AC Recall Letter

[Vegam]

Welp, looks like my 2016 Civic EX-T is having AC issues- driver side blowing completely warm, passenger side seems to blow cold still. I was feeling suspicious about the coldness for a bit but I wasn't sure since AZ summers are brutally warm. I'm really hoping it's just the condenser and I hope they don't drop the whole 'road damage/rock damage' thing on me. I did take after a post I saw on Reddit and called American Honda ahead of time to get the complaint created. The service center is supposed to be able to take a look on Monday.

My 2016 Touring was having the same problem, I took it to the dealer and specifically mentioned the TSB and asked if it had a condenser leak. They kept it for several hours and told me they couldn’t find any leaks, just did an evac and recharge with UV dye and charged me $400. But if the cooling cut off to the point where the driver side was blasting hot air, shouldn’t that point to a leak somewhere? I thought with UV dye they would find it before handing the car back.

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[Israel]

Welp, looks like my 2016 Civic EX-T is having AC issues- driver side blowing completely warm, passenger side seems to blow cold still. I was feeling suspicious about the coldness for a bit but I wasn't sure since AZ summers are brutally warm. I'm really hoping it's just the condenser and I hope they don't drop the whole 'road damage/rock damage' thing on me. I did take after a post I saw on Reddit and called American Honda ahead of time to get the complaint created. The service center is supposed to be able to take a look on Monday.

Keep us updated please

 

[Friendofsonic]

Damn. The dealership told me it was my compressor, not the condenser. Quoted me $2k to replace it. Obviously, I think I'll get it done elsewhere because I think I can do it cheaper elsewhere, but I'll also call America Honda and see about the Goodwill thing. Couldn't hurt to try.

 

[BestCarEver]

Damn. The dealership told me it was my compressor, not the condenser. Quoted me $2k to replace it. Obviously, I think I'll get it done elsewhere because I think I can do it cheaper elsewhere, but I'll also call America Honda and see about the Goodwill thing. Couldn't hurt to try.

You can get a rebuilt condenser for almost nothing on eBay or Rockauto FYI. Not worth $2000 under any circumstances. Have a look. They should cover it. The dealer is just hoping for a quick kill. Check out my AC f*ckered again thread. I used a recharge kit and now my AC is wicked awesome.

 

[Friendofsonic]

You can get a rebuilt condenser for almost nothing on eBay or Rockauto FYI. Not worth $2000 under any circumstances. Have a look. They should cover it. The dealer is just hoping for a quick kill. Check out my AC f*ckered again thread. I used a recharge kit and now my AC is wicked awesome.

Rebuilt condenser or compressor?

 

[humanfrogger]

my condenser went 2 weeks ago. never got a recall letter. took it to a local mechanic, diagnostic was 150. took it to honda dealership, they quoted me 385 for the diagnostic but agreed to waive it once they confirmed it was the faulty issue that we all know about. the service guy told me the part is built like crap, materials are trash. didn't cost me a dime, but he said i should expect issues with it going forward and to just bring it back every time. pretty annoying.

 

[TheCanadian]

I had a compressor replaced on a Acura RDX for $965 CAD, tax in , 2 years ago at an Acura dealer. 2K USD for a civic is highway robbery

 

[humanfrogger]

I had a compressor replaced on a Acura RDX for $965 CAD, tax in , 2 years ago at an Acura dealer. 2K USD for a civic is highway robbery

i was quoted 1500+ labour (CAD) for the condenser repair before I realized it was still under warranty.

 

[NYHeel]

Damn. The dealership told me it was my compressor, not the condenser. Quoted me $2k to replace it. Obviously, I think I'll get it done elsewhere because I think I can do it cheaper elsewhere, but I'll also call America Honda and see about the Goodwill thing. Couldn't hurt to try.

I had the exact same thing happen to me (2017 Civic) with the same quote. I tried the goodwill thing and I'm still waiting on an answer from Honda for over 3 months. I've called them over 10 times. Still nothing.

