Honda Odyssey motor mount problem

I hope all the Odyssey owners do as young23 suggests and file a complaint with NHTSA. This is a bad design and is a safety hazard. I’m a Honda fan, but even a good company can screw up, and this is a big Honda foul up.

Just got all 4 mounts replaced… labor was $335, parts were about $600, paid total of $896 to get them repaired at Tuffy’s. Screw dealer… these guys are a joke. Mechanic showed me the old mounts… what the hell happend to all the rubber? How does it dissolve? 2004 with 130k miles… really did not expect this, maybe a suspension issue.

The 2 most common problems with these 2nd generation Odysseys (99-2004) are (1) Transmissions that die, and (2) motor mounts that need replacing.

At least your motor mount problem is a lot cheaper than the transmission.

Just had an airbag inflator recall service at the Honda dealership for my 2002 Honda Odyssey,and discovered that I will also need the front and side motor mounts replaced. My Odyssey has very low miles ( 69K freeway miles). I used to own a 1991Honda Accord with more than 250K miles, but did not have any issues with motor mounts.( will cost $635 for the front and $150 for the side)

2005 Odyssey with VCM…same issue as most everyone here. In Virginia and I was told by my service advisor that my car failed state safety inspection due to broken front engine mount (685.54 parts and 312.50 labor). Robbed by Honda. Car has 105,000 miles and I bought a 7yr/100,000 mi warranty which does me no good at 7 yr, 4 mo and 105k miles. I will complain to nhtsa as suggested…honda should be ashamed for their engineering and now I’m ashamed for buying this vehicle. How can this not be a safety recall if it is a recurrent failure item which also causes the vehicle to fail safety inspection???

NHTSA 10456735 submitted on 2005 Odyssey engine mounts

Okay listen up. 02 Honda Odyssey ALL 3 motor mounts shot. Same issues with what was thought to be a transmission going out since 70,000 miles. Fast forward 163,000 SAME TRANSMISSION, same issues all along vibratory shimmy shake intermittent at low speeds (like going over a washboard surface). Ease up or accelerate and the problem disappears. I replaced the passenger top motor mount at 70,000 and it fixed the clunking sound when engaging into reverse on an incline (driveway). Now the problem returned. This time the top passenger mount bolts (M10s) were severely damaged (2 that attach to aluminum bracket on engine. One broken and other stretched/yielded. Top mount is shot. So are other 2. Had all 3 replaced. Rear mount is hardest to see & recognize that it’s damaged. IF you are having the low speed shake/vibration/washboard feel chances are its your REAR ENGINE MOUNT not your transmission. Once this one goes (mine at 70k) the other 2 will follow. Also if you haven’t replaced the front struts then probably more shock is delivered to the mounts. Also both transmission mounts are also shot now at 163k.
Okay my solution was to buy the EOM parts off ebay, there are a couple honda dealers that charge quite less than local. ($263 for all 3) & local mechanic replaced for $280 = $540. Now I need to replace the tranny mounts ($40 labor + parts). After that I am looking to replace the front struts, this should resolve completely for another 70k hopefully longer.
Not happy but glad its not the tranny, which I figured it wasn’t after going another 90k after 1st experiencing the low speed shimmy/shake.
Do not know if Honda has changed their mount rubber material or if I will revisit this problem in 70k? Anyone know? The rubber composition/stiffness (durometer) seems to be the issue here. The original seem to soft & possibly as result of weight, number & location wear out prematurely.

Your Complaint Information has been successfully submitted.
Your Confirmation Number (ODI Number) is: 10457352

Squeaky wheel gets greased!

Our 2004 Odyssey with 79000 just failed inspection today for 3 broken engine mounts. We always drive our cars until they die and we’ve never had such a thing happen. The mechanic said he sees this all the time on Odyssey. Filed nhsta complaint #10469696

Did you have any suspicion that you had broken mounts? or are you just taking their word for it. Maybe it is a ploy to replace unbroken parts.
At the prices quoted on here, I certainly won’t buy a Honda.

