2011 Honda Accord

At only 61,083 miles, the rack and pinion on my 2011 Honda Accord was diagnosed as leaking by Baierl Honda in Wexford, PA. The dealership documented the issue as: “FOUND RACK AND PINION LEAKING; PARTS/LABOR (INCLUDING ALIGNMENT AND POWER STEERING FLUID) $2,777 PLUS TAX.” This is a major steering component that should last well over 150,000 miles under normal conditions, yet mine failed extremely early. A leaking rack and pinion creates a serious safety concern. Prior to diagnosis, I experienced increased steering effort and inconsistent steering feel, especially during low‑speed turns and parking maneuvers. Loss of hydraulic pressure in the steering system can lead to sudden difficulty steering, which poses a risk during highway driving or emergency situations. This failure is part of a known pattern affecting 2008–2012 Honda Accords. Numerous owners have reported premature rack and pinion leaks and failures at relatively low mileage, suggesting a defect in the internal seals or manufacturing tolerances. Despite the frequency of complaints, Honda has not issued a recall or service bulletin addressing the problem. Given the safety implications and the documented pattern of premature failures, I believe this issue warrants investigation.

The rack and pinion needs to be replaced with just over 63k miles. This appears to be a common occurrence amongst 2008-2012 Honda Accords but it appears Honda is ignoring the issue. I have included a forum of complaints from owners that have very low mileage. Could you please look into this? [XXX] [XXX] , [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

I have a 2011 Honda Accord V6 coupe. At approximately 11:39 hours on 8/15/2023 my car lost all steering and brakes and spun violently multiple times across the highway. Thankfully the car did not impact another vehicle and ended up on the side of the road in soft sand. A scan tool revealed a trouble code for a failing or fault within the VSA modulator. This module controls both the brake system and stability control in one unit. At the time of the above aforementioned incident 2 warning lights were on the dash for the following: ABS and Stability control. The Arizona Department of Public Safety responded to the incident. I file this complaint because the safety of other drivers and myself were placed in serious jeopardy.

HEARD A WHIRRING NOISE AND SMOKE STARTED COMING OUT OF THE RIGHT SIDE OF MY ENGINE, MY RACK N PINION POWER STEERING WAS LEAKING AND MY CAR ALMOST CAUGHT ON FIRE. HAD THE CAR TOWED TO MY MECHANIC AND HE STATED THERE IS A CRACK IN THE RACK N PINION WHICH IS LEAKING FLUID, ESTIMATED 600-1200 DOLLARS TO FIX IT. I LOOKED ONLINE AND THERE WAS A PREVIOUS RECALL FOR THIS PROBLEM ON ANOTHER YEAR BUT NOT THE 2011.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 HONDA ACCORD. WHILE DRIVING UNKNOWN SPEEDS, THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME UNCONTROLLABLE. THE STEERING WHEEL FAILED AND TURNED IN A CIRCLE. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO POHANKA HONDA (1772 RITCHIE STATION CT, CAPITOL HEIGHTS, MD 20743, (301) 899-7800). THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 104,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

I HAVE TOOK MY CAR TO THE SHOP BECAUSE IT KEEPS SPEEDING UP AND DOWN AND THEY SAID THEY DIDN'T COULDN'T FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE TRANSMISSION AND IT'S STILL DOING IT AND I HAD THE TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGE HOPING IT WOULD HELP IT BUT IT DIDN'T .. THEY CHANGED THE FLUID BUT NOT THE FILTER.. NOW THE TRANSMISSION SEAL IS LEAKING.. I HAVE HAD THIS CAR TO THE SHOP SEVERAL TIMES.. THE CAR SPEEDS UP GOING UP OR DOWN HILLS OR DRIVING STRAIGHT ON FLAT ROADS.

I HAD AN SRS LIGHT ON AT 44000 MILES AND TOOK IT INTO HONDA, FIGURE IT WAS A SAFETY THING THEY WOULD TAKE CARE OF IT. HONDA WANTED TO CHARGE ME 100 DOLLARS FOR A DIAGNOSTIC. I TOLD THEM NO. THEY THEN TOLD ME THEY WOULD TALK TO HONDA TO WAVE FEE. HONDA PAID FOR DIAGNOSTIC CAME BACK WITH CODE INDICATING CABLE REEL ISSUE. HONDA SAID IT WOULD BE 545 DOLLARS TO REPLACE AND IF IT DIDN'T GET REPLACED IT MAY CAUSE ISSUES WITH AIRBAG INFLATOR AND MAY NOT INFLATE IN A CAR ACCIDENT. I TOLD THEM THIS WAS A HONDA SAFETY PROBLEM AND THEY SHOULD REPLACE IT. THE NEWEST ROUND OF RECALLS WERE FOR ACCORDS 2008-2010. I GUESS I WILL JUST WAIT AROUND UNTIL MY CAR EVENTUALLY GETS RECALLED UNTIL THEN CROSS MY FINGERS I DON'T GET IN AN ACCIDENT.