2008 Honda Odyssey problems
The 2008 Honda Odyssey has 617 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (27%) concerns brakes. After that come body & structure (22%) and engine (9%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 617 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Brakes 27% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 46 and 8
- Injuries and deaths
- 53 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 54,000 miles 528 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 118 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 89 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 80 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 65 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 51 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 57 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 32 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 12 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 12 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 6 |
| 200k+ miles | 6 |
What the data shows
Among the 528 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 54,000 miles. For brakes specifically, the median reported mileage is about 25,000 miles (153 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 46 complaints mention a crash; 8 complaints mention a fire; 53 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2008 ranks 9th most-complained-about out of 31 model years of the Honda Odyssey with enough data (386 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 4 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 honda odyssey. The contact stated while driving at approximate speeds of 15 MPH, she applied the brakes and there was a delay in brake engagement. The vehicle proceeded to crash into the rear of another vehicle. Upon impact, the steering columns exhibited smoking. The police were called to the scene and a police report was filed accordingly. There was one unknown injury reported. The contacts insurance company was proceeding with an investigation of the failure.
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 honda odyssey. While driving approximately 25 MPH in rainy weather conditions the brakes were applied but the vehicle did not stop resulting in a crash. Two passengers in the other vehicle were injured. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where the brakes were replaced. The body damage was not repaired. The failure had not recurred. The failure mileage was 3,000 and the current mileage was 10,000. Updated 9/13/11
The problem that created the unsafe condition was unintentional spontaneous acceleration while depressing the brake to complete the stop while parking the vehicle. The vehicle 2008 odyssey was going very slow (just made a right turn on road) in a residential area, for the house we were visiting was on the corner. We then turned another right to park in a private parking area. Immediately before coming to a complete stop, the vehicle lurches forward while the engine was revving and sounding very loud.
The rear tailgate strut failed on my odyssey ex- important to differentiate from the ex-l, which was affected by a recall for the same thing (NHTSA campaign #12v062000). The recall did not apply to the ex nor LX models. Problem is the ex-l, ex & LX models share the same strut part #74820-shj-a21, price $63.91/each. The parts information is right off honda's own website. The recall makes no mention of failures to any motors, generators or power locks. The only reference is to the strut itself.
Excessive engine oil burning. My car burns engine oil such a way that I have to check the engine oil level frequently. Once I had to fill more than 4qts to get the oil level to normal. More over the indicator never shows that the oil level is low. I went on speed bump at that time the indicator just flashed once thats how I got a doubt and checked oil level. It was almost empty that time and I had to fill more than 4qts of oil. The check engine light comes frequently.