Category: Tech

Honda of America — 800-999-1009 — had no record of the dealer calling about the diagnosis of the 2002 CRV air conditioner failure, which has been termed “Black Death.” Honda of America now says they want only the customer contacting them. Very strange. Bernardi Honda of Natick, Massachusetts is a Honda dealer, and you’d think they would have a better communication path than me calling the 800 number. Obviously, this is all done to discourage consumers from trying to get satisfaction. Anyway, the case supposedly has been forwarded to a regional manager, who will contact me in the next day or two, to discuss the situation.

I sure hope Honda comes up with a reasonable response, because A/C Black Death is a common complaint with second generation CRV’s. As the good guys say in Star Wars when dealing with the Empire, “I’ve got a bad feeling about this.” But I should point out that there are FOUR of these CRV’s on our street alone, and I would hope Honda of America is savvy enough to have a database, and check it, before they leave me high and dry.

I mentioned recently that the air conditioner died in Carol’s 2002 Honda CR-V. The local Honda dealer says it’s not just dead, it’s really dead. The compressor has been “disintegrating over time” and putting metal shavings into the coolant lines. The entire system has to be replaced. Obviously, this not the result of normal wear and tear. The compressor was junk.

We have a case number open with Honda of America, and we’re waiting to hear from the dealer what they’re willing to do about this. My plan is to give Eric my ’98 Accord next year (after he gets his license, of course!), then I would take the CR-V, and Carol would get a new car. Depending on the resolution of the A/C problem, we may, or may not, continue to be a “Honda Loyal” family. I’ll let you know.