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.
I purchased this 2001 Honda Accord in 2008 from Montano Acura dealership in Albuquerque, N.M. In November 2011, my transmission started slipping and now cannot be driven at all-transmission needs replacing at a cost of $4,000.00!
I'm very disappointed with Honda customer service skill on handling my situation...I rarely used my car as you can tell for a 2001 v6 Accord with ONLY 64000 to it.. TRANSMISSION had to be replaced..I had called Honda corp to see if they can help me out with this situation..They denied me right away because my car is over the 10 warranty with no consideration at all that my car is in mint condition....UNBELIEVABLE!!!! I knew from the start when my case was assign to this person they already judge my case already saying my car was 10 years old..MEANING "DENIED" ..What am I supposed to do with an excellent car with a bad transmission???? Is it worth fixing it or junking it...I'm sorry to say that I will not buy another Honda from the way they treated me...My family and friends was applauded by the customer service skill the way it was handled......
Where it asked for me to describe the problem i pretty much needed to check them ass but it would only let me select one so i selected the tranny failure. I am currently in the market for a new vehicle and honda was and i do mean WAS my preferred choice untill this problem arose. I am just an average joe with a family to support and cannot afford the costly repair my tranny needs and i want honda to make their wrong right by fixing it. Untill honda contacts me with a a solution to my problem i will not buy another honda and will make sure that everyone i know will not either. So I leave this in their hands.
Purchased my 2001 Honda Accord from a Honda Dealer on 3/28/2007 and less than one year later the transmission fails!! Luckily I purchased an extended warranty that covered the replacement for the transmission.
However, I am extremely upset about this problem occurring one year after purchasing it! I have owned a Honda Civic that ran all the way up to 180,000 miles and nothing like this ever happened! I was always a believer that you paid a premium to own a Honda due to the quality!
I purchased a 2001 Honda accord coupe in 2008 from a local Honda dealer. This vehicle had been serviced through this dealership since its purchase. In 2006 with only 52k on the vehicle the transmission failed. After several attempts, and trips to the dealer, Honda replaced the transmission under there extended warranty. The current mileage on the vehicle is 100,918 miles and my check engine light just came on. I rushed the vehicle to my local dealer, to have the code read. To my surprise, the torque converter had failed in the new transmission.
After speaking with service manager he suggested i call Honda in regards to a Goodwill repair. After speaking to representative and initiating a claim, the regional manager of the southern district returned my call. After explaining the situation, and the service record of the vehicle, he stated that Honda would not offering any assistance for my repair. when i asked several questions about the life expectancy of a transmission on such a durable product as Honda? He simply replied with "my opinion on the matter is not significant, Honda stand is that it is time for owners to take responsibility for repairs on there vehicles." Well, I'm sorry to say, how about installing a transmission that will last longer than 50,000 miles Honda?
I've owned over 4 Honda vehicles and have driven them over 150k without every having a transmission issue or any major issue. Yet, Honda will not accept that fact that Faulty Torque convertors are causing these transmissions to fail! I have now requested an escalation be put into for my vehicle, and to speak with the regional directors supervisor. I will post and let everyone know how this turns out.
No warning lights, no warning. Metal fragments in transmission. Had to be rebuilt. Honda dealership wanted $4,000. Had to take to transmission shop. $2900. But now, usually peppy car, hardly moves, especially when starting off or in low gears. Took back to dealership and transmission shop and can find nothing wrong. Very frustrating after paying that much money to repair!!
Tramsmission completely failed in Savannah, GA on our way to Florida. It was repaired by Coastal Transmission in Savannah ($2500). In May when back home in Ottawa, ON we experienced problems again. Turns out it was a solenoid which is exterior to the transmission but part of the overall transmission system which Coastal claimed is not part of the repair but which two transmission specialists in Ottawa stated is changed in any rebuild they do (another $500). In September started to experience problems when the engine was cold. Had a transmission place in Bells Corners open it up and found that a piece that Coastal should have replaced hadn't been replaced (another $2000). Total coast $5000. As the car was almost 10 years old when it happened it wasn't covered by any extended warranty that I know of.
I was really pissed off cuz i had resently purchased this honda because they are dependable cars. A few months later my car barely shifted into gear. Then when it finally would shift in to gear the whole car would kick back on me. This made the car unable to drive i ended up having to pay 2700 to replace the transmission. I didnt have the money for this so i had to get a seperate loan for this which put me in debt...THIS VEHICLE F*CKIN SUX
On January 21, 2010 I bought a 2001 Honda Accord EX from a private party. I have owned Honda vehicles all my life; the dependability is a major reason why. After owning the vehicle for almost 1 year, the transmission started giving me problems. The transmission would slip out of gear and not engage. I took the vehicle into my local automobile shop (Michael's Auto Repair, Peoria, AZ) and to my surprise they told me I needed a new transmission. The cost was nearly $2100 just to get a rebuilt one. A new one from the dealership would cost me anywhere from $3000-$4000. I called my local Honda dealership (Showcase Honda, Phoenix, AZ) on January 27th and spoke with a service representative who told me since I purchased it through a private party I would need to call Honda. He also told me that there were some issues in the past with Accord transmissions.
In 2006 a class-action lawsuit was settled against Honda in the Superior Court of California for Alameda County. The suit claimed that Honda misled consumers by selling them vehicles with defective transmissions. Honda settled the case without ever admitting a defect and denied the charges. Owners covered in the lawsuit were given an extension of the transmission warranty to 93 months or 109,000 miles (whichever comes first), starting when the vehicle is first purchased or leased. The models covered were the 2000–1 Accord; 1999–2001 Odyssey; 2000–1 Prelude; 1999–2 Acura 3.2 TL and 2001–2 Acura 3.2 CL.
On the same day, I called Honda and spoke with a representative that worked in the recall department. He told me that Honda did indeed have transmission failure issues with the Honda Accord of that year; but that my Honda would not be covered because it had 130,000 miles vs. the warranty coverage of 109,000 miles. Unsatisfied with the results, I spoke with a supervisor thereafter named Caroline Chow. She informed me that she looked into alternatives as far as paying for the expenses; and she was unable to find a solution.
To my disappointment; I was unable to receive assistance to pay for this large bill that was due to a defective transmission manufactured by Honda. As a long term consumer of Honda; words cannot explain my melancholy. Since I was given no assistance, and my Honda is my only means of transportation to work, I was left with no other option than to incur a financial hardship by covering the expenses myself. As a result of the recession, my savings had already been depleted. I had no other choice than to take a distribution from my 401k; which turns out to be more than $2000 because I also have to pay taxes on it.
To resolve this problem, I am requesting Honda cover all or some of my expenses on repairing it. Enclosed are copies showing the work that has been done to repair the Accord.
I look forward to a reply and a resolution to my problem and will wait until March 20th before seeking help from the Consumer Protection Agency, Center for Auto Safety, and NHTSA.
I've had absolutely zero problems with my Honda Accord (2001) until recently - first the D4 light started flashing, then the check engine light came and stayed on. I failed my state inspection due to a 'shift malfunction', so I took it to a shop and they said the transmission is ruined, needs to be rebuilt, possibly replaced.
They told me roughly $2500, but I'm PISSED b/c it only takes one second to Google the issue and to discover that this is an extremely common problem amongst these cars (the year, model, make, etc) - apparently Honda didn't get it right that year, and there WAS a recall, but it is VIN-specific and for some reason, my little Honda doesn't fit into the recall.
I'm hesitant to throw $2500 down, but i NEED to pass inspection, and the auto shop told me that i really and truly need to park my car stat, until I can afford to fix it. I believe that Honda should fix it....am I fighting a lost cause?
went to dealership for airbag recall and got 120k service at the same time. they advised replacing an engine mount, bumping me from 400 to 900 for the service. 10 days later a light comes on. i go back to the dealership and they say the transmission is bad, 5600 to replace everything inside it. it is effectively totaled since the car isn't worth that any more. i have two more payments to make til i own it. i was planning on celebrating. i was planning on being a Honda customer for a long time. so much for all that nonsense. after reading about the part tonight, i'm really bitter with Honda for blowing off this problem with an obvious defect, and especially with the dealership who just suckered me into replacing the engine mount knowing full well that the famously bad transmission is what caused that. i am itching to dispute the charge on my last service. so long Honda. fooled me once.
This is the second transmission to fail in my 2001 Honda Accord--the first was at 58,000 and replaced by Honda and it did not even last the next 50,000 miles. Now at 106,000 the transmission has completely failed once again to the tune of $3,300 the dealer wants to replace. This is so INFURIATING and UNAFFORDABLE!!!
The transmission on my 2001 Honda Accord has been a nightmare! I got it rebuilt 2.5 yrs., 30,000 miles ago at AAMCO because there was a problem accelerating and then on Dec. 29, 2010, my car stopped dead in the road. When I pressed the gas petal the engine revved, but the car didn't go anywhere.
I got it towed to AAMCO the next morning and lo and behold, it was a transmission problem. They opened up the transmission and discovered the torque converter melted/malfunctioned and spewed little bits of metal debris all throughout the transmission. I've provided pictures of this. Now, I have to pay almost $2,000 to get it rebuilt after only 30,000 miles!!! How ludacris is that?
AAMCO told me Honda only warranties their parts for 12 months/12K miles. This problem was not my fault because I have been keeping up with my fluid changes (oil, transmission) nor was it AAMCO's fault because they rebuilt it properly the first time. This problem is due to a faulty Honda torque converter part. Because the metal debris infiltrated the whole transmission, I have to get multiple new parts including a a new banner kit, solenoid, shift solenoid, not to mention a new torque converter.
I want Honda to provide me with all the parts I need for this repair so the burden of the cost is lessened. I can't believe I've had so many problems with this car- aren't Honda's supposed to be reliable?
This car was recalled for this exact problem. However, we purchased the car used and made the error of not checking the vehicle for any recall notifications. (an expensive lesson). The car only has 45,000 miles on it so we plan to ask Honda for a "goodwill repair".
My 2001 Honda Accord is in pristine condition. VERY UNHAPPY that at 68,000 miles my transmission failed. It's apparent that this is a 'known' problem for this year, make & model. Why has HONDA never addressed this??
Update from Jan 14, 2011: Sp;oke to Honda customer service and was offered nothing toward the rebuilt transmission. Apparently, retaining customers is not important to Honda.....
very upset that we were never notified about the transmission failure in this car. We purchased new with only 32 miles on. You would think we would of heard something about the problems with the transmission.
The engine will rev up, but the car won't shift into gear or move . I currently have to use the car as a manual, changing gears at every stop and start. I have been told by a honda dealer that the cost to repair will be $4,000. I don't have that kind of money.
I have done some research and have been advised that the problem is with the torque converter. This is a problem with most honda accords from 2000 to 2003. It is a honda accord transmission failure.
Honda should be held accountable and to repair the problem.
Basically Honda put out this faulty vehicle, they are very aware that the 2001 Honda Accord has a defective transmission. However, they are refusing to make the necessary repair to my vehicle or even do it at a reduced rate as this is the least they could do to back up their product and keep a customer.
I have been dealing with Honda America for nearly a year trying to get the transmission replaced as a "Goodwill Repair" under the extended warranty coverages for this KNOWN DEFECT of the 2001 Honda transmission. I am not about to pay in excess of $3K to a dealership to replace a transmission on a car that Honda has acknowledged has known transmission issues. The transmissions on the 2001 - 2004 Honda Accords (and according to my mechanic, the transmissions on Acuras, as well) were faulty and therefore Honda agreed to extend the warranty coverage to 7 years, 9 months...or 109,000 miles. My transmission started to fail at about 74,000 miles but my problem is that by the time I knew to contact Honda America Customer Service directly (and go beyond dealing with just my local dealership), the car was already 8 years young (but it still had less than 85,000 miles on it!!) So, to make a long story short, I've continued to drive the car, the transmission continues to slip and will eventually completely fail and I am back negotiating with Honda to cover the expected $3332.80 repair cost. If they don't come through with at least 1/2 of the cost of the repair next week, then I'm going to court. I'm tired of being put off. I maintained this vehicle very well, have all service records, and have treated her with kindness...but I will NEVER buy another Honda Accord again. I loved my Civic, but this issue with the faulty transmission and the continual run-around I've received from Honda America has soured me to Honda!!
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
I purchased this 2001 Honda Accord in 2008 from Montano Acura dealership in Albuquerque, N.M. In November 2011, my transmission started slipping and now cannot be driven at all-transmission needs replacing at a cost of $4,000.00!
- botello, Albuquerque, NM, US