145 of the
17,040 complaints filed about the Honda Odyssey
are about the lighting —
1% of everything owners reported.
The worst model year for it is 2000.
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated that while a customer on Turo was driving the vehicle, the instrument panel warning lights flashed and the climate control system failed to function. The vehicle was restarted multiple times, but the instrument panel warning lights remained illuminated. The contact stated that while being driven, the vehicle was pulled over by law enforcement because the taillights failed completely. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the gauge control module had failed due to corrosion from water damage. Upon further inspection during the replacement, the dealer discovered additional failures within the body control module and the taillight wiring harness. Technicians determined that the electrical failures were caused by water leaking from the rear windshield into the tailgate area. The vehicle was repaired; however, the water leak source was not addressed or sealed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 144,411.
NHTSA complaint #11749490 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Last week, I opened my vehicle door and noticed water standing in the foot well. I didn't think too much of it until I started driving down the street and gallons of water were gushing on my feet in the footwell from behind the steering wheel and fuse box. I parked and waited for it to dry out a few days. I took my vehicle to the dealer and was shocked to hear that this is caused because the sunroof has a drainage system, and when the primary drain clogs, due to pollen or dirt, the secondary drain drains directly into the driver footwell. They advised that this is an issue that disregards vehicle age and sunroof non-use. Because this is a new vehicle, all of my basic maintenance and inspections have been provider by the Honda dealer. I asked why this had not been inspected on my previous service appointments and was told the primary drain for the sunroof can only be inspected by camera. It is only when the primary drain becomes clogged that the water dumps into the driver side footwell. I searched my owner manual and found nothing to indicate or require that the primary sunroof drain should be inspected, cleaned or serviced, at any of the maintenance intervals, and especially not during the first 2 years of ownership. The steering column, fuse box, and driver footwell house all of the necessary electrical and mechanical parts for steering, braking, acceleration, lighting and all other electrical systems controls. Additionally, if this were to happen while driving, the distraction to the driver could be catastrophic. My vehicle has been at the dealer for a week to clear the clog in the primary sunroof drain, remove the seat and carpet to dry, & inspect the electric systems including the power seat. I can make the vehicle available for inspection as needed and the dealer can provide the camera inspection that diagnosed the issue. This happened due to everyday dust and pollen, and there was no advance warning that this drain failure was imminent.
NHTSA complaint #11740750 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Power tailgate problems caused by water leaking through body seams. A visible gap in the rear hatch allows water to flow into the vehicle and shorts out control module. This has ruined my control module, caused mold and I noticed a burning smell.
NHTSA complaint #11733562 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Tailgate control module damaged by water leaking from faulty rear body seam seals on left top of vehicle Doors would lock and unlock on their own while driving and tailgate signaled it was open but never unlatched Manual tailgate opening/closing did not work at all Constantly beeped when unlocked and alarm went off randomly All electrical activity drained battery and made vehicle undriveable; tow was necessary First sign was "power tailgate problem" light on dash 5 days before vehicle battery was dead Honda charged for and replaced Tailgate control module and recommended an outside company to repair leak issues; outside company confirmed issue and noted repairs for same issue on similar models
NHTSA complaint #11722497 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
My car’s power system is totally off twice suddenly ( around 4:00pm & 8:30pm) when I completely stop at the traffic light. Cannot re-start the car, cannot open the rear doors, cannot turn on the emergency light to warn other cars. After waiting for a a few minutes, the power is back, I can start my car again When my car totally loss power at 8:30pm and cannot turn on the emergency light at night, and cannot open the rear doors for kids getting out the car. It is very dangerous to the passengers.
