10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 1 / 2
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 0 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 9,408 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
The contact owns a 2017 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the keyless warning, power steering, emissions, and hill assist warning lights activated, and the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified. The contact recently received a TSB notice from the manufacturer regarding the failure. The failure mileage was 60,951.
- Mission, TX, USA
Driving to work in the morning after owning the car for a few years and and dash displays "Keyless Start System Problem".
- Granbury, TX, USA
When stopped long enough to engage the auto idle function the car does not always recover immediately to drive. The car completely shuts down and usually restarts. This has occurred a few times in the past couple weeks and I have been trying to capture it on video to show the dealership. Yesterday it shut down and did not restart. It took many seconds (20-30) to be able to turn it back on and put it back into gear. We were stuck with cars behind us honking. When this happens all the lights on the dash light up so there is not one warning that indicates what the problem is. A car randomly failing to function is a safety issue. Especially since there is nothing the driver can do to remedy the situation. We have not taken the car in to a mechanic yet as this happened over the weekend. The car will be going to Honda. An internet search shows this is not an isolated issue.
- Salisbury , MD, USA
Keyless Start System problem. Deelership said the problem is with the push button Engine start stop and had to be replaced and said it-??s a common problem.
- Easton, MD, USA
The contact owns a 2017 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced various electrical failures while driving and stationary. The contact stated that the security alarm independently activated without incidence. The contact also stated that an abnormal crackling sound was coming from the engine with several warning lights flashing on the instrument panel. After replacing the battery, the headlights independently illuminated while the vehicle was shut-off. The contact restarted the vehicle and manually turned off the headlights however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to a dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the fuse box needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.
- Congers, NY, USA
Vehicle's LED Daytime Running Lights no longer operational. This is a known issue among owners and affects the visibility of the vehicle when operating during daylight hours. Further, the nighttime visibility is significantly decreased as those LES lights add to the roadway illumination capabilities.
- Ewing, NJ, USA
I had started noticing the radio clicking on/off at stoplights. After a while, it progressively got worse and noticed the car was also slightly jerking too as the car re-started. I called the dealer and they said they were not familiar with the issue. Days before my warranty expired in 2020, I took the vehicle in and they said they were not able to re-create the issue and did not see any error codes. I received the mil warranty extension letter recently and wondered if that was the same issue, but it does not appear so. However upon researching that, I found many similar complaints online about the auto idle stop issues. I am grateful my car has never stalled (yet) but that is probably because I have very low mileage. However I am scared to drive the car now and always disable the auto idle stop, hope that I don't forget which I do sometimes and am fearful should my teenagers ever have to drive my car! thankfully their Honda civics don't have this feature. This is a serious safety hazard! there are too many similar complaints so please force Honda to recall and fix the problem. I bought this new car since it was supposed to be more advanced and safer than the 15 year old car it replaced. It does have some great advances but should not be compromised or come at the cost of safety.
- Overland Park, KS, USA
There is an intermittent problem on my 2017 Honda Pilot elite that continues to get worse with the auto engine idle. When it engages (I.e., stops the engine such as at a stop light), at times it would barely start back up again. When these problems occur, when it restarted after the auto engine idle was engaged, it sounded like a car trying to start with a bad battery - it barely turned over, but finally did start. However, on 5/11/2021, it did not start at all after the auto engine idle engaged. I was at a stoplight and had several cars behind me. I was on a slope and was able to put the car in neutral and pull it off to the turn lane and out of traffic. I tried several times and was finally able to start the car up again. There is no doubt that the problem will continue to get worse until somebody can diagnose it. I've searched discussion boards and found several other people with the same problem but I've not found a diagnosis yet.
- Omaha, NE, USA
After exiting an interstate highway and stopping at a stop sign, the auto-stop feature engaged. When the brake was released the engine started and the car moved forward a few feet then shut down completely. There was a momentary warning to put the car in park, but it disappeared when the electrical system completely shut down and all screens went blank. I pressed the brake pedal and the start button, but the engine did not start. I released and pressed the brake again and the car started. The transmission was in park and I had to push the drive button several times for it to engage. Luckily there was no traffic because I was blocking the exit and the road. After the engine started it took some time for all the systems to power up.
- Saint Charles, MO, USA
Since I purchased the car, the wheels make a cracking noice when turning and braking. Took it to the dealer 2-3 times and they told me they could not find anything that it may just be the brake pads sticking some times. Now at 55,000 miles the power steering eps and all other lights came on like a christmas tree. This had not happened in the past. I have read up on it and others have had the same problem. My main concern since I purchased it was that cracking noise when turning when backing up or turning when going forward. This only happens on starting to drive not at fast speeds. Now all the lights are on and don't know what the issue is. From research it seems like it may be something with the fuel injectors. My car is already past it's warranty.
- Santa Maria, CA, USA
The contact owns a 2017 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving 15 mph, the vehicle shut-off while depressing the brake pedal. There were several unknown warning lights illuminated. The police were called to scene as multiple attempts to shift the vehicle into neutral or to restart the vehicle failed. The contact was finally able to restart the vehicle and received a police escort to West broad Honda (7014 w broad St, richmond, va 23294) however, a diagnostic test was still pending. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 68,000.
