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Honda Pilot Maintenance and Repair

3426 messages,  Last post on Apr 20, 2013 at 5:53 PM

You are in the Honda Pilot Forum.

What is this discussion about? Honda Pilot, Electrical, Engine, Steering, SUV

    
 
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Messages Page 334 of 343

#3330 of 3426 To do the (expensive) service or not by bob11

Jul 12, 2011 (8:21 am)

My 2003 Honda pilot has 250,000 miles on it. This 250 k miles service was quoted by dealer as 575 $. I am hesitant in spending this much money for service on a car that is getting up there in terms of mileage. I am curious if any one can give me some ideas about whether it is worthwhile doing this service? The car is probably near the end of its life. Is it OK to just keep doing oil changes every 5000 miles and see how long it can go. Wonder how long these pilots can last?
Thanks.

#3331 of 3426 Re: To do the (expensive) service or not [bob11] by walk_the_walk2

Jul 12, 2011 (8:47 am)

Replying to: bob11 (Jul 12, 2011 8:21 am)
On a Pilot that old, I would look at the list of what is normally covered by the 250K service and cherry pick what you think you really need. A lot of these bundled mileage-based services are very overpriced in my opinion and definitely not worth the cost. Also if you have kept the vehicle well serviced and do not use it in rough conditions, you may not need some of the services listed.
 
I recommend that you use synthetic oil and tranny fluid and change both regularly. Of course, you can get that done at either the dealer or at a Jiffy Lube or other mechanic's shop. (Some of the dealers are actually cheaper on the oil change than Jiffy Lube is if you get synthetic oils, ironically.) A lot of owners forget to change the fluid on the tranny, which should be done every 50-60K miles. The minimal cost of this service really pays for itself.
 
As for the life of the vehicle, you have done well to get to 250K. It says a lot for your care of the vehicle and the quality of the year model, too. My 2011 Pilot has had a lot of issues already, and I don't see that the quality is the same anymore. Bottom line: you can keep this car going as long as you want to keep paying to fix it and the body isn't falling apart and the safety systems still work. At some point, you will reach the point where you need to junk it, and just like putting down the family dog when it gets too sick to go on, you'll know when it's time.

#3332 of 3426 Re: To do the (expensive) service or not [bob11] by robr2

Jul 12, 2011 (9:36 am)

Replying to: bob11 (Jul 12, 2011 8:21 am)
$535 is about 1.25-1.5 payments. While the vehicle last another 6-8 weeks?
 
If it does, you're ahead of the game.

#3333 of 3426 Re: To do the (expensive) service or not [walk_the_walk2] by bob11

Jul 12, 2011 (11:54 am)

Replying to: walk_the_walk2 (Jul 12, 2011 8:47 am)
thanks for the response. I have always had my pilot serviced at the dealer. I will ask them if they use synthetic oil or not. I am sure they change all the fluids including transmission fluids. One time I took my car to jiffy lube for service and they damaged the threads on the one of the tanks ? oil tank? so that whole tank needed to be replaced for $ 330 or so. FWIW this car had transmission replaced at 180 k miles all done by Honda dealership. Honda subsidized that, so I paid $ 2000 for it. Other than that it had AC problem at 35 K miles, and even though it was out of warranty honda replaced it, i had to pay 300 $ for cost of labor. Rest has been mostly routine maintenance. Tires, brake pads, battery etc.
 
As you know honda manual recommmends major service every 30 k miles, I have always had that in the past. I just wanted to see if someone had any experiences with that in a pilot with this many miles. I think I would like to keep this car for a few more years, so I am gonna end up getting the service done, even though it is expensive.
 
Another question btw, how often should the brake fluid be changed in the honda pilot.

#3334 of 3426 Re: Replace lost key and remote for 2003 honda pilot [poodog13] by ralphiehonda

Jul 12, 2011 (5:36 pm)

Replying to: poodog13 (Dec 28, 2009 5:59 pm)
sddeb wrote:
>when it comes to keys, the Honda Pilot doesn't impress me....
  
poodog13
>What did this story have to do with the "impressions" of the key itself? Better >question: who would expect to be impressed by a key?
 
Yo poodog, sddeb is dead on, the Pilot ignition/keys/door locks suck! Same exact thing is happening to me right now... they don't make 'em like they used to doggy

#3336 of 3426 2011 honda pilot miles too high by msrec

Jul 25, 2011 (11:25 am)

I bought my 2011 honda pilot on a friday night and had to return to dealership on Monday morning. When the sales person asked how it drove I said "Great!" but my miles are so high it says I have almost 3000. It had 57 when I drove it off the lot. He asked if I went to Vegas and I told him "no" only to Los Angeles. I have complained that the miles are just racking up and I am not driving all over the place. Anyone experiencing this problem? Is there anyway to check for accuracy of odometer?

#3337 of 3426 Re: To do the (expensive) service or not [bob11] by justaveragejoe

Jul 25, 2011 (1:10 pm)

Replying to: bob11 (Jul 12, 2011 11:54 am)
It is recommended to replace the brake fluid every three years.

#3338 of 3426 Re: 2011 honda pilot miles too high [msrec] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Jul 27, 2011 (9:58 am)

Replying to: msrec (Jul 25, 2011 11:25 am)
If you have a smart phone, there is an APP to check your vehicle's actual speed according to the GPS. Otherwise you'll have to use the highway mile markers to see if you are really off.

#3339 of 3426 DIY repair help please. by wallstreet1234

Jul 28, 2011 (5:03 am)

Our new 2011 Pilot was hit in the back by someone and the Honda chrome plate that sits below the rear wiper is cracked. I would like to be able to replace this myself but I am not sure how to remove the old one.
 
Can someone help me with the steps involved to replace this?
 
Thanks very much
 
Steven

Messages Page 334 of 343

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