Hi, I have a friend who has a 2003 Accord LX 4dr, IVTEC 4cyl/5sp. who has had many trips to the Honda dealer
regarding his brakes.

@2000 mi= Rotors turned, @10,000 mi= Rotors replaced, @ 15000 mi= Rotors turned

He said that the dealer is at a loss to explain why this is happening to him, other than to accuse him of "riding
the brakes!" (he lives in a mountain area)

Since the 70's he has owned/driven 14 different Honda's and never experienced this type of problem. All of these
cars have been well maintained and driven >250,000 miles. Why all of a sudden does a new one have a problem
keeping brakes on it?

He did indicate that the 2003 had some significant design changes done to the brakeing system.

Has anyone else experienced a problem with their brakes on a 2003?

Thanks, Chuck

 

Ok, so what is the exact problem he is experiencing with his brakes?

 

i had the same problem, when brake from 70 and above the steering wheel starts to shake, but i only had a thousandth of run off when i got it checked... and the guy tried to con me into getting new brake pads, i just had the rotors turned

 

Yeah, it's like running over 600 little pot holes at the same time.

 

He said (Marland- the owner) that there is shimmy in the steering when the brakes are applied from say 55mph or so. He
also mentions that the quality/feel of the braking is not what he was used to with his many other Honda's.

Personally, Other than changing a MC on my '96 Accord lx, I find that Honda brakes are just fine for the weight of
the car. I'm sure that theres been a lot of "water under the bridge" since 1996 though.

Chuck

PS The brake pads were not changed by the dealer in all cases.

 

He should make sure the dealer is tightning the lugs correctly...I use a torque stick on my impact gun...right to 80 ft/lbs every time...If he is just slamming them in, it wont take many high heat cycles to warp...I have also found the brakes on the 7th gen to be touchy.

 

We have turned rotors on several 03 accords already. Honda has no bulletin on it as of yet.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ACR4 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">... I have also found the brakes on the 7th gen to be touchy.</TD></TR></TABLE>What's different about the brakes? They sure are touchy!

Our '98 EX has rear disks & our '03 LX has rear drums. Other than that I wasn't expecting the '03 brakes to be so overboosted. Anyone know what's re-designed differently? I haven't owned the '03 long enough to take it apart yet...

 

Thanks guys, For the feed back. I'll pass the information on to the owner. He is ready to install
some after market high performance racing rotors/pads at this point.

If any change with the dealer, I'll post the findings.

Chuck

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Atwater10 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">He did indicate that the 2003 had some significant design changes done to the brakeing system.</TD></TR></TABLE>Well, I took a wheel off the other day. The brakes sure look normal. Does anyone know something specific about the redesigned brakes? They're still 1-piston calipers with fixed frames & slide pins just like my other Hondas. Outside of detailed dimensions, they're still the same design.

OTOH, with only about 2300 miles the brakes are still smooth. Just way over-boosted.

 

so your friend drives an average of 140,000 miles a year? (i did the math)

14 vehicles since approx 1975, 250k on each car = 140k a year

 

Hi Nick, No...He actually does about 60,000 miles or so. He's an emergency room doctor who drives from the
mountains in Mariposa,CA half way down the state (between Hanford and Bakersfield, CA) five or so days a week.

The Honda's are/were all driven by family members as well....Many trips to Washington state and Idaho.

This guy really cranks up the miles. He also love his Honda's and is still surprised that after all of these, his new one has brake problems.

I've still not been able to contact him regarding the answers here, I think he's off on another trip to Washington.

Chuck

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Nick M &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">so your friend drives an average of 140,000 miles a year? (i did the math)

14 vehicles since approx 1975, 250k on each car = 140k a year </TD></TR></TABLE>

thats only saying he bought all 14 cars brand new..unless he's super rich..14 cars in a 30yr period is alot

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jerseybrandon &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">We have turned rotors on several 03 accords already. Honda has no bulletin on it as of yet.</TD></TR></TABLE>
Yep...So far, there is no bulletin. But it has to come...Doesn't it?
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Atwater10 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">...He did indicate that the 2003 had some significant design changes done to the brakeing system...</TD></TR></TABLE>
I agree with what the other posters said. They brakes are TOUCHY! My guess would be this is the whole problem. The braking system is more aggressive by design. This more aggressive design creates extra heat, which in turn, warps rotors.

What will happen? Well...Something has to happen. Long time Honda owners are not used to these silly problems. After all, they didn't buy a Neon.

I would guess there will be an improved rotor released. Hopefully, this will correct the problem.

 

OK, I talked to him this morning (10-07) and he contacted the factory and they indicated that there is a problem! It appears that the metal is too soft in the rotors. They also mentioned that there is a bulletin regarding this. My friend contacted the Honda dealer in Selma,Ca and they also said they have changed a number of these.

Bottom line, he was issued a case number and when the present rotors get warpped again. They will replace them with "harder" rotors and pads with a "softer" material.

Thanks for all of the comments, Chuck

P.S. This guys had Honda's so long, He said he even owned one of those "roller skates" 1972 Honda 600 Coupe 36HP


Modified by Atwater10 at 10:22 AM 10/7/2003