Problems with 1994 Honda Accord ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

Tl* the contact owns a 1994 honda accord. the contact was driving approximately 45 mph and noticed blue and black smoke emitting from the hood area. the vehicle was pulled over and the contact inspected under the hood and detected no flames. there was an excessive amount of oil was leaking from the engine. the contact stated that the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer four different times for the same failure. the first occurrence, the cam shaft seals were replaced. the failure continued with no resolutions. the failure mileage was approximately 200,000.

While driving 50 mph, the oil light started blinking. the consumer drove home to discover that the engine was dry of oil. the oil had dripped out through the head gasket. there is a technical service bulletin concerning this problem. *ph

Re: honda balancer shaft defective oil seal and blowout problem. i recently and suddenly experienced this problem with 94 honda accord. my family and i had been on a trip to l.a. and back on several freeways, the seal blewout and the oil was drained within minutes. it could have caused the engine to freeze up and created a terrible accident. i called honda customer service, they had a very indifferent attitude, they said they made a public offer to correct the problem but that offer has now "expired". "it wasn't offically a recall so we don't have to fix anything". "it wasn't offically pegged as a safety issue, so no recall was imposed." trust me, losing your oil suddenly at high speeds can very easily become a' safety ' issue! i would like to ask the n.h.t.s.a. to reconsider the problem and make it a recall ! let's take the indifferent attitude away from smugg automakers that are very aware of "safety" problems, they know that they have defective parts that were not corrected. a $5 retainer (that should have been there in the first place ) would avoid this problem! please enforce a recall on honda and make them responsible for their error in design. thank you, tom ross. *ak

Oil pressure light came while traveling at low speeds - took care in for repair of oil leak and discovered main seal problem. *ak

My balancer shaft oil seal failed, and pumped out all the oil in my engine. i found out that this was part of an on going product update. honda america agreed that they would pay for the repair to the seal, but the timing belt also needs replacement due to oil saturation from the failed oil seal. they state that they would not cover this, and i would have to pay $410 for this repair! in the honda campain, it mandates a change of the timing belt. i will not pay for this, and if the timing belt fails due to the oil, will honda be liable for any accidents, damage, or injury this may cause? if the timing belt snaps, i believe that i would lose any power steering and brakes because the engine would die.*ak

While driving oil blew out of oil seal onto engine compartment, causing heavy smoke to come from engine. consumer's vision was temporarily impaired, vehicle shut off/ lost power steering. consumer felt this was very unsafe. please provide any further information.*ak

Massive oil leak due to failure of balancer shaft oil seal. $1,700 peripheral engine damage. item recalled, but honda will not honor majority of repair cost. very late recall; 1.2 million vehicles involved according to honda.

Honda is now giving me the run-around about reimbursement. they have set up a series of hoops that are going to cost me time, money and the use of my car. no safety defect listed. *ak

11-7-2000 incurred an expense of $827.93 resulting from a blown out balance shaft seal. 11-29-2000 mailed to honda a request for reimbursement with: the procare invoice for 827.93, copy of the receipt, and century honda invoice confirming inspection of balance shaft seal correction. 1-13-2001 received postcard from honda confirming receipt of claim. they claimed the did not receive the century honda invoice. 1-23-2001 after days, yes days, of busy signals i was finally able to fax the invoice they said they did not receive. all phone calls in the last three months of this ordeal have resulted in busy signals or being put on hold. i have put the phone on speaker at work and waited as long as an hour before giving up. honda has basically made theirselves inaccesible. 3-2-2001 to date no response from honda except previously mentioned postcard.have

A/c recall - cooling system never works properly. defrost doesn't clear windows on left side. engine started leaking oil profusely (part recall?) abs braking system went out. lighting switch went out & all lights blew. antenna does'nt work properly. windows are coming down slower and slower. seems like the transmission might be the next to go. this car has been a continual case of murphy's law.*ak

