Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (service brakes, ABS, rotors and pads, parking brake).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2001 Honda Accord owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Vehicles brakes malfunctioned while driving, causing accident where injuries took place. Driver applied brake but pedal went all the way to the floor with no stop. Instead of stopping the vehicle accelerated from 20mph to 65mph on its own and there was no way of stopping it. Emergency break was then tried, when this did not work, car was put in neutral in hopes that this will slow down cars unwarranted acceleration. It was when vehicle hit a pole causing tire to mangle which caused vehicle to stop, had it not been for this collision with the pole the car would not have stopped even with all the other attempts. All star Honda [phone] in milwaukee, wi was called to inquire about what might cause break malfunction and acceleration, mechanic by the name of belal indicated that there have been a lot of problems with the break lines of this particular year, make and model. …
My mother had picked up my niece from her school and was waiting for my nephew and his friend to get out of high school. When ready to go, the car was difficult to start. Took about 10 min to get the car to start. After the car started, went into reverse and backed out of the parking space. Put the car in drive and it "chugged" a couple of times. Then the car accelerated unexpectedly. She was unable to slow the car down by applying the brakes. The car traveled 460 feet accelerating the whole time.the approximate speed of the car was between 60-80 MPH. At the end of the parking lot, she turned left and the car hit a curb launching them into a pole that holds up the chain link fencing around the school. They went thru the fencing and into the block wall behind it coming to rest there. All 4 occupants were seen by a doctor and released that day. My mother has numerous cuts and bruises. …
Mileage: 133,000- started my car at home and couldn't get it out of park. Tried turning it off and then on again while stepping on the breaks. Break petal release and hit the floor. Had to tow vehicle to shop. Shop found that entire under body (sub-frame) was rusted, rotted/ leaking. Brake and fuel lines totally rotted along with entire under body, especially noted- located on the front passenger side near the strut assembly, beneath the air conditioner drain. Total cost over $2,000. Also, paint pealing/ rusting off. Started at 60,000 miles. After reading hundreds of complaints online regarding these same issues, and finding that Honda is not taking responsibility (air conditioner is located right above engine) I have decided not to spend another time on this car and will never purchase another Honda for as long as I live. I guess people have to die before Honda will admit model flaw. …
Tl contact owns a 2001 Honda Accord. While driving approximately 40 MPH, the contact applied the brakes and noticed that the stopping distance increased which resulted in a crash. A police report was filed. There were no injuries. The vehicle had not been inspected or repaired. Prior to the failure, the contact noticed intermittent problems with the brakes and its failure to immediately stop. The current and failure mileages were approximately 99,000. The VIN was unavailable. Updated 01/13/11 the consumer stated he had to stop suddenly because the vehicle in front of him had come to a stop. He applied the brakes, but his vehicle did not stop and consequently, the consumer hit the vehicle in front of him. The skid marks were seven car lengths long which was more than adequate distance to come to a stop. The vehicle was inspected, but no problem was found. Updated 01/24/11.
Customer lost control of vehicle, resulting in a crash while attempting to disengage cruise control with foot brake w on wet surface. Rear tires completely locked when customer tapped the foot brake to disengage speed control,causing vehicle to skid. Customer attempted to "stomp-and-steer" vehicle, (as is implied with ABS), brakes became unresponsive and pedal travelled to the floor. Customer then applied full throttle to try to pull the vehicle out of the skid, which was unsuccessful due to the traction control overpowering customer's attempt to steer and accelerate out of the skid (the TCS automatically applies front brakes to limit wheel spin at speeds below 20 MPH. Even though vehicle was travelling at 70, computer must have registered under 20 at that point). Vehicle violently spinned out of control off the highway down a 40 foot embankment.
At 65 to 70 miles an hour on straight interstate car began to steer irradically to right. No response to wheel correction, fish tailing, struck one side concrete wall and crossed road to left guard rail. Brakes tried at least twice without response and correction of wheel after first hit did not correct direction. Airbags deployed front and right side after first hit and perhaps only on second. No significant injuries. Total front damage. Serpentine belt seen hanging upon removal of car. Tie rods and cv joint boots intact, but transmission just replaced under warrantee and cv joints on order for wear perhaps related to transmission being "very sloppy" creating front end vibration in floor at 50 miles an hour to 60 relieved by putting gear into neutral. Feel steering failure perhaps related to serpentine belt failure.
Tl contact owns a 2001 Honda Accord. Immediately after the vehicle was started, it suddenly accelerated. The vehicle failed to stop when the brakes were applied which caused it to crash into a fire hydrant. The air bag failed to deploy when the crash occurred. The contact sustained bruises to her ribs, back, and face. The vehicle was towed to the body shop. The leon county police department report number is 10-19139. The insurance company confirmed that the vehicle was destroyed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer on April 20, 2010 for recall 10V041000, air bag. The failure and current mileages were 40,000. Updated 09/24/10. Updated 09/24/10
2001 Honda Accord, steering wheel lost out of control, brakes did not function properly. There was no control with the steering wheel and the brakes did not respond. The failure of these two main components caused a serious collision on the freeway. Possible suspension system failure.
I bought the 2001 Honda Accord v6 in June, after a year I had intermittent ABS light on and off, I had this ABS light on/off since aug 2002 (which is still under warranty period), had the dealer checked and they found no problem until recently in June of 2003, the same problem occurred again and this time I took it to a different dealer to diagnostic (which I have to pay $100 since the warranty expired), they consulted with American Honda, and had the ABS module replaced under customer assist warranty, the symptom was gone for a day but with sponge brake and have to bring back to dealer to re-bleed the brake again, with sponge brake pedal the brakes completely bled, and ABS light was on. Techician diagnostic with no DTC on the scanner but the ABS light was on, guess what...they reset it and let me drive home and told me drive safely. …
Transmission failure. Had intermittent problems that could not be diagnosed when under 100000 miles. Transmission finally failed at 108,500 miles. Dealership & American Honda have only offered 50% discount on a known problem with their cars. I feel they should be responsible for entire cost. They were using a cop out to not honor their product. I am only a little over their extended coverage offer. Also, they stated that even though I have a great service history I did not have it done through them, instead I did have my maintenance done with Goodyear shop which was an established car center. I bought the Honda believing I would not have to encounter these issues. I can understand little problems, but not one to this extent. I just thank god that my two month old child was not in the car w/ me when it finally broke down. I had to spend $200 on towing fees. …
Brake complaints in other Accord years
Frequently asked questions
How common are brake problems on the 2001 Honda Accord?
NHTSA has 49 complaints about the brakes of the 2001 Honda Accord, 5% of the model year's 922 complaints. The component named most often is antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip (10 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2001 Honda Accord brake problems?
No. NHTSA lists no brakes recall for the 2001 Honda Accord, though it has 7 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2001 Honda Accord brake problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 54,000 miles, and 16% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 14 crashes, 0 fires and 10 injuries to brakes problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.