2003 HONDA Accord EX-V6

Most serious first, each with what it is worth in dollars where an honest figure exists, a sentence to say out loud, and a link down to the record it came from.

1. 01High

   NHTSA has 2 open defect investigations on this vehicle

   An open investigation means NHTSA is actively examining a suspected defect covering the inflator module and has not yet decided whether a recall is warranted. It is not a finding against this particular vehicle, and it may close without action.

   Say this

   “NHTSA has an open defect investigation, EA21002, on this vehicle covering the inflator module — what is your service department's position on it?”

   Evidence:EA21002EA15001

2. 02High

   11 recall campaigns apply to this vehicle

   NHTSA lists 11 safety recall campaigns covering the 2003 HONDA Accord. We cannot see whether that work was carried out on this VIN — NHTSA publishes no per-VIN remedy status we can query — so confirm it with a franchised dealer, who can run the VIN and print the record. Recall remedies are performed free of charge. 10 of them apply only to a build-date window, which a VIN does not encode.

   Say this

   “There are 11 recall campaigns that apply to this vehicle — please run the VIN with your service department and give me the printout showing which remedies have been completed.”

   Evidence:19V50100019V49900019V18200018V26800017V22000015V370000+5 more

3. 03Moderate

   The automatic transmission is the most-reported problem on this vehicle

   94 owner complaints name the automatic transmission — 37% of the 255 complaints that name a component. Of those, 2 report a crash, 3 report an injury. Reported failures cluster between 67,875 and 107,750 miles, median 87,530, across 90 owner reports. These are reports from owners of this configuration, not findings about this particular vehicle. Matched on the exact configuration this VIN decodes to.

   $2,500–$5,500 one repair, if this vehicle needs it

   Automatic transmission rebuild or replacement. $2,500–$5,500 is our band for this job. A valve-body or solenoid repair sits well below this; a replacement unit sits at the top.

   Typical US independent-shop range, not a quote. Set from published consumer repair estimators and widened to cover the spread between them; your car, your engine layout and your area will move it.

   Say this

   “Owners of this configuration report automatic transmission failures clustering between 67,875 and 107,750 miles — what is the mileage on this one, and can I have that system inspected before we talk price?”

   Evidence:See the failure-mileage record

4. 04Moderate

   The power train is a repeated complaint on this vehicle

   55 owner complaints name the power train — 22% of the 255 complaints that name a component. Reported failures cluster between 89,222 and 120,551 miles, median 104,077, across 52 owner reports. These are reports from owners of this configuration, not findings about this particular vehicle. Matched on the exact configuration this VIN decodes to.

   $600–$2,500 one repair, if this vehicle needs it

   Driveline repair — axle, driveshaft or transfer case. $600–$2,500 is our band for this job

   Typical US independent-shop range, not a quote. Set from published consumer repair estimators and widened to cover the spread between them; your car, your engine layout and your area will move it.

   Say this

   “Owners of this configuration report power train failures clustering between 89,222 and 120,551 miles — what is the mileage on this one, and can I have that system inspected before we talk price?”

   Evidence:See the failure-mileage record

5. 05Moderate

   This vehicle costs about $238 a year more in fuel than its class

   EPA rates it at 22 mpg combined against 24 mpg for a typical car from 2004 or earlier — $2,850 a year in fuel against $2,613, over 15,000 miles at the pump price implied by EPA's own annual figure for this vehicle ($4.18 a gallon).

   $1,190 5 years of ownership

   $238 a year × 5 years, from EPA's 22 mpg combined against a reference 24 mpg at 15,000 miles a year.

   Computed from EPA’s published figures at 15,000 miles a year, against a reference vehicle of the same class and era. The reference is our editorial figure, not an EPA statistic, and your driving is not EPA’s.

   Say this

   “EPA's own figures put this at about $238 a year more in fuel than a typical vehicle of its class and age — that is $1,190 over 5 years, and I would like that reflected in the price.”

   Evidence:See the EPA record

This is above the evidence deliberately. A report that reads as complete invites you to fill the silence with an assumption, and the three largest holes in this one are the three strongest reasons anybody ever walks away from a car.

