2003 Honda Pilot Power Train

I HAVE A 2003 HONDA PILOT THAT IS HAVING TRANSMISSION PROBLEM. IT IS SLIPPING GEARS AND BOGS WHILE DRIVING. I HAVE NOTICE THAT THEIR WAS A RECALL ON THIS CAR ANDI GUESS IT WAS TAKEN CARE OF BUT THE PROBLEM STILL EXIT.

MY 2004 HONDA PILOT MAKES A LOUD RATTLING OR VIBRATING NOISE THAT I CAN FEEL WHEN THE CAR IS GOING ABOUT 35 - 60 MPH. I NOTICE IT DAILY ON MY WAY TO AND FROM WORK. SINCE I LIVE WHERE THERE IS NO HONDA DEALER NEARER THAN 150 MILES, I'VE ASKED LOCAL MECHANICS TO TRY TO DETERMINE THE SOURCE OF THE VIBRATION. I'VE FOUND OUT THAT THE PROBLEM MAY BE A BAD TORQUE CONVERTER, AND WILL BE QUITE COSTLY TO REPAIR. *TR

MY CAR HAD A TRANSMISSION RECALL NOTICE IN 2004. I TOOK THE CAR IN JULY 2004 AND SUPPOSEDLY THE PROBLEM WAS CORRECTED. HOWEVER, AFTER THAT TIME, MY CAR SEEMED TO DOWNSHIFT VERY ROUGHLY AND WAS JERKY WHEN PUTTING INTO GEAR. LAST YEAR MY TRANSMISSION LOCKED UP WHILE GOING DOWN A HILL. WHILE, THE CAR BEHIND ME DID NOT HIT ME, MY ABRUPT HALT CAUSED AT LEAST 3 CARS BEHIND ME TO REAR END EACH OTHER. I HAD THE TRANSMISSION REPLACED BUT I AM STARTING TO FEEL SOME OF THE OLD SHIFTING ISSUES AGAIN. I'M HOPING IT DOESN'T DIE. *TR

2003 HONDA PILOT TRANSMISSION FAILURE AT 90000. SEEMS THAT THE RECALL FIX DID NOT WORK. JUST DO AN INTERNET SEARCH AND YOU WILL SEE HOW MANY OF US HAVE HAD TO PAY THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS FOR HONDA TRANSMISSIONS. SECOND TO THIRD GEAR IS THE PROBLEM. YOU DID FORCE THEM TO RECALL THE ODYSSEY PROBLEM IT IS TIME FOR ACTION FOR US PILOT OWNERS. *TR

CONSUMERS 2003 HONDA PILOT AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FAILED. CONSUMER FOUND AN AFFORDABLE AUTO SHOP AND LEARNED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS UNDER WARRANTY WHEN THE INFORMATION WAS PROVIDE TO HONDA CONSUMER WAS DENIED WARRANTY SERVICE. A MECHANIC INFORMED THE CONSUMER, THERE WAS A RECALL ON THE VEHICLE, REGARDING THE TRANSMISSION IN RELATION TO THE SECOND GEAR, THE CONSUMER STATED HE WAS NOT AWARE OF ANY RECALLS ON THE VEHICLE, AS A NOTICE NEVER CAME IN THE MAIL. THE MECHANIC CONFIRMED THE VEHICLE MET THE RECALL OUTLINED IN THE NOTICE HE FOUND ONLINE. HONDA INFORMED THE CONSUMER THE CLAIM WAS DENIED BECAUSE THE PROBLEM DID NOT MEET THE RECALL REQUIREMENTS ISSUED IN 2004. ACCORDING TO THE INVOICE, THE TRANSMISSION DIAGNOSIS STATED THE TRANSMISSION OVERHEATED. IT ALSO STATED A LIST OF PARTS THAT WERE REPLACED ON THE VEHICLE, MAINLY THE SECONDARY SHAFT 2ND GEAR AND THE COUNTER SHAFT 2ND GEAR. *JB

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HONDA PILOT. WHILE DRIVING 35 MPH THE TRANSMISSION STARTED TO SLIP. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND THE VEHICLE BECAME DIFFICULT TO ACCELERATE. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER WHO STATED THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CONTACT IS FAMILIAR WITH NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS REGARDING THE TRANSMISSION FAILURE. THE CONTACT IS CONCERNED ABOUT THE SAFETY RISK SINCE THE LACK OF ACCELERATION COULD CAUSE A CRASH. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 95,000.

