Precision Auto Picks › Parts reference › 72010-SHJ-A21
Honda Odyssey Power Sliding Door Motor — 72010-SHJ-A21 (right) & 72050-SHJ-A21 (left)
Power sliding door motor assembly (motor + cable take-up drum) · 2005–2010 Honda Odyssey with power sliding doors · right 72010-SHJ-A21 / left 72050-SHJ-A21
The power sliding door motor is the assembly in the rear quarter that pulls the door along its cables — the electric motor plus the cable take-up drum, not the cables themselves. On a 2005–2010 Honda Odyssey, 72010-SHJ-A21 is the right (passenger) side and 72050-SHJ-A21 is the left (driver) side, and the sides are not interchangeable. This page covers how to identify the right one, what it fits, why these fail, and what an honest test of the motor looks like.
Part of our Honda Odyssey power sliding door guide — the full platform context.
Identifying the part — side is keyed by the number
The part assembly is the motor plus the internal cable take-up drum that lives in the rear quarter panel. It drives the door along two steel cables; the cables themselves are separate Honda numbers, and the spool the cable winds onto is internal to this assembly.
| Number on the part | What it is |
|---|---|
| 72010-SHJ-A21 | Right / passenger side. Honda’s name: “Motor Assy., R. Power Slide Door.” |
| 72050-SHJ-A21 | Left / driver side. Honda’s name: “Motor Assy., L. Power Slide Door.” |
The sides are not interchangeable — wrong side is wrong part, not a soft fitment range. Both numbers are the current, terminal Honda part numbers; there is no later revision to chase, and the suffix is stable (this is not a load-bearing -01/-03 revision situation). The various punctuation forms you will see in listings — 72010-SHJ-A21, 72010SHJA21, 72010 SHJ A21 — are the same number written differently.
Side mislabeling and left/right swaps are common in this lane. Read the number stamped on your own motor and match it; do not rely on a listing title to tell you the side.
Fitment
2005–2010 Honda Odyssey (RL chassis, third generation) equipped with power sliding doors. Dealer fitment data agrees on that span across both sides, with no trim split — the number fits any 2005–2010 Odyssey so equipped.
- The real gate is the option, not the trim or year. Power sliding doors are an equipment option; a 2005–2010 Odyssey without them has no power motor to replace. The honest fitment claim is “2005–2010 Odyssey with power sliding doors,” plus the self-check below.
- Match the exact number and the side on your own motor. Same number in, same number out is the safe swap.
- Newer-generation Odyssey motors share the search lane but are a different part. The 2011-and-up vans use different motor numbers and sit in a different price class — do not cross them with the 2005–2010 part.
Why these fail — the roller-to-cable-to-motor chain
The motor rarely fails on its own. The power door rides on a center roller in the body-side track; when that roller wears or breaks, the door drags instead of rolling freely. That drag is the root of most failures here.
- The drag strains the cables. The system pulls the door on two steel cables; a binding door loads them every cycle until one frays or snaps. A snapped cable is usually the moment the door actually quits — which is why the complete motor-and-cable assembly is the right unit of repair: it brings a tested motor and fresh cables, replacing what broke rather than half of it.
- The drag wears the motor. A motor that spends its life fighting a binding door wears faster than one moving a freely sliding door.
- Symptoms of the upstream drag: the door is hard to slide, noisy, sags or misaligns, or stops part-way through its travel.
A freely sliding door is the healthy condition. If the door drags by hand, the binding is mechanical and upstream of the motor — worth addressing so a fresh motor is not put behind the same load.
What a real test of the motor looks like
“Tested” should be a specific, checkable claim. For this assembly the meaningful test is powered operation:
- The motor powers on and runs in both directions — its cables retract and extend on command. That proves the motor and its cable drive are working, and it is what the operation video shows.
- The test proves the assembly; it does not certify the buyer’s own worn cables, rollers, or track, which are separate wear items in the failure chain above.
No programming is involved. A matching motor for the correct side is a direct mechanical swap once the number and side are confirmed — unlike a control module, there is no software step.
What it costs — the repair-path ladder
| Path | Typical market price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| New aftermarket motor (generic) | ~$60–110 | The cheap-new floor; quality and cable inclusion vary. The used-OEM unit competes with this on trust, not just price. |
| Tested used OEM motor assembly | ~$120–130 | Genuine Honda part, with cables, bench-tested. Insist on the exact number, the correct side, and a described test. |
| Dorman new motor-and-cable kit | ~$239 | New aftermarket kit (newer-generation reference). |
| Honda genuine new | ~$767 MSRP (often ~$510–590 discounted) | Per side, from a Honda dealer. |
| Shop-installed (part + labor) | ~$1,480–1,555 | Independent-shop estimate, part and labor. |
A tested used OEM assembly with the exact matching number and side is the lowest-cost path that still carries a genuine Honda motor and fresh cables.
Buy a bench-tested motor
We pull these with their cables, test the motor for powered operation in both directions, and photograph the part-number label so you can match your side before buying.
- Right / passenger — 72010-SHJ-A21: view the tested right-side motor on eBay.
- Left / driver — 72050-SHJ-A21: check the eBay store for current left-side stock.
Not sure which side or number you have? Send a photo of your motor’s label through our eBay store and we will compare before you spend anything.
Common questions
- Which side is 72010-SHJ-A21, and which is 72050-SHJ-A21?
- 72010-SHJ-A21 is the right (passenger) side and 72050-SHJ-A21 is the left (driver) side, on the 2005-2010 Honda Odyssey. The sides are hard-keyed by the part number and are not interchangeable, so match the number on your own motor rather than the listing title. Side mislabeling is common in this market.
- Will this motor fit my Honda Odyssey?
- It fits the 2005-2010 Honda Odyssey (RL chassis) equipped with power sliding doors, with dealer fitment agreement on that span. The gate that matters is the power-door option: a 2005-2010 Odyssey with manual sliding doors has no power motor. Confirm your van has power sliding doors, then match the exact part number and side (72010 right / 72050 left) on your own motor. Newer 2011-and-up Odyssey motors are a different part and price class.
- Does the motor come with the cables?
- Yes. This is the motor assembly — the electric motor plus the cable take-up drum — and we pull and sell it with its cables, because a snapped cable is usually the part that actually fails. The assembly brings a tested motor and fresh cables together, which is the right unit of repair. The test confirms the motor and its cable drive operate; it does not certify your van's own worn cables, rollers, or track.
- Why did my power sliding door start dragging or stop working?
- Usually a chain reaction: a worn center roller lets the door drag in its track, the drag strains the cables until one frays or snaps, and the same load wears the motor over time. A snapped cable is often the moment the door quits. Because the root cause is the door binding rather than sliding freely, a fresh motor put behind a still-dragging door inherits the same load — a freely sliding door is the condition to aim for.
- Does the motor need programming after I install it?
- No. The power sliding door motor is a direct mechanical swap. Once you have confirmed the correct part number and the correct side, it installs without any programming or software step — unlike an electronic control module, there is nothing to code.
- What does a used OEM motor cost compared with new?
- Typical market: generic new aftermarket motors run roughly $60-110; a tested used OEM assembly with cables runs roughly $120-130; a Dorman new motor-and-cable kit is around $239; a genuine new Honda motor is around $767 MSRP per side (often $510-590 discounted); and a shop-installed repair runs roughly $1,480-1,555 with labor. A tested used OEM assembly with the exact matching number and side is the lowest-cost path that still carries a genuine Honda motor and fresh cables.
Written by William, owner of Precision Auto Picks — he pulls, tests, and ships every part himself. More about the shop ›