Problems with 2003 Honda CR-V ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

Just got in my car one day and turned on the air conditioning, a strange smelling mist starts coming out from the all the vents. this happens numerous times over the past 5 years. took the car in, the dealership said of course there was nothing they could do unless it was happening right when they look at it. so around the summer months of 2008 when i would turn on the air it would be heat, i would have to turn the a/c switch from cold(blue) to hot(red) and then back to cold. for some reason the a/c would get cold at that time. still with this strange smelling mist coming from the vents. i took my car into the honda dealership may 2009 for a safety recall & asked if they would look at my a/c again. they told me i was leaking freon & now as of that day, it was empty. strange since there was cold air on my drive to the dealership. they said they needed to find the leak and could come to very expensive repair cost, until they fix each little thing and find where it is leaking from. i told them about the strange smelling mist and asked if that could be freon? his reply was probably. no repairs made as of yet since it will be over $3500.00 to fix. *tr

2003 honda cr-v 44,200 miles: bad bearing or pump noise starting coming from engine compartment, stopped and checked (noise varied with engine speed). narrowed noise to area around ac compressor/alternator/belt tensioner. operated vehicle less than 30 minutes from first appearance of noise, then there was a thud,and a clunk looked out the passenger side rearview mirror and saw a something rolling down the street. noise went away, and ac stopped cooling. went back to see what had fallen off, and found part of the clutch assembly. no apparent damage, vehicle operates minus ac. took vehicle to dealer, was told that he has seen this a four or five times recently, and that he would contact honda, to see what can be done. was later told that honda would cover the repairs.*jb

Our honda dealer serviced our 2003 honda cr-v the last week of june in preparation for a round-trip from miami to south carolina. after spending a few days in sc, we left the car sitting for 4 days at an airport, then drove it around in sc for two days prior to starting return trip to miami. about 3 hours into return trip, the air conditioning began blowing warm air. i read the entire owners manual and tried all of its suggestions. the green on/off light remained on regardless of how many times i pushed it, and the air remained fan rather than air conditioning. about a half hour later, we heard a loud noise and thought that another vehicle had hit road debris that bounced against our car. in the side mirror, i saw a black plastic piece about the size of a medium sized pancake. we drove for approximately another half hour before the heat became unbearable, so i called the service manager at the dealer that had serviced the car and asked for advice. he suggested that we pull over and turn the car off and back on to see what happened. the air conditioning still was on fan, but the car heated up. he thought that we had had a problem with the cooling fan motor or that we had blown the compressor's drive belt / clutch. apparently, that is what happened. the car has approximately 33,400 miles on it and was still under the 36,000 warranty. during service prior to the the trip, we requested that a new air conditioning filter be installed because of construction dirt in our neighborhood.

On march 2,2005, i had a routine oil change performed on my 2003 honda crv ex ( 27000 miles) at saccucci honda in middletown ,ri . upon next startup (four days later) , my wife noticed a oil & smoke smell coming from the vehicle after a few miles. the smoke was apparently from oil dripped onto the tail pipe. the oil also dripped onto my garage floor. this is the second incident at the same dealership with this same issue ( see odi id number 10090704). not sure if this is fresh oil or old oil spilt during change. dealer is cleaning frame rail. *ak

Consumer complained about an engine. problem. vehicle began leaking oil, and caught on fire under the hood. vehicle was towed to the dealer, and was told by the dealer that repairs would be paid by the consumer. *ak

'recall campaign' consumer received recall for srs cable reel and cr-v shift cable update. *bf the valve cover gasket was leaking in the right front corner of the vehicle. there were many occasions in which the vehicle would have no oil. the vehicle would burn oil every 500 miles or less. the consumer requested a new engine or a new vehicle due to her fear that oil may drip and cause the vehicle to catch fire. the problem remained the same. *sc *jb