2004 HONDA PILOT, TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS!!! HONDA SAID WE NEED TO REPLACE YOUR TRANSMISSION... WE HAD A FLASHING D LIGHT FOR MANY YEAR ON & OFF AGAIN... THEY SAID THE RECALL WAS DONE.. MY REPAIR RECORD AS FOLLOWS: HONDA WEST AUGS 1/2003 A INTERMEDIATE MAINTENANCE, THROTTLE BODY SERVICE, REAR DIFFERENTIAL SERVICE, AC REPLACE VENTILATION FILTERS, INVOICE TOTAL PAID BY US $353.10. 10/03/2006 HAD FRONT BRAKES DONE AT STAR IMPORT SERVICE, THEY NOTED {NO CODES STORED FOR ENGINE OR TRANSMISSION. POSSIBLY CLEARED @ DEALER ???) 08/13/2007 STAR IMPORTS SERVICE TO CHECK TRANS LIGHT FLASHES ON SOMETIMES, THEY SCAN TRANSMISSION FOR CODE AND STATED ON INVOICE NONE PRESENT..02/18/2009 HONDATRONICS SERVICE, CHECK TRANSMISSION OPERATION, CHANGED TRANSMISSION FLUID TWICE, WE PAID 198.13.. JUNE 16, 2009 CHECK D LIGHT FLASHING.. IT IS NOW 10/2009 AND D LIGHT IS FLASHING AGAIN AND WE ARE TOLD WE NEED A NEW TRANSMISSION. *TR

2003 HONDA PILOT LX 5 SPEED AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SLIPPING AND CHANGING GEARS ON ITS OWN WITHOUT WARNING. TRANSMISSION FAILURE. *TR

200 HONDA PILOT... TRANSMISSION HAS BEEN SLIPPING... HOLDING GEAR BEFORE LURCHING TO NEXT GEAR... SAME WITH SLOWING DOWN... PRETTY ALARMING... WAS TOLD THAT I NEED A NEW TRANSMISSION AT A COST OF AROUND $3000... CAR ONLY HAS 88,000 MILES ON IT... VERY FRUSTRATING... HONDA SHOULD REPLACE THESE ON THEIR DIME. *TR

FOR THE PAST 6 MONTHS, I AM HAVING THIS BLINKING "D" LIGHT ON THE TRANSMISSION WHILE DRIVING ON MY 2003 HONDA PILOT SUV. I BELIEVED THIS HAS TO DO WITH THE PREMATURE FAILURE OF THE TRANSMISSION THAT COULD CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY TO PASSENGERS AND YET THERE IS NO RECALL YET BY HONDA AMERICA TO ALERT THE OWNERS OF THIS SERIOUS DEFECTIVE TRANSMISSION PROBLEM ON THIS 2003 HONDA PILOT CAR. *TR

TRANSMISSION WAS SLOW TO TRANSITION TO 3RD GEAR WHILE GOING APPROX. 30-35 MPH. A FEW DAYS LATER, THE "D" LIGHT STARTED FLASHING, BUT WHEN CAR WAS TURNED OFF, IT DID NOT GO ON AGAIN. TOOK IT TO MY MECHANIC THINKING IT WAS A "3RD SWITCH" ISSUE I HAD READ ABOUT ON CAR SITES. MY MECHANIC SAID ONE SOLENOID WAS COLD, WHILE ANOTHER WAS HOT. HE TOOK IT TO THE DEALER TO RUN THE CODES AND GET A SECOND OPINION. THE DEALER SAYS IT NEEDS A NEW TRANSMISSION. MY MECHANIC PICKED THE CAR UP AND ON THE WAY BACK, IT STARTED SHIFTING FROM 4TH TO 1ST OR 2ND GEAR ON THE HIGHWAY. HE SAID HE ALMOST SMACKED HIS HEAD ON THE WINDSHIELD IT JERKED SO HARD. THIS MARKS A VERY RAPID DECLINE OVER LESS THAN A WEEK AND AFTER MY MECHANIC THOUGHT THE ISSUE WAS NOT THE TRANSMISSION. I BELIEVE THE CAR WAS PART OF THE 2004 TRANSMISSION RECALL WHICH WAS SERVICED BY A HONDA DEALER. *TR

