85 of the 649 complaints about the 2018 Honda Pilot are about the electrical system — 13% of everything reported for this model year. Half of the failures with a mileage on record happened before 51,250 miles.
85
Complaints
1
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
Filed with NHTSA, in their own words.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
If the auto engine shut off is activated the engine shuts off randomly and it does not restart the engine. The battery needs to be unplugged to reset the electrical system. This happens daily.
NHTSA complaint #11754464 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The vehicle will not start occasionally and states brake issue. The brakes becomes rigid and I'm left stranded until it corrected itself. This is a KNOWN issue, and yet they won't do a recall. It seems like a deceptive practice.
NHTSA complaint #11750571 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Honda pilot would not restart after auto ideal engine stop. This issue caused all the warnings lights to come on with blinking engine light! Honda dealer was not able to resolve the issue and ended up paying $1500 even though it was a part of their service bulletin 23-009.
NHTSA complaint #11747433 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:ADAS:HILL DESCENT ASSIST:SENSOR
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving 75 MPH on the interstate, the vehicle started shuddering. The vehicle was pulled over safely to the side of the road. The AWD, Hill Descent Assist, power steering, and check engine warning lights were illuminated. The contact checked the manual and continued to drive. While driving days later, there was an abnormal fuel odor coming from the vehicle. The contact continued driving approximately 20 MPH. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The failure was associated with the fuel pressure pump. The lower fuel pressure pump was previously replaced. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, and the contact was informed that the high-pressure fuel pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 167,320.
NHTSA complaint #11731608 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Engine failure due to connecting rod bearing manufacturing defect (NHTSA PE25008). Component: engine; available for inspection upon request (replaced; documentation available). WARNING SYMPTOMS: At 94,000 miles during routine maintenance while under warranty, I reported engine knocking to the dealer. The advisor dismissed it as "normal valve noise" and did not document the complaint. Knocking progressively worsened over thousands of miles. FAILURE: At 100,750 miles the engine required immediate replacement. Dealer diagnosed rod bearing failure; bearing was worn and failing. Engine was replaced before catastrophic seizure. I had just returned from a family trip — seizure at highway speed would have caused loss of power, power steering, and braking assistance, creating serious crash risk. CONFIRMED: Dealer diagnosed and performed engine replacement. Honda provided partial goodwill coverage but refused to disclose the percentage or provide written documentation. When I formally requested full coverage for this defect under federal investigation, Honda stated the case was closed and refused to put the decision in writing. Honda recall 23V-751 addresses this defect but excluded this vehicle despite identical failure. Vehicle was maintained per Honda Maintenance Minder at dealerships.
NHTSA complaint #11724446 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle failed to accelerate, and the RPM became elevated. The vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where a partial diagnosis was performed, and it was determined that there was a catastrophic failure in cylinder #3. The dealer informed the contact that the failure was associated with NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, a case was opened, but no additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 102,000.
NHTSA complaint #11721976 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
All warning lights triggered on by faulty rear view camera sensor making one unable to discern if there is a true issue with one of the systems
NHTSA complaint #11694219 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Auto idle system is faulty. I repeatedly experience a failure when this system is not turned off. It causes my engine to shut off when I step on the gas - or (mostly) it causes my car to almost shut off (the dashboard shuts off and flashes back on when I step on gas at a stop sign or other stops, also when I’m driving and accelerate there is a lag of nothing like the car almost turns off followed by a big jerk or jolt when it turns back on again. I’ve asked Honda dealer in town about this and they said it’s just the transmission and could get it replaced but now I see (via a class action suit I read about) that this is a big problem and it’s not just my personal issue with the car. I’m concerned someone will get hurt if these problems are not recalled and fixed by Honda.