NHTSA complaint #11721224 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I believe something is wrong with the electrical system tied into the infotainment system of the car, which displays the radio, heating, cooling, shows the rear camera controllers, as well as some fo the lighting in the sport L is not fully lit, for example where the shift gears is there a light that goes across the front, mines if red, only 1 side is actively turninig on, but the other side is off, at time the display become unresponsive, meaning no matter what I select nothing is displayed I only get the main screen that shows the FM/AM, CAR PLAY, Andriod Auto, Setting etc, when this happens and when the screen flickers the radio does not turn on, no sound is heard, I can turn on/off the ac, but can control where the air flows, or changing some basic settings, at times the rear camera will not work as well. I have videos of this for my records, and I did report this directly to Honda, but they indicated there is no recall for the infotainment system, I previously had a 2021 Odysessy and there was a recall for soemthing very similar, not sure why they would continue to use the same system in the newer vechiles, clearly something is wrong here, so I am documenting this for my records, but I believe Honda needs to step in and correct this issue before other electrical problems occur and someone gets injured
NHTSA complaint #11714137 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The impact on the car is we no longer have cruse control (basic feature) and every time we turn on the car we see many warning lights turn on. Some other feature that does not work is lane assist does not work. According to what shows up to on the dashboard there are problems for "road departure mitigation system Problem", "Auto high-beam problem", "Adaptive cruse control problem", "Lane keeping assist problem", "collision mitigation system problem", "break system", "left sliding door problem" A quick search on the web indicate this a common issue with Honda car (including Acura). [XXX] Another problem we're seeing is driver Side sliding door does not close correctly or open correctly. We have since stop using this door since it's very dangerous for our kids since while opening, it would not open all the way and close on the kids. similar issues [XXX] These two things are broken under 65000 miles and less than 6 years owning the car. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11708998 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
On October 31, 2025, I brought my vehicle to the dealer for several issues, including an Auto Engine Idle Stop System problem, a memory seat malfunction, and other concerns that were discussed with the service advisor and are listed in the invoice. I was charged almost $1,000, including a new battery. Initially, some of the problems appeared to be resolved, but shortly after the service, the Auto Engine Idle Stop System problem reappeared, and the memory seat stopped working again. Even more concerning, a new and dangerous issue began immediately after the repair: while driving at night, the headlights suddenly turn off for a few seconds and then turn back on, and the “Auto Engine Idle Stop System Problem” warning appears at the same time. This issue never occurred before the dealer performed the repair. This situation is extremely unsafe, especially when driving in dark conditions with my family. I contacted the dealership through their “Contact Us” form on November 2, 2025, and again via live chat on November 5, 2025. I was told that someone would reach out to me, but as of November 9, 2025, I have received no response.
NHTSA complaint #11698434 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The auto idle start/stop feature failed to recognize a bad battery and shut the car off while I was stopped in the left turn lane. The vehicle failed to start and lost all power, including hazard lights and brake lights. I had no way of indicating to other drivers behind me that the vehicle was disabled other than getting out of the vehicle and waving them around me. This happened while I was taking my son to school and could have resulted in us getting in an accident or causing another accident. Honda was not able to identify root cause and replaced the battery. I do not trust this vehicle as reliable or safe any longer.
NHTSA complaint #11677559 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was driving down the road and all the sudden I hear a loud bang/shatter noise. I look over and see that my passenger side mirror is hanging down and shattered. Didn’t notice any impact or anything when it happened. The mechanism that works the mirror broke. No damage to the plastic casing or nothing.
NHTSA complaint #11673424 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Went to leave my house at 8pm and the car was malfunctioning. Blind spot problem, parking sensor problem, road departure mitigation system problem, auto engine idle stop problem . Lights flickering on and off, console lights not working, can’t control heating speed. Light would not stay on as I was driving . I have a couple videos of the malfunction.
NHTSA complaint #11644210 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The night before Christmas Eve, I was commuting home from the neighboring city, which is about a 25 minute drive home from where I was currently located. It was late in the evening and 2 of my children were in the car with me. I live in a rural area that is extremely dark in most of the areas. As I'm driving along both of my low beams go out without warning. This made for a very dangerous situation. I reacted as quickly as I could to prevent an accident and tried my high beams. Fortunately, they turned on but unfortunately I had to drive the rest of the way home with my high beams on possibly blinding any driver that came in contact with me. Currently the low beams still are not working. I have read forum, after forum, after forum stating how this is a problem from a 2004 to at least a 2010 Odyssey before I discontinued reading any further. I'm not exactly sure what causes but I do know it's not caused by the spark plus, the light bulbs and there is no individual relay for this vehicle low beams independently.
