10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
43,010 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 Odyssey body / paint problems

body / paint problem

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2003 Honda Odyssey Owner Comments

problem #20

Jan 022017

Odyssey

  • 114,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2003 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated that he was unable to open the front driver's door with the key. As a result, the contact had to enter the vehicle through the front passenger door. The vehicle was taken to coggin Honda jacksonville (located at 11003 atlantic blvd, jacksonville, fl 32225, (904) 302-8217) where it was diagnosed that the front driver side electronic system needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 114,000.

- Jacksonville, FL, USA

problem #19

Oct 242011

Odyssey 6-cyl

  • 150,000 miles
Less than a week after we bought our van, the back passenger door wouldn't close properly. It was fixed prior to us buying the van. Since then we have had to get out and physically push on the door to close it. Also, had an incident where the door closed on a child's hand when it should have sensed it was there. Child was fine. New problem is we can't get drivers side sliding door to close properly. It will close and then pop open a little bit. Hubby has taken to "kicking" it in with his foot. We drive with the doors locked praying that they won't open like I have read about happening to so many folks. We bought the van because we have 3 kids but this is scary stuff. As we drive down the road there is a constant beeping sound like the door is open but it isn't lit up on the dash. I don't understand why no recall has been done to this year of Honda. Sounds like the same problems the earlier year Honda's have had. We are making payments on this van and can't afford to purchase anything else. Something really should be done before someone dies.

- Shelton, WA, USA

problem #18

Jul 252012

Odyssey

  • miles
Vehicle was parked. Driver used front dash auto open button to open side door on driver's side. 6 year old child in the back seat had gotten out of her car seat and as the door was opening her leg slipped into the open space between the door and the retractor bar. The door did not register that there was an object and continued to press on her leg until driver was able to exit vehicle and pull sliding door handle to reverse direction to free up the child's leg. Leg was painful but no serious injury on this occasion.

- Shoreline, WA, USA

problem #17

May 112012

Odyssey 6-cyl

  • 177,285 miles

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

Driver's side automatic door has started not operating correctly. The driver's side power sliding door closes but not quite all the way, it will not "engage", or "catch". therefore, the van thinks the door is still open (open door light is on, buzzes continually when put into gear, and interior lights stay on). However, the power sliding door indicator light is not on, so the van thinks the door is closed, but it is still open. I have to get out and physically bump the rear of the door the final centimeter or so to get it flush. Sometimes no matter how much I try the door will not catch all the way. For some reason the back lock part isn't "catching." This occurs almost every time the door is shut. This is a danger for my children riding in the car if the door is not engaged.

- Eatonton, GA, USA

problem #16

Jan 262012

Odyssey 6-cyl

  • 100,325 miles
Without much or any warning my transmission failed (the dreaded P0730 code showed up on the scanner) on my 2003 Honda Odyssey ex-L van with only 100,325 miles. The van was never abused or used to tow. Transmission was rebuilt 1.30.12 by private shop Continental transmission for $1800. (torque converter blown to pieces). Honda does have limited recalls on trannys but mine was not included (only if 2nd shaft is broken & scored and burnt/ bluish color) this will documented tranny problem with 2nd generation Odyssey is very upsetting and I blame it on a poor design by Honda engineers (under sized tranny paired with a power V6 240hp heavy 4500lbs van has been a recipe for premature failure). The worst part was on 1.5.12 I just had extensive preventative maintenance done at don davis Honda (timing belt, water pump, tensioner and power steering belts) and two weeks later the transmission fails!!! other issues with the van have been, ac compressor failed May 2010 88,648 miles. Rear wiper motor failed March 2011 89,240 miles, both sliding power door rollers had to replaced. Brake switch failed (locked up), Dec 2011 98,750 miles van would not move out of park. Not real happy or confident with Honda right now!

- Hamburg, NY, USA

problem #15

Sep 032011

Odyssey

  • miles
While driving on a highway 65 mph with my kids in the car, the drivers side automatic sliding door opens all by itself. We had to find a place to pull over and shut the door. The door opens fine but will not latch on and close properly anymore. The interior call lights go on and everything starts beeping and dashboard starts flashing. It is not only very distracting but also very dangerous. The door just won't shut anymore.

- Hopewell Jct, NY, USA

problem #14

Jul 162011

Odyssey

  • 99 miles

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

The vehicle (2003 Honda Odyssey) has progressively been experiencing what I'll deem "electrical" issues that seem to be severely impacting the automatic sliding doors on the vehicle causing them to open while driving, not open when using the handle or button. Specifically, the automatic sliding doors will not open, will not close or partially close without fully latching. This happens regardless of using the manual door handle or the button located on the dashboard. More importantly, the automatic doors have opened while driving the vehicle with children in the back of the vehicle creating an extremely dangerous and potentially deadly situation. This has occurred approximately 6-10 times over the past year and seems to be getting more frequent. It's happened while driving on the highway, on side streets and during normal operation of the vehicle. In addition, there seems to be an issue with the electrical system that is constantly drawing a small charge from the battery keeping it in a weakened state.

- Waxhaw, NC, USA

problem #13

Mar 122011

Odyssey

  • miles
Automatic sliding doors are not operational - either opening/closing by hand or by button control. They are not closing properly.

