HELP! Factory XM cuts out in Honda

[Mark Walters]

Anybody else experienced the problem of your factory unit XM cutting out? It starts breaking out like a bad a signal then just goes dead. I have to pull over and turn the car off. After I restart the engine it works fine. This doesn't happen all the time. Maybe a few times a month, but it is annoying and not really safe having to pull off the road to restart the car. It's tough to have the problem diagnosed when generally I am nowhere near Honda when it happens.

This link shows others with this problem but no solution...any ideas please?

http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25279&page=2

Thanks

[dmspen]

I just bought a new Odyssey with XM. I'll keep an ear out for the same issue.

Is your XM unit under the passenger seat? Check the connections, although this doesn't sound like a loose connection issue.

[Mark Walters]

The XM is right in the dash. It came with the car factory radio. Apparently it's a pervasive issue when you Google the problem because a lot of complaints show up, but surprisingly all are lacking a solution.

[roadrunner1782]

If you have to turn the car off to get it to work again your only really resetting the unit by cutting power to it. A solution would be to find the power wire to the unit and install a toggle switch so you could simply turn the unit off and on to reset it without having to turn the vehicle off. If it's a known widespread problem with that vehicle I would think it's actually a faulty factory antenna and/or antenna location or just faulty units.

[Mark Walters]

If you have to turn the car off to get it to work again your only really resetting the unit by cutting power to it. A solution would be to find the power wire to the unit and install a toggle switch so you could simply turn the unit off and on to reset it without having to turn the vehicle off. If it's a known widespread problem with that vehicle I would think it's actually a faulty factory antenna and/or antenna location or just faulty units.

Interesting idea..thanks. I doubt it's a faulty antenna since only the audio disappears and not the on screen display. All the channels still show and display the current song information or channel guide.

[kc1ih]

If the car is still under warranty this is a problem for the dealer to take care of. They will probably just replace the whole unit.

[Matman]

This is a known issue with Honda Accords and Ridgelines in the current Gen.

http://techinfo.honda.com/Rjanisis/pubs/SB/a10-024.PDF

Its covered under warranty. If you are out of Warranty for some reason, I would request a Goodwill repair since its a known issue that is not normal wear and tear. Honda has been pretty good lately about stepping up to the plate on this stuff.

[jsartoris]

Thanks for posting that link. XM in my Accord has cut out a couple of times, recently. And I'm sure I'd forget about mentioning it to the dealer the next time I take it in without the service bulletin in my hands.

[SamC]

Same issue with a factory Toyota. About once a month the XM just quits working. Everything else does (AM, CD, etc). Turn the car off and it restarts. Kind of a ctl-alt-del solution. I just live with it.

[brianhos]

This used to happen on my 2009 accord about twice a month. I was never able to get it fixed before I got rid of the car. I have a 2011 pilot now, and so far it has not happened yet.