Honda Odyssey Problems

Compare Honda Odyssey complaints, problems, & worst model years. There are 2,951 complaints on file for the Honda Odyssey.

www.carcomplaints.com

2017 Odyssey has fewer complaints than 2018 (New Model Year).
2018 Odyssey has fewer complaints than 2014 & 2015 model years, about same for 2016.
We purchased 2019 Odyssey Elite (10 speed transmission), put on 10,000 miles, no issues, like smooth 10 speed.
I had read dissatisfaction with the 9 speed transmission on lower trim levels, jerky shifts at 20-45 mph.
I believe the 2018 model change is where the second row can slide sideways. We use this feature every day.
Good luck with your search.

 

Thanks. And, yes, the magic slide feature is a very attractive option.

 

Aside from recalls, my 2018 has been rock solid. Zero issues at 57000 miles. I am, however getting very aggravated at the gas mileage. I'm only getting about 16 in the city now down from 19-20 earlier on.

 

Is the gas mileage issue fairly common?

 

If I look only at 2018 models

All the transmission comments are fairly blow up in the forums.

Transmission Survey + 9/10 speed detailed info (One...

NOT REPORTED IN THE SURVEY /\ [9 speed failures: 2] [10 Speed failures: 9] Not trying to beat this into the ground...just trying to be informative to the community and those that might be experiencing issues. Feel like this should've been created back in 2017/18. On top of that there are so...

www.odyclub.com

I have a thread explaining how the two work. You can see it for your self... on #failures and etc there.

I have a 9 Speed, had no issues. I have other complaints that are more annoying to me than the transmission.

Best of luck.

 

Yes, the 8th gen models have some known issues... electronics bugs, transmission complaints, fuel injectors, etc.

But, that's probably not the reason for the high number of 8th gens for sale. With any car, there are always a lot of ~3 year old used units on the market. I've always attributed it to the high number of lease returns, used rental units, commercial companies not keeping fleet vehicles past a certain number of years, etc.

 

8th gen models

 

2017 will naturally have fewer complaints. Last year of the generation vs first year of a new generation.

I would try and look for a 2019 or newer to avoid that.

 

That makes sense.

2019 is gonna be out of our price range though. Might need to back up and look at the 2017s.

 

What kind of prices are you seeing for used 2018+ Odysseys? I was recently at the dealership, and they had a bunch of 2018+ Odysseys. The used price (same trim, same model year) was almost identical to the price I paid for my vehicle new. Keep in mind that I purchased the van shortly after the new model came out, and there wasn't much negotiating at that time ($3000 off list if I remember correctly).

You may want to consider purchasing a new van at list price, versus a used van at nearly list price.

 

Anything decent starting in the low 30s. Had been looking at a '18 EX, 29K miles for $31,750. That's probably the maximum upper limit of what I would want to pay, maybe even a tad high, but if we plan to drive the thing for a decade or more, then it's probably justifiable.

 

@jmg32 I have a 2018 Elite, The second reason I bought this ODY was it is reliable. I have not had the engine not start, but the two areas I had problems at is the sliding doors, not opening and closing as originally did new. There was a recall on the ODY's and they replaced 2 cpu cards for each door and it was no longer hanging-up. It still was not back to its speed when new but, I replaced the battery with a Optima Yellow Top H6 AGM battery as people were having problems with a lot of electronics not working right. This fixed the sliding doors problems for me. The second problem was the center display come up with 3 faults, but would reset over night. Actually the problems it showed... was working even thought the ODY said they wasn't. It happened 4 times, and every time was a a hands free car wash (good high pressure), never any other time but generally speaking in less than 2 hours this would come up. The ride of the ODY is smooth and due to it having Electric steering you do not get fatigued as you would with a vehicle with just powers steering - hydraulic. There is no play in the steering! The Elite has a good noise free system that cancels out mos of the road noise and sound defining glass. I will say I am not wild about the placement of the spare tire inside the ODY. A lot of people have problems with the Rear Entertainment Systems not working right including the main head set, which mostly was corrected by Honda by some Farka connectors being replaced. Others had problems with the cell phones apps not working on the ODY, I bought the Elite due to it having items like GPS in it, and do not use any apps on my cell phone. It took me a while to understand how the GPS was controlled, definitely a learning curve. For children you will enjoy the middle row magic slide seats. If you plan on hauling anything that is 8' long, the middle row seats are very heavy to take out. Some people had water leaks into the rear storage area, generally some where Honda did not seal a seam or missed putting a plug in. I would say to leave your rear seats up, as the water got in and saturated the seats by being contained by this compartment. Eventually these people smelled the mold/bacteria in the water and seats.

