Just toooooo funny!
HONDA WILL REPAIR FENDERS THAT RUSTED ON '75-'78 CARS
By Karen de Witt, Special To the New York Times
The Federal Trade Commission announced today that the American Honda Motor Company had agreed to repair the prematurely rusted fenders of 1975 to 1978 Honda automobiles or reimburse their owners.
Approximately 700,000 Honda Civic and Accord models sold in the United States are covered by the consent agreement. The problem, which could cost the Japanese automobile manufacturer tens of millions of dollars, resulted from a design flaw that allowed moisture and debris to lodge in the fender.
Once the rust appears, the problem can be cleared up only by replacing the fenders, according to Linda Colvard Dorian, deputy director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection of the Federal Trade Commission. Miss Dorian said that the consumer had to pay $250 a fender, including painting, for such repairs.
In today's agreement, Honda agreed to replace at no charge the front fenders on all 1975 to 1978 Hondas that experienced rusting in the car's first three years. According to the trade commission, Honda corrected the design problem that led to rusting on Honda models produced after 1978, all of which carry a three-year warranty against rust.
The complaint that the commission issued with the consent agreement says that American Honda was aware of the rust problem and failed to tell consumers about the problem or about measures they could take to minimize the damage. Owners in 24 States Involved
If the commission makes the consent decree final after a 60-day period for public comment, the company must write to owners in 24 ''salt-belt'' states and the District of Columbia explaining the replacement program. In a consent decree, a company agrees to take certain actions without acknowledging any wrongdoing.
The salt used to clear snow and ice from roads is the main cause of this particular rust problem. The states involved are Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin.
The restitution program will cover rust on the top of the front fender, within two feet of the windshield. The rust first appears in the form of bubles or blisters in the paint and eventually develops into holes.
If the company fails to complete fender repairs within 180 days after a car's inspection by a dealer, a car owner can obtain cash reimbursement of $150 a fender. Honda owners who have repaired front fenders that rusted in the car's first three years will also be reimbursed for their expense.
Russell B. Daly, product claims manager for American Honda, said that the consent agreement requirements were ''not a surprise.'' ''This is basically a cooperative effort that we jointly worked out,'' he said. American Honda, the importer for Honda cars in the United States, has headquarter in Gardena, Calif.
Recall Set-Of '73-'79 Honda Cars
By Peter BehrNovember 7, 1981 Washington Post
American Honda Motor Co. said it plans to recall all 1973-1979 Honda cars sold in this country to check for possible rusting of crossbeams and other undercarriage suspension parts. It was the second major recall by Honda this year to deal with corrosion problems.
A Honda spokesman said the recall notices will not be sent to consumers until early next year, to give the company time to supply dealers with a new kind of antirust paint. "We can't even tell the dealers what to do yet," said the spokesman.
Some accidents have occurred because of the corrosion, which has caused breaks in the lateral suspension arms, front crossbeams and strut coil spring lower supports in some cars, but there have been no injuries, the spokesman said. No details on the number of accidents were provided.
The recall will affect 930,000 Hondas in the 1973 through 1979 model years and will cost $20 million, Honda estimates. Based on a survey it conducted earlier this year, about 2 percent of the cars will require "significant" repairs, Honda said. The company hopes that the new antirust treatment will be sufficient in most cases, the spokesman added.
Last July, Honda and the Federal Trade Commission reached a tentative agreement on a recall of Hondas from the 1975 through 1978 model years to compensate owners for severe rust on the top front fenders. The FTC has not yet taken final action on the program, but assuming that the agency stands by the agreement, Honda will issue recall notices asking owners to check with their dealers to determine elibility for repairs, installation of new fenders, or cash settlements.
The latest recall, on suspension parts, is voluntary, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said yesterday that it had "influenced" Honda's decision.
Honda said it became aware of the problem in December, following a rust recall by one of Honda's Canadian subsidiaries, and the U.S. organization began an investigation in this country. In August, the NHTSA informed Honda that it was conducting an engineering analysis of the undercarriage rust problem in response to owners' complaints and the Canadian recall.
An NHTSA spokesman said Honda had planned to limit the U.S. recall to cars sold in 15 northern states and the District of Columbia, where salt is widely used in winter to prevent icy roads, because the company blames its rust problem on road salt. The safety agency argued that the recall should be nationwide, and it prevailed, the NHTSA's spokesman said.
Honda wouldn't discuss its contacts with the NHTSA, but said the recall will cover all states "as a precautionary measure."
The NHTSA was involved in the suspension recall because of the potential safety hazard. The FTC's action, on the other hand, was not safety-related. The commission's Bureau of Consumer Protection contended that Honda knew, "or should have known," that its fenders were subject to "premature" rusting, and that it violated federal law by failing to disclose this to customers.
Honda Recalls 1.4 Million Vehicles, Including 430K for Salt Corrosion Problem
Salt-affected 2007–2015 Accord, Fit, Civic Hybrid, and Acura ILX will be recalled, plus CR-Vs for a switch problem and Accord and Insight cars for a software glitch.
BY
LAURA SKY BROWNPUBLISHED: DEC 16, 2020 Car and Driver
American Honda has announced recalls of 430,000 vehicles to check and potentially replace the left and/or right front driveshafts because of salt corrosion. The recall will include the 2007–2014 Honda Fit, the 2012 Honda Civic Hybrid, the 2013 Acura ILX Hybrid, the 2013–2015 Acura ILX, and the 2013–2015 Honda Accord (the 2013 Accord is pictured above). The Accord is under a separate recall from the other vehicles, Honda said.
RECENT HONDA RECALLS
The automaker said the problem with the driveshafts is "a combination of potentially damaged or incorrectly cured protective coatings during driveshaft assembly and long-term exposure to road salt primarily used in the northeastern United States." If a driveshaft were to break, it could cause the vehicle to lose motive power or to roll while in park if the parking brake is not in use. However, Honda said no accidents or injuries have been reported to date.
A Honda spokesperson told
Car and Driver that the Accord is getting its own separate recall because the problems experienced by the Accord are different. "While the ultimate end result may be the same—a corroded and potentially broken driveshaft—the root causes or identified defects behind the corrosion are a bit different, prompting two different recalls," the spokesperson said. "The recall affecting certain 2013–2015 Honda Accords involves chemical damage to the protective coating during driveshaft assembly caused by a lubricant. The recall affecting the other listed models is related to an improper heating process during application of the protective coating, possibly leading to chipping of the paint. In both cases, the metal of the driveshaft can be exposed to road salt, which may, over a long period, cause rust and lead to breakage of the driveshaft."
States where the recalls will take place are Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin, plus the District of Columbia. Recall notices will go out in February, but owners may have to wait until parts are available, Honda said.
The July agreement was followed by a 60-day period for public comment, and the FTC received a two-inch stack of letters from Honda owners pouring out of stream of complaints about rust on fenders and other parts.
Many objected to the FTC-Honda settlement plan, arguing that it didn't cover Hondas from the 1973 and 1974 model years, although these also were vulnerable to the rusting problem, that it failed to include corrosion damage beyond the front fender area, that it provided a cash payment ($150 a fender) that was half the actual repair cost, that it failed to require mailed notices to owners living outside the "salt belt," and that it failed in some cases to cover consumers who purchased used Hondas from original owners.
I removed the AWD drivetrain from one to convert my C30T5, which was never offered in AWD
