CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2001 Honda Accord suffers from widespread transmission failure, subframe rust, & problems with the airbag system (SRS). We recommend avoiding this model year like the plague.
The transmission begins slipping & eventually has to be replaced, typically soon after 100,000 miles & with a repair cost of over $2,000. Transmission failure problems have been a huge problem for Honda Accords & other models all through the early 2000s model years. Honda eventually extended the transmission warranty to 93 months/109k miles for the 2000-2001 Accords as settlement for a class action lawsuit, but that period is over & owners of Accords with transmission problems are out of luck.
Subframe rust near the front passenger side wheel has become a problem recently, due to the poorly positioned A/C drain hose directly above that area. Repair cost to the subframe is over $2,000.
The SRS warning light likes to come on due to a defective seat belt sensor -- typically the driver's side. This sensor is covered under Honda's lifetime seat belt warranty, but some dealers charge a $100+ "diagnostic fee" or tell customers the entire SRS unit ($800) is bad. Also make sure your 2001 Accord has been checked for the airbag recall: excessive pressure may cause metal fragments during airbag deployment.
6.3
fairly significant
Typical Repair Cost:
$740
Average Mileage:
92,700 miles
Total Complaints:
59 complaints
Most Common Solutions:
not sure (41 reports)
honda should recall and replace unit (6 reports)
call NHTSA/small claims court (5 reports)
dealer replaced driver side seat buckle (3 reports)
call honda customer service first, then dealer (2 reports)
honda has issued a repair bulletin to all dealers on the srs (2 reports)
Honda Expands Air-Bag Recall To 833,000 Additional Vehicles - For the 4th time since 2008, Honda is issuing a recall to deal with a problem where air bags deploy so forcefully it could kill or injure the driver; the last thing you'd expect from a "safety device".
This is the re post of another person who got satisfaction and I decided to use the same path.
After reading this and other forums, I pretty much knew what to expect. So I went in prepared.
What worked for me for a low/no hassle solution:
1. Called Honda 1-800-999-1009, reported problem, verified diagnosis should be FREE, got ticket number.
2. Called dealer, made appointment, told them Honda said diagnose would be free. They challenged that statement, and I gave them my case number. Outcome, diagnosis was free.
3. Two major causes of this problem are OPDS and seat buckle problems. It turns out both are covered under the extended warranty. I had to pay nothing. For reference, mine particular issue was the seat belt.
Took vehicle to local Honda dealer to have driver's side airbag inflator replaced under recall. I mentioned that SRS light stays on all the time - and that I was aware of issue with seat belt buckle/recall. They immediately said that the SRS was not related to the inflator recall.
They told me $100 to diagnose the SRS light issue. If indeed the issue was the seat belt buckle, they would replace it for free under a different recall and not charge me the diagnostic fee. If the issue ends up being something else not covered under recall, I would have to pay the $100 diagnostics fee.
They checked and said that there was not signal from the SRS Control Unit - and that was not covered under any recall. They wanted $800 to replace the SRS Control Unit - so I said no way... this should be covered under some type of safety recall. (I think they saw me coming and opened up the cash register for me to make a $100 donation) So I ended up paying the $100 diagnostics charge and I am still riding around with the SRS light on and no air bags.
I agree with other postings! I have owned 5 or 6 Hondas starting with a 1982 Civic CVCC... and actually own a 2006 Honda Ridgeline now.
After they also ripped me off for $3k for replacing the Automatic Transmission for a known issue in the 2001 Accord.
Honda continues to be arrogant and riding their "previous" good reputation as far as it will take them.
Look out Honda... Ford and Chevy are growing larger in your rear-view mirror and will pass you in the next 5 years... as current/previous Honda owners are tired of the BS - not standing behind your products - especially when safety related. What is Honda doing... waiting it out on the sidelines - waiting for a class-action lawsuit for people that were injured or killed because the Safety Restraint System malfunctioned?
I see lot of complaints about this problem in 2000 - 2001 Honda Accords.
SRS light is on, I took it to dealer they want to charge me money for safety check such as SRS light remain ON.
Honda should cover it under recall.
