2003 Odyssey is in our price range, newer isn't..

pollyanna

New member
What safety features are we NOT getting by purchasing a 2003 Odyssey? It got GREAT crash test ratings, and I'm pretty sure it has side airbags and I know it has LATCH.

I'm not sure about top tether anchors, and I've had trouble finding that information online. Does anybody know if 2003 Odysseys have top tether anchors?

We're possibly going to drive an hour to look at this car tomorrow morning, but I want to know if we even WANT it first.

Thanks
 
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Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
Side impact airbags for the front seats are standard in the 2003 Odyssey from what I'm seeing of the specs on cars.com at http://www.cars.com/honda/odyssey/2003/specs/ Side curtain airbags didn't become available until the Odyssey's 2005 model year when they became standard equipment for all three rows, and 2005 is also the model year when stability control first became available as standard equipment.

A 2003 Ody has full LATCH (lower anchors and top tether anchors) for each of the second row captain's chairs, and a tether anchor for the third row center. Two additional tether anchors for the third row outboard seating positions can be retrofitted, a bit of a rarity in vehicles already factory equipped with some top tether anchors. The tether anchor retrofit part is Honda part number 82410-SE3-C01, called a "plate assembly" by Honda. The retrofit part retails for about $15 per part from Honda dealership service departments (Honda unfortunately doesn't have a free tether anchor retrofit program), or slightly less from an online Honda parts store such as http://www.bernardiparts.com/Honda-PLATE-ASSY__82410-SE3-C01.aspx There are two 8 mm weld nuts in the rear tailgate sill at the back of the cargo area for retrofitting the additional third row outboard tether anchors. You can probably do the retrofit installation yourself with a torque wrench once you acquire the tether anchor retrofit part(s) to save on installation labor costs. The LATCH manual specifies to tighten the bolt to a 16 lb.-ft torque (22 Nm), or to contact a Honda dealer to verify proper installation if a torque wrench is not used. The 2003 Ody's factory equipped third row center tether anchor is also located on that rear tailgate sill, just to give you a heads up about routing top tether straps across the cargo area for third row carseat installations which can complicate transporting lots of stuff or larger strollers in the van's cargo area.
 

pollyanna

New member
Thank you so much for your detailed and helpful reply!

Where were you able to find the information about which seats have tether anchors and which are able to be retrofitted? We would consider slightly older models if they can be retrofitted with top tethers (the lower aren't as important to me as I'm good at doing seat belt installs).

Thanks again!!
 

pollyanna

New member
A 2003 Ody has full LATCH (lower anchors and top tether anchors) for each of the second row captain's chairs, and a tether anchor for the third row center. Two additional tether anchors for the third row outboard seating positions can be retrofitted, a bit of a rarity in vehicles already factory equipped with some top tether anchors.

This is the information I'm having trouble finding for 2000, 2001, and 2002 models.
 

Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
I'm looking up the info. about LATCH and tether anchors in the 2009 LATCH manual. It's not viewable online but hard copies are available from the publisher, Safe Ride News, at http://www.saferidenews.com/SRNDNN/SRNProducts/LATCHManual/tabid/56/Default.aspx The LATCH manual is published every other year (the newest/current edition is the 2009 one), and it's a very helpful resource for techs, advocates, and vehicle shoppers alike. :)

The 2001 and 2002 model year Odysseys are the same as the 2003 model year in terms of LATCH and tether anchor equipped seating positions and retrofitting the third row outboard seating positions with top tether anchors. The 2000 model year Ody doesn't have full LATCH in any of its seating positions, but it does have factory equipped top tether anchors in each second row captain's chair, and 3 top tether anchors can be retrofitted for the third row seating positions. :thumbsup: There are three 8mm weld nuts located in the 2000 Ody's tailgate sill and you would use the same Honda tether anchor retrofit part posted above. Honda conveniently uses the same part for retrofitting tether anchors in any retrofittable Honda model. :thumbsup:
 

pollyanna

New member
Thanks again. We wound up buying a 2002 Odyssey EX. Yesterday, I ordered the parts from the site you linked and we're hoping to do the retrofit ourselves with my grandfather's torque wrench. I'm not in a big hurry, as I'm not even due with #3 for another 6 months! I'm just a planner.

You were a lot of help and I appreciate it.
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
Congratulations, the parts are super easy to add. I love my 2003 (same as 2002), and to make up for the lack of curtain airbags, I just keep my kids in high back boosters as long as possible (heads surrounded EPS foam, like a helmet in the car, lol). The top tethers for the middle captain's chairs are kind of weird U-shaped metal bars on the very bottom of the seat, if you haven't found them yet.
 

Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
Cool, thanks for the update. Glad to help, and congrats on your new wheels. :D
 

Brookiemom

New member
A 2003 Ody has full LATCH (lower anchors and top tether anchors) for each of the second row captain's chairs, and a tether anchor for the third row center. Two additional tether anchors for the third row outboard seating positions can be retrofitted, a bit of a rarity in vehicles already factory equipped with some top tether anchors.

This is great information, as we too are looking at and 02 or 04 Ody. Just so I am clear before we purchase, the 2 middle row seats have full latch-lower and upper? The third row we'd have to install the carseat in the middle position with the seat belt and the upper tether? So, if I wanted to put seats in the third row outboard position I would have to retrofit two more tether anchors for those seats? And they do not have the lower anchors outboard third row so those seats would have to be installed with belts and the retrofitted tether anchors?

I think I am making this more complicated than it needs to be. Thanks for being patient with me!
 

Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
Happy to help. :) Right, full LATCH means lower LATCH anchors and a top tether anchor in both second row captain's chairs. :) There are no lower LATCH anchors in the third row in the Ody model years you're considering, so you would install with a seatbelt in any of the third row seating positions, and top tether any forward facing harnessed carseat using the factory equipped top tether anchor in the center if it's a third row center installation, or use a retrofitted top tether anchor with a seatbelt installation in the third row outboard spots. It's recommended to use the top tether with an appropriate top tether anchor in the vehicle for any forward facing harnessed carseat installation to help reduce head excursion, the amount the child's head moves forward/beyond the carseat's protective shell during a crash. A seatbelt installation is also necessary in the second row if your child weighs 40 lbs. or more because Hondas have a 40 lb. child weight limit for installing with the lower LATCH anchors.
 

4boysmom

New member
If you only have one forward facing harnessed seat in back you can also move the tether anchor point around:thumbsup: It is super easy and virtually a hand tighten, and by hand I literally mean with my hand not with a tool that isn't a power tool..
 

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