Vehicle is leaking oil excessively out of the engine, especially after oil changes. taken to dealer multiple times, but the cause is still undetermined.*ak the consumer stated that he has spoken to dealer several times in reference to the oil leaking on driveway several days after an oil change. the underside of the vehicle remains wet with oil. the consumer stated that there is difficulty gaining access to the oil filter and removing it without spilling the oil. problem still exists. *tc

The consumer noticed oil leaking from the vehicle. the dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. *ak oil was burnig every 500 miles. *sc *jb

Complaint concerning oil leaked all over driveway after oil change. worried about fires caused by oil filter problem. * bf while getting an oil change the consumer noticed a u shaped metal member located directly below the oil filter. when the oil filter was removed the oil splashes over this member as well as other structural members. *tc

2003 honda crv, ann morris driving to work alone, approximately 7.30am, smelt a gas type smell in side car and then noticed smoke coming out of underneath the dashboard. immediately ann pull of the road into a near by k-mart plaza. ann then called aaa for assistance. the crv was taken by a aaa agent to the nearest honda dealer, lanier honda, near buford, ga. honda found no problem with vehicle, only a leaky oil filter. the crv oil was changed in july at the walmart in suwanee, ga. this was the second oil change, at the same walmart. it was noticed that oil was leaking following the second oil change with oil stains under the car in the garage, immediately following the 2nd oil change, but the it stopped or seemed too. i will be in contact with honda as my wife and i are seriously concerned. although my wife only saw smoke, there is no smoke without fire!!!*ak the suituation make us were nervous... ann & bob morris - oct 15, 2004

Concerned with recent reports of fires associated with 2003 vehicle8n`sugest nhtsa reopen investigation possible design flaw of vehicle. *bf consumers responded to an article in the new york times in reference to fires that have occurred in vehicles like the vehicle they own. they found 80 crv's nationwide suddenly without warning fill up with smoke leaving just moments for passengers to escape before the cars were engulfed into flames and destroyed. *tc

While driving, the vehicle caught fire. the oil was changed on yesterday. the consumer was waiting for a response from the manufacturer. *jb

Vehicle is leaking oil whenever it is parked. however, the oil leak gets worse whenever the vehicle is in motion.*ak......vehicle was smoking and leaking oil from oil filter. dealing did not identify cause, but told consumer to look for oil leaks. *ak

While driving 50 mph engine began to produce thick black smoke. dealer stated the oil plug was missing, and all the oil leaked from the engine. *ak

Concerns regarding fires following oil changes in 2003 crv.*mr the passenger seat belt jammed and the drivers door lock failed. *jb

Concerns regarding vehicle fire after oil change. *mr the consumer suggested that this vehicle was known to catch fire if the oil filter was not properly installed at regular oil changes. the consumer also requested additional information on this issue. *sc *jb

Consumer stated after the first oil change oil began to leak from the vehicle. dealer stated because of the design of the vehicle it was difficult to change the oil filter without creating a puddle of oil on top of the frame rail. *ak

********************* this is a test. please disregard. i was asked by nhtsa to create a new submission to track an error with a missing selection problem. please diregard. please forward to software developers .*ak

During a routine oil change at 17,000 mile at saccuci honda dealership on my 2003 honda crv ex, that night i noticed oil dripping freely onto the frame and exhaust pipe. honda fixed the problem the next day, but dismissed the problem, stating that the oil filter must have been bad. the possibility of a fire starting on my car was very real. *ak

Vehicle fire regarding 2003 honda crv. *mr there was overheating of the electrical components that caused the fire. the consumers wife was locked in the burning vehicle. the locks remained activated and would not open from the inside or the outside, even though the ignition was off. the entire vehicle had become filled with heavy black smoke along with the instrument panel warning lights flashing. the consumer was informed that the damage found was consistent with a high resistance condition occurring in the crankshaft sensor oil control solenoid circuit wiring resulting in electrical overheating, resulting in a fire. minor heat and fire damage was sustained to the right front area of the engine starting near the crankshaft pulley extending upwards towards the valve cover area. upon examination of the fuse/relay center located in the passenger compartment revealed a 15 amp fuse protecting the ecu circuit was blown consistent with a component and or electrical failure within this circuit. *sc according to the technical report, the fire began in the engine compartment and was considered an accident not a manufacturer defect.*jb