• Title brandsnot checked · could change the call

  Title history was not checked. Salvage, junk, flood, fire, lemon and total-loss brands come from NMVTIS and its resellers, which we do not yet hold. This verdict therefore makes no statement whatsoever about the title on this vehicle.

• Accident and damage recordsnot checked · could change the call

  Accident and damage history was not checked. We hold no collision, insurance or body-shop records, so this verdict says nothing about whether this vehicle has been in a crash.

• Odometer history and rollbacknot checked · could change the call

  Odometer readings over time were not checked, so we cannot tell you whether the mileage on the dash is consistent with the vehicle’s recorded history.

• Whether the recall work was donenot derivable

  NHTSA’s per-VIN recall lookup is reCAPTCHA-gated and publishes no queryable remedy status, so we can tell you which campaigns cover this vehicle but not whether any of them was carried out on this one. A franchised dealer can print that in a minute.

• Build-date coveragenot derivable

  10 of the campaigns covering this model year apply only to a build-date window. A VIN encodes model year and assembly plant but not a build date, so only the door-jamb label can settle whether this vehicle falls inside them.

• The condition of this particular vehiclenot checked

  Everything above describes campaigns, investigations and reports covering this configuration. None of it is an inspection of the car in front of you, and none of it substitutes for one.

• Whether the asking price is fairnot checked

  We hold no market valuations, so this verdict says nothing about price.

Reported automatic transmission failures on this build cluster between 67,875 and 107,750 miles. Whether the car in front of you is before or after that is the most useful free fact we hold, and we have not found another consumer report that publishes it.

Campaigns that cover this vehicle. NHTSA publishes no per-VIN remedy status anyone can query, so nothing here says whether the work was done on this car — a franchised dealer can print that in a minute, free.

• 19V501000AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:PASSENGER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

  An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2002-04-06 and 2003-09-23. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal airbag inflator, free of charge. The recall began August 12, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are E5D and X5C.

  Reported 2019-06-27 · 1.7 million vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2003-2006 Acura MDX, 2005-2012 RL, 2003-2007 Honda Accord, 2001-2005 Civic, 2003-2005 Civic Hybrid, 2001-2005 Civic GX NGV, 2002-2006 CR-V, 2003-2011 Element, 2007-2008 Fit, 2002-2004 Odyssey, 2003-2008 Pilot, and 2006-2014 Ridgeline vehicles. The vehicles are equipped with passenger frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

• 19V499000AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

  An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2002-07-15 and 2003-09-20. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began August 12, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are Q5A and Y58.

  Reported 2019-06-27 · 3,947 vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2003 Acura 3.2CL, 2002-2003 3.2TL, 2003-2006 MDX, 2001-2007 Honda Accord, 2001-2005 Civic, 2003-2005 Civic Hybrid, 2001-2005 Civic GX NGV, 2002-2006 CR-V, 2003-2011 Element, 2002-2004 Odyssey, 2003-2008 Pilot and 2006 Ridgeline vehicles. These vehicles are equipped with driver frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

• 19V182000AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

  An explosion of an inflator within the driver frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver, front seat passenger or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2002-06-06 and 2003-09-23. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began April 10, 2019. Honda owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is O41. Acura owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Acura's number for this recall is U40.

  Reported 2019-03-06 · 1.1 million vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling specific 2003 Acura 3.2CL, 2013-2016 ILX, 2013-2014 ILX Hybrid, 2003-2006 MDX, 2007-2016 RDX, 2002-2003 3.2TL, 2004-2006, and 2009-2014 TL, 2010-2013 ZDX and 2001-2007 and 2009 Honda Accord, 2001-2005 Civic, 2003-2005 Civic Hybrid, 2001-2005 Civic GX NGV, 2002-2007 and 2010-2011 CR-V, 2003-2011 Element, 2007 Fit, 2002-2004 Odyssey, 2003-2008 Pilot, and 2006-2014 Ridgeline vehicles. The affected vehicles received a replacement driver air bag inflator as part of a previous Takata inflator recall remedy or a replacement driver air bag module containing the same inflator type as a service part. Due to a manufacturing error, in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver frontal air bag, these inflators may explode.