Balancer shaft seal popped out. all engine oil quickly lost. camshaft froze in head. crankshaft continued to turn, stripping teeth off of timing belt. oil soaked brake pads, tires and belts. mechanic said engine needs replacement, damage irrepairable. head, crankshaft, and pistons damaged. repair costs $2000 -$4000. car lost all power and was stranded in the road, could have caused accident. if i had to stop in a hurry, could have crashed due to oil soaked brakes. why isn't there a recall on this engine. i see numerous complants on this same faulty oil seal. *ak

Vehicle began pouring out oil from within the timing cover. ended up replacing all belts including timing belt due to oil having covered everything. also replaced water pump while unit was open. mechanic said balance shaft seal was cause of problem - said it was the 4th he had seen in about the last week that involved an accord. researched recall info on internet and discovered in usa today sept 19,2000 that there was a problem in ohio manufactered cars and those were being recalled for what appears as the same problem. this vehicle was manufactured in japan however. made a call to honda motor co., said that there were no recalls for this vehicle in particular but that they received their info from nhtsa and could not help me since there was no existing recall. seems a honda should go more that 50,000 without major engine repair work. thanks for your help!*ak

Failure occurred while vehicle was idling. if failure occurred at highway speeds complete loss of vehicle control will occur with high potential for fire.

Balance shaft seal fell out causing a major loss of oil. *slc

Whiile traveling noticed oil indicator light. dealer stated vehicle has a bad oil seal. *ak oil seal popped out. the vehicle has defective wiring in audio equipment. *yh

Engine leaked oil constanly. consumer had contacted a technician. technician said that pot seal popped out, causing leakeage. *ak

While driving engine light came on where engine ran out of oil. then ,vehicle had to be towed, and technician stated that it was a balance shaft seal problem. *ak

While driving along oil light came on. vehicle was towed to a repair shop/garage. vehicle lost all oil because the balancer seal blew. seal has been replaced. please provide any further information.*ak

The timimg chain broke at highway speeds. manufacturer and dealer have been notified. *ak

Seal blew causing massive loss of oil. how many of these complaints are necessary before a recall takes place?

Balancer seal failer caused oil loss soaking timing belt and balancer belt must all be replaced at owners expense. *ak

Engine balance shaft seal came out causing major oil leak. engine was shut down to avoid engine damage, but timing belts and water pump that were replaced feb.99, had to be replaced again.

Balance shaft seal blown, timing belt replaced also. nlm

The gaskets wore out causing the crank and balance shafts to blow out resulting in oil spill from the engine. yh

Balancer seal failed, engine lost oil now engine block is cracked. *ak

Balancer shaft oil seal popped out dumping the entire engine's oil onto my driveway. the vehicle needed to be towed to newport, ri ($80) then there were extensive damages incurred by the leaking oil which resulted in several belts becoming contaminated and needed to be replaced ($574 total repair cost). i just recently (11/27/02) received notification regarding the recall of this part and am furious that honda's negligence resulted in a large repair bill and thank goodenss that my engine didn't seize because i was driving it when it happened.*ak

Engine oil seal retainer was omitted by factory. honda should have issued a recall, as therehave been numerous instances of defect. seal ruptured while i was driving a short distance and i saw oil pouring from engine when i got out of the car. defect could have caused engine to run dry of oil and resulted in a catastrophic fire resulting in injury or death to occuopants. honda reduced cost of repair to $332 , but should have issued a safety recall.*ak

A seal on a shaft near the timing belt came off creating a massive oil leak. all belts and parts were soaked with oil. i had to have a complete timimg belt replacement procedure. i had just had this procedure at approximately 90,000 miles as recommended by the manufacturer. i understand that the problem may now be recognized by honda as they have issued a seal retainer to hold the seal in place. *ak