2003 HONDA PILOT TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED. CONSUMER REQUEST A REFUND FOR THE TRANSMISSION WORK THAT WAS A SAFETY RECALL. *NJ THE CONSUMER STATED THERE WAS NO REVERSE GEAR AND THE VEHICLE JERKED WHEN SWITCHING THE GEAR FORWARD. THE DEALER DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS INTERNAL TRANSMISSION FAILURE. *JB

TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS, SLIPPING NOT GOING INTO SECOND GEAR, EXPERIENCED INTERMITTENTLY, BROUGHT IN FOR REPAIR IN MAY 2009 DEALER COULD NOT FIND A PROBLEM. TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS INCREASED IN JUNE, "D" LIGHT FLASHING, SLIPPING NEAR ACCIDENT TRYING TO PULL INTO TRAFFIC AND TRANSMISSION DID NOT ENGAGE ENGINE JUST REVVED; DEALER REPLACED A PART FOR $800. TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS INCREASING IN FREQUENCY, MORE SLIPPING NOT GOING INTO GEAR MORE NEAR ACCIDENTS PULLING INTO TRAFFIC, DEALER NOW NOTICES PROBLEM, DEALER SAYS WE NEED A NEW TRANSMISSION. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HONDA PILOT. WHILE DRIVING BETWEEN 15-20 MPH ON NORMAL ROAD CONDITIONS, THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION HESITATED INTERMITTENTLY WHEN SHIFTING FROM FIRST TO SECOND GEAR. THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT TRANSMISSION SHOP FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THERE WERE MECHANICAL FAILURES IN THE TRANSMISSION. THROUGH ONLINE RESEARCH, THE CONTACT DISCOVERED NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 04V176000 (POWER TRAIN;AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION). THE AUTHORIZED DEALER WAS NOTIFIED AND STATED THAT THERE WAS AN EARLIER RECALL REPAIR PERFORMED ON THE VEHICLE IN 2004; HOWEVER, IT HAS NOT CORRECTED THE FAILURE ADDRESSED IN THE SAFETY RECALL. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 81,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 82,000. UPDATED 6/01/09 *CN UPDATED 06/02/09.*JB

NHTSA RECALL CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 04V176000 THIS RECALL WAS PERFORMED ON MY VEHICLE, NOW THE VEHICLE HAS STARTED SLIP AND SHIFT HARD, THE VEHICLE HAS HAD ISSUES WITH THE "D" FLASHING DURING NORMAL DRIVING CONDITIONS, BUT RESETS WHEN THE CAR IS SHUT OFF. I'M AFRAID THAT THE AS STATE ON THE RECALL CONSEQUENCE: QUOTE: "GEAR FAILURE COULD RESULT IN TRANSMISSION LOCKUP, WHICH COULD RESULT IN A CRASH." I DID SOME RESEARCH ABOUT THIS AND THERE SEVERAL HUNDREDS IF NO THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WITH THIS ISSUE. *TR

2003 HONDA PILOT 140K MILES. TRANSMISSION SLIPS OUT OF GEAR WHEN ACCELERATING. THE "D" INDICATOR BEGAN TO FLASH THEN THE CAR WOULD ACT LIKE A MANUAL TRANSMISSION TRYING START FROM A DEAD STOP IN 4TH GEAR. *TR

TRANSMISSION FAILED TO ENGAGE NEXT GEAR SLIPPING. WAS MERGING HIGHWAY TRAFFIC AND HARDLY AVOIDED ANOTHER CAR COMING FROM BEHIND ME. SEEN OTHER CUSTOMERS COMPLAINING ON 2003-2004 PILOT TRANSMISSIONS FAILS SAME WAY SOON AFTER 100KMILES. *TR

