CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2008 Honda Accord has several serious defects: poor brakes, excessive oil consumption, & uncomfortable seats.
BRAKES: There was a class action lawsuit against Honda in 2010 for premature & excessive brake wear. See our page on Honda's brake problems for more info.
OIL CONSUMPTION: Honda issued a TSB about this in late 2011, claiming it could be fixed through a software update to the VCM (variable cylinder management). There are class action lawsuits pending. See our page about the Accord oil consumption.
UNCOMFORTABLE SEATS: Owners have consistently reported uncomfortable seats with the entire 8th generation (2008-2012) of Honda Accords. Complaints range from back pain to leg circulation problems due to bad lumbar support, cushioning, & seat angle. Complaints aren't limited to only a certain body type -- the seat comfort problems are from a wide spectrum of owner height & weight. The common theme we hear is "we never noticed this during the test drive." Unfortunately for unwary buyers, the seat pain is noticeable after 15-20 minutes.
7.9
pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$1,260
Average Mileage:
67,500 miles
Total Complaints:
394 complaints
Most Common Solutions:
not sure (229 reports)
per Honda consuming 1qt per 1k miles normal (42 reports)
I heard that Honda replaced worn rings and engine short block (21 reports)
call American Honda corporation to complain (14 reports)
Honda Acknowledges The Oil Problem In TSB #11-033 - In July of 2011 Honda quietly acknowledged the problem in the form of a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB #11-033). The TSB says the probable cause of the problem is the VCM (variable cylinder management) and should be fixed by a simple software update at a certified Honda mechanic.
Investigative Form To Assist Class Action Lawsuit Against Honda - In connection with a pending class action lawsuit, Soto v. American Honda Motor Co., Inc., No. 3:12-cv-01377 (N.D. Cal.), the law firm of BERK LAW PLLC is investigating defects that cause excessive oil consumption in Honda (and Acura) vehicles. Below is a link to a brief survey regarding the problem. It would be extremely helpful if you would take 2 to 8 minutes to complete the survey, even if you no longer own or lease the vehicle that experienced oil consumption problems. Your information will assist us in assessing how common and persistent the oil consumption problem is.
If we share this information with others, such as Honda, we will NOT share your name and contact information.
No engine light or low oil light came on......we have a new CRV and when I brought it to Honda, the mechanic only checked the oil life on the dash and since it was 40%, he said the vehicle did not need an oil change.....he never checked the oil level.....now I'm learning that the oil life on the dash has nothing to do with oil amount....that sounds totally nuts.
I have a 2008 Honda Accord EX-L which I bought new. The car now has 153000 miles on it. After my last oil change I checked the oil after driving 1000 miles and it was over 2 quarts low. I replaced the missing oil and checked it again after about 600 miles and it was over a quart low. I have my oil & filter changed ever 5000 miles and this should not be happening. What can be done about it?
I've been changing my Honda oil every 3000 miles (no matter what it was saying on the odometer). I noticed a weird noise last October and went to Honda Service Center in Parkville, MD.
They told me this a common issue for most of Honda 2008 and 2009 models, and that's why Honda extended the warranty to 8 years/125,000 miles.
But since my vehicle originally was purchased (by a dealer) on Nov 2007, the warranty was expired. I was told that still Honda can cover this because this was their fault no matter when you notice that. The guy in that service location told me that I noticed this late because I have been changing oil regularly and every 3000 miles.
They did the oil consumption test and charged me about $50 and after two checks I was told to contact American Honda regrading this issue and ask them to cover them.
Now, I've been contacting both American Honda and that service location to resolve this issue.
American Honda is still waiting for the results of the test from that service location.
I called more than 20 times but the guy is not responding. finally, I decided going there and asked the guy to contact American Honda and tell them the test result and still waiting....
Burning over a quart of oil every 1000 miles can not be normal on a vehicle that only holds 4 quarts. You would almost be empty at the end of your scheduled oil change. The dealer/corp should stand by their product or they will end up without sales or a business. Fed up with the nonsense!!
My Honda Accord has been sucking down oil for quite awhile now. I can't afford to fix it. I bought it when it was 3 years old thinking Honda's would hold up. Boy was I wrong. Honda needs to address this issue with a recall instead of making owners pay for it. there won't be as many of these vehicle's on the road soon, as they will all have seized engines from someone not checking oil every 1000k miles.