NHTSA complaint #11633039 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Infortainment center shuts down and loses connection. Which means there is no communication with the backup camera or navigation. Popping noises from the front speakers start static and pop then the screen states connection lost then goes black. Turns back on in about 5-10 minutes depending. Also the lighting for the buttons around the center are not working as well. Idk if this is related or is an overload that the system cannot keep up.
NHTSA complaint #11628911 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2019 Honda Odyssey. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while driving from a complete stop and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle hesitated to respond. The contact stated that the failure recurred on several occasions. The message "Emission System Failure" was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the fuel injectors had failed and needed to be replaced; however, the part was not available to repair the vehicle. The dealer informed the contact that the repair was not covered under recall. The vehicle was not repaired. Additionally, the contact stated that while starting the vehicle, the messages "Lane Keep Assist Failure", "High Beam Failure", "Cruise Control Failure", "Collision Mitigation Braking System Failure" and other unknown messages were displayed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 97,000. Parts distribution disconnect.
NHTSA complaint #11593869 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Windshield wipers and also the key fob and the sliding doors as well as the blinkers do not work all at the same time first time it’s ever happened. It was December 8, 2023 and now it happened again in January 29 of 2024 and the issue still persisted when I look this issue up this has been an ongoing issue for many years and yet Honda has done nothing about this and it’s not just the 2009 it’s other years as well as other Hondas from other years as well, it is a defect within the company where they’re doing something that causes these things to go! It is a safety issue as this just happens out of nowhere without any warning while I’m driving. All of a sudden it just happened the first time and I didn’t even realize it until I didn’t hear the clicking and someone said hey your blinkers are not working. Also, the second time it happened happened all over again while I was driving out of nowhere would not work and it was raining as well and I couldn’t see anything and my lights wouldn’t work so it’s definitely a safety issue .
NHTSA complaint #11569848 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The engine VCM system is burning oil and destroying emissions systems on the vehicle. Catalytic converters are mainly affected as burned oil goes through the exhaust system. The check engine light comes on and the the engine starts to misfire and very abrupt engine vibrations make it into the cabin.
NHTSA complaint #11554437 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I have a 2019 Odyssey Elite and the following lights come on: Adaptive cruise control problem (ACC); Auto high-beam problem (A); Road departure mitigation system problem; collision mitigation system problem; lane keeping assist problem (LKAS); brake system lights. My problem is intermittent. I can make it go away most of the time by pouring water over the camera or spraying it from the windshield wipers fluid, then turning the car off and back on. That works sometimes. This makes me think it may be due to heat as the windshield (especially the black web lines around the camera) gets very hot. I also have noticed that at night or in cooler parts of the day the lights do not come on most of the time (have not kept a log of problem yet). One problem could be heat but cooling off with water does not always work. In that case, I lightly tap the camera case with a small rubber hammer (it is locate in front of my rear view mirror), turn the car off and back on, and the lights go out. Water plus tapping works and sometimes tapping alone works. This makes me theorize that the weather (heat in my case but I have seen other say it is cold due to snow) causes the cable/wiring within the camera to loosen (meaning weather [heat or cold] sensitive) cable connectors. Thus cooling with water and or light tapping fixes the problem until the next episode occurs. Who knows it could even be the windshield glass. As I said earlier, there is a black webbing type glass etching around the camera. Some say it is the battery, but I have yet to see a post where changing the battery fixed the problem. When the lights are off, all safety features (mitigation, adaptive cruise control, cruise control) work. I assume auto high beam and brakes system will work also. Forgot to add that when I turn the car off and back on, I have to press enter on the steering wheel a couple of times before the lights go off.
NHTSA complaint #11546133 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.