There’s thousands of posts about this problem everywhere on the net. There was an extensive thread on this site about it. Use a search engine like Google and find out all you ever wanted to know about this problem and others related to your van.

Have an 05 odyssey, original owner, 112,000 mi, Saturday it started running really rough and loud. Hasnt been as bad since but it has been running rough and louder since then. Last week had the software updated as Honda just came out with a fix for the rough shift between 30-40 mph. Thought it was related, brought it back to the dealer and they did a transmission oil change. They also mentioned motor mounts as a possible cause which has led me to this (other) inherent problem on the odysseys. I wanted to know if when this shaking happens, do you also notice the car being louder, almost like the exhaust system has a hole in it? The tac doesnt move during idle so I am kind of ruling out anything with it being a vaccuum leak. Also, Im wondering if that hard shift plays into part of the deterioration of the motor mounts.

Been driving 62 years and have never replaced a motor mount. I don’t think I will buy a Honda!!

@EllyEllis , been driving 3 Honda/Acura for 500k over 20 years and have not replaced a single motor mount. The problem only exists with this certain vehicle and generation.

Not saying buying a Honda but EVERY vehicle has a weak spot, however this Odyssey has a few with motor mounts and weak transmissions 2000-2005.

Well, raj, I am not sure I buy the theory thatall Odysseys have bad mounts.

I have a Honda Odyssey 2005 EX-L. I am started to become very dissapointed in the Honda Brand as we just had to replace the entire compressor when our air conditioning went out. The dealer wanted around 1500.00 to do this. Luckily we found a mechanic that did it for 440.00, but it was still a major hit. The van has 135,000 on it. For a Honda this is not high mileage and I no longer put the brand in the same league with a Toyota. We started noticing a strange vibration lately and found out that some of our motor mounts are broken, we are still investigating, have been to four mechanics and none of them know for certain what is broken as it is very difficult to tell. Some are very obvious and some are not. There is one, the rear mount that is super expensive, 400-500 dollars just for the part. Our axel CV joints are throwing grease out as well so that has to be fixed. I think this is enough of a problem that Honda should warranty it out or at least cut a large break on parts to get it fixed. It has been very time consuming and troublesome for our family and we have not gotten through it yet. My recommendation is if you buy this model of Odyssey you need to be prepared, because it will almost certain develop problems with the mounts. The 2 quotes we have gotten on this are 1300 and 1200 to fix. Very expensive.

I found this online and was wondering if anyone knew if this would work for a rear mount in a Honda EX-L. It says rear, but it is priced at what the front motor mount would cost. I am trying to figure out if this is a great deal for the rear or it is a mislabel.

That doesn’t look like a rear mount. Cheaper at Rockauto anyway, only $55.
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/x,carcode,1430835,parttype,5552

I have a Honda Odyssey 2005 EX-L.
we just had to replace the entire compressor when our air conditioning went out
The van has 135,000 on it. For a Honda this is not high mileage and I no longer put the brand in the same league with a Toyota

Let’s keep in mind your van is approximately 8 years old. Accumulated mileage is only one measure and a poor one at that. It is highly dependent on how those miles were accumulated.

That being said, I went against what I said earlier in this thread. After weighing all the pros and cons, I ended up choosing a new Odyssey. Although it didn’t seem bad at first, this brand new van has an annoying shudder that develops when the VCM is active and the engine is under partial load. It is most noticeable when under cruise at expressway speeds. Constantly shifting in/out of VCM mode as conditions dictate and this annoying shudder that persists for a period of time prior to the transition. I like the van overall but would prefer to disable this “feature”. Found some posts from people who have been successful but the methods proposed would be best done after the warranty expires. It really does put a tarnish on an otherwise superior product…

I took my well-cared-for 2008 Odyssey in for its yearly inspection and got pinged for a busted front motor mount and the side motor mount. I was thinking about selling the Odyssey and picking up a CR-V, but now I think I’m going to shy away from Honda. 63K miles and two replacement mounts is too much–especially when you look at all the other folks who have had the same problem. I’ve been a loyal Honda driver for nearly 25 years, but this is too much. Good bye Honda.