- Bart K.,
Charleston, SC, US
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I took my car for regular oil changes to the Honda dealer, at least until last August when they told me they had no room to fit me in until after I returned from my vacation so I took it to jiffy lube and they informed me that my car was really low on oil. I was hearing a tap on start up but I just figured it was bad gas. So I started to check my oil a little more often and adding it when needed. They tell you at Honda that you should check your oil every time you gas up your car ... asking the women do you do that, " yes every time" can you hear the load of bullshit. So the lawsuit is 125,000 miles or I believe 8 years from time of purchase... clearly even with the original owner sell date we are just at 8 years ... I bought this used in 2011 only 5 1/2 years ago still in the timeline and only 112,000 miles on my care ... in the guide lines ... they are not going to cover it ... I must start a study through Honda and pay for it ... with no guarantee at the end of the day that they will pay for or fix the problem ... can you hear the line of sh*t still flowing...just like the time I told them I was losing air in a tire in my car complained 3 times and they put the tire from the back to the front ... still losing air ... and them telling me nothing is wrong ... finally going home one day passed by a tire place thinking what the hell can I lose ... 20 minutes later and 10.00 they removed a staple repaired my tire and I have not had a problem since ... Looking like the last Honda I will buy...
The dealership thinks its a good idea to check the oil on this car every Sunday. Like I don't have anything better to do every single week of my life than babysit the dipstick of my Accord.
They also want me to pay them $3000 to get the work done since the warranty has apparantly just expired. The frustrating thing is that I've been visiting two dealerships prior to the expiration, and neither one warned me to be tell them if I was experiencing excessive oil consumption. The fact that there was a manufacturing defect in these cars would have been pretty nice to know.
I've owned the car for a couple years now. I've been happy with Honda in the past but this 2008 Accord has a lot of "features" that make me want to stay away from Hondas for a while.
The Honda dealer has had me back at least 6 times to have them record the oil replacement, at 1,000 miles. They didn't keep notes. Bad recording keeping. I have to come back yet again in 1,000 miles. The usage was worse than the couple of times that they had recorded it.
They are wasting my time and energy, and now say that the car is out of warranty. I don't even have 100,000 miles yet.
I change my oil religiously at 3,000-4,000 miles even though the owners manual AND online all say 10,000 between changes. i drive long distances for work. Car started a funny rattle even tho i had changed the oil about 1,500 miles before, and I thought it sounded like a heat shield, but checked the oil and it was completely dry. I know this site says to report every incident but I'd be complaining every single week when i'm checking my oil and adding to the damn thing. Pain in my ass. Bought a Honda as they are supposed to be 300,000 mile cars... baloney
The car is using 2 quarts of oil about every 1500 miles, I have to check weekly, and add oil all the time. It would be completely dry if I didn't add oil in between 3,000 mile changes. Good thing I'm not a retard mechanically and check my oil, or it would have had catastrophic failure long ago. Everything I've read on oil change schedule online AND IN OWNERS MANUAL says 10,000 miles between changes. Bull hockey. Lucas oil treatment has no effect. I bought a Honda for reliability because I don't want to have to shoot a jerk in the face if I'm attacked while broke down on the highway near St Louis.
The car is burning oil, every time I change my oil, it seems like 1 month later I have to put in 2 quarts just to get it back to normal.
I know there was a recall on it a few years ago, and I didn't have a chance to get it fixed because the car was not having any problems at that time. However, this is not the case recently as the car burns significant oil and the recall is not open anymore. Honda says there is no more recall on the car? Any help or suggestions
The car does have a rebuilt title but it was a minor rear fender bender.
I bought my accord new. It has not given me a problem until last year when I noticed excessive oil consumption. They did know about this problems and failed to notify the consumers. I think it potentially could be very dangerous and costly problem, when the engine burns out or runs out of motor oil. Honda must notify the consumers and fix the problem
The recall Honda has issued on oil consumption seems like it is mostly concerned with the 6 cyl models. We have a 2008 4 cyl. model that burns a quart of oil every 1000 miles. But, the Honda dealership says it doesn't qualify for a fix by Honda. They want to check the oil 5 minutes after the car comes in before the oil can settle all the way back in the pan. Ergo they don't have to fix, since it doesn't fall into their parameters of consumption. If the car sits long enough the dipstick reads a quart low, but when you check at the 5 minute mark it is only about 3/4 quart low. Just outside their parameters. Convenient !!!