- Dallas, TX, USA

problem #12

Jul 122010

Odyssey

  • miles
Automatic sliding doors do not operate correctly. The passenger side power sliding door closes but not quite all the way, it will not "engage", or "catch". therefore, the van thinks the door is still open (open door light is on, buzzes continually when put into gear, and interior lights stay on). However, the power sliding door indicator light is not on, so the van thinks the door is fine, but still open. I have to get out, walk around, and physically bump the rear of the door the final centimeter or so to get it flush. For some reason the back lock part isn't "catching." This occurs almost every time the door is shut. This is a danger for any children riding in the car if the door is not engaged. Fuse #13 has been taken out so doors were reset and everything cleaned and oiled.

- Albuquerque, NM, USA

problem #11

Apr 202010

Odyssey 6-cyl

  • miles
The driver side power door on my 2003 Honda Odyssey will not close all the way. It opens as I drive down the road. It is the rear latch system on the drivers side power sliding door. This is the same issue that the 1999's were having and they were recalled. This issue is extremely dangerous and in my opinion needs to be fixed asap.

- Concord, NH, USA

problem #10

May 242010

Odyssey

  • miles

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

I drive a 2003 Honda Odyssey and have been experiencing problems with the rear sliding doors working intermittently, trapping my 12 month granddaughter in the car seat. I have had "rollers" replaced. Now they want me to pay for door latch motor which was not an issue until their "repair". it appears from websites that this is a global issue and Honda needs to take ownership for the safety problem. The alarms go off while in motion indicating the door is open. When the doors are non-functional the passengers can be trapped requiring crawling over seats to get out or to retrieve infants/toddlers.

- Sagamore Hills, OH, USA

problem #9

Feb 112010

Odyssey

  • 97,000 miles
Just getting old, maybe the motor is getting weak, but the automatic doors on my 2003 Honda Odyssey have stopped latching completely. We have kids in the van, and it is a real safety issue, and from what I've read trying to fix this problem, it seems to me like this is very frequent problem worthy of a recall before something terrible happens.

- Fort White, FL, USA

problem #8

Jan 102010

Odyssey

  • 60,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Honda Odyssey. While driving approximately 30 mph on an exit ramp, the left passenger sliding door opened and it cannot be closed or locked. The dealer estimated cost to diagnose the failure was $103. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer will be notified. The current and the failure mileages were 60,000.

- Norton , MA, USA

problem #7

Aug 112008

Odyssey

  • 115,000 miles
Sliding doors on 2003 Honda oddosey swing open and malfunction on highway at high travel speeds. 3 times this problem has occured on this vehicle. Dealer charges $700 to repair a safety problem tha continually repeats itself. Door does not work properly and is a major safety risk to anyone not wearing a seat belt in midrow seats.

- North Andover, MA, USA

problem #6

Jun 102007

Odyssey 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 23,486 miles
Power sliding doors and rear side windows fail to close properly and or inop sporadically during normal operation of opening or closing.

- Miami, FM, USA

problem #5

May 192006

Odyssey

  • Automatic transmission
  • 5,000 miles
Both rear sliding doors on my 2003 Honda Odyssey stick so that they cannot be opened, when the ambient temperature is approximately 85 Fahrenheit or above. In order to open a stuck side door, I must either have a second person push hard on the inside while I pull hard on the handle on the outside, or I must yank repeatedly on the handle. I was trying to open the door last may, 2006, when the handle broke off entirely, probably from the repeated yanking I'd done during the three years I'd had the van. I fell hard into the pavement as well as into the car parked next door, but I am more concerned that, should I have an accident, my children wouldn't be able to open the doors to free themselves. The problem seems to be with the rubber seals on the doors sticking to the metal of the body when the door is shut. When the handle broke, I took it to the Honda dealer that sold me the van for replacement, which they did at no charge even though the van was out of warranty, as they'd replaced several other handles due to the same problem. However, there was no fix for the seal/sticking problem itself. They advised me to apply a silicone-based lubricant to the seals, which I did several times, but each time the lubricant only lessened (not stopped) the problem for a day or two before the door was sticking again. The defective seals are still on my vehicle.

- Winter Park, FL, USA

problem #4

Jul 072006

Odyssey 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
The right side sliding door opens while the vehicle in motion. The dealership reported that they could not find no problem and could not recreate it. When the door does open you must pull over to the side of the road and place the vehicle in park to close the door with the drivers controls, there is not always a safe area to park when this happens which increases the risk to slow down and stop the vehicle. In my opinion this creates a big concern for the safety of my children who sit next to it.

- Bowie, MD, USA

problem #3

Feb 012006

Odyssey

  • Automatic transmission
  • 18,000 miles
My child experienced a leg injury suffered when his right foot got caught in the driver side power door as it was opening. The door lacks any safety feature to prevent the door from stopping when a limb gets caught in the crack between the door hinge and the door.

- Alpharetta, GA, USA

problem #2

Jul 272005

(reported on)

Odyssey

  • miles
Consumer complaint regarding 2003 Honda Odyssey as being a lemon.** answer required***. the consumer had problems with the vehicle sliding doors.

- Glendora, CA, USA

problem #1

Jan 102003

Odyssey

  • miles
Honda Odyssey 2003, recurring problem with power sliding doors not open/or close due to unknown reason. The consumer stated his children were trapped inside the vehicle.

- Auburn, AL, USA

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