• 18V268000AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:PASSENGER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

  An incorrectly installed air bag may deploy improperly in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2002-08-30 and 2003-05-22. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the passenger frontal air bag module assembly, free of charge. The recall began June 22, 2018. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are K1P, and M1O.

  Reported 2018-04-26 · 1,335 vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2003-2012 Honda Accord and Pilot, 2010 Accord Crosstour, 2001-2011 Civic, 2002-2011 CR-V, 2003-2004, 2006-2008 and 2011 Element, 2007 and 2009-2013 Fit, 2010-2012 Insight, 2002-2004 Odyssey, and 2012 Ridgeline vehicles. The front passenger air bag may have been installed incorrectly during replacement.

• 17V220000AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:PASSENGER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

  An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2017-03-20 and 2003-09-03. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicle and replace any Takata inflator used in the passenger frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin May 1, 2017. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is KF0.

  Reported 2017-03-30 · 37,421 vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2003 Honda Accord Coupe vehicles, equipped with a four-cylinder engine. If the passenger frontal air bag module has been replaced, such as after a crash necessitating frontal air bag deployment, the replacement air bag module may include a Takata air bag inflator. These inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to lower absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

• 15V370000AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:PASSENGER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

  In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the passenger seat occupant or other occupants possibly causing serious injury or death.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2002-02-21 and 2004-04-26. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on July 1, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are JU4, JU5, JU6, and JU7. Note: Vehicles that have already received a replacement passenger air bag inflator as part of the recall remedy for an earlier campaign such as 14V353 or 14V700 (Honda recall numbers S95, JH6, JH7, JH8, JH9, JJ0, JJ1, JJ2, JJ6, JM5 and JM6) are not included in this recall. However, this recall does supersede 13V132 and 14V349. Note: On December 18, 2015 Honda informed NHTSA of an expansion of this recall to include certain model year 2004 Honda CR-V vehicles in addition to additional model year 2003 CR-V vehicles.

  Reported 2015-06-15 · 3.5 million vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2001-2005 Honda Civic vehicles manufactured March 21, 2000, to January 20, 2005, 2001-2004 Honda Civic GX vehicles manufactured June 14, 2000, to August 19, 2004, 2003-2005 Honda Civic Hybrid vehicles manufactured February 24, 2002, to January 18, 2005, 2003-2007 Honda Accord vehicles manufactured February 21, 2002, to August 28, 2007, 2002-2004 Honda CR-V vehicles, 2002-2003 Honda Odyssey vehicles manufactured June 19, 2001, to July 12, 2003, 2003 Acura MDX vehicles manufactured September 19, 2002, to June 19, 2003, 2003 Honda Element vehicles manufactured June 25, 2002, to July 31, 2003, and 2003 Honda Pilot vehicles manufactured November 26, 2001, to August 21, 2003. The affected vehicles have a passenger side frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture upon its deployment.

• 15V320000AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

  In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

  Model yearNo build-date window is recorded, so the campaign covers the whole model year.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on July 1, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Owners may contact Acura customer service at 1-800-382-2238, select option 4. Note: Vehicles that have had their driver frontal air bag replaced previously as part of a recall remedy prior to September 12, 2014 need to have their air bag replaced under this recall as well. Vehicles that, on or after September 12, 2014, received a remedy for a prior driver frontal air bag inflator recall already received an inflator of a different design, and therefore are not included in this recall and do not require additional servicing. Note: This recall fully supersedes recalls 08V-593, 09V-259, 10V-041, 11V-260, 14V-351 and 15V-153. Honda's numbers for this recall are JQ9, JR0, JR1, JR2, JR3, JR4, JR5, JR6, JR7, and JR8.

  Reported 2015-05-28 · 6.3 million vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2001-2007 Accord, 2001-2005 Civic, 2001-2004 Honda Civic GX, 2003-2005 Honda Civic Hybrid, 2002-2006 CR-V, 2003-2011 Element, 2002-2004 Odyssey, 2003-2008 Pilot, 2006 Ridgeline, 2003 Acura 3.2CL, 2003-2006 Acura MDX, and 2002-2003 Acura 3.2TL vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion and other factors, including manufacturing variability that, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.