- Richmond, VA, USA
My 2017 Honda Pilot elite is equipped with the auto start/stop "feature". this feature can be disabled, but not permanently - you have to remember to turn it off every time you start the car. Several times over the last few months my car has totally died when I'm at stop lights or intersections. The auto start/stop feature engages and shuts the engine off, but when I take my foot off the brake the engine sputters and dies, and the car moves to neutral. I've figured out at this point that I need to shift to park, and then push the start button, but sometimes it takes several tries to start. The last time this happened I was in the middle of the busiest intersection in town with cars whizzing around me. It was absolutely terrifying. Today I took the car to the Honda dealer and they said that they couldn't recreate it (it doesn't happen every time) and there's no error code so "at this point" there's nothing they can do. They said they'd not heard of this issue before, but a quick google search turned up many forums on which people are raising this very dangerous, potentially deadly issue. Here's a sample: Https://www.piloteers.org/threads/elite-shuts-off-at-stop-light.157005/ https://https://community.cartalk.com/T/2017-Honda-Pilot-stalling-at-intersections/161704 https://www.carcomplaints.com/Honda/Pilot/2016/engine/engine.shtml https://www.vehie.com/complaints/Honda?vehie_model=Pilot I'm now looking at trading this car in for a vehicle that doesn't have this "feature" but am worried about the family that purchases the car - it's not fair to them. Please make Honda recall the vehicles with this "feature" and let us disable the feature permanently, rather than every time we start the car.
- Mooresville, NC, USA
Vehicle will not restart after engine auto idle engages. When lifting foot off the brake to begin driving car will not restart and says you must go into park and press brake. Radio and lights are still on. Even after shifting into park and pressing brake it will not start. After removing foot from brake and pressing stop car will completely turn off. We can then press start and car will usually start within three or four tries. This has happened about 10 times, with the last being in the center lane of a major freeway. Traffic came to a stop and when we started going again I was completely stuck in the middle lane with cars going all around me. Has also happened multiple times at stoplights and in drive throughs. I try and always disable this feature but forget sometimes.
- Portland, OR, USA
While at a red light, the auto idle engine feature completely stalls the vehicle. This has happened more times that I can count at this point. Basically, if I leave the feature on, at some point in route, it will stall. Of course, I have brought it in several times to the dealership to be told that nothing is wrong with the vehicle and the computer doesn't register/read any kind of code or error. When the brake pedal is completely depressed, the vehicle shuts down, radio, lights everything. When the brake is released, it seems to try to fire up, but stalls instead. Lights are projected onto the dash saying "to start engine: Brake + pedal". this does not immediately start the car. It takes several tries and lately I have found that I have to keep my foot off of the pedal and hit the start button to turn "off" the vehicle (even though it is already stalled). Then, I can start it. I am always in a busy intersection at a red light when this occurs which is frightening. It has taken up to two minutes to get it restarted and lights have turned green, horns have been blasted and I have been swerved around by oncoming (behind) vehicles.
- Prairieville, LA, USA
This problem involves the auto-idle stop feature of my vehicle. While stopped in a long line of cars, and the brake pedal depressed, I had been moving forward slowly in this line. Each time I take my foot off the brake pedal, the engine restarts automatically, and I pull forward. Then, when I hit the brake again and stop, the engine shuts off, but usually goes into accessory mode. First, this started to malfunction and the radio, electrical system would shut down, incorrectly, then restart once I took my foot off the brake. But then, on this particular Saturday, when I took my foot off the brake one particular time...the car did not restart. The whole car, electrical system and everything shut down. I then tried to manually restart the car by putting the car in park, depressing the brake pedal, and pressing the start button. The car just clicked, and all the lights on the dash were flashing on and off. The car would not restart!! I tried over and over, and nothing! I had 40 + cars behind me in this line! everyone was beeping their horn and impatient. I then tried to put the car in neutral so I could try to push the car out of the way and the line....but the dash warning message said the car could not be put in neutral without the car being started!! the car was dead! I couldn't move it, I couldn't turn on emergency flashers, nothing! it was a bad situation. I had to call a friend to bring jumper cables to jump start the car. But it clearly was not a battery issue. The battery was checked after I got the car started again...and it is fully charged! so this was clearly a problem with the auto- idle stop feature!! I did some online research and found thousands of online complaints about this exact issue! it's put many people in very dangerous situations. I reported this to Honda usa customer service. This issue needs to be addressed and a recall put in effect!
- Washington, DC, USA
Auto idle stopped engine waiting in traffic and then it would not restart. I took my foot off the brake, pressed the gas and nothing would work. Eventually, I was able to get the vehicle in park, turn it "off" and then turn it back on.
- Charleston, SC, USA
Few minutes after my wife got home the car alarm began beeping and there was a fire coming from the engine of the car. We called 911 and the fire kept getting bigger. Once the fire department arrived and put out the fire we saw a huge damage on the car. We don't know how the fire could have started while the engine was off. We are concerned about the safety of this company's car.
- Brownsville, TX, USA
The vehicle when stopped or at low speeds when idling, flips from drive to neutral. The the battery lights red and the oil lights red on the dash. The vehicle seemingly shuts off. You have to put it in park, press the start/stop button and the vehicle restarts. It generally happens several times in a row episodically, but not over long stretches of time. It seems impossible to replicate until it happens the next time.
- Sparrows Point, MD, USA
Auto engine idle will not start the car back up sometimes. If I forget to disable the auto engine auto before each trip, sometimes we will stop at a light or stop sign and the engine shuts off like it is supposed to. The problem is that periodically, the engine will not start back up when we are ready to go. The whole car shuts off and there is a specific order of pressing the brake and pushing buttons that we have to go through to start the car back up. Very dangerous while sitting in traffic. Has happened numerous times. Have taken to dealership numerous times with no solution. I have a video of it after it is shut down, but cannot attach it because it is more than 5mb.
- Calhoun, LA, USA
- Huntington Woods, MI, USA