Parts for your 2015 Honda Odyssey-Centre bearing

2015 Honda Odyssey centre-bearing: is it even a thing?

Short answer: a centre-bearing isn’t used on a 2015 Honda Odyssey sold in Australia or New Zealand. Technical references back this up — Honda Australia’s 2015 Odyssey RC spec sheets list the vehicle as front‑wheel drive, and Honda’s factory service literature for the 2011–2017 Odyssey platform shows a transverse engine with a transaxle and no propeller shaft. A centre (support) bearing is a component found on long, two‑piece propeller shafts in rear‑wheel drive or all‑wheel drive layouts, driveline texts and parts catalogues consistently describe it in that context, not for front‑wheel drive minivans like the Odyssey.

Because the 2015 Odyssey drives the front wheels via short CV axles from a transaxle, there’s no long tailshaft running down the centre of the car — so there’s no need for a centre support bearing. That’s by design: the FWD layout saves weight, frees up cabin and floor space, and avoids the extra hardware a prop shaft and centre bearing would require.

What can cause confusion is a different part that some owners loosely call a “centre bearing”: the right‑hand intermediate shaft carrier bearing. Many FWD Hondas, including the 2015 Odyssey, use an intermediate shaft on the passenger side to even out axle lengths and reduce torque steer. That shaft runs in a pressed‑in bearing held by a bracket on the engine block. It’s not a driveline centre support bearing, but it is a support bearing — and it can wear. Typical signs are a droning or growl that changes with road speed, a vibration under load, or a slight clunk on take‑off.

If an owner is chasing vibrations that they reckon might be a “centre-bearing” issue, a good workshop will instead look at:

• Tyre balance, condition, and out‑of‑round (including the spare if rotated in)
• Inner CV joints for play or shudder on acceleration, and torn CV boots
• The intermediate shaft carrier bearing for roughness or movement
• Engine and transmission mounts for collapse or cracking
• Rear hub/wheel bearings for humming that gets louder when cornering
• Wheel buckles or bent rims

Worth noting for grey imports: some Japan‑market Odyssey variants offered on‑demand 4WD, which use a propeller shaft and may have a centre support bearing. That’s not how the Australian and New Zealand 2015 Odyssey was delivered from Honda, so local cars won’t list a centre-bearing in their parts catalogues.

FAQs

Does a 2015 Honda Odyssey have a centre-bearing?
For Australian and New Zealand models, no. Factory specs list a front‑wheel drive transaxle with no propeller shaft, and Honda service manuals for the platform show no centre support bearing. If the vehicle is a grey‑import AWD variant, that’s a different story — but locally delivered 2015 Odysseys don’t use one.

What’s the “centre-bearing” people mention on forums then?
They’re usually talking about the right‑hand intermediate shaft carrier bearing on the front driveshaft assembly. It supports the passenger‑side intermediate shaft to reduce torque steer. It’s serviceable: if it’s noisy or has noticeable play when levered, it’s time to replace the bearing and re‑torque the bracket hardware.

I’ve got a vibration at 60–80 km/h. Could it be a centre-bearing?
On this model, a true centre-bearing isn’t fitted, so look at tyre balance or flat‑spotting, inner CV joint wear, the intermediate shaft carrier bearing, engine/gearbox mounts, and rear wheel bearings. A technician can road‑test under light and heavy throttle and use a chassis ear to pinpoint the source before parts are thrown at it.