• 14V700000AIR BAGS

  In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger’s frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2002-02-21 and 2005-03-30. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger side air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began January 26, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-800-999-1009.

  Reported 2014-11-04 · 0 vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  American Honda Motor Co. (Honda) is recalling certain model year 2001-2005 Honda Civic, 2003-2004 Civic CNG and Element, 2002-2005 CR-V, 2002-2004 Odyssey, 2003-2005 Accord, Pilot, Civic Hybrid, and Acura MDX, 2005 Acura RL and 2006 Honda Ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in geographic locations associated with high absolute humidity. Specifically, vehicles sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Saipan, Guam, and American Samoa are addressed by this recall. Upon deployment of the passenger side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.

• 14V353000AIR BAGS

  In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger’s frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2003-01-14 and 2004-04-26. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the inflators in all affected vehicles, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin during August 2014. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-800-999-1009.

  Reported 2014-06-20 · 133,207 vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  American Honda Motor Company, Inc.'s (Honda) is conducting a limited regional recall for certain model year 2003-2005 Accord, Civic, CR-V, Pilot and Acura MDX, model year 2003-2004 Odyssey and Element, and model year 2005 Acura RL, and 2006 Honda Ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or ever registered in California, and equipped with Takata-brand air bag inflators. Upon deployment of the passenger side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.

• 12V222000STEERING:HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST:HOSE, PIPING, AND CONNECTIONS

  If this occurs, power steering fluid can leak onto a hot catalytic converter, leading to smoke and possibly an under-hood fire.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2002-06-06 and 2003-09-03. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will install a new heat resistant power steering hose, free of charge. The original recall began in June 2012, and owners of those vehicles may obtain the free remedy. Sufficient parts are not yet available for owners of the vehicles covered by the September 2012 expansion, but are expected to be available in early 2013. Honda will notify owners of these vehicles beginning on October 26, 2012, and will notify these owners again when parts are available so those vehicles can be brought to dealers for applications of the free remedy. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-800-999-1009.

  Reported 2012-05-17 · 625,762 vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  Honda is recalling certain model year 2007 and 2008 Acura TL and model year 2003-2007 Accord V6 vehicles. In May 2012, Honda filed a defect report to recall certain model year 2007 and 2008 Acura TL vehicles. In September 2012, Honda informed the agency that it was including an additional 573,147 vehicles including certain model year 2003 through 2007 Accord V6 vehicles. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 625,762. Prolonged under-hood and power steering fluid temperatures may cause the power steering hose to deteriorate prematurely, resulting in cracks and power steering fluid leakage.

• 10V364000ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION

  REMOVAL OF THE IGNITION KEY WHEN THE GEAR SELECTOR OF A VEHICLE WITH AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION HAS NOT BEEN SHIFTED TO THE PARK POSITION CAN ALLOW THE VEHICLE TO ROLL AWAY, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

  Build windowApplies to vehicles built between 2003-01-28 and 2003-09-03. A VIN does not encode a build date — confirm this vehicle’s against the door-jamb label.

  Remedy: DEALERS WILL REMOVE THE ORIGINAL INTERLOCK PIN AND LEVER WITHIN THE IGNITION SWITCH, AND REPLACE THEM WITH NEW, DESIGNED COMPONENTS. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON OCTOBER 7, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HONDA AT 1-800-999-1009.

  Reported 2010-08-05 · 551,498 vehicles potentially affected

  NHTSA’s full description

  HONDA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2003 HONDA ACCORD, CIVIC TWO AND FOUR DOOR, AND MODEL YEAR 2003-2004 HONDA ELEMENT VEHICLES. THE INTERLOCK LEVER OF THE IGNITION SWITCH MAY UNEXPECTEDLY DEFORM, WHICH CAN ALLOW THE INTERLOCK FUNCTION OF A VEHICLE WITH AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION TO BE DEFEATED.

NHTSA publishes no API for defect investigations — the file has to be loaded from the bulk export and joined by hand, which is the likeliest reason we have not found another consumer report that carries them. An investigation is NHTSA examining a suspected defect across a model, not a finding against this vehicle.

"We found nothing" and "we could not look" are different facts. Six sources, six lamps, and the confidence figure above is arithmetic over exactly these.