Need brake suggestions for my GF’s 02 Honda Odysse

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My girlfriend is tired of me complaining about her dismal maintenance on her van. She would like to get about two more years out of it, so she’s willing to buy reasonable quality parts. Her driving habits, typically involve braking harder than others, and a majority of her driving is city. I’m planning on doing front and rear discs and pads. Probably going to convince her to replace shocks/struts too. So any feedback is appreciated.

The van has 212,xxx miles if that helps. Very little other than an occasional oil change has been done to this van, and quite frankly, I really don’t know how it’s still running.
 
Akebono Coated or Centric 120 series rotors. Dealer pads from Honda. Clean hub flange really well with a 3M hub cleaning kit and wire wheel (attached to a drill).

How is the transmission on that car? The 99-04 Odysseys have very unreliable automatics. If it has made it this far, I am guessing that the trans has been replaced at some point? If not I would get rid of it while it is still running.
 
Transmission slips occasionally, but not nearly as bad as I’d expect. She wants to get a new-ish Pilot so the longer she keeps this van, the newer Pilot she can get. She already knows that she’ll get next to nothing for the Odyssey, so she’s willing to roll the dice on the transmission.
 
Originally Posted By: Elijah1
Transmission slips occasionally, but not nearly as bad as I’d expect. She wants to get a new-ish Pilot so the longer she keeps this van, the newer Pilot she can get. She already knows that she’ll get next to nothing for the Odyssey, so she’s willing to roll the dice on the transmission.


In that case, don't put any money into this van unless it is truly a safety issue. That transmission can go at any minute and you will lose any money you invest.
 
Buy the cheapest pads and rotors from Advance or AZ or OReilly... they all come with lifetime warranties.

Buy at least 3 gallons of Valvoline Maxlife ATF and do a drain, fill, drive for 5 minutes then repeat two more times. When we bought our 06 Odyssey it had 134k and was slipping on upshifts and banging on downshifts. 4 gallons of Maxlife later, it shifts like there was never a problem. Just be sure to disconnect the battery after the final D&F and let everything reset and relearn.
 
I like Akebono pads and Centric rotors. I generally get them on Amazon.
But any quality parts will work.
Suck the brake fluid outta the master resovoir and pedal bleed at least the front calipers.
I would do a couple of spill and fills on the tranny. MaxLife is pretty cheap.
 
This generation Odyssey is known for its transmission issues, so even if it was well-maintained, you'd still have to worry about transmission failure
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Change the ATF soon, and use Maxlife ATF. It is a quality synthetic fluid at a great price. Change it annually.

For the brakes, use Akebono or Advics pads, along with Wagner E-coated rotors.

For the shocks, use KYB quick struts for the front, and the KYB shocks for the rear.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: Elijah1
Transmission slips occasionally, but not nearly as bad as I’d expect. She wants to get a new-ish Pilot so the longer she keeps this van, the newer Pilot she can get. She already knows that she’ll get next to nothing for the Odyssey, so she’s willing to roll the dice on the transmission.


In that case, don't put any money into this van unless it is truly a safety issue. That transmission can go at any minute and you will lose any money you invest.


I’m not putting a dame in that beast. I’m only investing time. She’s in a position that she can buy a new Pilot any time she needs, she however would like to put it off as long as she can.
 
I’m curious if there is actually an issue with the shocks/struts/brakes or if this is simply “maintenance”.

I agree with the crowd that says don’t do anything that isn’t an actual safety issue. I would not touch anything that didn’t REQUIRE touching. Of course I wouldn’t have my girl drive around in something with a slipping transmission either.

At any rate, actual Honda pads are generally quite reasonable sourced from some of the usual online dealers, they typically include the required anti-squeal shims too.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: Elijah1
Transmission slips occasionally, but not nearly as bad as I’d expect. She wants to get a new-ish Pilot so the longer she keeps this van, the newer Pilot she can get. She already knows that she’ll get next to nothing for the Odyssey, so she’s willing to roll the dice on the transmission.


In that case, don't put any money into this van unless it is truly a safety issue. That transmission can go at any minute and you will lose any money you invest.


^ This!

https://www.transmissionrepaircostguide.com/honda-odyssey-transmission-problems/

Changing the transmission fluid on this is a waste of time and money. Personally I would be hard pressed to even invest in a set of new wiper blades for this thing.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: DuckRyder
I’m curious if there is actually an issue with the shocks/struts/brakes or if this is simply “maintenance”.

I agree with the crowd that says don’t do anything that isn’t an actual safety issue. I would not touch anything that didn’t REQUIRE touching. Of course I wouldn’t have my girl drive around in something with a slipping transmission either.

At any rate, actual Honda pads are generally quite reasonable sourced from some of the usual online dealers, they typically include the required anti-squeal shims too.



Brakes are absolutely shot, rears are grinding. So I’d say they are required. Struts are original, and quite honestly there is no bump dampening going on.
 
Make the vehicle safe.
I would do the brakes today.
One accident due to brake failure and you will be kicking yourself.

Enjoy the wrenching!
 
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