CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2003 Honda Accord suffers from widespread transmission failure & problems with the stereo backlight failing. We recommend avoiding this model year like the plague.

The transmission begins slipping & eventually has to be replaced, typically soon after 90,000 miles & with a repair cost of over $2,000. Transmission failure has been a huge problem for the Accord & several other Honda models all through the early 2000s model years. Honda extended the transmission warranty to 93 months/109k miles for the 2000-2001 Accord as a class action lawsuit settlement, but owners of other Accord model years with transmission problems are out of luck.

The stereo backlight problem has been an issue since these Accords were only a few years old. Honda eventually issued a recall which covered the repair for 7 years/100k miles, which was nice while it lasted but now that period is over. Honda initially was replacing the entire radio ($800) but eventually began replacing just the PCB which at ~$300 is much cheaper. That sounds like a deal, but keep in mind we're talking about a backlight bulb that costs $2 to fix in most other cars.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
16 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
10 / 0
Average Mileage:
78,762 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2003 Honda Accord engine problems

engine problem

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2003 Honda Accord Owner Comments (Page 3 of 4)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #27

Nov 082008

Accord 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 46,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2003 Honda Accord. Occasionally, the rpms increased excessively. The contact applied pressure to the brake pedal in order to stop it from accelerating. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times but they could not duplicate the failure. The manufacturer was not notified. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 46,000. Updated 2/17/11 the consumer stated the rpms increased excessively while braking. Updated 03/02/11

- East Orange, NJ, USA

problem #26

Oct 182010

Accord

  • 88,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Honda Accord. While driving approximately 5 mph with his food on the brake pedal, the contact stated that the vehicle suddenly surged forward. The contact applied heavy pressure to the brake pedal but the engine continued to increase in rpms. The contact shifted into neutral and shut the vehicle off. The problem occurred intermittently. The vehicle had not been inspected or repaired. The current and failure mileages were approximately 88,000. The VIN was unavailable.

- Louisville, KY, USA

problem #25

May 182010

Accord

  • 141,269 miles
Unintended acceleration while making a right hand turn on a mountain road switch back. Car accelerated, paused and accelerated again. I had to apply extreme pressure with both feet to the brakes and put the car in neutral to get it to stop.

- Chico, CA, USA

problem #24

Apr 182010

Accord 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 116,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2003 Honda Accord. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 mph the vehicle seemed to accelerate when she attempted to pass another vehicle. When the brakes were applied, they failed to stop or slow the vehicle down. She was able to maneuver into the right lane and engage the parking brake. She was able to drive slow enough to turn the engine off and park the vehicle. She towed the vehicle to the dealer where she was informed that valves in the throttle body were stuck which caused the failure. The vehicle was being repaired when complaint was filed. She called the manufacturer but they offered no assistance. The current and failure mileages were approximately 116,000. Updated 12/02/10 the dealer determined the vehicle had a defective throttle body which was replaced. Updated 12/08/10

- San Francisco, CA, USA

problem #23

Apr 102010

Accord

  • 129,000 miles
Purchased a 2003 Honda Accord in June 09. Just 10 months later driving 60 -70 on interstate 95 in richmond, the car instantly loss acceleration and the RPM was racing. I had my child in the car and we were just seconds from being rear ended by a fast moving car behind us. Luckily he saw that I was losing acceleration and swerved over in time. There is something wrong with these Honda's and something needs to be done before a person actually has to die!!

- Richmond, VA, USA

problem #22

Mar 292010

Accord

  • miles
2003 Honda Accord had sudden acceleration and caused accident.

- Dallas, PA, USA

problem #21

Mar 122010

Accord

  • 129,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2003 Honda Accord. While driving 25 mph, the contact stated that the vehicle suddenly accelerated without warning. The rpms also increased to 5,000 when the vehicle accelerated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the accelerator pedal was cleaned and is now operating normally. The contact stated that she does not feel safe driving the vehicle and she does not think that her accelerator pedal was sticky. The failure mileage was 129,000. The current mileage was 130,500.

- Sanjose, CA, USA

problem #20

Feb 112010

Accord

  • 135 miles
This event occurred Thursday, February 12, 2010. I was in my 2003 Honda Accord and I was going about 50-55mph. I was coming up on a red light and my care suddenly would not brake. I applied as much pressure to my brakes as I possibly could (my feet and body was completely engaged as firmly as possible to the brakes) and the car slowed down but would not come to a complete stop. Luckily I was the first car at the red light in the fartherest left lane. I ended up rolling through the light and it was a time of day when traffic was not heavy (thank god) I ended up going through the light and veering to a median. I applied my emergency brake and the car still continued to move forward. I ended up shutting the engine off while in drive. Once I put my car in park and restarted the engine it was a very loud accelerating sound coming from the engine. I could not go back into any other gears. It seemed as though I was experiencing some type of issue with my accelerator cable. I am blessed I did not have my children in the car with me as this could have caused a serious injury to them, myself as well as others that could have been on the road. By the time my husband came to assist me the car started back up like nothing had ever happened! this freaked me out even more, so he followed me home where my car is currently parked. I contacted Honda in tyler, tx located on loop 323 to explain the situation. I am taking it to the dealer tomorrow so they can look at it. Looking at this site really came in handy because I have seen a lot of issues like myself, unfortunately a lot of the issues resulted in a wreck and I do not have the luxury to pay for repairs or get another vehicle so I hope this is considered a recall because looking at the reports and the severity of this situation it definitely should be. I will be posting my update after I come from the dealer.