2003 HONDA PILOT. 2ND GEAR GOING OUT. SEEMS TO HAVE CHIPPED TEETH ON GEAR. I CONTACTED HONDA. THEY TOLD ME THAT MY PILOT HAD ALREADY BEEN LOOKED AT BACK IN 2004. MY MECHANIC SAYS THAT THIS IS WITHOUT A DOUBT A DIRECT RESULT OF ORIGINAL RECALL ON THIS MODEL. THIS ALL BEGAN WITH MY "D" FLASHING. NOW MY SECOND GEAR IS GRINDING AND ABOUT TO O OUT. *TR

OUR 2003 HONDA PILOT'S (WITH 85,000 MILES) CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON APPROXIMATELY 6/1/09. WE RECENTLY JUST PURCHASED THIS PILOT AND ARE THE SECOND OWNERS. THE CAR WAS BOUGHT AND SERVICED AT THE LOCAL HONDA DEALERSHIP RIGHT UP UNTIL WE BOUGHT IT. ANYHOW, WE WERE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AND THE CAR BEGAN TO DOWNSHIFT AND THE CAR SLOWED DOWN RATHER VIOLENTLY AS WE PULLED OFF ON THE EXIT RAMP. THE REST OF THE DRIVE HOME THE TRANSMISSION WAS SHIFTING AND DOWN-SHIFTING QUITE ROUGHLY. WHERE IT GETS REALLY INTERESTING WAS THAT THIS VEHICLE HAD A RECALL ON THE TRANSMISSION IN 2004, WARNING THAT THE TRANSMISSION COULD HAVE "GEAR FAILURE AND LOCK-UP CAUSING A REAR-END COLLISION." BUT THE LOCAL HONDA DEALERSHIP INFORMED US THAT THE RECALL IS TOTALLY UNRELATED TO OUR TRANSMISSION PROBLEM AND THAT WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ENTIRE COST OF REPAIR. *TR

2003 HONDA PILOT, 95K MILES, TRANSMISSION LIGHT CAME ON AND THEN STARTED FLASHING, SLIPPING OR POPPING BETWEEN GEARS, ACCELERATION IS GONE, WENT DOWNHILL VERY QUICKLY. I LOGGED ONTO VARIOUS WEBSITES AND SEE THE SAME TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS REPORTED BY MANY EARLY MODEL HONDA PILOT OWNERS I AM EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTED AS I EXPECTED A HONDA TO BE TOP NOTCH. *TR

FEB 2009 NOTICED TRANSMISSION WAS PERIODICALLY SLIPPING AT 86,000 MILES, 1000 OVER EXTENDED WARRANTY. DID NOT MALFUNCTION WHEN MY MECHANIC CHECKED IT. I WAS PASSING A TRUCK GOING UPHILL AT APPROXIMATELY 65MPH WHEN THE TRANSMISSION DOWNSHIFTED TO FIRST GEAR ON ITS OWN AND SLAMMED TO ALMOST A COMPLETE STOP. EVERYTHING IN MY CAR WAS THROWN FORWARD. TOOK IT TO A MECHANIC WHERE I WAS TRAVELING AND HE RECORDED THE CODE P0730, PROBLEM IN SHIFT CONTROL SYSTEM. BACK TO MY MECHANIC AGAIN FOR SOLENOID REPLACEMENT. STILL NOT SHIFTING PROPERLY. CALLED HONDA CORP AND WAS TOLD THAT I HAD TO TAKE IT TO A HONDA DEALER. HONDA DIAGNOSED AS NEEDING NEW TRANSMISSION. I PROVIDED ALL RECORDS FOR PROOF OF MAINTENANCE. THERE IS NO PROOF THAT THE "FIX IT" WAS EVER PERFORMED ON THE TRANSMISSIONS RECALL. I AM OUT OVER $2500.00 FOR A PROBLEM THAT HONDA HAS ACKNOWLEDGED RESPONSIBILITY FOR IN THE PAST BUT IS CHOOSING TO LOOK THE OTHER WAY NOW. I AM THANKFUL THAT I DID NOT CRASH WHEN THE TRANSMISSION MALFUNCTIONED. *TR

