2001 Honda Odyssey transmission design flaw. Fact: The 2001 Honda Odyssey transmission was part of a class action lawsuit wherein Honda extended warranties on all 2001 Honda Odyssey transmissions to 109,000 miles. The transmission is more flawed than Honda admitted. My van is on its 4th transmission within 180,000 miles, averaging just 60,000 miles per transmission. Honda paid to replace it twice but refused the last one. My van has no towing package and has been well serviced. As a degreed engineer, I investigate the transmission problems and also had my mechanic take pictures of the inside of the tranny. Deeper investigation determined that Honda has made no significant design changes to the transmissions they used when replacing the defective original unit. This means that the same design inherent to the unit was placed back in the vehicle. Doing this means that Honda effectively put defective merchandise back in my car. In nearly every case I have investigated, the 3rd clutch pack is the failure mode for the transmission. Investigation turned out several reasons this is such a common failure. The third clutch pack gets starved for oil and heat buildup is not removed from the unit due to poor oil flow. The paths for oil flow get clogged with debris as the tranny fails. There are thousands of 2000-2002 Honda Odyssey like mine with multiple failures of the transmission. Honda has left my family stranded, risked their life in a "lurch" into traffic and stolen my residual value in trying to sell this vehicle.

- Katy, TX, USA

At 99K miles my transmission was replaced by Honda dealership. At 143K the transmission failed again. The check engine and tcs light went on and remained on. The car would rev but there was no power. After letting it rest car would regain power, but soon power would be lost again. I was able to get it to a mechanic who said it was my transmission, but I hoped it just needed a transmission fluid flush so I had that done. Nope. Car continued to lose power so I had it towed to the dealer who originally replaced the transmission 3 years prior. They confirmed the diagnosis as a failed transmission (after only 43K miles).

- Brighton, MA, USA

2001 Honda Odyssey transmission failed on garden state parkway. The check engine light and tcs light came on followed by erratic shifting, then complete failure. Fortunately I was able to get to a safe place on the side of the highway since I had my family of 4 in the car under very heavy traffic. I then had to get towed to the dealership. The original transmission on this vehicle failed in February 2008 at approximately 80,000 miles. It was replaced under Honda's extended warranty on the transmission. So the new transmission replaced by Honda was 2 years old with 49,000 miles. American Honda offered no assistance in this instance and said there decision is based on the age and mileage of my vehicle not the age or mileage of the new defective transmission that they put in. There response on that was that it is irrelevant since I didn't pay for it. This is not acceptable sooner or later someone will get hurt. Failure came with no prior warning.

- Cedar Grove , NJ, USA

I have a 2001 Honda Odyssey and one week after purchasing it in 2007 my transmission went out and it had to be replaced. Today as we were driving the transmission went out again. The new transmission that replaced the bad one only has 40,000 miles on it. I have been researching this problem and have found out that Honda knows about this problem, but is not willing to fix the problem correctly and that leaves the consumer to continue to replace the transmissions at a high cost. I do not have the money to replace this transmission but I also do not have the money to buy a new car. This car Transport my family of 5 and is now sitting at a shop. Something has to be done about this problem and it needs to be taken care of asap. Honda is the only car I would ever buy, until now and it seems that everyone having these issues feels the same way. So when is something going to be done" is it going to be when there are fatalities due to the transmission failing during rush hour and you can't move it" thank god we could coast to safety, but it could have been fatal. I certainly hope you are not waiting for this to happen.

- Massillon, OH, USA

The contact owns a 2001 Honda Odyssey. While driving at 50 mph, the vehicle stopped accelerating and came to a stop without warning. The engine continued running, yet the contact was unable to shift into any gear or accelerate. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where the contact was advised that the transmission failed and would need to be replaced. The manufacturer would not provide any assistance. The failure and current mileage was 177,000.

- Jacksonville, FL, USA

The contact owns a 2001 Honda Odyssey. While traveling at relatively low speed of 5 mph, the vehicle would not accelerate and the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to both an independent mechanic and the dealer. Neither was able to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 114,000 and the current mileage was 119,000.

