens during a down-shift, so I never use the "passing gear" intentionally. Oddly, the problem started happening only when the engine was cold. Now it happens after it warms up as well.

This has been going on for several years now, and since the car was out of warranty when it started, I was told I needed a new transmission, or a rebuild. Since this will cost about $3k CDN, I have been babying the transmission, and it's lasted much longer than I thought. I expect that within the next year, I will no longer be able to coax her, and will either have to rebuild the transmission, or get a new car. :(

Single-owner vehicle. Leased 4 years, then bought out. Problem started around 85,000km, and car now has close to 150,000 km on it.

Update from Feb 20, 2013: It's now several years later and I have still not replaced or repaired this transmission. The problem has not become much worse than when it initially started. I attribute this to two facts:

1. When accelerating, I anticipate the shift points that cause problems and back off the accelerator. 2. When I am slowing down, and then need to accelerate again (such as a stop light that just turned green as I was braking for it), I wait a few seconds between releasing the brake and stepping on the accelerator.

As I am the only driver of this vehicle, I have "adapted" to the car. If I ever sell this car, however, the buyer will most likely need to replace / repair the transmission, lowering its resale value significantly.

I first noticed my transmission shifting sluggishly - it would hesitate, then jerk - back around 98K miles. I took it to the dealership, where they told me it was some motor mounts and that I also needed my transmission fluid flushed. Had both of these done, two weeks later my transmission fluid was a mess again. Just took it back to the dealership after the check engine light came on, and you guessed it - told me I need $3,900 transmission replacement. Seems like if there's such an obvious problem with transmissions in this model year, Honda should just fix them, or at least pitch in partially on the replacement costs.