My vehicle had the oil pump seal "fall out," causing a large volume of oil to be pumped out of the engine. fortunately the engine was not damaged as the vehicle was being used for a trip of about three miles, and was turned off before damage was caused. my auto technician told me that this seal was laying inside the timing belt cover. he told me that he has repaired a number of vehicles with this same problem. he also told me honda is aware of the problem, and has designed a retainer to install to keep the seal from falling out. this retainer was installed by him, plus a bunch of other belts that had been soaked by oil and rendered unusable. i have not contacted the dealer or the manufacturer, but my technician has told me that honda is not offering any financial assistance in covering this repair, which just cost me $390.00. this problem could have easily caused a complete loss of oil (it lost three quarts of oil over a distance of a mile or less; it only holds four quarts!), potentially causing engine lockup and the replacement of an engine, plus our inconvenience. this is apparently a design flaw, as honda has implicitly acknowledged by designing and manufacturing this retainer for the oil pump seal. i think honda owes me some money, and i think there should be a voluntary recall from honda to correct this problem. that is my opinion. i know the vehicle has 90000 miles, but this wasn't a part that wore out - it fell out! that is primarily what my opinion is based on. incidentally, this vehicle has received regular maintenance from me and my technician. i will be contacting the dealer and the manufacturer about this as well. thank you. *ak

The front balancer shaft oil seal blew out, causing rapid oil loss, and the oil pressure warning light to come on. we were in heavy traffic, 20 miles from home. the car needed to be towed. the dealer knew of this seal problem and sold me a retainer (not made by honda) the timing belt and balancer belt had to be replaced due to oil damage, along with the water pump, which a dealer would replace at timing belt replacement. parts alone were $123.00. if i had been notified by honda that this seal may blow out, i would have installed the retainer when the timing belt was replaced at 90,000 miles. the oil coated much of the underside of the car, and posed a fire and pollution hazard. i believe honda should be more forthcoming about this problem.

Balance shaft seal blew out it caused a oil slick on the freeway soaked the timing belts and lost all oil pressure. i had the vehicle towed to the dealer for repairs they charged me 400.00 for the repair they said the have seen quite a few of these problems but insist its not a saftey concern.causing a oil slick and possibly a fire in the engine compartment isn't a concern. as a mechanic i have seen this problem in my shop 6 times in the last 2 months. *ak

While driving at highway speed, the balancer shaft seal broke and all the oil leaked out of the engine. this caused the camshaft to crack, resulting in my having to replace the engine. honda agreed to split the cost of the engine 50/50, but i feel they should have paid the total bill, due to the fact that they knew of this problem, and have since updated the seal, and are now putting a guard/plate on the seal to prevent this from happening again. please inform as many people as possible, because this problem put my life in danger as i was on interstate 95 in new jersey, and luckily was able to pull to the shoulder of the highway after losing control of the vehicle when the cam broke. this could happen to anyone, and is extremely dangerous. *ak

No summary

Was stopped at red light and immediately proceeded to stop and check oil level. oli dip stick shows no oil,and engine is smoking.o

Oil leaked from the engine causing it to completely lose power. engine has to be replaced. car has less than 60,000 miles

1) cam seal blew, oil expelled, saturated belts; req'd cam, crank, & axle seals, replace timing belt, balance belt; 2) driver side airbag didn't deploy in head on accident 25 mph, whiplash result

Complete loss of oil while on highway - i later found out this was the failure of the balance shaft, which had been a known problem with this make/model since 1996. i had to have my car towed to the nearest repair shop (the dealer was too far away to have it towed there). they diagnosed and repaired the problem (all my belts and hoses had to be replaced inclding teh timing belt) to the tune of $565.45. since the day i bought the car (new) i had it faithfully serviced at the dealer. since this was a known problem and i regularly had my car serviced with this honda dealer, why didn't they alert me and have the restaining clip installed? this cost me $565.45 and put me in a very dangerous position on the side of the road (to avoid blowing out the engine). needless to say i have not had my car serviced at a honda dealer since this incident. i believe i deserve to be reimbursed for this expense by honda. *ak

Balancer oil seal failed and all oil gushed out, causing saturation of the timing belt, balancing belt and drive belt, the water pump and all three oils seals. honda dealer required that all these parts be replaced, resulting in a bill of $809.57. the nhtsa consumer complaint database lists over 7 related complaints for the failure of oils seals. i have requested from the dealer the damaged parts, but have not received them. the dealer was unaware of this problem, although there appears to be a related nhtsa service bulletin, number 961001b. the seal costs about $12 to $13, but its failure can cause extensive damage and safety problems.

