The Garage

[imref]

thanks. I'm planning on visiting the DC auto show at the end of the month to check that out, as well as the Kia Carnival (which is also very difficult to find). I used to believe that Honda reliability was superior to all else, but my last two Odysseys have had lots of issues while my Chevy truck has only had one non-scheduled maintenance issue in the 6.5 years i've had it.

[Natsinpwc]

thanks. I'm planning on visiting the DC auto show at the end of the month to check that out, as well as the Kia Carnival (which is also very difficult to find). I used to believe that Honda reliability was superior to all else, but my last two Odysseys have had lots of issues while my Chevy truck has only had one non-scheduled maintenance issue in the 6.5 years i've had it.

That’s interesting. Have had three Odysseys and no major issues. One made it to 270k miles before I totaled it. I don’t like the transmission in the newer ones though.

https://knightlawgroup.com/honda-odyssey-9speed-transmission-problems/

[HalfSmokes]

My current odyssey has been great for 5 years, but now I'm getting water in the passenger side under the carpet and no one can figure out why (I'm thinking the AC condenser isn't draining right). Frustrating, but the car has been great otherwise

[Natsinpwc]

My current odyssey has been great for 5 years, but now I'm getting water in the passenger side under the carpet and no one can figure out why (I'm thinking the AC condenser isn't draining right). Frustrating, but the car has been great otherwise

Not as bad but my 2003 Odyssey used to get water somehow where the seatbelt retracted to when there was heavy rain. Used to have to put a towel over my shoulder as it would come out wet. Only in heavy rain. Not sure what the issue was. Some design flaw.

[imref]

The transmission in my first Odyssey (2002) failed at around 80k miles. Honda offered $1k plus a lifetime warranty toward a new one. At the time it also was due for a timing belt, and the ABS controller had also failed. And a motor mount broke. I got $5k for it toward a new one. That generation had horrible transmission issues.

My 2011 has about 155k miles. In the last year or so i've replaced an oil seal, the timing belt (for the 2nd time), both front axles, a radiator fan, the PS pump, and rear coil spring covers. At 23k miles the VCM system failed, sending oil into 3 cylinders which required a partial engine rebuild. Fortunately that was covered under warranty. I also had to replace the alternator at about 7 years (under extended warranty).

On the odyclub owners forum everyone says the engine will fail again unless I disable the VCM system. There are several "muzzlers" available that fool the engine into thinking it's not warm enough the VCM system to engage (VCM disables half the cylinders to save gas when under light load).

[GburgNatsFan]

Condenser drain tubes clog easily, but every mechanic knows that, so it's hard to imagine it's that simple. Weird.

You wouldn't think an AC drain would be leaking in winter.

My current odyssey has been great for 5 years, but now I'm getting water in the passenger side under the carpet and no one can figure out why (I'm thinking the AC condenser isn't draining right). Frustrating, but the car has been great otherwise

[imref]

i would have thought heater core, but you'd smell the antifreeze. Maybe a leaky windshield?

[HalfSmokes]

Condenser drain tubes clog easily, but every mechanic knows that, so it's hard to imagine it's that simple. Weird.

You wouldn't think an AC drain would be leaking in winter.

Defrost enables ac for some reason

[HalfSmokes]

i would have thought heater core, but you'd smell the antifreeze. Maybe a leaky windshield?

On the forums the two causes seem to be a bad weld and clogged ac drain. I’m trying to figure out which before taking it in to avoid paying too much.

[GburgNatsFan]

I once had water on the floor of a car because of a sunroof drain. Sounds stupid, I  know.

On the forums the two causes seem to be a bad weld and clogged ac drain. I’m trying to figure out which before taking it in to avoid paying too much.

[English Natsie]

Not familiar with the specific model, but how easy is it to get the carpet and trim up, so that you can get a clear view of the seam welds?  The drain sounds likely - a Renault driving friend once had water sloshing around inside the front scuttle. Before I could stop him, he stuck a screwdriver into the drain-point - which immediately unblocked it, and sent a cascade of grubby, smelly water rushing into the front footwell...

[HalfSmokes]

Not familiar with the specific model, but how easy is it to get the carpet and trim up, so that you can get a clear view of the seam welds?  The drain sounds likely - a Renault driving friend once had water sloshing around inside the front scuttle. Before I could stop him, he stuck a screwdriver into the drain-point - which immediately unblocked it, and sent a cascade of grubby, smelly water rushing into the front footwell...

I don’t think there is a non- destructive way to do it. There is a panel in the carpet I can lift to see the frame number and the let’s me see some of it. I have it dry now and am not running the ac at all (on defrost, I’m turning it off) if it gets wet, then I know it isn’t the ac

[tomterp]

i've got a 12 year old Honda minivan with ~155k miles that now needs catalytic converters after i already put about $4k in it in the last year. And it's developed a shake that hopefully is just the rear tires needing balancing. It also needs tires, and at this age, probably shocks/struts. The wife wants to replace it with another Odyssey but they are hard to find right now at MSRP. Even with a declining market and rising interest rates, Honda's supply chain is still a mess and they have a very low inventory of cars available.  At this point i'm planning on just clearing the engine code before the next inspection.

