1992 Honda Accord Problems

What owners report

Owners of this model year report a broad mix of problems, most often involving airbag non-deployment in frontal impacts and seat belts that unlatch on their own. Drivetrain complaints center on automatic transmissions that hunt for gears or drop out of gear, and electrical complaints most often describe ignition and distributor faults that can leave the car unable to start or stalling. Because these cars are now very old, many complaints are filed at high mileage and on used examples, so reported mileage varies widely.

1. 1
   Air bags

   Airbag did not deploy in a frontal impact

   • 33 complaints (16%)
   • median 138,749 mi at 14.0 yrs old (4 state mileage, few)
   • 28 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 1995–2009

   Complaints describe frontal or front-offset collisions in which the driver or passenger airbag did not inflate, with occupants reporting chest, knee and back injuries. A few describe the opposite case, where deployment itself led to injury. In most cases owners say the vehicle was damaged severely enough to be towed or written off, and the reports rarely mention any dealer diagnosis of why the bag did not fire. Reported across a wide mileage range, from moderate-mileage cars to vehicles over 200,000 miles, in crashes at speeds owners describe as roughly 25 to 50 mph.

   What to check: Ask whether the airbag warning lamp comes on at start-up and goes out, and have any stored airbag codes read. Any car with a known crash history should have the restraint system inspected.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “While driving , the vehicle stalled. When this occurred the vehicle lost power, but the consumer was able to restart it within a few minutes. Several diagnostic test were done but no failure code was found. Jb there was a bad distributor, seat belt failure and an inoperative air bag.”

   NHTSA complaint #10092250, filed 2004-11, 70,000 miles

   “Tl- the contact owns a 1992 Honda Accord. When she attempted to make a left turn, the vehicle that had the right of way wasnt able to stop and crashed into her vehicle left side causing the vehicle turned several times the vehicle stopped when it crashed head into the other vehicle front end, and the driver frontal air bag didnt deployed. She received injuries to the chest, neck, knee, and back. The police report information, and the VIN, wasnt available. The failure mileage was 200,000 and the current mileage was 300,000. Li”

   NHTSA complaint #10282880, filed 2009-09, 200,000 miles
2. 2
   Seat belts

   Seat belt unlatches or fails to hold

   • 22 complaints (11%)
   • median 169,500 mi at 16.6 yrs old (2 state mileage, few)
   • 7 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 1995–2014

   Owners describe front seat belts that click into the buckle and then release on their own while driving, sometimes on both driver and passenger sides, without a warning chime. Others report rear belts that do not hold a child seat securely, letting it shift while the car is moving, and one report describes belt webbing that tore during a collision. Several complaints mention that a recall notice was never received or that a dealer declined to replace the part. Reported on vehicles ranging from moderate to very high mileage, including cars over 250,000 miles.

   Recall 93V056000Recall 91V185000

   What to check: Check whether both open recalls (93V056000 and 91V185000) were completed, and pull hard on each belt after buckling to confirm the latch holds. Test a child seat in the rear before relying on it.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “After fastening your seat belt and hearing a 'click' to confirm it that it is fastened, it has come 'unlocked' on it's own. This has happened many times! It does occur on both sides; driver and passenger. I do not know if it occurs in the back seat. I rarely carry passengers back there..”

   NHTSA complaint #728110, filed 2000-08

   “Front left seat belt was buckled in, making audible click, and turning off indicator lamp on dash board. While driving the seat belt popped out of its latch. At no point during the drive did any lamp or chime warn the seat belt was not fully latched. Cause for concern, seeing numerous other reports of people being injured or killed by seat belts of these cars failing in crashes.”

   NHTSA complaint #10573164, filed 2014-03, 269,000 miles
3. 3
   Tires

   Sidewall bulges and tread separation on tires

   • 14 complaints (7%)
   • median 113,000 mi at 12.7 yrs old (4 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2001–2012

   Complaints describe bulges in the sidewall or tread, blowouts at highway speed, and tread or sidewall separating from the casing on tires fitted to this car. Owners report vibrations or shudders before a failure, and dealers or tire makers often attributed the damage to potholes, curbs or low pressure rather than the tire itself. These reports concern replacement tires from several brands rather than a defect in the car. Reported at highway speeds, at mileages from around 10,000 miles on the tires to well over 100,000 miles on the car.

