CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2004 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 ever 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 replaced 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:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
0 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.
I have a 2004 Honda Accord ex that I purchased new in may of 2004. On 10/23/2011 I opened the hood to check the oil. I walked away to get a rag and the hood slammed shut while I was looking the other direction. I reopened the hood and watched to see what was hapenning. 18 seconds after the hood is opened, the hood falls about 5" slowly and then free falls the rest of the way. I called and talked to the service manager of my local Honda dealer to see if Honda was willing to correct the problem. He informed me that they would not replace the 2 shocks that hold the hood up for free because the car wasn't under warranty anymore. As far as I am concerned, what ever they use to hold the hood up on the vehicles that they produce should never fail. If I would have had my head under the hood checking the oil, I could have had a very serious blow to the head. I faxed a letter to the Honda corporate office on Tuesday 10/25/2011 and a woman named maribel called me on the phone to discuss the problem (even though I didn't give them my phone number in the letter that I sent them because I wanted a response in writing), she pretty much told me the same thing. The car isn't under warranty any more, so it is on me to replace the bad shocks that hold the hood up. Once the hood of a vehicle is raised and seems to be secure, nobody would ever expect to have the hood freefall on them while checking fluid levels or any other thing that they would be under there inspecting. It seems to be of the opinion of Honda that this is just something that has to be replaced in time. I think they are very wrong. These shocks never gave me any warning that they were getting weak and were going to need to be replaced until the hood actually slammed shut.
- Norco, CA, USA
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- Norco, CA, USA