1998 HONDA ACCORD — Complaint #374778
Open-data reference.
NHTSA Complaint about POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:PARK/NEUTRAL START INTERLOCK SWITCH filed September 20, 2002
NHTSA complaint #374778 (ODI reference 767243) concerns a 1998 HONDA ACCORD and was filed on September 20, 2002. The owner reports the failure occurred on September 11, 2002. The report was geocoded to Iowa based on the filer's self-reported location. The affected component is categorized as power train:automatic transmission:park/neutral start interlock switch, one of NHTSA's standardized taxonomy codes used to group defect patterns across make, model, and year.
The filer flagged the following severity indicators: crash: yes, fire: no, injuries: 0, fatalities: 0. A complaint that flags a crash, fire, or fatality is escalated on NHTSA's internal review queue and factors more heavily into any Preliminary Evaluation decision on this make and model. Because a VIN was supplied, this complaint is tied to a specific vehicle and not just a model-year cohort.
Individual complaints are consumer-submitted and unverified by NHTSA engineers — the agency's role at this stage is to collect, index, and make them searchable. What matters for federal action is the pattern: when many owners of the same HONDA ACCORD cohort independently describe similar power train:automatic transmission:park/neutral start interlock switch failures, defect investigators have grounds to open a PE and request manufacturer data. Related filings for the same vehicle and component appear below, and the detail page for the full 1998 HONDA ACCORD shows the complete component-level complaint distribution alongside any active investigations or recalls.
Complaint Description
MY WIFE PARKED THE VEHICLE IN THE K-MART PARKING LOT. SHE TOOK KEY OUT OF IGNITION, LOCKED THE VEHICLE AND WE WENT INSIDE TO SHOP. AFTER SHOPPING FOR 5 - 10 MINUTES, K-MART INTERCOM ASKED HONDA OWNER TO COME FORWARD. THE VEHICLE HAD ROLLED BACKWARD ACROSS PARKING LOT, STRIKING CONCRETE BASE OF LIGHT POLE, COMPLETELY DESTROYING REAR BUMPER. VEHICLE WAS FOUND LOCKED, KEY OUT OF IGNITION, IN DRIVE INSTEAD OF PARK.*AK
Complaint Details
| NHTSA Complaint ID | 374778 |
| ODI Number | 767243 |
| Date Filed | September 20, 2002 |
| Failure Date | September 11, 2002 |
| VIN | 1HGCG5657WA |
Similar POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:PARK/NEUTRAL START INTERLOCK SWITCH Complaints for 1998 HONDA ACCORD
PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THIS HAS HAPPENED ON MULTIPLE DATES RANGING FROM 1999-2012. I THOUGHT IT WAS COVERED THROUGH NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID #: 98V018000 BUT I DID NOT USE THE CAR ENOUGH TO RECOGNIZE A PATTE
REC'D RECALL 98V018000 FOR POWER TRAIN: TRANSMISSION,AUTOMATIC: IGNITION INTERLOCK SYSTEM, AFTER CAR HIT A NEIGHBORS HOUSE, THE VEHICLE POPPED OUT OF GEAR. *BF THE CONSUMER REQUESTED REIMBURSEME
CONSUMER RECEIVED NHTSA RECALL 98V018000 CONCERNING TRANSMISSION FAILURE. TOOK VEHICLE TO GILMAND'S HONDA FOR REPAIRS. DEALER TOLD CONSUMER THAT HIS VEHICLE WAS NOT COVERED UNDER THE RECALL DUE
CONSUMER HAD PUT VEHICLE IN PARK. TOOK KEY OUT AND WENT INSIDE. VEHICLE ROLLED DOWN INTO STREET. THEY WERE ABLE TO TAKE KEY OUT OF IGNITION, VEHICLE WILL STILL BE IN DRIVE GEAR.CONTACTED DEALER
THE CONSUMER REMOVED KEYS FROM THE IGNITION WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IN DRIVE AND THE VEHICLE ROLLED FORWARD AND CRASHED. THE INTERLOCK SYSTEM FAILS TO PREVENT FROM REMOVING THE KEYS WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS
Source: NHTSA Vehicle Complaints Database. Component taxonomy and severity codes are standardized by NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.