At Ask Me Help Desk you can ask questions in any topic and have them
answered for free by our experts. To ask questions or participate in
answering them you must register for a free account. By registering you
will be able to:
Get free answers from experts in any of our 300+
topics.
My 2003 Honda Accord EX has a problem with the backlighting on the radio and the ac controls. All the lights have gone out, but everything else on it seems to work still. I have looked for a blown fuse but could not find one. Any suggestions?
We have a 2003 Accord Coupe EXL. Have had many problems, rattling bolts inside the doors, sunroof switch came unplugged, brake rotors warped within 5000 miles, etc. Most during the warranty period, some not. I replaced one of the O2 sensors last month. The black vinyl coating on the window trim is starting to peel, again. Of course our radio backlight went out as well.
After seeing all the people who have posted on this site as well as others, I called Honda to see if I could get it covered even though my warranty is expired. I talked to Javier, who said no "campaigns” or “updates” were outstanding for my car. I asked him to check service bulletin 04-027 and he first said that it didn’t apply to my model, so I read to him from the bulletin. He then replied that my warranty was up and gave me a song and dance about how service bulletins were just for the dealers to help in identifying problems. I told him of the many people who where having success in getting Honda to replace the defective radio and he said it was a dealer thing. I finally said the magic words“Goodwill consideration” and he gave me a claim number and said someone would call me back later.
Caroline called me back two days later about my “light dimmer” and basically said the car was out of warranty and there was nothing Honda could do for me. After explaining that the problem was not a light dimmer, I told her about service bulletin 04-027 and she repeated that it was just a tool for dealers. After much going round and round she finally asked who did my service. When I replied that I did, she said that part of what they look at on goodwill claims was how loyal the customer was to the dealer. I asked her why the owners manual even explained how to change the oil. Finally, she said I would have to take the car to the dealer for “diagnostics”, which I would pay for. She said this must occur before Honda would consider any goodwill towards “part of the replacement cost.”
After much thought, I decided to repair the radio myself, and never darken the door of a Honda dealership again. Repair was quite easy, and took less time then my conversations with Javier and Caroline. Thanks to mystified88 for your post on the faulty part, and to all the other people who took the time to post on this problem.
I'm from Toronto Canada, and my 2003 Accord is having the exact same problem as everyone posted here, and I'm so glad that I found this forum!
So I did the exact same thing as others suggested here, contacted my service dealer, and shown them bulletin 04-027. They told me nothing in Canada about this, and Honda Canada never issued such bulletin. I would have to pay $275 to send the radio out for repair, and then $98 for labour in order to get this problem solved.
So I contacted Honda Canada directly, told them the exact problem, and asked if such bulletin was issued for Canada. The gentleman replied yes so I asked further about the "goodwill consideration" as I'm at 38 mths, 73K now so my basic warranty expired already but I bought the extended warranty but just that it's not covering the radio.
He asked me how much off I am from the warranty, so I told him. Then he asked me for my VIN#, dealer etc., and then placed me on hold for 20 mins. Got back to me, and told me he gotta dig deeper and would cotact me back. That's from yesterday...
An hour ago got email from the General Service Manager of my service dealer (as I was talking to him about my case), and he said Honda Canada approved my radio replacement, but I've to pay for the labour of $98. So I've scheduled an appointment to get this done tomorrow. The end.
So for Canadian viewers in this forum, I've a success! If you've the same problem as me, go contact Honda Canada directly, and forget about talking to the dealers if you've no more warranty. Good luck!
Looks like I've found the forum I need. 2 weeks ago at 59,000mi. I lost the illumination in my radio display. Checked fuses, no problem. On 5/17, I took it to my dealer who charged me $40. to confirm the light is out (duh). Quoted $700 to replace or send to factory for $275. minumum. Found this forum last night which gave me info and ammo to call Honda America. Very accommodating (I have a feeling they have heard about this problem over and over). Gave me a case number and said I would get a call in 2 business days. We'll see. They mentioned 100% coverage and "good will consideration". I think this has all the earmarks of a quiet recall. Will post future results. In some way I think Honda really has a beef with their radio supplier, but they are hearing the customer's wrath.
