Hello all, I have searched for info related to my specific issues but was unable to find any satisfying results as well as having alack of time to spend hours searching this forum for answers. I have a 2003 Accord EX V6 6spd. I bought the car a few months ago and over the time I have owned the car I have discovered small annoyances/issues that I was not aware of when I got. I'm not asking for solve all answers but places/ tricks and tips to check would be appreciated.

Issues:
1. The steering wheel mounted audio and cruise control buttons do not illuminate. All buttons function and do their job they just do not light up when head lights are on making difficult to use them at night.

2. The trunk release button on my key does not open the trunk, I do not hear any clicking noises so the solenoid is not functioning, unsure if it is a power related issue or an actual solenoid problem.

3. Im an idiot.... and put a burned/mp3 cd in my 6disc navigation style factory head unit which does not play WMA/Mp3 cd's (I did not bother to read). The disc will not eject. It knows the disc is in there and when attempting to play, it says "busy" and then says "error" and will not eject the CD Any ides on how to get the disc out?

4. The car equipped with AUX/ XM satellite radio stuff. neither seem to function. I wold enjoy being able to hook up either my phone or ipod to the AUX port while driving.

That is all for now, and I thank you for your help in advance. I love the car, first accord i have owned, its awesome and just want everything to work properly.

 

I should also note that the car has shaking issue under acceleration. The shake occurs at different rpm ranges depending on what gear I am in and only occurs under acceleration. It does not seem to happen in 1,2 and 3 that I have noticed but I do not beat on the car. In fourth gear it occurs around the 3200 rpm range, in fifth gear the car shakes between 2700 and 3300 rpm's after or before that point no shake and at time in any gear if I let of of the gas pedal the shakes stops or is non existent while going at a steady rpm. in 6th gear the shaking occurs around 1900-2400 rpm after 2400 the shaking goes away. Im not entirely sure why this happens but my thoughts after doing some reading on here is it has to do with the car having Tein lowering springs.

INFO:
-the springs were on the car when i bought it.
-its not slammed to the ground just slightly lower then stock height.
-Seems as if others on here have had similar issues with lowered cars.
-When buying the car it seemed as if the wheels needed balancing which I thought "Ok no big deal"
- Wheels have all been, balanced, tires in in good shape, has new slotted and drilled rotors

Just wondering on your thoughts if these spring could be a possible cause and how can I go about correcting the shake and eliminating it form my daily drive. I do not have stock springs. Thanks again.

 

Most of those things are your cars problem not every car, how ever the illumination issue gets me too.. The steering wheel controls not so much but the DAMN sunroof and traction control buttons should be illuminated before anything else lol

 

1. The steering mount controls for radio and cruise control does not illuminate on this model year, I believe they added that on the later models (05 or later) after many customers' complaints. The windows power, door lock and heat seats do illuminate.

2. Trunk remote control: if you have a second remote try that. If it still does not turn on the solenoid, I think you are right that the solenoid may be bad if the key open the door locks.

3. Not sure if the normal eject does not work. This may be tough because it is a CD changer.

4. On the 03, Aux/XM only works with Honda accessory XM tuner or cassette deck or MP3 player. You would have to order the parts and get them installed. I checked into XM tuner in the past and the cost does not worth it. You are better using an FM transmiter if you want XM or a bluetooth speaker with FM transmitter for iPhone.

Good luck.

 

Did you get the shaking/rattling figured out? Having same issue on my 03/6speed

 

Thank you all. Sorry I did not check in for a long time. I have taken care of everything other than the shake. Its still happens under load at different RPMs in different gears I have done alot of searching, reading and checking of things but have found nothing conclusive. I have not had any issues related to it other than it being an annoyance so I have simply dealt with it for now. I hate to replace things that are not bad so I have refused to spend money fixing it until I know what the issue is. I have driven the car 30K the way it is so it must not be a terrible huge problem.

James

 

May I ask what/how did you get fixed the trunk release issue? I have the same problem w/ my '04 V6 6MT.

 

The vibration only when accelerating is probably one or both axles. You can get the 06 steering wheel buttons and harness, which are lighted. You can buy kits to hook up iPods etc.

 

hello,

To get the trunk release to work was actually quite simple. I am recalling from memory but I believe all I did was take off the carpet/cover on the trunk lid so I was able to see the release. I then looked for the ground wire and ground location. I sanded both the wire eyelet and the ground point with sand paper applied a small amount of grease and that was it. apparently my ground wire had corroded slightly. Some times on the east coast when it rains it pours like crazy so hard that my wipers cant even keep up. When rain like this happens I have notice my trunk will get wet inside and the carpet gets damp. I believe the moisture levels cause the ground to corrode and that was all it was. Unfortunately, I jumped the gun a purchased the whole latch mechanism for the inside of the trunk lid expecting to replace it and I lost the receipt, so if it turns out you need the OEM latch let me know I will sell it and ship it to you for a deal.

As for the steering wheel lights I originally did not know they were not supposed to illuminate. I assumed they would because everything else does in the car (idk what Honda was thinking there). I have gotten used to them being not illuminated, however; I may consider switching them if it is a simple plug and play adaptation.

For the shake, I will consider putting two new axles in when I decide to do a clutch on the car. I am thinking this coming summer a clutch job may be in order.

James

 

Did you take a look at them and notice if they have the dampeners on them? Mine do not, and I also have a bit of a shake once in a while. It tends to fade as I drive and everything warms up, tires included, but its still there a little. After stories of the axles breaking at that point where the dampener is on the axle, I can deal with this vibration. My axles still look solid, and the CV joint boots are fine as well, no grease, and no clicking when doing tight turns. I don't throttle around on turns though, just let it kinda roll them being light on the pedal.

I have put 44k on since buying this car with 100k, so I'm not going to worry about it. Probably the same for you.

I should add, I have the HFP kit on this car, lowered as well. So maybe there is something to that. I'd like to know if you have the dampeners on the axles though.

 

hello,

I have not looked for dampeners on my axles before. I will be out in the garage again next weekend and at that point I will jacket it up and take a look to see if I can find dampeners or not. Is there a specific point on the axle where they will be located and what do they look like? My shake is odd, as mentioned before it is not consistent with a certain speed seems to be more related to an rpm range which is different in each gear that it happens (4,5,6) and is only under load. I also do not throttle it around turns to often, I try to drive conservatively. This is my everyday car and I want it to last as long as possible or at least until my student loans are paid off. =P I really only notice the shake when getting on the highways and passing people. Mine is lowered also, it has Tein springs but is not slammed it is just lowered enough to be noticeable and still drive nice. help identify what I am looking for (dampeners) and I will let you know.

 

OK, thx for the info & I'll let you know if I need the latch.

 

It will look like a big rubber doughnut on the axle itself.

 

I looked last weekend and did not see any dampers on my axle shafts. I will consider replacing both when I change the clutch this summer.