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Honda Pilot 4WD Problems

33 messages,  Last post on Apr 13, 2010 at 3:13 PM

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What is this discussion about? Honda Pilot, SUV

Messages Page 1 of 4

#1 of 33 Honda PILOT VP 4WD 2008 Issues by sidb

Mar 06, 2008 (3:30 pm)

I just bought a Honda Pilot , in Feb 2008 , and i found so many issues with my Pilot. I have faxed Honda and the dealer, but i need to know my options and your suggestions.
  
Problem 1: 50 % of the Engine starts lead to a Loud Ting noise from the Engine.
  
Problem 2: The Driver Car Door doesn’t close properly unless extra force is applied.
  
Problem 3: There is periodic noise which comes from one of the wheels. The noise is easily hearable with open glasses, the PILOT needs to run few miles, before this noise starts coming.
  
Problem 4: I think there is a safety concern, on driving the vehicle at high speeds on an expressway. The vehicle sometimes shivers.
  
Please Suggest and help me. Does anyone else also have any kind of issues.

#2 of 33 Is there such a thing as Lemon Pilot?!?!? by joeyjoejoe

Mar 13, 2008 (9:46 am)

We also picked ours up in Feb and we haven't had any problems. The only thing that does bother me, however, is that it seems to shift hard for 1st gear. It revs up over 3,000 RPM's before sliding into 2nd. It is a bit loud when doing so also. I guess I've never owned a larger truck though, so this could be normal. Sorry I can't share any of your experiences. You should definitely complain to the dealer. They need to actually be shown the problems though. Otherwise they won't do anything. Take it in one day when you have a minute and show them the problems. Complain about not being satisfied and so on. You could maybe even return the car and upgrade to an EX or something? Worth a shot. Good luck!

#3 of 33 Re: Is there such a thing as Lemon Pilot?!?!? [joeyjoejoe] by spacedog

Mar 19, 2008 (11:32 am)

Replying to: joeyjoejoe (Mar 13, 2008 9:46 am)
When our 2004 pilot EX-L 4WD leased ended, we decided to lease another in January 2008. The driving experience between the two is like night and day.
1. A light acceleration from a stop yields gear shifts at 3500+ RPMs... great for gas mileage, right? 2nd to third is not much better.
2. Driving in the range of 40-50 MPH, with minimal grade changes, the vehicle downshifts, upshifts, tach fluctuates between 1600 to 2500 RPMs.
3. Average of 14.6 MPG combined city/highway driving
4. XM radio fades in and out every 15 seconds.
 
Took the vehicle back to the dealer three times about Items #1, #2 and #3. Each of the technicians said that the it was normal. Control systems are not supposed to work this way, I told them. For goodness sake, I drove an 04 for 4 years. I spoke with the Service Manager and he put me in touch with the regional Honda Rep. It turns out that he Honda Rep was experiencing the same low end shifting issues and the gear searching between 40-50MPH in his own 08 pilot, but wrote it off as..."I guess I just have to live with it"
 
I asked him how these types of issues get resolved, because clearly this is an engineering/software problem. He stated that there needs to be a sufficient number of complaints to warrant an investigation from Honda Engineering. The only way these complaints are heard is through the regional reps and/or the Honda Tech Line. Once a critical mass of complaints are received, they will start looking at the problem.
 
In order to have your complaints heard, insist that your dealer service tech & manager contact the Honda Tech Line to record the complaint. This is crucial to getting these issues fixed
 
The door is not shut...I am scheduled to take the vehicle in on Monday to work with the service techs to record snippets of OBD data while driving. They will send the data over to Honda Engineering for a look/see. Maybe we'll all get lucky.

#4 of 33 HONSA PILOT 2008 2WD VP by tiacia

Mar 30, 2008 (9:37 am)

BRAND NEW 2008 PILOT -- ONLY 550 MILES -- LOUD KNOCKING NOISES AT BACK EVERYTIME I BREAK -- ORIGINALLY WITHIN THE 1st 100 MILES, I ONLY HEARD ONE KNOCKING SOUND -- NOW THERE IS SEVERAL KNOCKS EACH TIME I BREAK -- I AM COMMITTED TO A 5 YEAR PLAN OF PAYMENTS FOR THIS PILOT -- NOW IT BOTHERS ME TO HAVE TO PAY FOR SOMETHING FLAWED -- OTHER COMMENTS I READ OF 2006 MODELS HAVING THE SAME DILEMMA, I READ THOSE COMMENTS ABOUT THE HONDA DEALERS AND AMERICAN HONDA DOING NOTHING ABOUT IT --------- IF I FIND MY HONDA DEALER IS NOT ABLE TO RESOLVE IT, I AM THINKING OF NOTIFYING THE MEDIA --------- NBC IS PRETTY GOOD ABOUT REPORTING FLAWS ON COMPANIES --------- HOW ABOUT LETTING THEM KNOW ABOUT HONDA PILOT LEMONS ? --------- ANY COMMENTS FROM OTHERS?