NHTSA complaint #11677539 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The car unexpectedly sent out emissions failure systems warning Effecting the ability to accelerate without a pause in a forward movement. I had my mechanic diagnose the warning lights which indicate a connector rod issue. This diagnosis aligns with all of the symptoms. My mechanic warned me the engine could stop at any time. We will have the repair done this month. Honda put out a recall and stop production for this issue in March of 2024 but my car does not show up in the recall when I inquired to Honda about the issues I was experiencing. They basically said there is nothing for me to do.
NHTSA complaint #11670115 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:INSTRUMENT PANEL:SPEEDOMETER/ODOMETER
Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while attempting to register the vehicle, it was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 98,423 and at the time of registration, it was discovered that the mileage was over 230,000.
NHTSA complaint #11667708 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Unfortunately, due to the extended delay in this repair, my vehicle has experienced significant mechanical problems, which I believe are directly related to the faulty fuel pump.Fuel Injector Contamination, Catalytic Converter Stress, Transmission Performance Issues
NHTSA complaint #11666354 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The "start/stop" function has always been an issue and also the response to acceleration. Luckily the start/stop failed at the mailbox in front of our home. The car shut off just like at a light but instead of picking back up upon acceleration, it completely died. We have had it shutter and slowly pick up in an intersection before but we have learned to really over exert the acceleration to complensate. We have had the fuel pump recalled but i dont think it fixed our problem. Luckily nobody has been hurt yet, but this is my wife and eight year old daugthers car. We have had multiple warning lamps "fixed" in the past, but there are currently no indicators on the dash.
NHTSA complaint #11664583 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Auto restart failed. Vehicle failed to move forward at a red light. Dash instructed to place vehicle on park then press the engine start-stop button hence restarting in the middle of the road presenting a safety hazard, cars behind me almost tail ending mine. People were honking and I couldn’t move fast enough. Why is the Honda dealer saying they will charge $222 to inspect to see if it’s a starter issue? Just fix the problem. I already had the system reset due to recall. This is a prevalent problem, shouldn’t it be inclusive to a recall. Also putting the customers at risk knowing its an issue is a huge problem. Please advise and help resolve this safety issue.
NHTSA complaint #11658298 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Start stop system would not restart vehicle. Came to a stop at a stoplight. Engine stopped with system engaged. Let go of brake to creep up in traffic and the engine did not restart. Warning on Dash told me to place vehicle in park and restart. It took a couple of tries to restart . The vehicle eventually did restart.
NHTSA complaint #11657621 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
On at least four separate occasions the idle engine stop has failed to restart when the vehicle was stopped at an intersection. The car not only does not restart but it also won’t respond for some time to attempts to turn the car off (in park mode and brake applied) so that it can be restarted. We must try to remember to disengage the idle engine stop at each use of car to avoid this issue as there is no way to do that permanently without installing an aftermarket product.
NHTSA complaint #11656701 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The car shut down on its own, the only way to started was with a jumpers, doesn't turn on screen nor dash,, Also the ac fan relay stays on and doesn't shut down making the car to over heat
NHTSA complaint #11652189 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The car was placed in park, and somehow it rolled backwards into a gas station post causing serious damage. The very badly designed 9 speed transmission is designed to shift into park when the door is opened this is a safety feature that failed! My child could have been in there! It could have rolled back into the file pump! DANGEROUS! I have heard of others complaining this happened to them too. I have video evidence but I need to obtain it from the gas station it happened at.
NHTSA complaint #11641283 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
There is an auto start/stop feature on my 2018 Honda Pilot. I’ve owned it new since July 2018. My wife and I have experienced the same issue both together and separately. The auto stop feature will engage with the break depressed, but the auto start function will not always engage when the break is released. This has left us stranded in the middle of intersections in the middle of left turns with oncoming traffic driving around us, stalled on the freeway with cars whizzing by us at 70+ MPH blocking the fast lane, blocking congested one lane roads with no recourse for drivers behinds to get around us, etc. This feature stops the engine but periodically does not allow it to turn back on. With the engine stopped by this feature, but not shifted to park/ neutral, pressing the ignition start/ stop button does nothing. Shifting to park, and pressing the ignition start/stop button significantly delays removing the road hazard now created by the vehicle’s now dangerous location. To further complicate the matter, the engine starting has, on many occasions, taken multiple minutes to start, endangering myself, my wife, my four children, and other family / friends on too many occasions to count. My local dealership recommended replacing the vehicles battery, even though I had no other battery related problems. I did, in fact, follow that recommendation, only to have the same problem persist. I have encouraged my wife to disengage this feature proceeding forward, but the feature automatically resets itself everyone the ignition is started. This becomes problematic if the feature is forgotten to be turned off or, due to placement of the features button, the feature is inadvertently re-engaged.