Their are 4 levels of this ODY, Elite being the best. If at all possible get the Elite, and you won't have to try and retrofit many components that are standard on the Elite!
IMHO, I am attaching a comparison chart of the 2018-2019 ODY model for you to see.

 

@jiantao Your are stating that the 2018 ODY is a 8th Gen... It is a Gen 5 vehicle in the ODY line-up.

 

As fuego mentioned, forums are where you find all the horror stories. Relative to the number sold, the 2018 is likely a success story for Honda. Their warranty claims on first issue are probably on par with the other car makers. I have a 2018 EX and despite the terrible build quality from the Alabama plant, a 9-speed transmission that I can't get used to no matter what, the removal of common sense Japanese design features, terrible gas mileage despite all the "modern tech," and an over-taxed electrical system that requires a new battery every three years, my 2018 has also been reliable.

Have you looked into other products?

 

As fuego mentioned, forums are where you find all the horror stories. Relative to the number sold, the 2018 is likely a success story for Honda. Their warranty claims on first issue are probably on par with the other car makers. I have a 2018 EX and despite the terrible build quality from the Alabama plant, a 9-speed transmission that I can't get used to no matter what, the removal of common sense Japanese design features, terrible gas mileage despite all the "modern tech," and an over-taxed electrical system that requires a new battery every three years, my 2018 has also been reliable.

Have you looked into other products?

Early on when I first started looking at minivans I looked at the Sienna and Pacifica as well. Most of my thought process has centered on functionality with car seats. Based on all I have read (relying heavily on thecarseatlady.com which provides extensive vehicle reviews related to their use with car seats), the Odyssey stands out from the pack when it comes to car seat functionality. Aside from that, we have owned 3 CRV's and currently own two, of which one just passed 200,000 miles and the other over 100,000 miles, so I feel pretty comfortable with Honda. But, of course, it's possible the Odyssey is an inferior product compared to the CRV.

 

Hi jmg32,

You're 100% correct about the car seat stuff. The Magic Slide seat and robust build of the rear seats is far superior to any other van out there. The other accolade that Honda has kept is their safety record.

I tend to be a bit biased. I owned a 2002 EX for 16 years. It had all the common sense stuff that the Japanese had incorporated into their cars of the day but much of that "stuff" was stripped away in the years that followed.

In general, Honda is still good product. It used to be much better in most ways. Too bad they've let things slip. I suppose all the car makers are guilty in that area 🙃.

 

The magic slide is really one of the few things the 5th gen has that older models don't. While older models do have the walk in feature for the third row, magic slide is a 5th gen feature.

 

One reason a lot of 2018's plus are for sale is people can get what they paid, or nearly what they paid and trade in for new. I have never bought a new car, it's just not been worth it to me, but a lot of 2018's were going for 5k off new sticker price unless they were high mileage. At that rate, it wasn't worth it to me and I found new to be better value with the new warranty.

I'd buy a low mileage 2017 if I had to buy used, just because that one year seems to make a big difference in price since it's an older model generation.

 

I had to sit out the 17 and older Odys because there just wasn't the leg room I needed in the driver's seat. We'd have bought a 16 if I'd fit, we ran down to grab the "new" 17 only to find it a clone of the 16s.

I'm happy enough with the reliability but the original assembly was a big mess. I'd not hesitate to get another 18 if the owner had the faults fixed, and of course it was a good bit cheaper than new models.

 

What kind of assembly issues in the 2018 are you referring to?

 

What kind of assembly issues in the 2018 are you referring to?

If I my break in here, jmg32...

• Multiple body panels way out of alignment.
• Doors that when closed were so improperly fit that the internal indicator light would not go out unless you really slammed the door.
• Incorrect A/C charge levels that caused the A/C to be basically useless in the hotter areas.
• Battery terminals that were only finger tight, causing electrical failures.
• Poor DC grounds that required disassembly, scuffing, reassembly, and then painting or some other coating.
• Carpet that had to be replaced because it was one inch too short.
• Leaking body members because the factory caulking was incomplete or so sloppy you wondered how it held any water back at all.
• Creaking suspension during turns or when going over bumps because of incorrect torque values.
• Premature peeling paint.
• Side doors that would open at will.
• Side doors that wouldn't close due to faulty pinch sensors.

These are just a few that I can remember from the forum posts. Some on the list are from my own experience. After owning an earlier Ody Model, I was astounded at how poorly my 2018 was built. I had it back to the dealer five times for these defects to be corrected. Unacceptable. I think the inspectors at the Alabama plant were on one long coffee break during their shift 🙃!

 

Yeesh. I think I'd rather stick with a '17 then.

 

I think you'll be fine with a '17. I almost bought one myself but no, like an idiot, I had to have the newest one! My friend cautioned me to never buy a first issue car. He was right of course. And to be fair, I think a lot of those nightmares have been corrected, but there's still no excuse for sloppiness, when you have to pay more for a car then your first house!