I recently got letter from Honda recall for another related problem "inflator switch could break during deployment". During call with Honda representative I did ask about SRS light staying ON issue many are seeing and I was told there is no recall for it.
Honda if you are seeing this you should act as this is Safey issue.
- Darshak P.,
Clifton, NJ, US
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My SRS light has been on for over 2 years. Called Honda in 2013 & was told it was nothing to worry about. I have checked for recalls a few days before they service my car, at least 2 times a year & my light is still on since recall was fixed in 2010. Apparently Honda checks for recalls every service but have never noticed any recalls according to my paperwork but I have shown them the recalls & they fixed them. Also I find it interesting that they have never mentioned that light being on, on any service paperwork but mention that all lights are checked. They drive the car & write down the mileage, reset the service light so I think they may have known but wanted to save money. OMG... thank God the airbag never deployed!!
The SRS light in my 2001 Honda Accord came on a couple of years ago, and I read in the manual it had something to do with seatbelts.
When I had the car in a little later for the first recalled airbag repair, I had the dealer run a check , and they said no errors came up. So I just continued driving it with the light on.
Now on Nov. 14, 2014, when I took it in for the second recall for an airbag fix, I had them check it again. This time, they said the whole computer unit for the SRS system failed and needs to be replaced for $800! They had to order the part, and are notifying me when it's in. Meanwhile, I did some online research about this issue, as I told the dealer that I thought the failure of the computer chip is probably related to the whole faulty airbag system. They of course said no, and that it wouldn't be covered under the recall.
I'm mad as hell, and want Honda to pay for the repair, as it's their malfunction--my airbags have never been deployed, as I haven't needed them. But I didn't know until this week that I've been driving all this time with a deactivated seatbelt and airbag system! So if I have an accident, neither will deploy! I'm going to complain to Honda about this and try to get them to take responsibility, although it's probably wasted effort.
Has anyone else had this problem with the whole computer unit needing to be replaced? If so, did you have any luck getting Honda to pay, and did it fix the problem?
Some time last year the SRS light came on. This bright red light staring me in the face all the time. Well I heard about a recall on my car so I took it in to the Honda dealer to get fixed. Well while I was there I was talking to the guy about it and asked him to hook it up to a machine while it was back there to see if it could trace out the issue. Well about an hour later he called me up front to tell me that the recall that I went in for was fixed and that he talked to someone else in the shop about the SRS light. They told him that if the air bag was faulty and causing the SRS light to come on it would be an automatic replacement because of some safety issue. Well the guy went on to tell me that the machine told him that it was NOT the air bag but some sort of wiring issue before it ever got to the airbag. And it was going to cost me about 800.00 bucks or so to fix the wiring harness.* WELL THAT’S JUST STUPID* if the SRS light is on at all the air bags WILL NOT DEPLOY. So is that not a safety issue as well. I mean come on. It’s just really aggravating and I see a lot of others have this same problem as well. So if anyone has any way to fix this or any info on it please let me know..
My SRS ABS and TCS lights all came on, and this is NOT THE FIRST TIME!!! I have been told 3 times now that it has to do with the seat belt on the passenger side and 3 times the seat belt has been replaced free of charge and 1 time I had to pay for a new air bag sensor on the passenger seat!! Now here we go again. This also happens when the weather turns cold-I was researching recalls this morning on air bag module replacement which is supposedly covered at no cost. I have not personally received a recall notice, so I am going to call HONDA first thing in the morning to find out why? Anyone else having these same problems? Would love to hear from you!
SRS light had already been on. When I received the recall notice in the mail, I figured, ok this is why that light is on. Take it in to the dealer fix recall and like others, they informed me that it was an unrelated issue to the recall.
it took two trips. the first time they reset the light. Imagine that when it came on again because they never changed the part. Thay reset the code. Thanks for nothing.
