Used 2008 Honda Odyssey Consumer Reviews
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1st owner & 5 1/2 yrs later I am still happy!
billybeefcake, 05/27/2014
2008 Honda Odyssey EX-L 4dr Minivan (3.5L 6cyl 5A)
49 of 50 people found this review helpful
My wife and I picked out a 2008 Honda Odyssey EX-L 5 1/2 years ago with 20 miles on it. We now have just over 73,000 on the vehicle, and we are even more happy now than when we purchased the van because nothing has gone wrong. There has been several recalls such as the brakes, the transmission reprogramming, and cabin noise, but Honda was pretty good (once they acknowledged the issues) at taking care of them. With a fully loaded van (family/cargo) on a flat road I can get 27/28 mpg easily. In town she avg. 18-20 depending on how much a/c we are using. As for us we have had a good experience.
The new Honda Quality sadly
homersodysey08, 05/06/2014
2008 Honda Odyssey EX 4dr Minivan (3.5L 6cyl 5A)
48 of 51 people found this review helpful
I have had a few significant problems. First is was the soft break pedal which was a known technical service problem "fixed" by applying silicone to the known leak. At 9K mi transmission quit. They tried to blame me. They said they could find out what I had done for $180/hour. Needed my car so 2 days later they found a loose wire connector re-connected it "under warranty". Shortly beyond the 36 mo warranty (13K mi) again a soft to the floor brake pedal. I found the original TSB for the brakes and insisted they perform that "fix"a new VSA stability module I paid $400 for the part. Now they say soft is normal but I just got a recall notice for a brake defect, they got caught 5 yrs later
2008 Honda Odyssey for sale near you
3 of 6 listings
- EX-L Passenger MinivanMSRP: $4,49520 mi away
- EX-L Passenger MinivanMSRP: $7,99518 mi away
- EX Passenger MinivanMSRP: $4,95021 mi away
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No More!
Tony Cruz, 03/03/2015
2008 Honda Odyssey LX 4dr Minivan (3.5L 6cyl 5A)
25 of 26 people found this review helpful
I bought my van with 30K miles, and now nearly 90K miles I had a major engine failure (cylinder 5 blew). Honda knows there have been problems with this particular year, yet, will not make me whole. My warranty, of course, was useless. I was over my miles by 200 miles, all highway miles en route to my father in laws funeral. They didn't do sqaut for me! Let's just say I will not be buying another honda again. They're no longer 'reliable' to me and they produced an inferior product. I've got two old Fords that are still kicking! I'll be buying American moving forward...thanks to honda.
Rear engine mount failure very costly
lonosc, 12/24/2012
2008 Honda Odyssey EX 4dr Minivan (3.5L 6cyl 5A)
60 of 65 people found this review helpful
I just spent $1K replacing the rear engine mount after 60K miles. After researching further, discovered this is common part failure, and will re-occur every 50 - 60,000 miles. Will definitely trade off this vehicle before another 60K miles and will never buy another again. This is a vital part and should not fail so frequently. I expected better quality from Honda.
Where my Honda gone?
Honda Angst, 11/07/2018
updated 05/10/2021
2008 Honda Odyssey EX-L 4dr Minivan w/Rear Entertainment (3.5L 6cyl 5A)
63 of 70 people found this review helpful
I bought this van used with 104K miles (in April 2016) confident that I was buying a Honda (like I have most of my life) and treated right, they last. By all appearances the vehicle had been cared for. Great paint/body, the interior was clean and maintained and it ran well. Imagine my surprise at 107K miles when my low oil light comes on. I checked the dipstick and I had a drop of oil at the very end. No oil leaks or smoke from the exhaust. This is the beginning of my falling out with Honda. I took it back to the dealer astonished and looking for some answers. They conducting an oil consumption test and determined I was using 1-1/2 qts of oil per 1000 miles. After pressing the issue they told me they had performed a piston ring replacement on the vehicle prior to my purchase for the very same reason and that work was still under warranty. But it gets better. Next thing I know Honda has ponied up for an engine replacement. I was floored, but curious as to why they were being so incredibly generous. I found out why at about 20K miles into my new engine when it started using oil again without leaks or exhaust smoke. I took it back once again, did an oil test and it was determined that the vehicle was using 1qt every 1K miles and Honda said "that falls within acceptable parameters" and so they refused to do anything. This is when I started digging and discovered Honda has settled a class action suit in 2014 for...you guessed it, excessive oil consumption with certain 2008 Odyssey Models (all with VCM, Variable Cylinder Management). Honda extended powertrain warranties for most vehicles and some people that were a actually part of the class action were made whole, thus my engine replacement. Clearly that was not the problem and I eventually discovered the VCM was the actual culprit. I discovered that too late as the piston rings on my NEW engine were already damaged. I would eventually end up at the Honda shop again when the vehicle started experiencing constant cylinder misfires at about 40K miles into the NEW engine. They recommended piston ring replacement, but said ideally I should replace the engine, 40K miles and I needed a new engine. If you're considering one of these Odyssey's with VCM, buyer beware. If you cant verify the service records just walk away.
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