Honda recalls Odyssey

HONDA has confirmed that Australia will not be affected a recall of about 344,000 examples of the company’s Odyssey people-mover in North America.

Combined with 68,000 versions of the Element SUV, the recall includes a total of about 412,000 Honda vehicles in the US.

Model-year 2007 and 2008 versions of both models have been recalled after complaints of soft brake pedal feel from customers, who also reported that brake pedals had dropped closer to the floor over time.

According to Honda Motor Co, air could enter the unit that controls the braking and stability system in some vehicles, which may result in the “soft brake pedal” or “low brake pedal” after months or years.

US Honda spokesman Chris Martin told Reuters that several crashes and three minor injuries related to the problem had been reported to the US Transportation Highway Safety Administration.

“Although not all vehicles being recalled are affected by this issue, we are recalling all possible units to assure all customers that their vehicles will perform correctly,” said Honda.

No such problems have been reported in Australia, where Honda’s current-generation Odyssey went on sale in April 2009. The Odyssey sold in Australia is made in Japan, and is a different design to the American vehicle of the same name, which is built in Alabama.

Honda’s latest recall follows last month’s extension of a global recall to fix faulty airbag deflators in some 437,763 version of the car-maker’s 2001 and 2002 model year Accord and CR-V models globally, including a total of 2026 in Australia.

It comes amid a spate of large-scale automotive recalls, led most prominently by the call-back of about 8.5 million Toyotas to fix floor mats and sticking accelerator pedals.

This month alone in the US, Nissan recalled about 540,000 vehicles to fix brake pedal pins and fuel gauges, while General Motors recalled about 1.3 million Pontiac and Chevrolet models.