[allisonshelton05]

Okay, so Friday we took our 2003 Odyssey in to a dealership for the recalled passenger airbag. They replace it, and I'm sent home with the "service advisor" saying the vehicle looks good and the fluids are great along with their 6 page essay of the things they did for it. 6 hours later the battery light comes on, 2 hours after that the brake lamp comes on, next day I'm driving home from the store and I start losing power. Park, leave the car running but then can't get it into gear again. Make the decision to restart the car and it's dead. Completely drained, power locks, Windows, doors, nothing works. I call the dealership because obviously something must have happened since it was working fine the day before we brought it in. Had had the oil changed less than a month ago and the engine checked out and the battery replaced. It showed zero signs of an issue before the airbag thing. We get it towed to the dealership on Saturday before they close, today after calling them 4 times to get an response they tell me the alternator is dead and it'll be 800+ tax to repair. They insist that there is no correlation between the work they did and the alternator going bad. I'm skeptical since it seems like it would have to be quite the coincidence for them not to be related. Wondering if anyone else has had issues? Or if it's possible for the dealership to have caused the alternator to go bad. Thanks in advance!

 

[allisonshelton05]

Forgot to add the D4 light flashing about the same time the battery light came on.

 

[nitely2]

Coincidence or not you can't prove they damaged the alternator. I would just fix it by rebuilding myself it if it still the original denso one. If not, get a denso reman or an aftermarket with lifetime warranty. If you need a shop to do it for you then get the denso reman. I would get your old denso alternator back just in case you find the need to rebuild it later on.

 

[John Clark]

If it's at the dealership it will be a Denso reman, just an expensive one. Not sure how that addresses her concern of the alternator broken hours after doing the airbag recall.

I can assure you that the airbag work they did had nothing to do with the alternator. There's no way to harm the alternator while doing work on the vehicle where it's set up to fail within hours. If they did something it would have failed right there.

It sounds to me like just a coincidence. The D4 light could be due to low voltage. I'd get the alternator replaced and see what issues remain after that.

All that said, $800 is a bit steep for alternator repair. I would have just taken it to an independent shop for repair but, as mentioned above, make sure you request a Denso reman alternator as a replacement. No cheap parts house electrical parts, otherwise you'll be back in this situation again in a year.

 

[mwe2121]

Denso reman alternator as a replacement. No cheap parts house electrical parts, otherwise you'll be back in this situation again in a year.

I agree with John. The work they did wouldn't effect the alternator and make sure to request a denso reman otherwise you will be at it again.

 

[davedrivesody]

If it's at the dealership it will be a Denso reman, just an expensive one.

One would think so, but don't take it for granted.

A recent poster paid almost $800 at the dealer to have the alternator replaced. After 2 consecutive failures and re-replacements, turns out they installed an aftermarket alternator. Most of the $800 bill was (inflated?) labor.

Dave

 

[alphonse]

Are the terminals tight on your new battery. Replaced my alternator months ago and found my + terminal loose. I also needed to shim the + post to tighten the + clamp tight enough.

 

[egads]

I had the this exact issue after the latest airbag recall. They do have to disconnect the battery to do the recall. If never replaced, the battery cable on these old Odysseys are pretty loose. I had a AAA guy shim mine after we could not even get a good connection to jump start. Battery seemed really weak as it had not been being charged.
So the answer is that the dealer really could have done something to make it seem like your alternator was bad. I doubt it was on purpose. But what you probably need is a new cable or shims.

 

[alphonse]

egads, my airbag was replaced a month before my alternator died, you just confirmed my belief. Thats why I like to do my own repairs when possible. My battery cable could not be tightened enough with the clamp that was on the cable. The Honda tech should have known this and did something about it..

 

[rman]

Okay, so Friday we took our 2003 Odyssey in to a dealership for the recalled passenger airbag. They replace it, and I'm sent home with the "service advisor" saying the vehicle looks good and the fluids are great along with their 6 page essay of the things they did for it. 6 hours later the battery light comes on, 2 hours after that the brake lamp comes on, next day I'm driving home from the store and I start losing power. Park, leave the car running but then can't get it into gear again. Make the decision to restart the car and it's dead. Completely drained, power locks, Windows, doors, nothing works. I call the dealership because obviously something must have happened since it was working fine the day before we brought it in. Had had the oil changed less than a month ago and the engine checked out and the battery replaced. It showed zero signs of an issue before the airbag thing. We get it towed to the dealership on Saturday before they close, today after calling them 4 times to get an response they tell me the alternator is dead and it'll be 800+ tax to repair. They insist that there is no correlation between the work they did and the alternator going bad. I'm skeptical since it seems like it would have to be quite the coincidence for them not to be related. Wondering if anyone else has had issues? Or if it's possible for the dealership to have caused the alternator to go bad. Thanks in advance!

