I bought my used 2008 2.4L 4 cylinder Accord off the Campus Honda Dealer here in Victoria in 20/08/13. I have taken it back several time to request they check the dimming/flashing head light problem. Apparently they are not aware of any problems and no recall so there is NOTHING to fix. They also said since I had added an after market Rosen GPS / DVD combination specially designed for the 2008 Honda Accord, I had altered the electrical use of the car?.

I have since read most of the Blogs and noted numerous complaint as far back as 2008 before I owned the car and all have the same complaint. Headlights and Daytime running lamps flash every 15-20 second. Only one mechanic dare to use the words ELECTRONIC VOLTAGE REGULATOR causes dimming of lights, advising NOT to use my Heater or A/C unless really necessary.

The lights appear to no longer Flash or Dim, so I guess I do not drive it in our cold Canadian winter weather or warm summer days unless I leave lights OFF.!

But can drive it in the dark!! with out flashing oncoming traffic.

Update from Nov 19, 2014: Dimming Headlights...Would it be a stretch in Honda Technology if they would exchange the offending part, for one that seems to work OK in ANY previous Honda Accord 2.4litre, that did NOT have the headlight problem. Lets say a 2007 or even try a newer 2009 Honduh Accord 2.4 litre?????????????

Update from Nov 19, 2014: Would it be a stretch in Honda Technology if they were to exchange the offending part, for one from a different year that really worked. Like 2007 or even one from 2009 Accord 2.4ltre

Update from Nov 22, 2014: Here is a question regarding dimming headlight?. The electrical systems seems to be overloaded with lights and Heater or A/C running. Apparently my 2008 Honda Accord 2.4litre come with a 87.5 amp alternator. Would a larger amp.alternator solve that problem?, or is it other parts acting up.

Update from Nov 24, 2014: I contacted my local Honda Dealer after speaking to my local Auto Electric specialist who says it's NOT the alternator, but something in the fuse box. Apparently there is a REPLACEABLE (E L D ) Electrical Load Detector module that cost $10 - $11 so I ordered one..what could it hurt to try.

Update from Dec 4, 2014: Why do the cooling fans and A/C fans NEED stop and start every 20-30 seconds

Update from Jan 23, 2015: I changed ALL my NON head lights to LED, what a waist of time and money that was. Rear running lights, all three brake and backup work great. BUT the signal LED front and back flash way too fast, returned to stock bulbs. Seller could not fix and Dealer says they could cause the Computer module to premature fail, with the rapid flashing. I also bought a Electronic Load Module $6 cdn. as others advise that might stop the dimming of headlights. After reading the Shop manual I chose to take E.L.D. back. Apparently you must disconnect battery cables, remove the fuse box completely from the car, turn it upside down to remove /replace E.L.D.. But it also warns that you must immediately take car to dealer as your Computer module, Radio and all electronic (airbag) controls will require dealer intervention or car will shut down. Also numerous Honda Mechanic state that they have never needed to change an E.L.D. since they started working....that they can remember. I wonder if they really know what it does???

Update from Oct 26, 2015: regarding my 2008 Honda Accord 2.4L 4 cylinder with dimming head lights..It is now mid Oct 2015..(1) Can I bypass the E.L.D. and power headlight directly from battery. (2) Can I replace 2008 E.L.D. with a 2007 or 2009 E.L.D. that do not seem to have any complaints.

Update from Nov 18, 2015: Can I bypass the E.L.D. which causes my lights to flicker? And run a positive battery wire directly to the Headlight fuse and bypass E.L.D. ?

Update from Dec 1, 2017: I seem to have solved dimming headlites. I recently changed all my 2008 Honda Accord 2.4l headlites to L.E.D. A set of two 9006 low beam and two 9005 High beam cost $98 as a kit of four from Amazon. Since L.E.D. require lower eletrical demand NO 15' flickering when Alternator/air conditioning or heater are on. I recommend SYNETICUSA.brand as they are plug and play and their beam can be altered by rotating the L.E.D. 45' making it easy to correct.
Enjoy

I purchased a 2008 Honda on May 3, 2014 with mileage of 48,000. We were noticing the lights kept going dimmer with the a/c very often. Took it back to the dealer and advised nothing was wrong Driving at night the dimming persisted and often. Took it back July 24th, 2014 again to the Honda dealer advised the Honda Accords do this and there is no way of fixing the problem. I was then handed an article about the headlights and dash lights dim with electrical load. They advised this is normal This problem is with the ELD unit. That there is nothing wrong. It is terrible driving at night when your dimming headlights are being annoying to other people driving. People flickering their high beams on and honking at you cause this is happening. Don't tell me HONDA cannot fix this problem they just don't want to. Well I am not finished I will pursue this matter until this is done. You call this safety especially with children in the auto!!!!

