2003 HONDA PILOT towing

Use these links (and links throughout this manual) to navigate through\
this reference.
For a printed owner's manual, click on authorized manuals or go to www.h\
elminc.com.
Contents
Owner's Identification Form
Introduction ........................................................................\
................................................................. i
A Few Words About Safet y........................................................................\
.........................................ii
Important Handling Information........................................................................\
.............................iii
Your Vehicle at a Glanc e........................................................................\
............................................ .2
Driver and Passenger Safety ........................................................................\
..................................... .5
Proper use and care of your vehicle's seat belts, and Supplemental Restr\
aint System.
Instrume nt panel indicator and gauge, and how to use dashboard and steering colu\
mn controls.
Comfort and Convenience Features ........................................................................\
..................... .117
How to operate the climate control system, the audio system, and other c\
onvenience features.
What gasoline to use, how to break -in your new vehicle, and how to load luggage and other cargo.
The proper way to start the engine, shift the transmission, and park, pl\
us towing a trailer.
The Maintenance Schedule shows you when you need to take you r vehicle to the dealer.
Appearance Car e........................................................................\
..................................................... .267
Tips on cleaning and protecting your vehicle. Things to look for if your\
vehicle ever needs body repairs.
This section covers several problems motorists sometimes experience, an d how to handle them.
ID numbers, dimensions, capacities, and technical information.
A summary of the warranties covering your new Acura, and how to contact \
us.
How to order manuals and other technical literature.
Index........................................................................\
........................................................................\
...... I
Service Information Summary
A summary of information you need when you pull up to the fuel pump.

Before Driving........................................................................\
..........................................................215
Driving ........................................................................\
..................................................................... .229
Maintenance........................................................................\
.............................................................269
Taking Care of the Unexpecte d........................................................................\
..............................325
Warranty and Customer Relations (U.S. and Canada)................................................................373
Authorized Manuals (U.S. only)........................................................................\
..............................377 Technical Informatio n........................................................................\
............................................ .359
2003 Pilot Online Reference Owner's Manual
Instruments and Controls........................................................................\
........................................ .59

Help assure your vehicle’s f uture
reliability and perf ormance by paying
extra attention to how you drive
during the f irst 600 miles (1,000 km).
During this period:Avoid full-throttle starts and rapid
acceleration. Youshouldfollowthesesamere-
commendations with an overhauled
or exchanged engine, or when the
brakes are replaced.
Do not change the oil until the
recommended time or mileage
intervalshowninthemaintenance
schedule.
Avoidhardbraking.Newbrakes
need to be broken-in by moderate
use f or the f irst 200 miles (300
km). We also recommend that you do not
tow a trailer during the f irst 500
miles (800 km).
Your Honda is designed to operate
on unleaded gasoline with a pump
octane number of 86 or higher. Use
of a lower octane gasoline can cause
a persistent, heavy metallic rapping
noise in the engine that can lead to
mechanical damage.
We recommend gasolines containing
detergent additives that help prevent
f uel system and engine deposits.
Using gasoline containing lead will
damage your vehicle’s emissions
controls. This contributes to air
pollution.
Premium f uel is recommended when
towing in certain conditions (see
page ).
256
Break-in Period, Gasoline
Bef ore Driving
Break-in Period Gasoline
216

Store or secure all items that could
be thrown around and hurt
someone during a crash.
Be sure items placed on the f loor
behind the f ront seats cannot roll
under the seats and interf ere with
the driver’s ability to operate the
pedals, or with the proper
operation of the seats.
Keep the glove box closed while
driving. If the lid is open, a
passenger could injure their knees
during a crash or sudden stop.
This f igure includes the total weight
of all occupants, cargo, accessories,
and the tongue weight if you are
towing a trailer.
The f inal number is the total weight
of cargo you can carry.
If you are towing a trailer, add the
tongue weight to the number
above. Add up the weight of all occupants.
To f igure out how much cargo you
can carry: When you load luggage, the total
weight of the vehicle, all passengers,
cargo, and trailer tongue load must
not exceed the Gross Vehicle
Weight Rating (GVWR). The load
for the front and rear axles also must
not exceed the Gross Axle Weight
Rating (GAWR). The GVWR and
GAWRareprintedonthetire
information label attached to the
driver’s doorjamb (see page ).
The maximum load f or your vehicle
is 1,323 lbs (600 kg).
Subtract the total f rom 1,323 lbs
(600 kg). 360Carrying Items in the Passenger
Compartment
Load Limit
Carrying Cargo
Bef ore Driving226
Overloading or improper
loading can affect handling and
stability and cause a crash in
which you can be hurt or killed.
Follow all load limits and other
loading guidelines in this
manual.

