Faults:

Purchased 2002 Odyssey EX-L used with 22k in May 2005. In Sept. 2005, about 25k miles, the transmission went out on highway at 65 mph, lost control of car but able to skip 3 lanes over to shoulder to stop. Would not go in gear until I turned the engine off and restarted. Put in Honda dealer for 3 days, got free rental car paid by Honda, and a new transmission.

General Comments:

Comfortable seats.

Great cargo capacity.

Honda replacement battery not strong enough from dealer.

Faults:

Transmission. Slipped. Failed. Nearly got rear ended. 40,000 miles. Replaced. Out of warranty. Did all service for transmission that owners manual said. Skimpy help from dealer. Paid $3000 US Dollars.

Transmission Failed. Slipped. 78000 miles. Would hardly move. Dealer and Honda corporate would not help. Paid $4000 US Dollars. Still did all transmission fluid changes like owners manual said. Transmission puked.

Both rear window motors failed. Cost $600.

Power Doors. Roller broke both sides. Dealer $800 for one. Other not fixed.

Power window on door. Would not move. $500 dealer repair.

AC heater fan resistor. $300.

AC compressor failure $3000.

Evap system failure $300.

Engine mounts $700.

EGR failed. $400.

Left wheel bearing $200.

Regular maintenance thousands over the years.

Money pit. Priceless. I could have bought an old Jaguar if I wanted to spend so much.

General Comments:

Too unreliable. Did maintenance the way the owners manual said.

I paid so much that I am personally financing dealer's Rolex, foreign vacation and so forth.

Money pit. Cannot depend on it. Avoid.

Chances of buying another Honda are zero.

General Comments:

All the comments are very interesting. I have a 2002 Honda Odyssey EXl with 160,000 miles. I purchased it used with 112,000 miles and stuck by the recommended maintenance schedule. I was a bit anal about getting the timing belt changed on time and it seemed to pay off.

So far we have had no mechanical problems, and drive it in adverse road conditions.

Originated in Louisiana and purchased it in Oregon. Consequently, it has a Cajon flair ;-).

Sometimes the side door will jam up on slanted slopes, therefore we have to manually close it. However, this is rare.

In conclusion, this is the best vehicle I have ever own!

Faults:

The sliding doors sometimes get stuck, but this has only happened a few times for no apparent reason.

Replaced the shocks at 78,000 miles. They were shot (and original).

The light for the clock on the dashboard blew out.

General Comments:

This is a very solid and reliable vehicle. With my wife and two young children, we feel very safe and comfortable in this van.

I purchased it used at around 75K miles, and have put on over 13,000 miles in a little over a year. During that time, we have taken several 500+ mile trips with no problems.

It cruises well on the highways and has great acceleration for a van this size. The interior is very roomy, and it's perhaps the most comfortable van I've driven. The seats are cushy and do not feel like a foreign vehicle's seats.

Aesthetically, this vehicle is sharp and very classy looking. It outpaces the looks of every other minivan, in my opinion. Not to mention that is drives more like an Accord than an Odyssey. This thing hauls.

I've done the usual maintenance and have had no major problems. I plan on owning this vehicle for a long time.

Faults:

From the previous owner, the clock light was not working (common in Odysseys), a 2 dollar/1 hour weekend job. Other than that, nothing really.

General Comments:

I think this is a great car, if a bit over priced.

I bought mine with 229,000 miles, which is a lot, but it still has the original engine and transmission YES! The original transmission, which was recalled to install a cooling jet for a clutch pack.

The trick? Not much. The previous owner who's my friend used to change the tranny oil every 15,000 miles, and did not race the car and NEVER parked the car without applying the parking brake. Some people might find this irrelevant, but parking the car with applying the parking brake might over stress the transmission parking mechanism, specially when parking on an up or down hill. Try to park your car without the parking brake, then let go of the brake and you'll notice that the car shakes back and forth. My friend, that is the transmission parking mechanism being stressed. When you turn on the car after parking like that and change into drive or reverse, you'll notice that the parking mechanism will shake the car violently, Trust me, it's not good for the transmission.

And also change your transmission oil on time OR DO NOT! Yes, do not. If you leave the transmission oil without changing it, then you change it, your tranny will blow up real fast. So you either do it right or just don't.

Now the car has 232,000 miles. The transmission is smooth shifting. But it whines. Most likely the transaxle, but could be the bearings. But come on, 232,000 miles? I think that's enough. I love Hondas. They're great cars.