On May 22, 2006 I called Bankston Honda in Lewisville, TX and told them I had the dim radio problem, and if they could order the part ahead of time (as per the bulletin). The service advisor told me NO, I would have to leave my car there for 2-3 days while the part was then ordered, delivered, and installed.
They don't provide loan cars, and when I said "well thats inconvenient" he agreed but said they have too many radios on the shelf from preorders that never got fulfilled. Unforuntely one of the radios on the shelf wasn't for my car!
So I called America Honda and spoke with Bruce who was helpful in getting all my information and a case number. I reported the dealership and he said someone would follow up in 2 days.
I have the same exact problem. It happened about 3 years ago, Spring 2003 - 6 months after I bought the car (2003 Honda Accord). I was just a few hundred miles past 36,000 miles/just right over my warranty (how convenient). My dealership would not cover it and told me I would have to come in for a diagnosis. They were going to charge me for an estimate. I was tired of my dealership making money off of me, so at the time, I decided not to persue it any further.
I tried taking the advice that you guys wrote and called American Honda, and the customer service rep said she's never heard of the problem and there's nothing she can do. When I politely said that it is a shame the Honda doesnt care about their customers and it's poor marketing to allow hundreds of customers be unhappy with their vehicle and risk non-repeat buyers, she didnt care and sarcastically thanked me for calling and hung up on me. I have just decided that I will suffer without a backlight and never ever buy a Honda again. I refuse to ever let me children or any other members of my family buy one.
I would also gladly sign a petition write a letter, anything that might help our cause. I didnt realize there were so many others with the same problem. I am in the process of talking with a friend to hire a lawyer.
I can relate with your desire to keep family members from buying Honda. My sister has an 8 year old Accord she bought used. She just graduated college and got a real job, and this weekend told me she had test drove a new Honda. I explained about my radio problem and the help (or lack thereof) I received from Honda and showed her these boards and others.
She's test driving a Camry tonight!
If you or anyone you know is handy with a soldering iron in tight spaces, you can repair the radio yourself. Lots of help here and on other boards. If only Honda was as helpful. Must depend on who you talk to, or "How many Hondas do you own?".
Now, my brother-in-law is looking at a new Honda mower......I'll see what I can do to change that, too.
I think I got in just under the wire regarding the warranty. The dealer replaced the radio at no charge. No problems with radio since. However, now my keyless entry and automatic door locks are not working. Anybody know something about this? Not too happy about all these problems with a 3 year old car.
I have a 2003 Honda Accord EX, that had the radio, and console lights go out last week. After reading all the articles about it online, and talking with the Honda dealership, I also found out that Honda has a tech doc reguarding this. The lights in my Accord went out at 59,000 miles. I have a platinum service contract with the dealership, whith a $100 deductable. I called Honda America after finding it was covered by my service contract. Honda America told me that this was reviewed on a case by case basis. A day or so later, Honda America called me, and informed me that they would cover my deductable. I doesn't hurt to call them, they may replace the part for free.
I wrote a while back about my ongoing battle to get my radio replaced by Honda America. I changed my radio in October after I was advised by a Honda dealership that I had the options of paying over $500 for a new OEM radio or settled for something cheaper. I chose the latter and forgot about keeping the old radio. Now I'm frustrated and very close to trade-in my car. Honda America won't consider my case unless I have the actual radio. Can someone advice me on what to do???
Update to my case. AmericanHonda took good care of me. I went to a different dealership (McDavid Honda in Irving, TX) and they did the quick verify that it was indeed this problem. They didn't have to keep the car like the other dealership claimed. A week later (my preferred scheduling) I was back in the dealership and in less than an hour had my new radio at no cost to me. AmericanHonda even called me the following Monday to make sure all was working well. Even got free car washes each time I took the car in
Linear Mode