I have little doubt that they sabotaged it but you cant prove it. This is the reason i am hesitating to take my van to them for the airbag recall. They are constantly looking for upselling and the real purpose of them excitedly calling me is precisely that.
I hope you didnt give them the business. Replacing alternator doesnt cost $800. You can get the part for about $100 on ebay and labor I would imagine about $200-$300 tops. While you are at it, replace the serpentine belt too.

 

[rman]

If it's at the dealership it will be a Denso reman, just an expensive one. Not sure how that addresses her concern of the alternator broken hours after doing the airbag recall.

I can assure you that the airbag work they did had nothing to do with the alternator. There's no way to harm the alternator while doing work on the vehicle where it's set up to fail within hours. If they did something it would have failed right there.

It sounds to me like just a coincidence. The D4 light could be due to low voltage. I'd get the alternator replaced and see what issues remain after that.

All that said, $800 is a bit steep for alternator repair. I would have just taken it to an independent shop for repair but, as mentioned above, make sure you request a Denso reman alternator as a replacement. No cheap parts house electrical parts, otherwise you'll be back in this situation again in a year.

John,
you are assuming they are ethical and honest. I wouldnt rule out sabotage.

 

[lozawa]

Are the terminals tight on your new battery. Replaced my alternator months ago and found my + terminal loose. I also needed to shim the + post to tighten the + clamp tight enough.

Yep, check for loose battery terminal. On my 2001, I have to use "shims", for both battery posts. They may look tight, but are not. Try, wiggling them. You might be surprised to find they "move". Too, much trouble/work, to replace the entire battery cables. And I heard, changing just the "terminals", not a good idea.

 

[egads]

A week or two later, my battery did test bad and it was actually cheaper to buy the battery from the AAA guy than to go to the nearest Auto Parts store. I did stop by an Autozone during that two weeks and buy these:

Amazon.com: Schumacher BAF-2 Battery Post Shims can be used for both the positive and the negative posts of batteries.: Automotive

Buy Schumacher BAF-2 Battery Post Shims can be used for both the positive and the negative posts of batteries.: Terminals & Ends - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

I recommend them to all old Ody owners. The battery cable itself is between $60-80 and this fixes it just fine.

 

[kernel]

Do check the condition of your ground cable. Shims can't fix this!

 

[egads]

Indeed, but that cable much cheaper and easy to change. Living in California, my cable looks nothing like that...
it didn't need the shim either.

 

[ih8spm]

I repaired my drivers sliding door and the next day the cable got chewed up although I never touched it. The point here is that sometimes things happen. My honda Accord is mint for 2006 yet the other day I decided to drive it to work and it wouldn't start bevsue the cables were loose so again it had never happened till I drove to work but I cant prove it.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[v4forever]

View attachment 152737

My ground cable from the engine block to the body looks exactly like this. Any ideas what caused this. A new cable is also in the works for me.
Just put new brushes in the alternator this summer and only had the original battery changed out in 2010. Still on the second battery and it checks out fine still.
Both are Honda batteries fron the dealership.
250,000 miles on my Odyessy.

 

[ih8spm]

The crimp and tension on those tinny strands can only take so much. Seeing as there is a bebd I the cable from the factory it's only natural for it to break apart under the exposure to weather and time. I don't believe any manufacturer builds cars to last longer than 10 years although many do, it's not their intention. The best maintained cars in car collection have these problems. Swap out the cable as planned and check you other exposed connections for corrosion and add so protection to them.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[kernel]

I think the failure of the ground is due to vibration and our mild Chicago winters!

 

[MrBob]

A week or two later, my battery did test bad and it was actually cheaper to buy the battery from the AAA guy than to go to the nearest Auto Parts store. I did stop by an Autozone during that two weeks and buy these:

Amazon.com: Schumacher BAF-2 Battery Post Shims can be used for both the positive and the negative posts of batteries.: Automotive

Buy Schumacher BAF-2 Battery Post Shims can be used for both the positive and the negative posts of batteries.: Terminals & Ends - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

I recommend them to all old Ody owners. The battery cable itself is between $60-80 and this fixes it just fine.

I have both a 2001 and 2002 Odyssey. I have shimmed the battery cables on both of them and never had a problem (electrical) since. Feedback from the poor battery connections to the diodes could cause failure in those diodes and the alternator. It is a very inexpensive safeguard.