I got a code reader/diagnostic tool for Christmas, was so excited to go out and do a deep dive into my yellow engine light!

It may be the same as yours - a P0420 code, "Catalyst System Efficiency Below Threshold Bank 1".  I believe Bank 1 is the set of 3 cylinders in the rear of the engine, next to the firewall and not very accessible.

This light has come and gone for about a year now.  Could be about 10 things wrong in theory, but some can be eliminated probably by logic.  For example, an air intake leak would also affect Bank 2 in theory so not the likely culprit.  Also, the O2 sensors seem to be working right - fluctuations in RPM's cause wild fluctuations in Sensor 1 (before the CAT) and Sensor 2 is perfectly level, which is desired.  There are other diagnostics I can do with my $50 tool, but I'll skip the details.  Most likely culprit is that at 192k miles, the CAT is just a bit dirty.  I have from time to time run some engine cleaners through the system, which can cause carbon deposits to exit but get caught in the CAT.

Anyway, a very low cost strategy is to run a bottle or two of Cataclean through your system, which may be able to dissolve enough of the crud to get the CAT back in spec.  My light went out just before I used the bottle, hasn't come back on but I have no way of knowing if it worked or not.  But given the terrible cost of replacing the CAT seems a no brainer.  BTW, aren't their 3 catalytic converters on our vehicles?  One for each bank, and a third downstream, right?

[imref]

The engine light went out a couple of weeks ago and hasn't returned yet. I've read that the catalytic converter cleaner doesn't really do anything but i'll be curious to see what happens with yours.

Meanwhile, the motor that controls airflow between the defrost, vent, and floor has failed. Another common issue with this generation of Honda minivans according to the owners forum folks. The part is about $90 and it's a PITA to replace. It sits above the gas pedal toward the center of the dash.

[tomterp]

I think it's easy to clean valves, fuel injection etc but a whole 'nuther game to get cleaner past combustion and still effective in the CAT. 

[imref]

Comments are

https://www.reddit.com/r/Justrolledintotheshop/comments/10ngmhe/coolant_light_is_still_on_after_customer_topped/

[imref]

https://electrek.co/2023/02/09/hyundai-simplify-ev-ownership-new-evolve-plus-ev-subscription-program/

This is much cheaper than renting a car for a month through a car rental company.

[bluestreak]

So Audi is buying back my Q5 because it’s a lemon. So I’m in the market for a new car. I think I want an EV. Recommendations?

[imref]

So Audi is buying back my Q5 because it’s a lemon. So I’m in the market for a new car. I think I want an EV. Recommendations?

Hyundai Ionic or Tesla Model Y are probably the best values on the market right now. Chevy's new Equinox EV is supposed to be very good and out soon.  I really like the MachE.

I'm waiting until I see the Equinox and the relaunched Chevy Bolt, hopefully next year, before finally jumping into the EV world.

[Natsinpwc]

SIL bought a used Tesla.  I think it’s a Y?  So far he has had the car back to the shop or someone coming to the house for mostly cosmetic stuff about 5 times in a month.  Hopefully he gets those cleared up. Also it was not the main battery but the secondary battery failed and he could not get in the car at all.  Someone came and got him in and then they replaced the battery. Seems strange that you could be locked out of your own car. Apparently those batteries fail every few years. Not sure why the dealer did not just replace it before the sale. I’m sure it will be smooth sailing from here in out. He seems happy to not have to get gas a couple times a week.

[blue911]

Aren’t Tesla batteries part of the car’s structure?

[Ali the Baseball Cat]

They are the bedrock on which the country, indeed the world, rests

Aren’t Tesla batteries part of the car’s structure?

[imref]

Tesla batteries are modular, so there shouldn't be a battery-wide failure. However most EVs have traditional 12V lead-acid batteries to run accessories. Those batteries seem to have a high failure rate, at least from what i see on Rivian and MachE forums.

This is a great read: https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/2022-rivian-r1t-yearlong-review-update-10-running-out-of-battery/

[Five Banners]

They are the bedrock on which the country, indeed the world, rests

Some parts of the world perhaps more than others, like where the mines are

[English Natsie]

Main issue around EV's appears to be infrastructure, rather than the vehicles themselves. I assume DC is well served for public chargers, but out in the wider world?  Even where there are chargers, they might not be working - so the three hour wait while 30 EV's queue to use the same charging point. Definitely worth splashing-out on the best quality / performing home charging point you can afford - ideally 7kw minimum (although think carefully about going to 22kw - will require a three phase supply, and not all vehicles will accept that level of charge from a home charger. If you can use it, then that's 40 miles of charge in an hour). Check if your chosen charger requires a physical earth rod - if yes, then that's more expense.