NHTSA complaint #11633491 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The back-up camera / navigation / infotainment screen is intermittently off. Without this screen one cannot get a camera view directly behind the car to back up, park, or see the rear position of the vehicle for loading and unloading. After visiting the dealership with an estimate of $2000 to $3000 for replacement, the message was clear they did not want to replace this part at a reasonable cost. On about 11/01/2023, this problem was taken to our dealership and it did re-occur at the dealership but does remain about 50% intermittent since the middle of 2023. When doing on-line searches, this must be a repeat problem for other Honda Pilot owners. Other manufacturers have implemented recalls for this same problem but not Honda to my knowledge. This vehicle now has about 60,000 miles on it; but this problem is a safety concern as well as a resale concern… but we would like to be able to keep it. This part seems to have been designed to be difficult to remove and replace with 5 separate cable connections, attached air vents, and without disassembling the two full panels across the full width of the dash. The dealer did remind us that this vehicle is out of warranty as well.
NHTSA complaint #11631226 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
My vehicle has been in the Honda Dealership (Honda of Fort Worth and Norm Reeves Honda) with no resolution to the engine failure issues I have had since purchasing my vehicle. Mainly in the heat of the summer if I was in traffic idling, stopped at a red light or in stop and go traffic my car would shut off and hesitate to restart. The collision mitigation system would show failed. Honda could never find a solution. The last time I had it in their shop they said I needed a new battery. I bought a new battery from them but the problem continued. I believe my car is part of the engine recall.
NHTSA complaint #11624623 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The components of my vehicle that were affected is from the power train and emissions.Honda issued an TSB on August 2023 for this. The warning light on my vehicle is now illuminated. I have a DTC code P0471 stored on my vehicles computer and can no longer pass a smog chech without the problem being repaired. This issue has impacted my vehicles torque converter. When I drive at high speeds my car shakes and I get a warning that says transmission system problem. Also the transmission slips and has poor fuel mileage. Honda extended the warranty for this part because it is prone to failure. My vehicle was diagnosed at Gardena Honda on Sep 4,2024. The service advisers confirmed that my vehicle has the issue that the warranty was extended on. However, due to my vehicle having a salvage title they will not honor that warranty. This issue should have been recalled instead of extending the warranty. Other pilot owners may pose a serious risk to themselves and others as Honda failed to notify myself and other about the risks of having a defective part on the vehicle. I can no longer drive my vehicle because of the risk involved. The dealer quoted me $5000.00 to repair. Federal law requires car manufacturers to repair any issues that arise from emissions regardless of bad title. Honda refused to repair on 9/4/2024.
NHTSA complaint #11613103 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Sitting stopped at a red light. These messages with the check engine light start scrolling on the dashboard: TSA, Emissions system problem, stability control, EPS, etc. it kept changing. When trying to go in drive to he engine had reduced power and I had to get out of the intersection quickly. The code to show up when scanned was P0369 camshaft sensor. Had the vehicle towed to Honda dealership to find out that other pilots in my same year model have this issue but my specific VIN was not included in the recall LVM or the service bulletin 19-045 even though the same year model is included.