TRANSMISSION FAILURE ON 2003 HONDA PILOT WITH 135,000 MILES. *TR

BLINKING D LIGHT ON 2003 HONDA PILOT TRANSMISSION. DEALERS SAY THEY DON'T KNOW THE CAUSE. EDMUNDS FORUM FULL OF SAME COMPLAINT, SAME EVASIVE ANSWER. TRANSMISSION ABOUT TO FAIL. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HONDA PILOT. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 60 MPH, THE GEARS FAILED AND THE TRANSMISSION LOCKED UP WITHOUT WARNING. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS PREVIOUSLY REPAIRED ACCORDING TO NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 04V176000 (POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION); THEREFORE, THEY WOULD NOT ASSUME ANY ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE REPAIRS. THE CONTACT WOULD HAVE TO PAY $3,500 TO HAVE THE TRANSMISSION REPLACED. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED DUE TO THE COST. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 162,525.

I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER OF A 2003 HONDA PILOT WITH AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION PROBLEM. I TRAVEL FREQUENTLY AND CURRENTLY HAVE 157,000 MILES ON THE ODOMETER. MY VEHICLE HAS BEEN SERVICED AS REQUIRED AND PROPERLY MAINTAINED. IT HAS ALWAYS GIVEN ME PROBLEMS WITH HARSH SHIFTING BETWEEN GEARS, BUT DUE TO LACK OF ANY CODE WARNINGS, I'VE BEEN ADVISED BY THE DEALER AND PERSONAL MECHANICS THAT THERE WERE NO CONCERNS. AS THE PRIMARY DRIVER OF A VEHICLE, ONE CAN SENSE ANY CHANGES IN HOW AN AUTOMOBILE DRIVES AND AT 50,265 MILES, I BEGAN TO NOTICE A CHANGE WITH THE SHIFTING OF GEARS. AGAIN AT 87,767 I EXPRESSED CONCERN, BUT STILL NO CODES. AT 103,226 MILES, MY CONCERNS GREW AND FURTHER CHECKING AND DIAGNOSIS INDICATED THAT THERE IS HARD SHIFTING BETWEEN GEARS, BUT NO INDICATIONS THAT A REPLACEMENT OF TRANSMISSION WAS NEEDED. ON APRIL 18, 2009 WHILE TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY, I PRESSED THE ACCELERATOR AND EXPERIENCED THE ENGINE 'REVVING' AS THOUGH IT WAS IN NEUTRAL - THERE WAS NO POWER. I HAD A TOTAL OF 6 PASSENGERS IN THE VEHICLE. I MANEUVERED TO THE BREAKDOWN LANE AND RESTARTED THE ENGINE. I BROUGHT THE VEHICLE IN FOR SERVICE AND WAS ADVISED TO HAVE THE TRANSMISSION REPLACED. ON APRIL 29, 2009, MY VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A REPUTABLE TRANSMISSION COMPANY TO HAVE THE TRANSMISSION REPLACED AT A COST OF $3,500. I PURCHASED THE PILOT CONFIDENT THAT I INVESTED IN A VEHICLE THAT WILL PROVIDE ME ASSURANCE OF NO MAJOR POWERTRAIN ISSUES. I FELT STRONGLY ABOUT HONDA'S REPUTATION SO THIS IS QUITE A DISAPPOINTMENT. UPON RESEARCHING THIS PROBLEM I HAVE FOUND NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS FROM 2003 PILOT OWNERS WITH TRANSMISSION FAILURES (SEE EDMUNDS.COM FORUMS). IS ANYONE REVIEWING THE POTENTIAL LIABILITY INVOLVED WITH THE FAILURES OF THESE TRANSMISSIONS? ESPECIALLY SINCE I'VE EXPERIENCED THE LOSS OF POWER AND NAVIGATION ABILITY! A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS ACCIDENT COULD HAVE OCCURRED. ARE THERE DISCUSSIONS FOR A TRANSMISSION RECALL? *TR