My 2005 Odyssey Touring has almost 105 K miles, and aside from a couple of trips to FL and NY, those miles have occurred in the state of AL. All the maintenance on this vehicle has been performed like clockwork, by the dealer, per the maintenance minder. As a mom with 2 kids, I love this vehicle for all its convenience features. Thank goodness we bought the extended warranty; however, because you can go down the list of common issues, and this vehicle has had it: power steering (I think we were the pioneers on this issue due to our high mileage), torque converter, Pax tires (we're on our 4th set), catalytic converter, tailgate gas strut recall, and now our latest VSA issue.
Back in May, just prior to this van crossing the 100K miles, I was approaching a redlight on a damp, drizzly day (dry pavement). The light changed just as I was approaching, so I came to a fast stop, but not so fast I would slide or anything of that nature. As quick as I was stopped, the "Check VSA" indicator lit up the dash and the engine was running very rough, as if it might stall at any moment. The check engine light came on. When the redlight changed, I diverted down a side street, pulled off the road, shut off the engine, and consulted my owner's manual. It said to shut off the engine, then restart to see if the "Check VSA" would clear. The "Check VSA" did clear, but the check engine indicator was still illuminated.
The next day I drove the van to the dealership where they proceeded to do all the 100K mile maintenance. They cleared the check engine code, and installed a VSA software update which they assurred me was the reason the "Check VSA" had come on. I had no problems for approximatley 2.5 months.
Yesterday, almost the exact same scenario recurred. I came to a fast stop at a redlight on a damp day (dry pavement). The "Check VSA" indicator illuminated the dashboard, the check engine indicator illuminated and the engine was suddenly running very rough. I pulled off the road, shut off the engine, restarted and drove home without further incident, including driving up a significant mountain to my home where the overall performance of the vehicle was "very peppy", just as it usually is.
The next day, on my way to work (I am an engineer at NASA), things deteriorated rapidly. At almost every stoplight the "Check VSA" came on, and the engine started running very rough. I took the vehicle straight to the dealership where they spent most of the day diagnosing. And the diagnosis was ........ low engine oil level --- 2 quarts low. The rough running engine was the vehicle running in "safe" mode. The reason it occurred at the stoplight was most likely "slosh" where the remaining oil sloshed forward which the computer sensed and put the vehicle in a "safe running" mode.
I drove the vehicle home tonight and on several errands, and it ran like a champ. So, assuming this diagnosis is correct, here is what I don't understand ..... Why on earth would Honda design their system to where the first indication the driver had of low oil would be the vehicle going into "safe mode" .... which is a very rough running engine that feels like it could stall at any moment? I went back through my owners manual tonight, and sure enough, the only other "idiot" light is the oil pressure light(picture of an oil can). The book says that if it ever comes on and stays on continuously, shut off the engine immediately and add oil. It is a dangerous condition where you likely have already caused damage to the engine.
The lesson learned for me: just because you do your oil maintenance exactly per the book, you are not exonerated from checking your oil level. It appears that I may have an "oil consumer", and even within the recommended maintenance period, I'm consuming almost half the oil this vehicle holds. Oh, and by the way, I have NO oil leaks, no blue cloud, no fouled spark plugs, no indicator of any nature that the vehicle is consuming oil.
I am actually seriously doubting the diagnosis. Has anyone had a similar issue? Kate
Back in May, just prior to this van crossing the 100K miles, I was approaching a redlight on a damp, drizzly day (dry pavement). The light changed just as I was approaching, so I came to a fast stop, but not so fast I would slide or anything of that nature. As quick as I was stopped, the "Check VSA" indicator lit up the dash and the engine was running very rough, as if it might stall at any moment. The check engine light came on. When the redlight changed, I diverted down a side street, pulled off the road, shut off the engine, and consulted my owner's manual. It said to shut off the engine, then restart to see if the "Check VSA" would clear. The "Check VSA" did clear, but the check engine indicator was still illuminated.
The next day I drove the van to the dealership where they proceeded to do all the 100K mile maintenance. They cleared the check engine code, and installed a VSA software update which they assurred me was the reason the "Check VSA" had come on. I had no problems for approximatley 2.5 months.
Yesterday, almost the exact same scenario recurred. I came to a fast stop at a redlight on a damp day (dry pavement). The "Check VSA" indicator illuminated the dashboard, the check engine indicator illuminated and the engine was suddenly running very rough. I pulled off the road, shut off the engine, restarted and drove home without further incident, including driving up a significant mountain to my home where the overall performance of the vehicle was "very peppy", just as it usually is.
The next day, on my way to work (I am an engineer at NASA), things deteriorated rapidly. At almost every stoplight the "Check VSA" came on, and the engine started running very rough. I took the vehicle straight to the dealership where they spent most of the day diagnosing. And the diagnosis was ........ low engine oil level --- 2 quarts low. The rough running engine was the vehicle running in "safe" mode. The reason it occurred at the stoplight was most likely "slosh" where the remaining oil sloshed forward which the computer sensed and put the vehicle in a "safe running" mode.
I drove the vehicle home tonight and on several errands, and it ran like a champ. So, assuming this diagnosis is correct, here is what I don't understand ..... Why on earth would Honda design their system to where the first indication the driver had of low oil would be the vehicle going into "safe mode" .... which is a very rough running engine that feels like it could stall at any moment? I went back through my owners manual tonight, and sure enough, the only other "idiot" light is the oil pressure light(picture of an oil can). The book says that if it ever comes on and stays on continuously, shut off the engine immediately and add oil. It is a dangerous condition where you likely have already caused damage to the engine.
The lesson learned for me: just because you do your oil maintenance exactly per the book, you are not exonerated from checking your oil level. It appears that I may have an "oil consumer", and even within the recommended maintenance period, I'm consuming almost half the oil this vehicle holds. Oh, and by the way, I have NO oil leaks, no blue cloud, no fouled spark plugs, no indicator of any nature that the vehicle is consuming oil.
I am actually seriously doubting the diagnosis. Has anyone had a similar issue? Kate