The other problem is that my regular local mechanic won't even look at the car because it uses the newer R-1234 refrigerant. They also told me they're not aware of any non-dealer shops in the area that work on AC issues with the newer refrigerant.

 

[World Traveler]

I had a 2016 Civic Ex-T with 18,325 miles on it when, last month, the A/C started blowing hot air from the driver's side and cool (but getting warm) air from the passenger's side. I knew nothing about the defective A/C system until I started looking around the internet and found this forum, amongst other web sites, that talk about this problem. Took it to the dealer for a diagnostic test, because I was certain that it would be the condenser, which I knew about from the extended warranty letter I received. To my shock, the seal on the compressor was faulty and refrigerant has been leaking out for who knows how long, which degraded the clutch and coil (at least that's what they tell me). The cost of repair for a new compressor, clutch, and coil and recharging the refrigerant was $2100. Obviously, I had no warranty, so this would be at my expense.

When I picked up the car from the dealership after the diagnostic, I was instructed not to use the A/C or the defroster, only the fan. Why not the defroster? Because the compressor runs the defroster, which would cause further damage. So even if I decided to go through the hot summer with no A/C, I still couldn't use the defroster in the winter, which would be an unsafe condition of the vehicle. And Honda only issues recalls if the vehicle becomes unsafe to drive. And to add to this mess, if I got the repair done, they are installing the exact same defective compressor that went in from the manufacturer in 2016. This is so wrong on so many levels.

I filed a goodwill request with Honda and was assigned a case number and case manager, but despite my daily calls to the case manager, I never received a call back. After two weeks, I asked the dealer to contact their field service representative to see if we could get some movement on the case, and after a couple of days, the rep told the dealer that Honda would cover 50% of the repair. Not good enough for me. Honda has had five years to fix this issue, yet there's been no disclosure of this known manufacturing defect, and they're not acknowledging any problem. I asked the service manager at the dealership to cover the other 50%, to which he said no. Frustrated, I e-mailed the general manager of the dealership and pleaded my case. Good luck was on my side because the dealership picked up the other 50% of the repair.

While I'm grateful for my outcome, I know there's thousands of Civic owners out there who are just screwed by Honda. The day after I picked it up from being repaired, I sold it. I hate Honda, and I will never buy another of their trashy vehicles. They are a shitty company that have no regard for their customers and even less regard to how they build a car.

There are many lawsuits against Honda for a whole lot of issues, as I learned from carcomplaints.com. I've contacted attorneys Berger Montague, P.C., as they are doing the investigative work to file another class action lawsuit against Honda to force Honda to make this right. If you're one of the thousands of owners who've had to shell out big bucks for repairs, save your receipts and any e-mails you have regarding your efforts to get Honda or their representative dealerships to pay, should you wish to take further action.

 

[Friendofsonic]

I had a 2016 Civic Ex-T with 18,325 miles on it when, last month, the A/C started blowing hot air from the driver's side and cool (but getting warm) air from the passenger's side. I knew nothing about the defective A/C system until I started looking around the internet and found this forum, amongst other web sites, that talk about this problem. Took it to the dealer for a diagnostic test, because I was certain that it would be the condenser, which I knew about from the extended warranty letter I received. To my shock, the seal on the compressor was faulty and refrigerant has been leaking out for who knows how long, which degraded the clutch and coil (at least that's what they tell me). The cost of repair for a new compressor, clutch, and coil and recharging the refrigerant was $2100. Obviously, I had no warranty, so this would be at my expense.

When I picked up the car from the dealership after the diagnostic, I was instructed not to use the A/C or the defroster, only the fan. Why not the defroster? Because the compressor runs the defroster, which would cause further damage. So even if I decided to go through the hot summer with no A/C, I still couldn't use the defroster in the winter, which would be an unsafe condition of the vehicle. And Honda only issues recalls if the vehicle becomes unsafe to drive. And to add to this mess, if I got the repair done, they are installing the exact same defective compressor that went in from the manufacturer in 2016. This is so wrong on so many levels.

