Hey guys, I am currently in negotiations of trading my 04 Silverado for a 2002 Accord v6 coupe, however the more I read about these 02's, the more I am hearing about transmission issues. I do not intend to do any racing, modding or any of that kind of stuff to the car, but the v6 coupe seemed to be a nice mix of quickness and better gas mileage than the silverado. Anyways, being completely, and I mean TOTALLY knowledgeless with cars, I could really use some advice. A buddy at work told me I should immediately change the transmission fluid, and I should also look to see if there are any scrapings or other material in the actual fluid. So should I take it to a nearby auto mechanic store to see if they can take a look? Is there really anyway to see or notice potential transmission problems? I really do not want to this beautiful car run flawless for 2 weeks and than start running into expensive problems. ANy other advice or other reliable models I should be looking at is appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

First off get the VIN and go to www.hondatransmissionsettlement.com and put in the VIN, it may be covered under warranty still depending on what kind of miles are on it (covered up to 109,000). Second, if you're buying from a dealership and are REALLY worried about it then just get an extended warranty on the powertrain. Third, if you don't know how to tell if something is wrong take it to a mechanic and have a pre-buy inspection done (about $50-$70 and worth every penny). Last but not least, not every 02 v6 is going to have tranny issues, some people have replaced it twice, some people have gone 200k miles with no issues to date.

Here's what I would do personally:
Input Vin
Take to a Mechanic
Buy extended powertrain if not covered in suit(should be pretty cheap... depending on the miles)
a 2yr/24,000 mile policy for that car with 109k miles is about $700-$1500 depending on the issuing company.

 

Hey thanks for the quick reply, it looks as if this particular car isnt covered by that replacement/recall deal. Thanks for the other info though will definitely be helpful.

 

well, the v6 has a few common failures:

front and pass motor mount
worn sway bar mounting bushings(easy fix)

the trannys are solid, i replaced mine under the warranty personally just as a preventitive(i only had 20k on the car). but if you don't renew the fluid every 15k your asking for trouble, especially if you have a bad tranny due to fate. stay away from aftermarket transmission fluid though, use honda atf only.

other than that, it's just maintanence i.e. brakes, timing belt, fluids, tires, etc.