   What to check: Inspect all four sidewalls and treads for bulges, cuts or separation, check the date codes for age, and confirm pressures against the door jamb label.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “This is the second of a set of four tires bought at costco jan99. Last incidence occured 13 months ago with very similar damage. I was on street behind midday traffic when I felt the tire gave in - I did not run over or hit anything, nor did I run under pressure as michelin customer relation tried to tell me. I have meticulous records of my car and (though I do not wash it regularily) I continuously inspect it. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10041801, filed 2003-10, 125,000 miles

   “I purchased sears voyager lx road handler p195/60 r15 radial tires for my Honda Accord as replacements for the originals and the sidewalls have blown out on 2 of the tires after 55,000 miles. This occurred while driving at highway speeds both incidents occurred within 2 weeks of each other, both tires blew the sidewalls out on the inside side wall and both tires were on the front of the vehicle. Do I have any recourse and were there any recalls on these tires?? These tires are advertised as 100,000 mile tires.”

   NHTSA complaint #10020994, filed 2003-06
4. 4
   Electrical system

   Ignition and distributor faults leading to stalls

   • 19 complaints (9%)
   • median 147,000 mi at 13.3 yrs old (3 state mileage, few)
   • filed 1995–2014

   Owners report engines that stall at speed or refuse to start, sometimes only when the interior is hot, and mechanics tracing the problem to the distributor, ignitor, coil, main relay or ignition switch. Several complaints describe repeated replacement of the same part, and one mentions scorching in the engine bay that a dealer attributed to a bad coil or ignition wire. Others describe hesitation or stumbling under light acceleration. Reported from around 70,000 to 150,000 miles, with some complaints noting no-start conditions on hot days or in cold weather.

   What to check: Ask for records of distributor, ignitor, coil and main relay replacement, and start the car both cold and after it has sat in the sun. Look for burnt wiring or a scorched smell in the engine bay.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Engine will not start (even turn over) when the temperature in the interior of the car gets too hot. This occurs on all hot days. I currently have to leave all the windows completely down, the sunroof cracked (hot air rises), and my silver sunshade on the outside of my windshield so that no sun can even penetrate the windshield glass. If I don't do this, I will be stuck where ever I'm parked until sun down. If car won't start, I have to open all doors including hatchback and wait for interior cabin temperature to cool down.”

   NHTSA complaint #10023676, filed 2003-06, 92,000 miles

   “1992 Honda Accord ex with 149380 miles. Traveling along highway at 60 mpg at 0545 in the morning car then dies in traffic. Able to coast to the right and stopped until wrecker showed up. Weather was 16 degrees and car was running great until then. At the dealer, notice the hood was burnt. Service person stated it was a bad wire in the coil and/or ignition. Replaced wires, coil, ignition,breather tube. I was lucky. I noticed several other people had the same issue so I'll voice my concern about the 92 coil/ignition fires on-line. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10107629, filed 2005-01, 147,000 miles
5. 5
   Transmission and drivetrain

   Transmission hunts for gears or will not engage drive

   • 18 complaints (9%)
   • median 118,950 mi at 20.6 yrs old (3 state mileage, few)
   • filed 1995–2016

   Complaints describe the D4 light staying on, the automatic transmission shifting in and out of gear or dropping to neutral at cruising speed, and in some cases a car that will not move in drive but still works in reverse. Owners who took the car in say dealers quoted a transmission control unit replacement or a full overhaul, and one report notes the transmission computer locking the torque converter at a stop and stalling the engine. Others describe loss of acceleration when the engine is hot. Mostly reported between roughly 80,000 and 150,000 miles, though some complaints come from cars over 250,000 miles.

   What to check: Drive the car long enough to reach highway speed and watch for the D4 or check engine lamp and any hunting between gears. Ask whether the transmission fluid was serviced and whether the control unit or transmission has ever been replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I am the second owner of the 1992 Honda Accord. I have experienced automatic transmission failure on this vehicle that will generally require overhaul or replacement of the transmission. After several on-line researches on Honda accords 1990 to date, I find numerous problems, I.e., acceleration failure. When engine gets hot, the car has acceleration failure. Even further research reveals ?certified transmission mechanics revealed that this known premature automatic transmission failure is due to an engineering design flaw. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10639937, filed 2014-09, 82,000 miles

   “D4 light comes on and stays on for 10 minutes. Transmission hunts for gears at cruising speeds without warning, often landing no gear, causing a scary scenario. A web search revealed thousands of complaints by 1989 to 1993 owners of that model Honda Accord who are having the same problem. It is supposedly a failure of the transmission computer. Honda dealers have no safety or maintenance recall/bulletin on this issue. They offer to replace the TCM (guess that is the computer) for $570.00 plus labor! …”

   NHTSA complaint #10139662, filed 2005-10, 118,950 miles

Buying note. Given the age of these cars, condition and service history matter more than model-year reputation. Have a pre-purchase inspection focus on the restraint system and recall completion, the automatic transmission's behavior at highway speed, and the ignition components, since those are the areas owners report most often.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.