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Honda Odyssey vibration

460 messages,  Last post on Apr 29, 2013 at 4:35 AM

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What is this discussion about? Honda Odyssey, Transmission, Van

Messages Page 40 of 47

#382 of 460 Honda Odyssey Excessive Vibration with ECO ( The Solution) by biap2006

Aug 04, 2011 (6:45 am)

http://accuratecars.com/blog/2008/11/26/excessive-engine-vibration-with-eco-on-t- he-honda-odyssey-ex-l-and-honda-odyssey-touring/
 
  
Excessive Engine Vibration with ECO on the Honda Odyssey EX-L and Honda Odyssey Touring
 
When American Honda introduced the current body style of the Honda Odyssey in 2005, the van had some new refinements. For the first time, many of the Honda vans included a factory sunroof, back-up cameras, and sensors in the front and rear bumpers, that notified the driver if the van was too close to a standing object, which was especially important in tight areas such as parking lots and narrow garages. The 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 Honda Odyssey has a considerable amount of additional room and creature comforts that were only dreamed about in the 1999 thru 2004 Honda Odyssey. One of the most important innovations that American Honda Motor Company incorporated into many of the Honda Odyssey vans in 2005 was the Variable Cylinder Management (VCM) engine which cuts out cylinders when the are not needed, while driving at a consistent speed on a highway.
 
This is referred to as ECO or ECONOMY mode and it makes these Honda vans very fuel efficient when compared to their competition.
 
With this innovation of de-activating cylinders that are not needed, American Honda had to incorporate a rear motor mount that would dampen the added vibration of the dead cylinders while in ECO mode. This motor mount is on the Honda Odyssey EX-L and Honda Odyssey Touring models and has been known to start weakening within 50,000 miles. The weakening starts a progression of vibration and buzzing that is especially prevalent on acceleration and when the engine goes into the ECO mode.
 
The photo below shows a worn rear engine mount. As you can see, there is no air gap (where the arrow is pointing) so the engine block is resting on the metal part of the mount, which is connected to the frame. Because there is no cushion (support), this is where the buzzing and excessive vibration is produced.
 
The photo below shows the new motor mount installed. As you can see, there should be an air gap of about a 1/2 inch between the engine block and the mount (at the arrow). You can also see the darker rounded area (at the point of the yellow arrow) where the engine block was laying flat on the original failed engine mount.
 
As many of our readers know, here at Accurate Automotive and Accurate Auto sales, we love Honda and Acura products and we have dedicated both sales and service to Honda and Acura vehicles. With that said, while the ECO mode is a very good idea and has been successfully applied to the 2 wheel drive 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 Honda Pilots as well; American Honda should either re-think the design of this rear engine mount on the 2005 and up Honda Odyssey EX-L and Honda Odyssey Touring vans or adjust the ridiculous price of the replacement part . This rear engine mount has a shorter-than-normal life and is not currently the traditional Honda quality that American Honda has a reputation for. Currently, this is a very expensive engine mount and retail cost on this part at Accurate Automotive is $668.00 + tx, installed.
 
At Accurate Auto Sales we sell high quality Honda and Acura used cars. The photos in this article were taken during the replacement of the rear motor mounts involving two of our inventory vehicles. One of them was a 2005 Honda Odyssey EX-L vin code 5FNRL38775B012737 and the other was a 2005 Honda Odyssey Touring (pictured above) with vin 5FNRL38805B078426. The 2005 Honda Odyssey EX-L had 59,651 miles at the time of engine mount replacement and the 2005 Honda Odyssey Touring had 83,057 miles at the time of engine mount replacement. Management of Accurate Auto Sales simply was not willing to allow either of these vans to be sold to our customers with a faulty rear engine mount. Do you think any other dealer would surrender $668.00 per unit, in profit to protect the next owners best interests in a similar scenario? That is why we say, “Come in and see why www.accuratecars.com is the best place in Nashville and Middle Tennessee to purchase and service your Honda and Acura automobiles”.

#383 of 460 Re: Honda Odyssey Excessive Vibration with ECO ( The Solution) [biap2006] by deelee

Aug 07, 2011 (1:46 am)

Replying to: biap2006 (Aug 04, 2011 6:45 am)
thanks for the valuable information.

#384 of 460 Re: Honda Odyssey Excessive Vibration with ECO ( The Solution) [biap2006] by summerbreak

Aug 09, 2011 (5:19 pm)

Replying to: biap2006 (Aug 04, 2011 6:45 am)
Yes, thank you for the valuable information and your true honesty. As a person who had premature engine mount failure and a replaced torque converter (right out of warranty), I can say that any info is a little too late for me and my dozen or so trips to the shop. My Honda van saved my life last week when I was rear-ended by a semi, but I'm taking my money and RUNNING to the nearest Toyota or Ford dealer. A full recall should have been issued, nothing less, and I'm pretty sure that will still happen and I will be lining up for my money back.

#385 of 460 Re: Honda Odyssey Vibration [mastertech4] by joesp8

Aug 15, 2011 (1:06 am)

Replying to: mastertech4 (May 14, 2011 7:49 pm)
2008 honda EXL....had the same problem when I accelerate at 50-60mph then disappears...the whole van vibrates. Brought it to Honda Friendly in Poughkeepsie NY and they suggest to do wheel alignment and change all 4 tires. I did that and I still have the problem. I will bring it back and have them check the torque converter. Hopefully this solves the problem. Thank God I signed up for 100k mile warranty...

