2013 Honda Odyssey Electrical System
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
The contact owns a 2013 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated that the front driver's side seat heater was malfunctioning. The contact stated that upon engaging the seat heater, the seat heater was intermittently inoperable. Additionally, the contact noticed a strong burning odor inside the cabin. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the failure was duplicated. The dealer retrieved DTC: B1C61; and recommended that the front driver's side seat back element and cushion heater be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 87,900.
The contact owns a 2013 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds the vehicle's gauges would begin to fluctuate, the electrical systems would begin to malfunction, and the vehicle would display all icon options on the instrument panel. The vehicle had been taken to the dealer a total of 5 times where they could not successfully identify the exact cause of the failure. The contact was told that the alternator may be at fault. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and opened a case regarding the matter. The approximate failure mileage was 56,432.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 HONDA ODYSSEY. THE CONTACT STATED THAT ON VARIOUS OCCASIONS WHILE ENGAGING THE KEYFOB, THE POWER WINDOWS AND POWER LOCKS OPERATED INDEPENDENTLY. THE CONTACT SPOKE WITH HONDA OF SEATTLE LOCATED AT (2005 AIRPORT WAY S, SEATTLE, WA 98134) WHERE THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED TO REPLACE THE BATTERY IN THE KEY FOB. THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO USE THE ALTERNATE KEYFOB HOWEVER, THE FAILURE PERSISTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS INFORMED OF THE FAILURE BUT OFFERED NO ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 199,248.
THE PROBLEM THAT I AM REPORTING IS THAT TWO OF MY KEYS RECENTLY SPONTANEOUSLY DEPROGRAMMED THEMSELVES. FORTUNATELY NEITHER KEY WAS RUNNING MY IGNITION AT THE TIME OF FAILURE. I TOOK MY KEYS TO MY LOCAL SERVICE DEPARTMENT AND HAD THEM REPROGRAMMED. TO BE CLEAR: THIS WAS NOT THE RESULT OF A BATTERY FAILURE, AS THE PROBLEM PERSISTED EVEN AFTER BATTERY REPLACEMENTS. I ASKED MY DEALERSHIP'S SERVICE DEPARTMENT FOR AN EXPLANATION OF THIS INCIDENT AND RECEIVED NONE WHATSOEVER. I THEN CONTACTED AMERICAN HONDA AND STILL RECEIVED NO EXPLANATION. TO BE CLEAR: ONE OF THE KEYS THUS AFFECTED, A MASTER KEY, HAD ALWAYS BEEN STORED IN A LINGERIE DRESSER DRAWER, AND I MENTION "LINGERIE" TO MAKE IT CLEAR THAT NO MAGNETS OR OTHER POTENTIALLY DAMAGING ITEMS WERE STORED WITH OR NEAR THE KEY, AND THAT IT WAS IN A CLEAN, DRY PLACE. THE KEY HAD NEVER BEEN USED EXCEPT WHEN I TESTED IT RIGHT AFTER RECEIVING IT FROM THE DEALERSHIP. (I ONLY FIGURED OUT THAT IT WASN'T WORKING WHEN I MISPLACED THE KEY THAT I USUALLY USED AND NEEDED A TEMPORARY REPLACEMENT.) THE OTHER KEY AFFECTED, MY VALET KEY, WAS ALWAYS WITH ME ON MY KEYCHAIN. IT STRIKES ME AS VERY IMPROBABLE, IN THE GRAND SCHEME OF THINGS, THAT TWO SUCH DIFFERENT KEYS SHOULD ARBITRARILY FAIL UNDER SUCH DIFFERENT CIRCUMSTANCES. WHAT ARE THE ODDS? WHAT CONCERNS ME IS THIS: WHEN THE KEYS FAIL, THEY IMMOBILIZE THE ENGINE. I REQUESTED THAT AMERICAN HONDA AT LEAST ADMINISTER A QUESTIONNAIRE TO DEALERSHIPS TO DETERMINE WHETHER THEIR SERVICE DEPARTMENTS ARE SEEING THIS HAPPEN TO OTHER HONDA OWNERS, BUT AS FAR AS I CAN TELL THIS INCIDENT IS BEING SUMMARILY DISMISSED. GIVEN THE TRAGEDIES THAT OCCURRED WHEN GM IGNITIONS TURNED OFF UNEXPECTEDLY DURING TRAVEL, RELYING ON A KEY THAT CAN IMMOBILIZE MY IGNITION AT WILL IS UNSETTLING, TO SAY THE LEAST. I WOULD DEEPLY APPRECIATE IT IF SOMEONE COULD LOOK INTO THIS INCIDENT. *TR
I WAS DRIVING ON I-15 IN RURAL SOUTHERN UTAH (WHICH HAS A HIGH SPEED LIMIT), ON CRUISE CONTROL, AND SUDDENLY LOST ALL POWER. THE VAN CONTINUED TO COAST (NO LOCK UP OF GEARS OR ANYTHING) AND I IMMEDIATELY WENT TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD WHERE I TURNED OFF THE IGNITION (WHICH WAS STILL ON) AND THEN TURNED IT BACK ON. THE VAN STARTED UP WITHOUT PROBLEMS AND I HAVEN'T HAD A PROBLEM SINCE. *TR
THE VIEW SCREEN WHICH IS SHARED BY THE CLOCK, RADIO, PHONE AND BACK UP CAMERA DOES NOT WORK PROPERLY. WHEN WEARING POLARIZED SUNGLASSES THE BOTTOM RIGHT QUADRANT AND PART OF THE BOTTOM LEFT QUADRANT OF THE SCREEN ARE BLACKED OUT WITH A YELLOWISH EDGE. THIS MAKES BACKING UP ON SUNNY DAYS HAZARDOUS BECAUSE THE ODYSSEY DOES NOT HAVE GOOD VISIBILITY IN THAT AREA AND IS A RISK OF COLLISION. WHEN I FIRST BOUGHT THE VEHICLE THE AREAS OF BLACKNESS WERE DIME SIZED, BUT HAVE PROGRESSIVELY INCREASED IN SIZE. THE HONDA DEALER AND CONSUMER LINE SAY THAT THIS OCCURS WITH ALL HONDAS THAT HAVE A VIEW SCREEN AND THAT THE SOLUTION IS "DON'T WEAR SUNGLASSES WHEN BACKING UP". *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 HONDA ODYSSEY. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR CONDITIONING WOULD AUTOMATICALLY ACTIVATE WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE THE FAILURE WAS UNABLE TO BE REPLICATED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE TECHNICIAN ADVISED HIM THAT THE HUMIDITY SENSOR ACTIVATED THE AIR CONDITIONER AUTOMATICALLY AND THAT THERE WAS NO REMEDY AVAILABLE FOR THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 3,500.
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Quick Summary
The 2013 Honda Odyssey has 7 Electrical System complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.