My Accord started having the typical engine start VTC noise as described in TSB 09-010 over a year ago while I was still under warranty (60K drive train). Honda and at two other non-Honda service repair companies were never able to reproduce the noise. I finally got Honda today to reproduce it. My mileage is now over 70k and out of warranty. Honda is going to fix it under goodwill warranty where they pay half and I pay half. Total bill $800, my part will be about $400. I hope to get it back tonight.

My 08 Accord started making this loud grinding noise on cold starts and started to become more excessive during the winter months. It was confirmed that the VTC Actuator was the problem and i contacted Honda America for a solution and assistance but they denied any goodwill service because of the age and miles on my car eventhou its a common problem with every 2008 Accord 2.4l Kseries engine. Honda should of had a recall on this, My dealer was generous enough to work with me and offer a discount on the labor i payed $459 for the replacement Honda needs to stop cutting back on quality and start and start manufacturing your cars in Japan where they belong..

I bought this car certified used with 58,000 miles on it. In the last 2 years I have heard this rattling or grinding noise in cold start situations, happens about 10 times. Earlier this week it began to occur every time the car is started after sitting for several hours. This is annoying, but even more of a concern is potential engine damage caused if this part fails completely.

The local Honda dealership has done all the service on this car and since I drive 30,000 miles a year I take it in for oil changes and other scheduled maintenance every 5,000 miles. It has used oil at a rate of about 1 quart per 5,000 miles and the oil level is checked every couple of weeks. I just got off the phone with the service tech and he informed me that the repair would cost about $750 which is twice the expected cost. I asked him about any goodwill from Honda in picking up all or part of the tab. He said he would refer the matter to his supervisor.

The bottom line is that I bought this car because my previous 2006 Accord was an exceptionally good car. At 110,000 miles a drunk driver ran a red light and T-boned this car at ~45 mph. The impact totaled the car, but both occupants walked away with 1 having only a broken thumb. We owe our lives to this car.

If Honda doesn't in good faith agree to pay for at least half the cost to replace the VTC actuator I will most likely never buy another Honda.

My car is a Honda Accord 2008. The car makes a grinding noise when starting. I took it to the dealer in Montclair, CA. The maintenance specialist knew what the problem was, because I am not the first one with this complain, but he just played dumb; and he asked to leave the car overnight. I did not leave the car because I need it to go to work. I bought this piece of crap because of the Honda reputation, but I am really disappointed of the Hondas now. This car has given me too many problems; this is my first and last Honda. The quality of Honda has deteriorated. Hondas are not longer good as people used to claim.

This was my first foreign car purchased brand new in 2008. My other choice was a Ford Fusion and boy I wished I had kept with the Fords. I have never had major or annoying car trouble with Fords. The cold start on my car made grinding noises about a month after I purchased it. Then, it would do it here and there and now in 2012 it does it every morning and I bought the extended warranty because no one I know could work on it and the grinding is awful. Took it in today to Honda dealer in MN and have to leave it overnight because, of course, it only does it in the AM mostly. I told him what the problem was from reading this website and he still insisted it stay overnight. He did generously offer to give my husband a ride home. I will report back that it is the VTC actuator.

I took my car to Avery Green Honda in Vallejo CA It took me complaining for months before they figured out the problem. The problem was to be the VTC actuator,T-chain, V cover gasket which they repaired at that time under warranty. Less than a year later the grinding cold start started again I immediately called Avery Green and complained they said it was nothing that they did and sent me on my way. As the problem continued I continued to complain. finally talking with the management several times I was there recently and they said its the powers steering pump and it will cost me $600.00. I know this is false and I have no problems with my steering what so ever! I took my car to a automotive repair shop and they said it is not the power steering pump. I called Avery Green and spoke to the General manager and told him about how their shop told me false information. he states to me what do u want me to do?, I was shocked and said I will post on yelp, face book and the better business bureau. he was so rude and told me, I cant touch him he doesn't care, they can't do anything to him then he hung up. After doing some research on-line I see other problems with this actuator. I would some some help and advice on what to do.

Thank you,

First, this is my 3rd Honda Accord and several family members historically purchased Hondas. We have all started looking at other competitors since the quality has since changed. In 2011, noticed rattling sound on a cold start. Had to hackle with Honda to address because they said it was out of warranty...but this actuator related issues is something that should not really go bad. They did a good-will repair but asked me to pay 25%. Well, it started again a year later...no goodwill and had to pay full price. Well, here I am another year later and it's doing it again. Funny, every time they call to try and sell me a new Honda, I share my experience and disgust with this car but they don't seem interested in anything except selling me another Honda. No thank you--won't get another one and will share "my" experience with everyone interested. By the way, the oil consumption is mad but they say with my miles on the car, expect to change the oil a lot more frequently. Shame on you Honda!

I bought a brand new 2008 Honda Accord on December 22, 2007. This was my first new car and also my first Honda. I was hoping that it would live up to the reputation I had heard about. It was my intention to have the car for a long time and assuming things went well, be a Honda customer for life. In the spring of 2010 (around 32,000 miles) the car started making a grinding noise upon startup. It didn’t do it at every startup, but maybe once a week. As the spring went on, it became more frequent. I took it to the dealership in June to have that looked at. They told me it was a problem with the “lifters” and the oil was low. I had the oil changed (which I had just had changed but went with the recommendation. I was also told to keep an eye on the oil and the noise should go away. Well it didn’t go away, and at the same time, I found the car was consuming oil at a pace which was not normal. I began putting a quart of oil in every 1,000 miles or so. I took the car back in to the dealership six months later about the same noise. This time they said it was a Faulty VTC and to once again keep an eye on the oil. Nothing was done about the VTC, they said the car was in no danger and it should be fine. I explained I had to keep putting oil in the car and they told me that was “just something that I had to live with”. In June 2011, I took it in for two recalls. While I was there, I mentioned the noise was still going on. They said not to worry about it. Now at this point, the noise would happen every time I started the car. Sometimes it would happen as I was driving. When this was the case, it was a sign that I should check the oil. I found that I was basically adding two quarts every 4-6 weeks. On October 10, of this year, I went to start the car and it would start for an instant and then die out, as the car died out, the engine made that same grinding noise. This happened for about 15 minutes worth of tries but the car would not start. I had it towed to the dealership. They informed me later that day that the timing chain has slipped. They also said there was a very good chance there was internal engine damage and the engine needs replaced. The car is no longer under warranty, as it now has 72,000 miles, however it was under warranty all of the other times I took it in. If the dealership had caught the problem the first three times I brought it in, it could have been taken care of while under warranty.