#386 of 460 Re: Honda Odyssey Vibration [joesp8] by dnicola

Aug 15, 2011 (3:50 am)

Replying to: joesp8 (Aug 15, 2011 1:06 am)
Joe - my van did the same thing at 28,000. I had the torque converter replaced. It started shuddering again at 48,000. With only a 60,000 warranty, I played it safe and turned it in for a CR-V since the kids were getting older. I would have bought a Pilot, but I heard those were having the same problems.
 
I guess the rear motor mounts might have been the problem. I miss my van - it was very comfortable - but I just can't stand taking a car to the dealer over and over again.

#387 of 460 Re: 2011 Honda Odyssey Vibration in ECO [ciao888] by bby356

Aug 25, 2011 (1:44 pm)

Replying to: ciao888 (May 15, 2011 8:06 am)
I had a 2006 Oddessy with the ECO vibration at about 35000 miles, they replaced the rear motor mount and the problem was fixed.
  
I now have a 2011 Honda Odyssey and I have the same problem with 19,000 miles but in addition to the vibration there is a lerch in the transmission as well. The vibration is easily felt under light load while the engine is in ECO just in the zone where it won't bump up to 6cyl. The lerch seems to come from no where and is intermittent but almost feels like an engine miss, although it is not, no codes. The vibration is loud enough that you can hear a growl when on a quite smooth road....
  
I called Honda of Tiffany Springs in Kansas City where I purchased this and the 5 other Hondas I owned,, they duplicated the problem, and then duplicated it to a lesser degree in a new on the lot car as well. So they called Honda tech support... survey says.. " Known Drivability Issue" suck it up and live with it, no tranny updates or torque converter software updates.
  
I called customer support, talked to Dave,, told him the story. I sounds very concerned and agrees that it must really be annoying to drive a 38000 dollar car that feels like its driving on rumple strips. So he calls the dealer and tech support... Survey says " Suck it Up" Known issue No Help and all of a sudden Dave isn't so concerned anymore!
  
At first the dealership said they would buy the car back but now that Honda won't support it they may consider it but I'll get hosed...
  
There answer, why not see if anyone else is having a problem with the 2011. Honda is on my list how about you?
  
I have asked the Dealership Managment to step in and assured them that I wouldprovide any addtional feedback from other drivers of the 2011 Odyssey that have found that the vibration is unacceptable.
 
I was very emphatic with Honda customer support that I will not drive this car for the next 5 years and would be getting ride of it, but that he should the folks know that do risk assessments because I will , put it on Edmunds, You Tube, seek lemon law relief and any other medium to ensure that the driving public is aware that Hondas ECO systems in Odyssey are not what they advertize. The message below is my first message to the general public.
 

#388 of 460 Re: 2011 Honda Odyssey Vibration in ECO [bby356] by ciao888

Aug 25, 2011 (3:00 pm)

Replying to: bby356 (Aug 25, 2011 1:44 pm)
Can you duplicate the vibration as follows?
 
Likely a case of torque converter shudder. Does it occur with the light acceleration (feather the accelerator) at around 50 MPH with engine RPM stead at about 1200? If you toggle the overdrive so it is disengaged does the vibration turn off. The key is to see if you can turn off and on the vibration by toggling the overdrive.

#389 of 460 Re: 2011 Honda Odyssey Vibration in ECO [ciao888] by dleewla

Aug 25, 2011 (3:37 pm)

Replying to: ciao888 (Aug 25, 2011 3:00 pm)
We had the vibration issue with our 2005 Odyssey. IT'd come and go and after reading all these posts we weren't sure if we should do anything. I had my van in for some other service and they were checking the van and they said they noticed that one of the front engine mounts was cracked. It was about 60000 miles when i brought it in but have no idea how long the mount was cracked. They fixed it for free under warranty. Since that time, I haven't noticed the shudder/vibration in the van. I think they said they wanted to do a s/w update too which i let them do so not sure what the cause was and if its been fixed so its kind of a mysterious enigma.

#390 of 460 Re: 2011 Honda Odyssey Vibration in ECO [ciao888] by bby356

Aug 26, 2011 (1:32 pm)

Replying to: ciao888 (Aug 25, 2011 3:00 pm)
Thank you for your post, Yes it does, light accelertion while in eco only.
 
Excellent suggestion with regard to the OD. I'll check it tonight. The reality is however, Honda has said they will do nothing with it, calling it a known drivability issue. My take is this. I believe it is the same type of shudder you would get in a manual transmission when the clutch shudders if you are in a higher a gear then you should be under load. In this case I think it is the torque converter shuddering. All they would have to do is adjust the computer setting to vary the load that causes the engine to switch back to six cylynders... problem is.. you do that and milage goes down,,, make it a factory change and all of a sudden that 27mpg on the sticker window goes away. I don't care about the one mile per gallon, I care about the fact that the vibration is annoying and it doesn't go away.
 
I would imagine that dropping it out of OD would change that by changing the load factors.. I'll repost when I test it tonight.

#391 of 460 Torque Converter Judder by ciao888

Aug 26, 2011 (5:50 pm)

I've got a service bulletin on how to check for torque converter judder and lots of documentation that this is an outstanding issue with the Odyssey's and other Honda vehicles sharing the same V6 engine platform. Tell me how your test goes.

Messages Page 40 of 47

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