While driving 35 mph, the consumer was informed that the vehicle was on fire. the vehicle was pulled to the side and the fire was extinguished by bystanders. the fire department was called and no injuries were reported. the consumer later discovered that the oil filter and installation of oil filter was defective. *jb *tc

My 2003 honda cr-v ex 4wd had an engine fire one morning after i started the car 10 minutes later. the weather temperature was in the teens that morning. it was a total loss, it burned completely. the only recent work done to the car was its first 3000 mi oil change. i purchased this car in september 2003, and this engine fire happened on january 07, 2004. the car had 3300 miles on the odometer. i've searched nhtsa.gov web site's database, and found that there was another incident that is very similar to my situation. i've also found messages posted to newsgroups on edmunds.com that other people had the same engine fire after oil change. i am very concerned about the safety of this vehicle, and would like the government to launch an investigation against the 2003 honda crv's *ak

I brought my 2003 honda cr-v ex model in to maine mall honda in south portland, maine for routine 10,000 mile scheduled maintenance, which includes changing the oil, rotating tires and inspecting fluid levels. within 5 miles of leaving the dealers location, the engine caught fire and the car was a total loss. i first noticed smole by looking in the rear view mirror approxiamtely 2 miles after leaving the dealers location. thinking it was just some spilled oil, i kept on driving until i noticed the low oil light come on the dashboard. i pulled the car over and smelled oil. at that point i opened the hood of the car and saw flames in the engine. the maine state police arrived within 5 minutes and determined that the fire was too far progreesed to save the car. the south portland and scarborough maine fire departments arrived within 10 minutes to put out the fire.*ak

After an oil change on my 2003 honda cr-v, the oil leaked out from the filter locatiion on the back side of the vehicle and the vehicle caught on fire and saturated the underside of the car with oil prompting a complete change on the computer and o2 sensors and other components. *ak

While driving 25 mph vehicle caught on fire under the engine area. fire was extinguished, and the vehicle was towed to the dealer. dealer informed the consumer that the problem was due to the oil leaking from the oil filter. *ak

6 days after having throttle cable recall and a/t shift cable recall and o/c, car burst into flames (totaled) while driving 20-25 mph. honda says not defect? car had 8200 miles on odometer. no evidence that oil from o/c caused fire. honda investigations has no answer. fire started or was first evident in drivers wheel well area. *la

Shortly after the first oil change was performed, smoke starting coming from the engine while driving home. this occurred because the oil filter was installed with the exciting o-rings, thus creating an oil leak. the oil dripped on the exhaust. this could result in an engine fire. to avoid this from recurring when an the oil filter and the o-rings had to be replaced.*ak

Engine light illuminated and vehicle started bucking. *mr the check engine light would continually come on, the vehicle would intermittently buck, smoke then shut off, oil was in the filter and the gasket blew out, the vtec system malfunctioned along with faulty solenoid valves, and the oil level was excessively low. *sc *jb

The clamps on the radiator were not properly sealed at the time the vehicle was manufactured. as a result the engine over heated while driving at highway speed. the anti freeze leaked out onto the engine compartment. the dealership tightened the clamp, but the head gasket blew a day later. *jb *nlm

While driving at 40 mph and after the very first oil change consumer felt the vehicle trembled violently. vehicle was pulled over, and the consumer smelled something burning. also, consumer saw that oil was dripping out of the vehicle. there had been a report on television concerning the oil filter. the problem with this vehicle was that the mechanic neglected to return the oil pan plug.*ak

Pe 04 018/oil filter fires: after leaving jiffy lube for an oil change, consumer noticed smoke coming from under the vehicle. drove the vehicle back to the shop, and mechanic replaced the oil filter and the oils. *ak