Had a 1994 honda accord. got rid of it after 300,006 miles. never had any problems. bought a new one 2008 loaded thinking I was going to be able to continue my no problem streak. Spring of 2009 when I needed the A/C I started to notice under a load that the lights were dimming when the A/C compressor engaged. Took it to honda and they check and said nothing was wrong, so I ignored it for another year. three weeks ago (end of July 2010) I was on a dark road behind a rather large pickup truck and my lights were dimming. Well the person slowed down and stopped the truck in the middle of the road, got out and asked why I was flashing high beams at him. I told him I was not and showed him. No beating that night! Anyway, I took it back to honda dealer thinking they would fix the problem and they did not change the ERM but instead said they were issued a tech bulletin to tell the customer this was normal behavior. I then contacted the customer help line and they told me that honda designed this to save me gas. My A?? I said. Very Very disappointed. did someone mention rear brakes?......

I purchased a new Honda Accord in 2008 and immediately noticed the lights dimming when the AC/Heating unit was running. I thought it was just a fluke at the time and continued to drive the vehicle until the first service was due. When i took the vehicle in for service I explained to the service writer what was happening and he stated they would check it out. When I returned to pick up the vehicle I was told this was a normal condition. I explained that this was not normal to me. I have owned many vehicles during my lifetime and I have never had a vehicle where the lights dimmed when the AC/Heater was running. He stated again that it was normal for the new Honda Accord and there was no fix for it.

Well he was correct when he said Honda has no fix for the problem. They don't want to fix the problem because it may cost them some additional money. Rather than spend a small amount to fix the problem they would rather have people like me get on the internet and do our best to make them look bad. Well that just goes to show what they think of thier customers. It seems that the majority of companies that sell products dont care how the consumers feel. All they care about is your money not your satisfaction with thier product.

I'm very disappointed with my 2008 Honda Accord.

The light flicker every 16 seconds. The dealership service manager spoke to the Honda rep. He said this is normal for the Honda accord and they can't fix it. ...."Too bad so sad! Now get lost and don't bother me boy". If this is how Honda treats they're loyal customers. Well I say "Too bad so sad!" too.

On very cold days the car struggle to start and has no power (you floor acceleration pedal and you hardly move). My 1992 Honda never had any problems like this. (Sold it summer 2009)

My solution for the new year. (2010) Get rid of Honda Accord buy a Lexus IS250

Resolutions for the years to come: Never by Honda again. Complain about the Accord as much as I can add hope people won't buy one. Go back to Toyota.

The headlights dim and flicker noticeably when the automatic transmission downshifts. The problem occurs primarily when descending a hill at highway speed. Touching the brake (or sometimes just letting off the accelerator) signals the computer to downshift the transmission for engine braking effect. The downshifts are generally quite sudden and not very smooth, and are accompanied by pronounced flicker of the headlights. Besides being distracting to the driver, it has caused many other drivers to flash their lights back at me in reply (which is funny in a sick kind of way). The dealership does not acknowledge this as something that occurs, but I have seen other Accords of the same year do the same thing. I am guessing that the electrical load changes suddenly on downshift, causing a momentary change in lighting intensity. The alternator may be underpowered, or perhaps the wiring is undersized.

I have to note the lights flickering also when driving. I used to think it was my eyes, but now am convinced it is happening. It is very subtle and happens every 30 to 60 seconds. It does not always happen

I am an electrical engineer myself but I cannot find the root cause as it is a random, non-repeatable event. I believe it is likely to lead to total front headlight failure at a bad time. No recall notice yet.....

Also note, I have to 2008 Honda Accord with the bad rear brake wear-out problem and the white dust all over the interior from the AC. Please look for those threads for advice on carcomplaints.com.

This problem occurred about two days after I purchased a brand new 2008 Accord. I thought I was buying quality because this vehicle was the "Car of the Year". Well as it were the headlights and every light on my vehicle for that matter flicker at random times when I'm driving and when I turn on the A/C unit. I took it in to the dealer who said that it was normal on the 2008 Accord and there was no current fix. Please anyone that reads this and has experienced the same problem or any problem with the 2008 Accord report it to the BBB and NHTSA because only they can force Honda to fix the sh*t load of problems on the 2008 Accord.