While driving 65 mph on the highway the hood flew up and hit the windshield. I was in the right lane so I was able to safely pull over. I had to get out of the car, pry the hood down, and attempt to secure it to drive to a body shop. Luckily, the windshield was not damaged, but the hood was destroyed, and the roof just above the windshield, was severely dented. The original estimate was around $1700. The latch was damaged, and apparently there was no way to determine if the latch was damaged prior or after the incident. Earlier that day the hood had been opened and closed, but I had double checked that it was properly closed. It was nearly unbelievable that I avoided a crash.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

Driving to work on interstate 89 I had my hood fly up on me and smash my windshield, and totally block my vision of the road. I was lucky enough to not have someone near me, slammed on the brakes and pulled over to the side of the road....I then got out and was able to secure the hood so I could temporarily drive it off the highway and to my office where I then proceeded to look into what may have caused this. On the day before I had added windshield fluid, shut the hood and check to make sure it was secure. It appeared to be so. I drove around town all day Sunday and then Monday morning approximately 20 miles before the hood blew up into my windshield. The auto repair shop indicated that he had seen this before on Honda CRV's and that the design for where the hood rod is placed is right next to the latch and sometimes gets stuck in the latch causing it to not fully hitch. I'm amazed I'm alive and feel like people should know about this design flaw.

- Stowe, VT, USA

I purchased my 2003 CR-V in April of 2003. In June I was on the highway with my kids in the car going 70mph when my hood flew up and hit the windshield. I called Honda several times, and they said I have to turn it in to my insurance company, it is not their problem. It was late at night, and had that happened another mile down the road, we would have all been killed. The road had cement barriers and went down to one lane.

- Boardman, OH, USA

December 22, 2003, the hood of my 2003 Honda CRV flew up and broke the windshield, while I was crossing a bridge in very windy conditions. The car had been serviced the previous month and there was also an oil change (November), when the hood was last opened. There was no prior indication the hood was not secure.

- Virginia Beach, VA, USA

On 7/29/03 at about 7:45 am my grandson opened the hood of my new Honda CRV in order to get a "jump start" to start his car. I closed the hood, heard a snap, gently tested the hood for closure and moved on. At about 10:00 am I started to burlington and after about 10 miles, while on the interstate doing 60 mph, the hood flew open and banged against the windshield. Thanks to scant traffic and about a 2 inch slot below the hood, I was able to pull safely to the side of the road. I was able to force the hood (reshape) enough to get it closed and drive on. At about 11:30 returned to the dealer (shearer Honda in rutland vt) where the head mechanic and service manager determined that the hood latches worked correctly. They noted "creasing" of the coating on the hood support rod at about where it might have been creased had it mistakingly been inserted into the safety latch (the safetey latch has a U shaped area not unlike the support rod rod holder on my previous chevie S-10 pickup). I was told that since it was not a warranty problem I should contact my insurance company and file a claim. However, since it seemed to me to be a safety matter, one where I could easily have been killed, I decided to call Honda customer relations. The Honda spokesperson said since she dealership had determined the latches were ok and because it was apparently due to misuse on my part there was nothing they could do and I should contact my insurance agent. Apparently they have not had complaints re this problem, which doesn't suprise me if others with this problem were also told it was their fault and "take it to your insurance company". the reality is that it is a poor, confusing design. Simply increasing the size of the support rod at the point where it would compromise the safety latch would prevent inadvertant errors. The owner's manual briefly mentions the support rod, but no mention of this potential problem. I consider this a serious safety problem.

- Williston, VT, USA