#5 of 33 Re: HONSA PILOT 2008 2WD VP [tiacia] by sidb

Mar 30, 2008 (1:21 pm)

Replying to: tiacia (Mar 30, 2008 9:37 am)
i think that would be the gas moving, the problem is that these problems are not considered lemons , is no safety concerns.

#6 of 33 Re: HONSA PILOT 2008 2WD VP [sidb] by tiacia

Mar 30, 2008 (4:47 pm)

Replying to: sidb (Mar 30, 2008 1:21 pm)
O.K. -- VOID THE LEMON ISSUE -- I AM STILL UNEASY ABOUT THE KNOCKING NOISE WHEN I COME TO A STOP, OR BACK DOWN A DRIVEWAY -- THE OTHER FACTOR IS THE SWISHING SOUND, WHICH I THINK IS THE SOUND OF THE GASOLINE, WHICH IS HEARD ALONG WITH THE KNOCKING SOUND -- HOW SAFE CAN MY PASSENGERS BE, RIDING IN BACK? -- I AM PAYING TOO MUCH FOR SUCH FLAWS -- MY OTHER LESS-EXPENSIVE AUTOS OF THE PAST DID NOT HAVE SUCH DILEMMAS -- WORD NEEDS TO GET OUT FOR ALL CONSUMERS DEALING WITH THE SAME ISSUE -- I WANT TO KNOW WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT

#7 of 33 2008 HONDA PILOT -- KNOCKING NOISES by tiacia

Mar 30, 2008 (4:58 pm)

SEEKING ADVICE -------- I HAVE A NEW 2008 2W VP PILOT -- ONLY 550 MILES -- I HEAR LOUD KNOCKING NOISES IN THE VERY BACK EVERYTIME I BREAK -- ORIGINALLY WITHIN THE 1st 100 MILES, I ONLY HEARD ONE KNOCKING SOUND. WHEN BREAKING -- NOW THERE ARE SEVERAL KNOCKS EACH TIME I BREAK, AND I HEAR THE GASOLINE SWISHING IN THE TANK AS I AM COMING TO A STOP -- I FEEL UNSAFE WHEN IT COMES TO PASSENGERS RIDING IN THE BACK -- I AM STILL CONSIDERING NOTIFYING THE MEDIA IF HONDA WILL NOT RESOLVE THIS -- I HAVE ALREADY READ OTHER COMPLAINTS WHERE HONDA IS NOT OFFERING A SOLUTION -- I AM SURPRISED HONDA WOULD PRODUCE AN EXPENSIVE AUTO WITH SUCH FLAWS

#9 of 33 Re: Is there such a thing as Lemon Pilot?!?!? [spacedog] by tiacia

Mar 30, 2008 (5:27 pm)

Replying to: spacedog (Mar 19, 2008 11:32 am)
F.Y.I.
HONDA PILOT BUYERS -------- I JUST FOUND A CONSUMER WEBSITE FOR HONDA COMPLAINTS -- IDEAL FOR ANY HONDA PILOT COMPLAINT -- FOR EXAMPLE, THE KNOCKING SOUND IN THE BACK EVERYTIME YOU COME TO A STOP -- ALSO THE GASOLINE-SWISHING SOUND ACCOMPANYING THE KNOCKING SOUNDS -- I FIGURE IF PLENTY OF PEOPLE PUT THEIR OPINIONS OUT, THERE IS A BETTER CHANCE FOR RESOLUTION -------- http://www.consumeraffairs.com/php/a_report.php

#10 of 33 Re: Is there such a thing as Lemon Pilot?!?!? [tiacia] by tidester

Mar 30, 2008 (9:12 pm)

Replying to: tiacia (Mar 30, 2008 5:27 pm)
I recommend turning off your CAPS LOCK. People tend to ignore messages typed in ALL CAPS.
 
tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper

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