Just purchased a 2016 Honda Odyssey with 82k one-owner miles after years of driving a Dodge/Chrysler vans. My last van was a 2016 Grand Caravan purchased in February 2017 with 28k miles. It had 181k miles and had the dreaded Pentastar lifter tick. I knew that my next van would be something with around 100k miles in order to fit my budget. I wanted something that had the best chance of going another 100k + miles. Tried a Toyota but the seats didn’t fit my wife. In any event, this is the first import vehicle we have owned. Are there any known trouble spots with this generation of Honda vans? I’ve ordered the harness/chip that plugs into the coolant sensor to keep the VCM from shutting down 3 cylinders and will install that tomorrow.
Honda Odyssey
- Thread starter otis24
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If you don't know the service history I would plan to do a 3x drain and fill on the tranny. After that, do a single drain and fill every 30K miles or so. As mentioned above timing belt is due soon based on both mileage and age. Sounds like you already know the big one which is VCM disable. I run an Xw-30 which the J35 is happy with, in my case for fuel dilution with DI which isn't an issue for you.
Watch for the spool valve gasket leaking which can destroy the alternator, and the front brake shudder.
Good luck.
Good luck.
My son has a 2016 Odyssey which he bought new. Has ~86K now. Has been fairly reliable until last year when it threw some codes. I scanned it and found low oil level and a misfire on #3 cylinder. An oil change, new NGK plug for #3 and a muzzler fixed all of that. No problem since then. He has always used Valvoline 0W-20 synthetic. If your engine doesn't burn oil I'd stick with what Honda recommended.
They are very good mini-vans. Overall I'd give them an A minus rating.
They are very good mini-vans. Overall I'd give them an A minus rating.
Based on my 2008 you are wise to disable the VCM it will cause nothing but problems. Also as others have stated a tranny spill and fill should be done every 30k or so.
Compared to my wife's current 2016 Sienna I wouldn't call the Odyssey "reliable" but it is a serviceable vehicle. We have had lots of recalls on the 2008 Odyssey and a plethora of TSB's and failures for known issues (rear taillights condensation, HVAC actuator valves failing x 2, front seat leather delaminating, front VVT spool valve leaking, alternator failed at 107k (unrelated to the spool valve leak, bearings failed), rear O2 sensor failed, front parking sensor failed, CV boots failed, etc.). In short, time is the enemy on older vehicles.
I did do timing belt, valve adjust, valve cover/plug gaskets, coolant hoses, coolant, plugs, thermostat, water pump at 96k and you should budget these services also.
So far the expensive motor mount is Ok but I did disable VCM early in the vehicles life.
Jeez you guys are scaring me from buying anything but a Chrysler van even with the dreaded 3.6L! I haven’t had near these problems on our 2014 T&C.
Just my $0.02
Just my $0.02
You are looking at a newer Odyssey...people that have 15+ year old vans are going to have more issues with VCM, etc. since those were early adopters of the tech. I'd still disable it but VCM has gone through at least 3 iterations since release.
Here is a thread I started and updated with the eventual disposition. In summary, 2014 Grand Caravan dropped a valve seat at 70k miles. Needed a replacement cylinder head. This is a well known issue unforunately with the vintage. Keep an eye on it.
14 Grand Caravan Broken Exhaust Valve
Have had an 14 Grand Caravan for about 3 years now and it has been short tripped pretty hard scooting 3 kids to school and grocery runs. It has been misfiring for about 3 months and finally CEL came on with a cylinder 2 misfire. The dealer called and said its a broken exhaust valve and a new...
bobistheoilguy.com
VCM is the same problem source as it has been since the beginning. Even though it has been "3 iterations" the root cause of long term failures has never been found. Whether it is the low tension rings passing oil, the rings walking in the cylinder bore under no compression, or just assembly issues the VCM V6 motors are a constant source of long term problems. For any hope of long term reliability the system must be disabled.
I'll also note the domestic manufacturers (GM) don't have much success with dubious cylinder deactivation technology.
As far as a 2008 Odyssey being a fair comparison of build quality to a 2016, the platform as far as the driveline is virtually unchanged over that period. Do older vehicles have more problems? Sure, but the sources of problems with Honda (lackluster sub-supplier reliability and sloppy design) are similar across that time period.
I'm not a Honda fan as much after owning them long term, they aren't the company they used to be and their products are not as reliable as they were in the past. Perhaps that is true of all manufacturers.
I own 4 Honda Odysseys. I keep VCM enabled for the additional fuel savings.
When I first buy a used one, I do LiquiMoly Proline engine flushes during the first 3 oil changes to clean out the inside of the engine.
I permanently do 4k mile / 6 month (which ever comes first) oil change intervals with a low priced full synthetic 5W-30 (not 20 weight oils)
after discussing with Trav years ago. I buy the Super Tech High Mileage Full Synthetic 5W-30 in a 5 quart jug.
For the engine mount issue, my mechanic put in an after market engine mount for $225 5 years ago and it's still going strong.
Do you know what brand that aftermarket engine mount was?
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- Oct 15, 2022
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We had an 04 Honda with the 3.5 and auto trans. Not exactly the same setup as the modern version but it ran like a top for over 200k miles. Motor and trans were still going very strong when we got rid of it.
We had to do the timing belt and adjust the valves. That and frequent fluid changes for both the AT and engine. Honda ATF only and 5w-20 its whole life.
And remember, this was when Honda had really weak transmissions and their build quality was slipping
I wouldn't hesitate to buy and odyssey if the VCM were disabled.
We had to do the timing belt and adjust the valves. That and frequent fluid changes for both the AT and engine. Honda ATF only and 5w-20 its whole life.
And remember, this was when Honda had really weak transmissions and their build quality was slipping
I wouldn't hesitate to buy and odyssey if the VCM were disabled.
I usually only use 100% Honda OEM parts ordered from an online Honda Dealer parts department which sells the Honda parts for close to whole sale prices, and then I give the parts to my local mechanic to install. But in this 1 case, the engine mount was close to $1,000 US, so it was ok with me for my mechanic to install an after market engine mount for only $225 and it's functioned perfectly with no vibrations or issues whatsoever (equal to the OEM mount) in terms of passenger experience in every way. On the receipt he just wrote after market engine mount but didn't specify the brand.
I should have asked him the brand / model # of that engine mount, but it didn't occur to me at the time.
I have 4 Honda Odysseys with VCM enabled, so it would beneficial to know. I'll ask the mechanic to see if he remembers.
If he doesn't remember, I'll ask him which affordably priced engine mount brands he recommends.
