Timing chain, belt or tensioner failure on the 2004 Honda Odyssey
Only 3 reports for this mode came with an odometer reading, which is too few for percentiles to mean anything. The page is here because someone linked to it; treat the figures as anecdotes, and see the full report for this year instead.
When timing chain, belt or tensioner failure gets reported
There are 3 reports of timing chain, belt or tensioner failure on the 2004 Honda Odyssey, 3 with a mileage attached. That is too few to place the failure on the odometer with any confidence.
A part like this is normally expected to survive 120,000 miles. It is the 29th most-reported problem on this model year.
The whole distribution
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 136,961 miles | — | — |
Read the 10th percentile as “one report in ten arrived this early”. Exact figures are shown in this table because it is the table of record; everywhere else on the site they are rounded to the precision the sample can carry.
What a percentile can and cannot tell you here
These five numbers describe the readings owners gave, in order. The median is the middle one: half the reports arrived below it. The 10th and 90th are the edges of the bulk of the distribution, and the distance between them is the part worth reading. A tight spread — say 70,000 to 95,000 miles — points at something that wears out on a schedule, and the schedule is knowable. A wide one, 20,000 to 190,000, points at a fault that hits some cars and never troubles others, which means the mileage on the listing in front of you tells you very little about your odds.
What these figures are not is a survival curve. Every reading here comes from a car whose owner filed a complaint, so the sample contains only failures: it cannot say what share of the fleet made it past 150,000 miles untouched, because those owners had nothing to report. Nor is the mileage the moment of failure — it is the odometer reading as recalled at the time of filing, which may be weeks later and is sometimes rounded to the nearest ten thousand by the person typing it.
Percentiles are shown at all only once 8 readings exist for the vehicle and mode. Below that the middle of a handful of numbers is noise wearing a decimal point, so the figures are withheld rather than dressed up.
What happens, and what it costs
Putting it right typically runs $1,200–$4,500 at an independent US shop. That range is an editorial estimate held in this site's failure-mode catalogue, not a figure from NHTSA, and it is a repair cost rather than a diagnosis cost.
This mode is classified as critical, which means a failure can leave the car unable to stop, steer, or stay out of the way of traffic. It is weighted accordingly in the risk score.
The same failure on other years
The same failure is reported on 12 model years of this car. It shows up earliest on the 2012, at a median of 15,000 miles, and latest on the 2004 at 135,000 miles.
By volume the 2001 carries the most reports, with 12; the 2004 has 3. A mode that appears across most years of a model is usually a design choice rather than a bad batch.
If one year stands out to the left, that is the year to avoid; if the whole line sits at a similar mileage, this is wear rather than a defect in one production run.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The mileage is the one the owner gave.
Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6) my car is 2004 honda odyssey van. When service dept. Of honda dealership at dublin, ca replaced my timing belt, they found out that two front engine mounts have been already broken. They told me that if I don't replace the broken engine mounts now ,the third engine mount on the back will be broken soon and it will damage your automatic transmission system. The estimated cost was $700 to fix the two engine mounts. I had to replace the parts to avoid danger and more fixing cost in the future. My wife and I have driven several different cars and had never that kind of problem before - broken engine mounts. When I researched internet, I found out that honda odyssey van owners have complained about same problem that I have now and it costs honda odyssey van owner $650 to $1,000 to fix the problem. Could you please investigate this problem - broken engine mount in honda odyssey van? [xxx] *tr
February 29, 2011: I own a 2004 honda odyssey with 136,961 miles. I loved loved loved my honda, until now. Tcs & check engine lights came on. Took to my local repair shop and they got the codes p0700at & p0740tc. They advised I take to the dealer because it was a transmission issue which they don't. Dealer said could find nothing wrong with transmission but battery was weak and timing belt & timing belt holder needed replacement. After paying $1200 I picked up the van and drove it home. The next morning the tcs & engine came on again. Took it back to the dealer. They said local repair shop must have erased the transmission coded when they check them and that is why they didn't see them and thought there was nothing wrong with transmission even though I told them there was something wrong with it. They said I will need a new transmission. I called honda america to file a case. They took my information and then told me there was nothing they could do to assist me. I asked to speak with a supervisor who told me the same thing. I don't know what to do. We are a one income family. I am a stay at home mom who takes care of her 92 year…
I own honda odessy since 09/ 2017. I replaced timing belt with one year warranty, because the previous owner did not do it. 12/09/16 I took my honda odessy 2004 to manhattan honda dealership for recall. I asked to honda representative to check and tell me what is necessary to replace or repair. I knew that transmission recall for honda odessy 2004 was open and told them to check and repair it if it is necessary, but they refused to do it they told me that my honda has many issues and repair all necessary things will cost me $10000. The fuel pump, timing belt, which I already replaced, and transmission clutch was included in the repair list. Last month I had a very bad experience when driving this car. It was loosing power and stopping when I was driving. It was dangerous for traffic. It occur on very dangerous spats, like exits from hgway, brooklyn bridge etc., I could start up car in 5 minutes and it was drawing with no problems then. It was a few times like this and the last time I drove home and couldn't start up the car no more. I towed car to repair shop and mechanic told me that my fuel pump needs to be replaced. I came home…
Also reported on the 2004 Honda Odyssey
Other powertrain problem
Complete transmission failure
Other body or interior problem
Other engine problem
Airbag warning light or occupant sensor fault
Other electrical problem
How far this goes
This page is kept out of search results because 3 reports is not enough to publish percentiles from. It stays reachable because somebody looking at this exact car would rather see the reports than be told there are none.
Complaints are voluntary, so 3 is a floor and not a count of affected cars. Mileages are typed in by owners and cluster on round numbers. And the mode itself is assigned by software reading the complaint text, which is reliable in bulk and fallible one report at a time.
Questions this page answers
At what mileage does timing chain, belt or tensioner failure happen on the 2004 Honda Odyssey?
Across 3 owner reports that included an odometer reading, half were filed by 135,000 miles. A quarter were filed before — and a quarter after —. These are the mileages owners reported when they complained, not a prediction for any individual car.
How common is timing chain, belt or tensioner failure on the 2004 Honda Odyssey?
3 reports have been filed with NHTSA, about 0.0 per 1,000 vehicles. Complaints are voluntary, so this is a floor rather than a count of affected cars.
What this is and is not. These are the mileages at which owners chose to complain to a federal agency, which is not the same as the mileage at which the part fails on every car. It skews toward failures that happened outside warranty, cost real money, or frightened someone. It is still the only public dataset that carries failure mileage at all, and the shape of a few hundred readings is informative even when a single one is not. Methodology · JSON · this failure on other cars
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed