VSA warning light, 05 Accord

Gun_Slinger

Car: 05, Accord Diesel. 65K miles, Full Honda Service history.

Started up my Accord yesterday and the VSA (Vehicle Stability Assist) light stayed on. So I reverse back into the drive and go in and check the Owners Manual and do a bit of googling about it.

From googling I found a few threads where it it happened on some models but they were all under warranty and got it fixed for free. The thing is I got quoted from a few honda dealerships today that it is up to 2 grand to fix :eek: as my warranty has expired.

I also found on some websites that this was fixed by replacing sensors on the wheels and there were some other smaller fixes that could be tried. The thing is that every dealer I rang has flat out told me that the VSA module needs replacing and the part itself costs over 1500 euro and with labour the job comes to around 2K.

Anyone got any advice where to go next, have a feeling that when I bring to dealership it will be a new VSA module no matter what. Disappointing to say the least as am a Honda driver for 7+ years now and do so for reliability (one dealer mentioned this is a common complaint). If I have to pay for the part so be it (I will be sick) but I would like to know the dealers try everything before having to splash out on such an expansive part.

Thanks in Advance.

Raiser

Shoddy and poor form in my opinion; If its always been a weak point and commonly repaired under warranty then it would be nice to see them replace it as a good will gesture; Thats with the relatively low age and mileage involved.

- If I had an in-warranty Accord I'd certainly feel like sabotaging mine as a precaution as I bet (well you would hope) the replacement has the poor design flaw removed......!!!

billbond4

Have you tried getting a diagnoistic cable and resetting the VSA warning?
Or try this lad on ebay for his VSA sensor
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/HONDA-ACCORD-VSA-BRAKE-MODULATOR_W0QQitemZ200435676466QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM?hash=item2eaae5b532

JHMEG

Are you getting a check engine light aswell?

Gun_Slinger

Thanks for the replies folks.

Havent tried the diagnostic cable as wouldnt have a clue what I was looking for. Not too car saavy but would be willing to give it a go.

No check engine warning either. Car is fine for oil etc as I check regular enough

Gun_Slinger

Bumping this folks,

I was chatting to the dealer again and he has said that Honda will knock a couple of hundred off the price for goodwill :rolleyes: He kept mentioning to me that since it is an import that they weren't taken care of properly in the UK (even though the car has a full honda service history). He also mentioned that alot of places in the UK dont use the correct oil and this could have caused the problem. Now in my limited motor knowledge I would have thought the VSA unit had nothing to do with what oil was in the engine.

Should I hold out and try to get some more out of Honda for this?

Oh yea, had a mate with a computer check the error code and it showed up a fault with the unit, so looks like a replacement is needed.

Anan1

Might it be worth trying a dealer in the North?

Gun_Slinger

Thanks, same prices more or less in the north unfortunately

billbond4

Yeah your right, Oil has nothing to do with the VSA.
Have you tried on ebay or on the thaoc forum?

cadaliac

That's unluky, but looks like the unit will have to be replaced, unless you could fix the unit, which I would doubt.
A friend of mine had to replace his steering rack in his 05 civic saloon (30k km on the clock) because the control unit (including its own ecu) for the steering rack was faulty. Out of warranty and the unit could not be bought seperately (or repaired for that matter).
Honda in Cork were very poor in the customer relations dep. and also just said to replace the rack without diagnosing the problem correctly. It ended up going on for weeks and my buddy bought a second hand rack from a breaker in Limerick, which worked fine.
When he replaced the rack, it turned out that the rack that came out of his car was already second hand (marked like a breaker would mark it) !!
Anyway, get back on to the guy who told you that
"He kept mentioning to me that since it is an import that they weren't taken care of properly in the UK (even though the car has a full honda service history). He also mentioned that alot of places in the UK dont use the correct oil and this could have caused the problem"
Sorry, what a load of sh1t! I laughed when I read it actually. All that smells of is scare mongering - "oh anything from the UK is bad".

Gun_Slinger

I know what you mean about scare mongering, was nearly sure in my head that the oil had nothing to do with the VSA but wasnt 100%.

Does anyone by chance know what the part number for the VSA/ABS unit in question is? I did a search in some parts places in the States and got this

Part No: 57110-SDA-A73, it is the abs modulator but im not sure if this is the correct one?

old_aussie

Hi,

Is the car any different to drive with the light on, does the car wobble all over the road or feel hard to turn into corners at average road speed?

Friend had the light come on and continued to deive car, said car handled the same as it did with the light off.

Also ring the honda importer and see what they say about a replacement.

JHMEG

US part numbers are usually close but not the same, as the part itself might be very slightly different.

JHMEG

Gun_Slinger wrote: »

Part No: 57110-SDA-A73, it is the abs modulator but im not sure if this is the correct one?

The diesel isn't for sale in the US as it's too dirty from an air polution perspective (the yanks are strict on clean air), and that part number is for a petrol model.

The part number for the diesel VSA modulator is 57110-SEF-E56. (if you're googling leave off the E56 bit)

Gun_Slinger

Thanks a million guys, great help.

As for the driving it feels exactly the same really but still would like to have the car in proper shape. Its just a shame the part costs so much

JHMEG

It'd be well worth your while checking around with breakers, esp bigger ones in NI and the UK where the diesel would have been the most popular variant.

gibbon75

cadaliac wrote: »

"He kept mentioning to me that since it is an import that they weren't taken care of properly in the UK (even though the car has a full honda service history). He also mentioned that alot of places in the UK dont use the correct oil and this could have caused the problem"
Sorry, what a load of sh1t! I laughed when I read it actually. All that smells of is scare mongering - "oh anything from the UK is bad".

We have replaced about 6-7 noisy/snapped timing chains on imported diesel Accords in the past year.We had one 3 weeks ago where the chain went at motor way speeds,so the turbo,oil pump,crankshaft,bearings etc. were fecked due the oil starvation.
There's a good reason why Honda recommends only the best quality 0w30 oil,but most people prefer to save 20 Euro per service....even in the UK.

JHMEG

The irony is the right oil from Honda is usually cheaper than Castrol etc. For example my car requires 0W20 which is €6.20 a litre from Honda. The cheapest 0W20 on ebay is £10 a litre.

Honda08

Gun_Slinger wrote: »

Car: 05, Accord Diesel. 65K miles, Full Honda Service history.

Started up my Accord yesterday and the VSA (Vehicle Stability Assist) light stayed on. So I reverse back into the drive and go in and check the Owners Manual and do a bit of googling about it.

From googling I found a few threads where it it happened on some models but they were all under warranty and got it fixed for free. The thing is I got quoted from a few honda dealerships today that it is up to 2 grand to fix :eek: as my warranty has expired.

I also found on some websites that this was fixed by replacing sensors on the wheels and there were some other smaller fixes that could be tried. The thing is that every dealer I rang has flat out told me that the VSA module needs replacing and the part itself costs over 1500 euro and with labour the job comes to around 2K.

Anyone got any advice where to go next, have a feeling that when I bring to dealership it will be a new VSA module no matter what. Disappointing to say the least as am a Honda driver for 7+ years now and do so for reliability (one dealer mentioned this is a common complaint). If I have to pay for the part so be it (I will be sick) but I would like to know the dealers try everything before having to splash out on such an expansive part.

Thanks in Advance.

the last thing you want is parts being replaced and you being charged and the problem still there.... best to get problem properly identified.. it should be cheaper in the north for the labour and parts too

Honda08

gibbon75 wrote: »

We have replaced about 6-7 noisy/snapped timing chains on imported diesel Accords in the past year.We had one 3 weeks ago where the chain went at motor way speeds,so the turbo,oil pump,crankshaft,bearings etc. were fecked due the oil starvation.
There's a good reason why Honda recommends only the best quality 0w30 oil,but most people prefer to save 20 Euro per service....even in the UK.

if you dont mind me asking,
what other faults do you come accross in the petrol accords?
how do their auto boxes fair out?

gibbon75

Honda08 wrote: »

if you dont mind me asking,
what other faults do you come accross in the petrol accords?
how do their auto boxes fair out?

The petrol ones are pretty much trouble free.If it was serviced properly,it'll run forever.Personally I wouldn't buy a diesel one...
(But that is true to every modern common rail diesel: the injectors rarely last more than 150 000 kms...not to mention the injection pumps)
Auto box: can't remember being working on one in our garage,but most Accords were sold with manual boxes

JHMEG

As a former owner of automatic Accord the transmissions are relaible *only* if the transmission fluid is changed on time. Most dealers and owners here assume the automatics are the same as the manuals (that are fine for 100k miles on the factory gearbox oil), and there are a few broken cars around the place as a result. Preludes with the SSS gearbox were particularly badly affected.

positron

OP, also check here if you haven't already. This group is very active and knows a lot about their Accords.

http://www.thaoc.co.uk/

Just so happens that someone there (if it's not you) has similar VSA issues, and someone has posted a link to HonestJohn thread as well.

http://thaoc.ipbfree.com/index.php?showtopic=8531
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=75745

Honda08

JHMEG wrote: »

As a former owner of automatic Accord the transmissions are relaible *only* if the transmission fluid is changed on time. Most dealers and owners here assume the automatics are the same as the manuals (that are fine for 100k miles on the factory gearbox oil), and there are a few broken cars around the place as a result. Preludes with the SSS gearbox were particularly badly affected.

what do you recommend changing interval to be?
manual states 8years.

JHMEG

Honda08 wrote: »

what do you recommend changing interval to be?
manual states 8years.

It's not what I recommend! The manual for my car stated every 48,000 miles, and this seems to be typical. I don't know why garages overlook this on either the manual or auto transmissions as it's as easy and cheap as an oil change.

The manual boxes probably won't break if they don't get the oil changed, but they do get sticky.

Gun_Slinger

positron wrote: »

OP, also check here if you haven't already. This group is very active and knows a lot about their Accords.

http://www.thaoc.co.uk/

Just so happens that someone there (if it's not you) has similar VSA issues, and someone has posted a link to HonestJohn thread as well.

http://thaoc.ipbfree.com/index.php?showtopic=8531
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=75745

Yea, seen those websites and seems to be the same issue I have. Got an indy friend of mine to check the code and he confirmed it was a problem with the VSA modulator alright. I think I will just have to go for a second hand one as I cant afford a new one at the moment.

Sorry for all the questions but I rang Traynors in the north yesterday and they said they had one but the product code was different to the one mentioned on this thread (different format of code). They gave:

06.2102.01174 - Is this the same as 57110-SEF-E56?

JHMEG

gibbon75 should be able to advise on whether or not that one will do you.

gibbon75

Gun_Slinger wrote: »

06.2102.01174 - Is this the same as 57110-SEF-E56?

That number given by Traynors is the manufacturer's own part number,and we don't have access to that
57110-SEF-E56 (or 57110-SEF-E55 the old part no.) is what we use as well.
I just went down to the workshop,but there's not a single Accord in today:mad:
Try to locate VSA unit under the bonnet and see what is written on it.
Although it is very hard to see it,AFAIK it is burried below somewhere the power steering reservoir?

Gun_Slinger

Thanks gibbon, JHMEG and all for your help with this. At least now I have an idea in my head what the problem is and what to look for to replace the existing unit. I will search around for a second hand one and get that installed. Hopefully that will stand tough and I wont have to replace it again. I will update the thread after I get it done so this may be of some help to anyone else who this happens to.

JHMEG

Ask Traynors to look at the plate on the VSA unit again. It has the 57110-xx-xx number on it aswell.

Gun_Slinger

Update on this folks.

Original part no. in me car was 57110-SEF-E60 (05 2.2 diesel Accord sport).

Had the same second hand part sourced from Traynors but the Honda garage said they would fit one of these no problem but they wouldnt be confident they would stand the test of time as they had alot of problems with this part.

I said I could get the same part from an 07 model. They asked Honda direct if it would be better than the same part from an 05 model and "unofficially" they said it would. Seems this is a big problem for the 03-05 Accord unit but not any model after that.

So I bought the 07 part (part no. 57110-SEF-E610 and it was cheaper than the 05 one) and they fitted it today. So I hope to god I wont have to update this thread again!

Thanks again to everyone who added to this thread.