- West Friendship, MD, USA

Odyssey 2001 suffered transmission failure in 2005 under 7-years warranty and less than 100,000 miles and Honda dealer failed to replace transmission. Owner of vehicle was not notified for recall and ability to file complaints with NHTSA during recall process. On February 14, 2010 vehicle stopped on middle of highway and owner was forced to push vehicle on shoulder despite of disability condition to avoid collision. Car was towed to dealer who quoted for $5,000 to replace transmission. It was discovered vehicle VIN #[xxx] is not in Honda manufacturer's database for recall because of inability of registered owner to file a complaint during recall process. This complaint is relevant to ODI#10335008 that I believe recorded inaccurate. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Pittsburg, CA, USA

2001 Honda Odyssey downshifts unexpectedly. As I was traveling down the highway, the Honda downshifted sharply and then I felt like I was driving in neutral. I tried to get off the highway carefully without being able to accelerate. I had several cars almost hit me because I could not accelerate and dropped speed quickly. I drove to a mechanic and he said my transmission was blown. I called Honda and they did have a recall on this issue, but they told me that I would not be covered because it had to be under 109,000 miles. Honda has known about this problem all along and have had class action law suits against them regarding this very same issue. They will do nothing. I feel that this is a safety issue for Honda owners and this company is just waiting for someone to die.

- Dighton, MA, USA

The contact owns a 2001 Honda Odyssey. While driving at 60 mph, the vehicle suddenly stalled. The contact pushed to the vehicle to the side of the road and had it towed to an authorized dealership who stated that the failure was within the transmission. The vehicle was then taken to a local repair shop where the transmission was replaced. The failure mileage was approximately 155,000. The current mileage was approximately 156,000. Updated 07/26/10. The consumer stated this is the second time he has experienced transmission failure. The first time, the torque converter was replaced. The consumer was informed his vehicle was not included in the recall. Updated 08/31/10

- Pittsburg, CA, USA

The contact owns a 2001 Honda Odyssey. While traveling at 40 mph, the contact attempted to accelerate yet the vehicle would not respond. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the transmission was replaced. In addition, prior to the failure the contact noticed that the vehicle had began to drive in a sluggish manner. The failure mileage was 175,000 and the current mileage was 200,000.

- Sumerton, SC, USA

My 2001 Honda Odyssey failed to up shift while I am entering a highway, almost causing a crash with the big rig behind me. My mechanic told me the transmission failed at 95K miles and had to be rebuild. I also find many similar reports on the internet about Honda Odyssey's transmission failure. Seems like there is a quality issue regarding Honda Odyssey's transmission.

- Wilmette, IL, USA

The transmission failed today (May 24, 2010) on my 2001 Honda Odyssey for the second time at 97,000 miles. I was on the highway when it failed. It was a challenge but I was able to pull off the road into a gas station. Very dangerous experience. I contacted american Honda and they refused to replace the transmission (despite a 2nd failure). First failure occurred at 43,000 miles.

- Marietta, GA, USA

Transmission defect. While driving, the D4 indicator on the instrument panel flashes. An abnormally loud noise from the transmission. D4 indicator. Extremely slow or delayed gear engagement, upshifts, or downshifts. Abnormal gear slippage during upshifts or downshifts. Erratic or excessively harsh shifting. Automatic transmission fluid (atf) leaks. Tcs light comes on.

- North Lauderdale, FL, USA

Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) Honda Odyssey 2001 VIN [xxx] days ago I was driving on the 3rd line of a busy highway when I felt my rpms going very high and my car was slowing down, I didn't know what was happening !!; even that the van was accelerated it was not moving. I had to put my emergency lights and find my way out to the side line. I will tell you it is very scary to start loosing power and having others cars full speed behind you. Lucky me I didn't cause an accident and nobody was hurt. When I started looking at prices and information, in the internet I found out that Honda knows about the problem and they even lost a legal battle in 2006 for the same reasons. They know that this 2001 Honda Odyssey falls into the bad batch. At that time they extended the warranty to 109,000 and 93 months. My van has 102,000 miles but is out of the 93 months. My question to Honda and to NHTSA, if you know that there is a problem, also you should agree that this problem could cause some accidents, why wait until somebody has an accident and dies. Why was there never a recall? today I called the dealer and they offered me a deal, from 4K to $3,000 (oh! what a deal- I could buy another 2001 van for just a little more). I called an independent auto repair and they will charge me $2,200 to repair the transmission, so where is the real deal from Honda". another question, can we sue Honda again for not fixing the problem which they already recognized they had a problem back in 2006 but didn't do a recall. Even if I fix my transmission I have been reading that people have had to change their transmission 3 times in 100,000 miles. From where are we supposed to get the money? where is the government to enforce and control this kind of abuse"

- Montgomery, TX, USA

2001 Honda Odyssey. Consumer states transmission malfunctions and dissatisfaction with Honda dealer. Consumer requests reimbursement for repairs. The consumer stated the transmission didn't switch gears smoothly and it made noises. Five months later, there was a weird vibration above 35 mph. The noises were still persistent, the D4 light was flashing, the check engine and tsc lights were flashing. The dealer performed some work on the front suspension. October 18, 2006 the transmission slipped from 3rd to 2nd gear while driving. The dealer advised the consumer a new transmission was needed which would cost $4,200. The dealer recommended a transmission flash since the consumer refused to pay for a transmission replacement. After the flush, the vehicle seemed to perform much better. However, occasional gear slipping and noise from the transmission could be heard from time-to-time. Novemebr 27, 2007 the vehicle became sluggish, the transmission slipped while driving, the check engine and tsc lights were flashing, there were noises coming from the transmission. While driving on the highway, the transmission downshifted and the consumer almost had an accident and the check engine and tsc lights illuminated again.

- Memphis, TN, USA

2001 Honda Odyssey purchased in 2003 from 1st owner -- did not receive any notice of class action suit regarding faulty transmission - now have 150K miles and transmission failing -- stops in traffic - dealership and usa Honda non-cooperative with regard to good will assistance or otherwise --.

- Owensboro, KY, USA

I have a 2001 Honda Odyssey that I purchased used in 2008. I was at a stop sign, on an incline when my Odyssey started rolling backwards. Thankfully there was no one behind me and I used the emergency brake to stop the rolling. I was able to coast backwards down the hill until I found a driveway to turn around in. On the way home the car jerked and jumped when I tried to accelerate.

- Dothan, AL, USA

2001 Honda Odyssey, 139,000 miles - check engine light and tcs light came on and transmission was slipping. Technician said transmission was bad and needed to be replaced. Not covered under warranty. Van accelerated whiled applying brakes and trying to turn. Hard shifts. Slow shifts. Very dangerous at intersections because van sometimes does not accelerate while trying to turn. Research into problem reveals Honda knows there is a problem with the transmissions in these vans but refuses to do anything about it. We Transport 3 children in our van. Appears to be a very dangerous situation. It's time for something to be done. Will it take someone being killed in a Honda Odyssey - with known transmission problems - before anything is done about it. It's time to step in and hold Honda responsible before the unthinkable happens. They will not listen to individual owners. We need your help. Please.

- Anderson, SC, USA

Brought my 2001 Honda Odyssey ex to my local midas shop to have a scan performed because of an error message. I was told that the code came back showing that there is a transmission defect in the car. I have since found out that there have been wide spread transmission defects on my car's model year. So much so that Honda felt pressured to lengthen the warranty of the transmission coverage. It turns out that my car was well within to allotted miles to be covered by the warranty, but was 9 months beyond.

- Fredonia, NY, USA

Automatic tranny, difficulty shifting and ongoing issue with downshifting very suddenly while slowing down. Honda extended the warranty to 109,000 miles, issue began at 111,000 miles. How many complaints are needed before action is taken for S company making a faulty unsafe product. Currently researching a fix. Replacement.

- Lititz, PA, USA