FOR THE PASS 8 MONTHS IT HAS BEEN USING AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF OIL, I CAN GET AN OIL CHANGE AND IN TWO OR THREE WEEKS I WOULD TO PUT 2 OR 3 QUARTS OF IN THE ENGINE. THE CAR HAS NO LEAKS SO WERE IS THE OIL GOING? SINCE MY OIL CHANGE IN JANUARY AND THE ONE IN APRIL I HAVE BEEN COMPLAINING. THE SERVICE MANAGER TOLD ME TO PUT A QUART OF OIL IN THE CAR EVERY 1000 MILES, AND I TOLD HIM THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG BECAUSE MY CAR HAS NEVER GIVEN ME ANY PROBLEMS.
Not till recently has my oil levels dropped. Between oil changes I am almost down to zero oil left. I am forced to top off between oil changes several times and up to 5 quarts. I've maintained my car very well and it has only recently started burning oil. I contacted Honda and was advised the settlement warranty extension expired for me 3 months prior.
If I paid for a diagnostics from Honda, they would review my case, but because of the high mileage on the vehicle, it wasn't likely. I've been a loyal Honda consumer my whole life. This will be my last Honda for sure.
Started noticing the excessive oil consumption about 2 years prior. FINALLY Honda quietly admitted there was a problem and bring the car in if you experience it. I brought the car in and the first step is to have an oil change and come back when the problem arises again. I brought it back after 600 miles when I heard the engine knocking and after checking the oil it was low. I was told that the oil level was fine; they topped it off and I was told to keep an eye on the oil light.
I heard the engine knocking and the oil light was on after another 1250 miles and was told the oil was not even registering on the dipstick. They told me Honda doesn't consider it excessive oil consumption unless mileage is under 1000, keep checking the oil every time I fill it up and bring it back when I have the problem again. I brought it back when I heard the engine knocking after 750 miles. They told me the oil level was fine and they completed the excessive oil consumption test. Still having the problem and will try to dump this car soon. HONDA - NEVER AGAIN!!
In December my car was making a strange grinding noise in each gear when I was driving. At first I thought it was the heat shield. I had them check the heat shield when I took the car in for an oil change. When I picked the car up the heat shield was fine and the noise stopped. 2700 miles later I made another appointment at the Honda dealer to have the oil changed. Prior to the appointment the noise returned and the oil light came on. I was dangerously low on oil and found that there was less than a quart in the car. I spoke to the tech to try to remedy the problem. At first I thought a pcv valve and spoke to the tech about it... then I find out that Honda knew there was a problem with excessive oil consumption and a class action suite. It took two months without an answer of yes or no until I had to take matters into my own hands and complain to Honda. The mileage on the car was an issue however the techs told me I have a better chance than they do to solve the problem. I found another Honda owner who had their car repaired at 157,000 miles. WTF! I have never had the car serviced anywhere else other than one Honda dealer. After explaining to Honda and receiving the case number 04515338... After calling and calling they promised to get back to me to resolve the matter. Only after calling every day I received a call telling me that they would not fix the car and was told older cars use more oil. I told Honda I am not done with this. I went to the securities and exchange commission web site and obtained all the names from the CEO the CFO down. They will be getting an email about the fact that they knew about this problem and only after a law suite did they admit there was a problem. This is unacceptable after purchasing 8 Honda Automobiles, servicing only through Honda...not once has a drop of oil been excessively consumed until the 2008. My family needs this car. I am documenting every oil check and service record. The next step is having Honda change the pcv valve, the oil and oh yes THE AIR BAG recall! I'm pissed how loyal customers are treated.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
No engine light or low oil light came on......we have a new CRV and when I brought it to Honda, the mechanic only checked the oil life on the dash and since it was 40%, he said the vehicle did not need an oil change.....he never checked the oil level.....now I'm learning that the oil life on the dash has nothing to do with oil amount....that sounds totally nuts.
- Rock B., Wethersfield, CT, US