NHTSA complaint #11611190 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The original manufacturer windshield and the adhesive holding it to the body of the vehicle was improperly installed by the manufacturer allowing water to leak into the A-pillar of the driver's side down into the lower dash and foot well. Moisture and degradation of the factory installed windshield adhesive can cause electrical faults, mold, a loose windshield, and other issues that can disable the vehicle and/or cause bodily harm. The dealer noted and advised about the possibility of the adhesive degradation before the vehicle was inspected, which confirms this is a common issue with this vehicle. Upon inspection, they advised that the windshield adhesive was the issue. The issues/symptoms presented themselves during recent and prolonged rain events at which time it was reported to the nearest authorized dealer. The local dealer claims a crack in the windshield as the cause of the problems. Unfortunately, there are no cracks in the area where the leak is originating from. The vehicle leaks from the upper driver's side corner of the windshield, with the crack noted being on the lower mid section of the windshield. Water would not run up into the corner from where the adhesive leaks.
NHTSA complaint #11609999 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
“Transmission system problem” message is displayed. Vehicle still runs fine, but reverse camera becomes disabled.
NHTSA complaint #11590299 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while his wife was stopped at a stop light, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power; however, the vehicle was able to immediately restart. After restarting the vehicle, the vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The STOP/START warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 94,000. The VIN was not available.
NHTSA complaint #11590116 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Unknown
NHTSA complaint #11589476 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
This issue started last year upon purchasing my used Honda Pilot. The gas save mode that allows the engine to shut off at stops and restart does not work properly. Rather than the engine restarting, the car will instead shut down. Taking about 2-3 minutes to have to put the car in park and being able to restart after several attempts. The Pilot was taken to Honda last year where they did a computer upgrade. This issue happened again last week on 5/8/2024 and again this morning, 5/13/2024. This can cause a safety issue as the car is stopped at a stop sign or a light, and when traffic is trying to move, I am holding traffic up which may cause cars to attempt to go around or cause an accident. I need to know why this is happening and when Honda plans to have a solution.
NHTSA complaint #11588372 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
When attempting to start the car's engine by pressing the start/stop button, it takes several times of pushing the button to start the engine and the dashboard displays a keyless start system error. There is a tech service bulletin for 2016 and 2017 models of the same car providing an extended warranty for customers to get free start/stop switch replacement. I took my car to a dealer and and they reproduced the problem. I was told it was not covered under the warranty. Why did Honda provide warranty and free replacement for previous model years but not for 2018 model that had the same problem? Please advise.
NHTSA complaint #11566275 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
As of 11/21/23, our honda pilot has approx 75,000 miles, we purchased it new so we are the only owners. A few weeks ago, the vehicle while driving about 45 mph, completely shut off, all lights on the dash cam on and the transmission became disengaged. We were able to shut it off for a few minutes, and drive it about 1/2 mile to the local Acura dealership. The car did not operate normally though, it would only go about 20-30 mph, before the transmission disengaged for a few seconds, then re-engage and continue driving. Acura said it was a producing a bad cam-shaft sensor code, they reset it, but said if it happened again, they would need to open up the engine to inspect the cam-shaft. Two days later, the exact same thing happened, we returned it to the same Acura dealership, where they said the cam shaft, and abunch of other parts needed replacement, at a cost of about $2,500. We had no choice since the car was immobilized. Now, the week of 11/20/2023, a recall regarding the rod bearings was issues, which cause the exact same immobilization issues we experienced, which is very dangerous as a driver. Upon research online, the cam shaft sensor and faulty cam shaft is more common than I expected, and I believe should be investigated before someone is seriously injured. To add, our specific pilot is not showing the engine rod recall, but we have experienced issue with the vehicle in regards to the auto start/stop feature and the car not restarting, as well as cruise control issues where the car will go into neutral at 70+ mph when cruise control is activated. We will probably not have this vehicle much longer because of the issues we have had in the first 75K miles, and the continued safety issues that plague this model. More needs to be done for the safety of it's drivers and passengers.
NHTSA complaint #11556189 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while stopped, the Auto START/STOP activated, the vehicle shutoff but failed to promptly restart while depressing the accelerator pedal. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.
NHTSA complaint #11539286 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.