Balance shaft seal failure lead to catastrophic oil loss from timing belt cover housing. may be design defect in original seal because dealer fixing car said replacement part was 'larger' and he did a steady business in repairing hondas with failed balance shaft seals. the dealer had not seen any failures of the differently designed replacement part balance shaft seal. (this dealer was in new hampshire where the seal failed.) fixing a shaft seal failure requires new balance belt and new timing belt in addition to new seal. if engine damage has occurred due to the sudden oil loss, you might as well give up. apparently the seal fails without warning (our seal failed within two weeks and 700 miles of a very major servicing by the dealer).

Driving about 50 mph driver saw the oil light was on and she stopped. oil was coming out, consumer said the problem was the balance shaft seal that became dislodged and couldn't hold the oil. *ak

Front balancer seal/ oil shaft blew out, causing all oil to leak from car and soak all belts. dealer not aware of problem. repairwork being done at owner's expense. provide further information. *ak

While driving, the oil pressure light started blinking. pulling over the the side of the highway, i found the engine to have no oil as determined by the dip stick. inspection of the engine revealed that the balance shaft oil seal had fallen out and was hanging on the balance shaft. this sudden lose of all oil in the engine in highway traffic could have resulted in a major accident.

Engine seal came out, causing major oil leak while on the parkway, all belts including timing belt had to be replaced. *ak

Timing belt had been replaced at normal 90,000 mile checkup. the balance shaft seal broke while car in driveway, all of the engine oil was discharged. car was towed to a honda dealer, where the seal and all timing belts had to be replaced. dealer denied that the "blowing" of counter shaft seals is a problem with accords. according to complaints to your department, it appears that especially in 1999 there has been a significant increase in the number of similar complaints (possibly a connection with the changing of timing belts?). this is such a common problem that there is even a "fix" used by some (but not all) honda dealers [sure seal counter balance shaft seal shield]. i have been unable to get the local dealer to fully reimburse me for the full cost of this repair, and i am seeking your assistance. given your research, how extensive is this problem? i am 20 year honda owner, and this will be my last honda if i am unable to resolve this reimbursement issue. i don't expect honda's to be perfect, but i do expect their service departments to be honest. this is a safety issue--i had recently returned from a "driving vacation" with my sixteen year old son. had either of us been driving when the seal broke, engine locked up, etc., the injury and/or fatality section of this questionnaire would probably have been answered very differently.

An engine seal , which was not properly installed, caused an oil leak which may have started a fire and ruined the timing belts. please provide further information. *ak

Oil seal/balancer seal "popped off" of the engine. dealership sees 3-4 of these every other week. technician has invented oil seal holder part to hold oil seal on because of the frequency of this repair. honda will not recall. my costs $399.87. all of the oil leaks out of the engine when this occurs; very dangerous to be driving with this faulty part in so many honda accords from 90-97. contact crown honda in greensboro nc for confirmation of frequency of occurance of this defect.

Hood of the radiator split. mjs

The plastic radiator top wa ssplitting horizontally, spraying hot anti-freeze. the scalding hot anti-freeze just missed the consumer by inches. *ak

Balancer shaft seal dislodged, *ak

I purchased a used honda from the above toyota dealership. it had a pending oil leak and a dead battery. over the next two months i had to return to have the leak fixed. for under my purchase contract the leak would be repaired. after the fourth time returning for an oil leak, the dealership(findlay toyota) said i had a cracked engine block. upon request of what was i supposed to do and would they help me and would my 2 year warranty pay for it? no was their reply. i took it to a honda dealership and was able to have it exposed,(yeh, right!) and paid for that repair. the honda dealership also found some other faults with the car that in my mind should have been handled in "toyotas point inspection before sold to the public." what are my rights? do i now own a lemoncar? its value has significantly faltered now due to the cracked block. *ak