- Flint, TX, USA

problem #19

Jun 232009

Accord

  • 55,000 miles
When driving this vehicle the idle always seemed too fast. Even when the brake was depressed the car appeared to want to go ahead on its own whether in drive or reverse. My parents had reported this problem several times to a local Honda dealer who told my mother she didn't know how to drive and asked my father if he bought gas at a local indian reservation insinuating it was cheap gas that caused the problem. My father stopped driving the car because he felt he could not control it because it was too fast. I drove the car several times and always felt I could not control the speed of the car. On the date noted prior to the crash my mother was at a busy intersection. When the light turned red she had to use both feet to depress the brake in order to keep the car under control. Prior to the crash she was entering a parking lot and had taken her foot off the accelerator to pull-up in front of a building. Her foot was on the brake and the car lunged forward at a very high rate of speed-jumped a curb crossed over a flowerbed and only stopped when it hit a brick retaining wall. My mother tried pressing the brake as hard as she could and had the brake pedal to the floor and the car just kept the momentum going until it hit the retaining wall. When the car came to a stop, both airbags deployed. My father who was the front-seat passenger was badly injured breaking several ribs, requiring surgery and months of hospitalization. He is now non-ambulatory and still recovering. My mother was also badly bruised and could not speak for weeks because of the airbag hitting her so hard. We requested that the police investigate if the accelerator had stuck and to checkout the mechanics of the car and never received a report. Basically, they blamed my mother because of her age. When my mother exited the car at the scene of the crash she was obviously upset and was talking to witnesses and the police took what she said to be her 'statement of admission of guilt'.

- Kenmore, NY, USA

problem #18

Feb 032010

Accord

  • 109,300 miles
Took foot off accelerator pedal; car revved to 2000 RPM's. had to really stomp brakes to stop car. This happened twice. Brought into Honda. Dealer could not replicate.

- Rockville, MD, USA

problem #17

Jan 042010

Accord

  • 66,594 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While my wife was driving our 2003 Honda Accord, the accelerator cable got stuck and car was not breaking. She had to hit the divider and other 2 cars and then only the car stopped. Eventually our car was totaled. It is even mentioned in the police report.

- Edison, NJ, USA

problem #16

Mar 282009

Accord

  • 93,000 miles
Car slips out of gear at high speeds or low speed down shifts on its own wont shift out of first gear at all wont reverse.

- Pompano Bch , FL, USA

problem #15

Jul 142007

Accord 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 28,484 miles
On backing into a spot in a private parking lot I struck a short steel post. I then moved forward, the backed again to park, however, the car shot back and kept ramming the post. I shifted into D with foot on the brake thinking I had a problem only in R, but the car shot forward and, in 5 seconds, entered the roadway, rammed a taxi, crossed the road, entered a sidewalk area, took out 2 lampposts and was finally stopped by hitting a car parked at the curb. In the entire episode, my foot never left the brake as skid marks attested. Unfortunately, I did not have the presence of mind to turn the key off. The impression given was the car was attempting to reach a cruise control speed which was normally set for approximately 110kph (68mph).

- Burlington Ontario, 00, USA

problem #14

Oct 132006

Accord 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 77,000 miles
: the contact stated the vehicle accelerated on its own while in reverse and crashed into the side of the house next to the garage. The brakes had failed. The vehicle has not been to a service dealer. Updated 11/07/06.

- Troutville, VA, USA

problem #13

Jan 142005

Accord

  • miles
Defective 2003 Honda Accord, vehicle suddenly accelerated while foot was on the brake. While pulling into a parking space with her foot on the brake, the consumer's vehicle accelerated suddenly and collided with a tree. The air bag deployed injuring the consumer's left jaw. The passengers side front end was wrapped around the tree.

- Arnold, MD, USA

problem #12

Jan 142005

Accord

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
2003 Honda Accord experienced sudden acceleration and brake failure. The consumers foot never left the brakes. There was a loud noise under the vehicle and or hood when the vehicle accelerated like an jet airplane, jumped the curb and hydroplaned about 2 feet off of the ground and hit the neighbors tree. The consumer no longer owns the vehicle.

- Arnold, MD, USA

problem #11

Jan 142005

Accord

  • 23,959 miles
2003 Honda Accord sudden acceleration while foot still on the brake. It came to a stop by hitting a neighbors tree and the air bag deployed.

- Arnold, MD, USA

problem #10

Jan 142005

Accord

  • 23,959 miles
While the consumer's foot was on the brake pedal the vehicle accelerated suddenly. This failure resulted in an accident in which the vehicle struck a tree which and caused both air bags to deploy upon impact. The consumer was not badly injured. The consumer requested reimbursement from the manufacturer.

- Arnold, MD, USA

problem #9

Jan 222004

Accord 4-cyl

  • 12,800 miles
When the vehicle was being parked on a parking lot, the consumer depressed the brakes and the vehicle lurched forward. This problem has occurred twice and each time another vehicle was struck in the process. There were no injuries involved in either case. The dealer has examined the vehicle but could not find the problem.

- Massapequa, NY, USA

problem #8

Apr 202004

(reported on)

Accord 6-cyl

  • miles
Once the consumer shifted to reverse, the engine went full throttle which caused the vehicle to hit a pickup truck that was parked behind the consumer's vehicle. This accident caused light damage to the rear bumper of the vehicle. Once he vehicle was turned off then restarted the vehicle operated normally. The vehicle experienced sudden acceleration twice after this incident. After the third incident the vehicle was taken to the dealer. The dealer found nothing that would have caused the problem. The vehicle was taken for a 300 mile road test but nothing was found. The vehicle has continues to experience sudden acceleration.

- Roseville, CA, USA

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