At any rate, good luck.

 

I think you'll be fine with a '17. I almost bought one myself but no, like an idiot, I had to have the newest one! My friend cautioned me to never buy a first issue car. He was right of course. And to be fair, I think a lot of those nightmares have been corrected, but there's still no excuse for sloppiness, when you have to pay more for a car then your first house!

At any rate, good luck.

Honestly, the main reason I'd look at the '18 is that it seems to have a better backup camera and it has Apple CarPlay. My wife will primarily be driving it and she would probably appreciate those features, but those factors are obviously much less important than build quality.

 

Yes, the backup camera is good. There was a recall on it. I forget what for. But it works well. I don't use Apple Car Play. Some of the electronic toys on the 2018+ models have proven to be a nightmare of reliability.

The other issue is with battery longevity. The off hours drain is substantial due to some these electronic do-dads running in background. You're lucky if you can get more than two years out of the battery. My wife has a 2012 CRV and its battery lasts about 5 years with no issues. For my 2018, I bought a battery maintainer. It not only charges the battery but it also restores it.

 

Yes, the backup camera is good. There was a recall on it. I forget what for. But it works well. I don't use Apple Car Play. Some of the electronic toys on the 2018+ models have proven to be a nightmare of reliability.

The other issue is with battery longevity. The off hours drain is substantial due to some these electronic do-dads running in background. You're lucky if you can get more than two years out of the battery. My wife has a 2012 CRV and its battery lasts about 5 years with no issues. For my 2018, I bought a battery maintainer. It not only charges the battery but it also restores it.

Thanks. I do like the tech stuff, but from what I'm reading here it does seem to be buggy. Unfortunately, anything newer than 2018 is out of the range of what I'm willing to pay for a car.

 

Good stuff, jmg32. The best news of all is, Honda has maintained its reputation for safety. I believe Honda is still on top of the list for that. Good for them 👍!

 

I purchased a new 2019EX with the 9 speed transmission. I’ve not had any problems with the transmission. It’s going on 3 years old and have only needed to take it in for routine maintenance and I think 4 recalls. The recalls were all done at the same time so it wasn’t a big deal.

I really like all the new safety features. It was one of the reason we bought new instead of an older model. I also like the backup camera especially at night. The extra lighting in the rear of the vehicle really makes it easy to back up at night.

The gas mileage is also good for such a large vehicle. I get anywhere from the low 20’s to almost 30 mpg. It all depends on how many highway vs city miles you drive and if you have a headwind or tailwind.

I drove my previous Honda Odyssey 2000 for 19 years.

 

I purchased a new 2019EX

How many miles? if I may ask.

 

We bought a 2018 Elite when new. Had almost zero problems with it. Still original battery. Driving in town getting around 18 mpg. Took a 3000 mile trip last summer. Got close to 40 mpg. Only problems I have noticed was the electric sliding doors are not smooth, and sometimes the 10 speed transmission acts strange.

 

What did you use for an additive? Thanks .

 

 

I've gotten 60,000 miles on my van and I do mostly City driving in Honolulu.get about 19-22 miles per gallon, that due to the fact that I almost rarely ever have to use the AC and that I drive is empty as possible rarely have extra stuff in the van. Keep the tires up do my annual oil change using amsoil synthetic. Like everyone else I just did the recalls when they applied ,had the injector problem. Otherwise no major repairs and typical wear and tear of the rubber trim and whatnot I have half a garage in which the van sits in partially covered. Also did some minor aerodynamic changes to increase efficiency.

 

Great thanks, Jakneese !

 

Crazy that it was such an inexpensive fix.

 

You're welcome 🤗

 

I have an 2018 Elite that I bought in May 2017. I waited for it specifically because of the magic slide seats and the updated niceties (child watch, wifi, etc…). We have two car seats in full time and I’m in a wheelchair full time. I can keep the car seats in place, move the seats together, and put my folding wheelchair in the space between the seats and the sliding door. I took the middle row console out immediately after purchase and have stored it away. It was difficult giving up European luxury vehicles for a minivan, but the new Odyssey was as close as I could get. The leather seats and fit & finish was far better than other minivan options at the time. i looked at the Chrysler Pacifica, Nissan, and Toyota offerings as well, but they didn’t come close to the luxury and convenience of the Ody. My wife and I are very happy with it.
It has been perfectly reliable and the 10spd behaves well. I finally changed the battery during a deep freeze (in the South?!!) this winter. Maybe I’m jinxing myself by saying this out loud, but I have no regrets with my 2018 Odyssey Elite. Well, except it’s still a minivan.