I filed a goodwill request with Honda and was assigned a case number and case manager, but despite my daily calls to the case manager, I never received a call back. After two weeks, I asked the dealer to contact their field service representative to see if we could get some movement on the case, and after a couple of days, the rep told the dealer that Honda would cover 50% of the repair. Not good enough for me. Honda has had five years to fix this issue, yet there's been no disclosure of this known manufacturing defect, and they're not acknowledging any problem. I asked the service manager at the dealership to cover the other 50%, to which he said no. Frustrated, I e-mailed the general manager of the dealership and pleaded my case. Good luck was on my side because the dealership picked up the other 50% of the repair.

While I'm grateful for my outcome, I know there's thousands of Civic owners out there who are just screwed by Honda. The day after I picked it up from being repaired, I sold it. I hate Honda, and I will never buy another of their trashy vehicles. They are a shitty company that have no regard for their customers and even less regard to how they build a car.

There are many lawsuits against Honda for a whole lot of issues, as I learned from carcomplaints.com. I've contacted attorneys Berger Montague, P.C., as they are doing the investigative work to file another class action lawsuit against Honda to force Honda to make this right. If you're one of the thousands of owners who've had to shell out big bucks for repairs, save your receipts and any e-mails you have regarding your efforts to get Honda or their representative dealerships to pay, should you wish to take further action.

Very similar situation for me and my 2016 Honda Civic EX-T (though our mileage is wildly different- 93k, but I think my AC performance took a hit at least a year ago)- took it in and paid the silly diagnostic fee hoping that it was the condenser, and the compressor was leaking. I contacted American Honda and waited one month on my case manager, who never reached out to me despite me calling frontline customer service once a week to have emails sent to him. I contacted the service center manager and asked if they could contact their rep to see if they had any luck, and to my surprise they stated the case manager already reached out to the rep with the final decision of 60% coverage two days prior. The service manager was surprised I never received a call and did not know to call me with the news. I do find it interesting you were offered 50% and I was offered 60% despite the difference in mileage- curious how they determine coverage amount. I do not want to sound ungrateful, but I am ultimately disappointed in the 60% offer because so much of it is a wash due to the dealership markup. It does not cost $2100 at an non-service center shop to do a compressor install. So while 60% is generous considering my mileage (I'd argue a compressor should still last beyond 5 years, but that's an argument for a different day) a lot of it is a wash due to the premium pricing at having the work done at a service center. I don't really feel a particular benefit from going Honda OEM on the compressor either because we really have no reason to feel as though it's better in quality than aftermarket (shit, aftermarket might be better for all we know)

You do give me food for thought, if I should try contacting the dealership where I purchased the Civic and explaining my dissatisfaction. Problem is I've used a different dealership service center for services rendered on my car, including the upcoming compressor repair. They might laugh at me for expecting anything when I'm at 92,000 miles, but I remember the compressor in my 2000 civic working just fine when I sold it in 2015. It isn't crazy to expect an AC system to last, even though I am one of the relatively lucky ones to have gone until 92,000 miles until complete failure occurred.

 

[nickname]

Well, Honda sent me this... full refund

 

[RetroRacer1980]

I received mine today as well. My 2020 Civic Sport Sedan 6MT only has 2860 miles, I’m going to get rid of it in February of next year, my car should only have around 4500-4800 miles by then.
Trying not to use it at all, but while waiting in the drive thru today i kicked it on for a minute or two ?

 

[Joecascio2000]

As someone that just paid $1800 for the compressor. The answer is definitely yes. Both condenser and compressor share the same lines and have the same problems.

 

[nickname]

funny story....
When I had my condenser replaced, which was in July of last year (2020), It worked fine. Winter came and went. and around May or June of this year (2021) I noticed it wasn't blowing as cold as it should be.
Took it back the dealership because the work was still under warranty.... turns out the system was OVER charged. I don't know how that happened, but at least it means the system isn't leaking

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