This section gives you tips on
starting the engine under various
conditions, and how to operate the
automatic transmission. It also
includes important inf ormation on
parking your vehicle, the braking
system, the VTM-4 System, and
f acts you need if you are planning to
tow a trailer.........................
Driving Guidelines .230
........................
Preparing to Drive .231
.......................
Starting the Engine .232
Starting in Cold Weather ....................
at High Altitude .232
..............
Automatic Transmission . 233
.
Shif t Lever Position Indicator . 233
................
Shif t Lever Positions . 234
..............
Engine Speed Limiter . 236
....................
Shif t Lock Release . 236
Variable Torque Management ..............................
4WD System .238
..............................
VTM-4 Lock .238
...........................................
Parking .240
.....................
The Braking System .241
.............
Brake Wear Indicators . 241
...............
Brake System Design . 242
.......................
Anti-lock Brakes .242
Important Saf ety .........................
Reminders .243
........................
ABS Indicator .243
...............
Driving in Bad Weather . 245
...........................
Towing a Trailer .247
Towing Your Vehicle Behind a ................................
Motorhome .259
..............
Of f -Highway Guidelines . 261
Driving
Driving229

µ
µ µ µ
Use Neutral if you
need to restart a stalled engine, or if
it is necessary to stop brief ly with
the engine idling. Shif t to Park posi-
tion if you need to leave the vehicle
f or any reason. Press on the brake pe-
dal when you are moving the shif t
lever from Neutral to another gear.
To shif t to Reverse
f rom Park, see the explanation under
Park. To shif t to Reverse f rom
Neutral, come to a complete stop and
then shift. Pull the shift lever
towards you before shifting into
Reverse f rom Neutral. Use this position f or
your normal driving. The transmis-
sion automatically selects a suitable
gear f or your speed and acceleration.
You may notice the transmission
shif ting up at higher speeds when
the engine is cold. This helps the
engine warm up f aster. This position is similar
to D, except only the first three
gears are selected. Use D when
towing a trailer in hilly terrain, or to
provide engine braking when going
down a steep hill. D can also keep
the transmission f rom cycling
between third and f ourth gears in
stop-and-go driving.
ForfasteraccelerationwheninD or
D, you can get the transmission to
automatically downshif t by pushing
the accelerator pedal to the floor.
The transmission will shif t down one
or two gears, depending on your
speed.
3
3
3
Automatic Transmission
Driving
Neutral (N)
Reverse (R) Drive (D)Drive (D )3
235

To saf ely tow a trailer, you should
observe the load limits, use the
proper equipment, and f ollow the
guidelines in this section.
Be sure to read thesectiononpage if you
plan to tow off paved surfaces.
The
maximum weight you can tow
depends on several f actors. See
page f or limits f or your towing
situation. Towing a load that is too
heavy can seriously af f ect your
vehicle’s handling and
perf ormance.
Your PILOT has been designed to
tow a trailer, as well as f or carrying
passengers and their cargo.
The weight that
the tongue of a f ully loaded trailer
puts on the hitch should be 5 to 10
percent of total trailer weight f or
boat trailers, and 8 to 15 percent of
total trailer weight for all other
trailers. See page f or limits f or
your towing situation.
261
249 249
Off-Highway
Guidelines
CONT INUED
Load Limits
T otal T railer Weight: T ongue L oad:
Towing a Trailer
Driving247
Exceeding any load limit or
improperly loading your vehicle
and trailer can cause a crash in
which you can be seriously hurt
or killed.
Check the loading of your
vehicle and trailer carefully
beforestartingtodrive.

Too much tongue load reduces f ront-
tire traction and steering control.
Too little tongue load can make the
trailer unstable and cause it to sway.The GCWR must be reduced 2
percent f or every 1,000 f eet (305
meters) of elevation. The maximum allowable weight of
the f ully loaded vehicle and trailer is
9700 lbs (4410 kg) with the proper
hitch and f luid coolers (See pagef or inf ormation about f luid
coolers.)
The maximum allowable weight of
the vehicle, all occupants, all cargo
and the tongue load is 5,950 lbs
(2,700 kg).
The maximum allowable weights on
the vehicle axles are 2865 lbs (1300
kg) on the f ront axle, and 3,155 lbs
(1,430 kg) on the rear axle. 253
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
(GVWR):
Gross Axle Weight Rating
(GA WR): Gross Combined Weight Rating
(GCWR):
Towing a Trailer
Driving248

Î
Î
ÎEquipped with transmission cooler and power steering f luid cooler.
Equipped with transmission cooler and power steering f luid cooler.
Number of
Occupants 2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Number of
Occupants 2
3
4
5
6
7
8 Max. T railer Weight
T owing is Not Recommended Max. T ongue Load
Max. T railer Weight Max. T ongue Load
T owing is Not Recommended
Towing a Trailer
Driving249
The corresponding weight limits assume occupants fill seats from the front of the vehicle to the back, each occupant weighs 150 lbs (70 kg) and each has 1 5lbs(7
kg) of luggage in the cargo area.
Total Trailer Weight and Tongue Load Limits: BOAT TRAILERS
OTHER TYPES OF TRAILERS
4500 lbs (2045 kg)
4500 lbs (2045 kg)
4500 lbs (2045 kg)
4300 lbs (1945 kg)
4100 lbs (1855 kg) 2000 lbs (905 kg) 450 lbs (205 kg)
450 lbs (205 kg)
450 lbs (205 kg)
350 lbs (160 kg)
220 lbs (100 kg)
100 lbs (45 kg)
3500 lbs (1590 kg)
3500 lbs (1590 kg)
3300 lbs (1490 kg)
3100 lbs (1400 kg)
2700 lbs (1220 kg) 1200 lbs (540 kg) 450 lbs (205 kg)
450 lbs (205 kg)
450 lbs (205 kg)
350 lbs (160 kg)
220 lbs (100 kg)
100 lbs (45 kg)