The SRS light has been on for a couple years. I was aware of a limited recall, but my vehicle was not initially included. Honda finally expanded the recall in 2010, and it took about 1 hour to fix. I started the car only to find that the SRS light was still on, so I asked the service tech to look into it. Both he and the Service Dept Manager tried to tell me that the SRS light was not related to the airbags. (C'mon guys, I'm a woman, but that doesn't make me car-stupid!) They said it had to do with the driver's side seat belt buckle and graciously offered to order it and replace it at no cost (except another day of vacation gone). Got home, checked the internet to find that there have been 2 seat belt buckle recalls.
I'm happy that Honda fixed the airbag deployment issues free of cost, but did the service department have to insult my intelligence twice?
I thought I was the only one with the SRS problem, the light on the dash staying on, but found out that a lot of my friends that have Hondas also had this problem. Don't really care for airbags, but the SRS light on the dash is really annoying. Tried the paperclip trick and it only stayed off temporarily. Then I heard that even if you get it fixed at the dealership, it could lead to other problems, I don't trust dealerships anyways, and without the extended warranty, it might cost you quite a bit. I'm just gonna do what my friends do and say the hell with it and drive it anyways. I'll tell you what though, my next car will NOT be a Honda.
The SRS light came on at 1??,000 miles... I just learned that THE DRIVER'S AIRBAG INFLATOR COULD PRODUCE EXCESSIVE INTERNAL PRESSURE. IF AN AFFECTED AIRBAG DEPLOYS, THE INCREASED INTERNAL PRESSURE MAY CAUSE THE INFLATOR TO RUPTURE.
Consequence:
METAL FRAGMENTS COULD PASS THROUGH THE AIR BAG CUSHION MATERIAL POSSIBLY CAUSING INJURY TO VEHICLE OCCUPANTS.
Remedy:
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE AIRBAG INFLATOR FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 31, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HONDA AUTOMOBILE CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 1-800-999-1009.
I hope I don't need spend any money, to get this fixed!!
My SRS light came on last year and I took the car to the dealer. I was told the computer registered a low voltage signal to the unit and if the problem were to continue, either the battery would need replaced, or the SRS control unit. The problem continued and I discovered how to reset the light. There was a recall for the air bag inflator and that was replaced on the car in November 2009. The SRS light came on once after that and then was fine until 24 Feb 2010. The dealer said the control unit needs to be replaced and I asked them to request some assistance from Honda to help pay the cost. Honda told the dealer thay they would not help to defray the cost. The price is about $600.00. How is it that a severe safety issue like this would not be covered partially by the vehicle maker. Are'nt safety systems supposed to be reliable and work when you need them? I'm curious as to how many people in Hondas have been involved in accidents and had no air bag deployment because of a defective SRS control module.
Ok...I went in to have the recalled inflator fixed because it could possibly kill me with shards of metal if the airbag deployed, that night the SRS light came on adn now I have to worry it will not inflate at all. Called and told Honda dealer and they said it probable did not have anything to do with their work...of course! There was a $75 fee to have it checked. I talked the man into checking it for free as I have never had this problem until I took it in. They checked it and said the problem was the module was bad which in no way could have been caused by their repair!! They said it was just a coincidence and would cost me over $500. ARGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG I know it must be something they did
Honda has issued a repair bulletin to all dealers on the SRS problem. My 2001 Accord (82K miles) had it and the dealer replaced one of the seat belts (no cost to me). If the SRS (safety restraint system) light is on, Honda will cover it but I don't know about the airbag system which will trigger a different warning light (separate system). You should find another dealer, this one sounds inept, (or maybe just plain corrupt). Be glad you do not own a Chrysler product, 100K mile warranty means you take it back every month for 100K miles...:) Gene
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
This is the re post of another person who got satisfaction and I decided to use the same path.
After reading this and other forums, I pretty much knew what to expect. So I went in prepared.
What worked for me for a low/no hassle solution:
1. Called Honda 1-800-999-1009, reported problem, verified diagnosis should be FREE, got ticket number.
2. Called dealer, made appointment, told them Honda said diagnose would be free. They challenged that statement, and I gave them my case number. Outcome, diagnosis was free.
3. Two major causes of this problem are OPDS and seat buckle problems. It turns out both are covered under the extended warranty. I had to pay nothing. For reference, mine particular issue was the seat belt.
- Kurt K., Thousand Oaks, CA, US