On April 30, 2024, while sitting at a traffic light waiting to turn, my Honda Pilot experienced a catastrophic engine failure. The driver heard a loud knocking sound and the engine failed. The driver was left to navigate to a safe area through traffic. The vehicle was towed to a nearby auto mechanic for evaluation. It was determined that a connecting rod had penetrated the engine block and that engine would not be salvageable. The vehicle was towed again to another auto mechanic, where the engine was removed and replaced with a used engine of the same make and model with other required support equipment (timing belt, water pump, miscellaneous belts and hardware) at a cost of $8656 Given the passage of approximately 15 months since the engine was replaced, the catastrophically failed engine is no longer available to be inspected. Thankfully the vehicle was stationary when the failure occurred or the driver may have been at greater risk. He did need to walk through a busy intersection to get to safety. The engine failure and replacement was performed and documented by an independent service center. The failed engine was not inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance carrier-??s representatives. Only observed by the two independent service centers. There were no warning lamps, or no messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure. This issue appears to be related to NHTSA investigation: PE25008

- Londonderry, NH, USA

Symptom: Knocking noise coming from engine. Diagnosis: Honda dealer removed oil pan and found connecting rod bearing material. Removed all connecting rod bearings and found cylinder 1 bearing had excessive wear and found bearing was bent. Engine replacement recommended as bearing material may have went through the entire engine and could cause engine failure.

- Mahtomedi, MN, USA

(1)My local Honda Dealership (Herson's Honda, Rockville, MD), has diagnosed a knocking sound coming from my engine as a rod bearing failure, and they say I need a new engine. My 2017 Honda Pilot has only 56,755 on it, and I am aware my model car is now currently under NHTSA investigation as a part of the expanded probe of an earlier 2023 recall. It is available for inspection. (2)Your agency has identified this as a widespread problem among my model year, which could lead to complete engine failure. This event would put me as the driver, and any passengers I may be carrying at very serious risk. Other drivers could be at risk of injury if the engine were to fail and I were to lose control of the car. (3)Yes, I had the problem replicated by both my independent service center, and the Herson's Honda Dealership. I will upload the confirmation document in my report. (4)The car has not been inspected by a manufacturer to my knowledge (yet). Right now, the car is at the Herson's Honda dealership. Technicians have told me it is unsafe to drive the vehicle. (5)No lights appeared on the dashboard. I first noticed a slight knocking noise about a month ago, and then heard it again after returning from vacation, prompting us to take it into the dealership. It was quickly diagnosed as a rod bearing failure. -- Herson's let us know they would file a report with American Honda. Ricardo Benitez (Herson's) told us we were not the first to come in with this issue, and "would not be the last". Nevertheless, Herson's Honda has informed us that this is not currently under extended warranty, nor is it the subject of any current recall. This has left me with an inoperable car, with an engine replacement cost that I must bear to the tune of nearly $25,000. I urge NHTSA to compel Honda to issue a recall, given the widespread issue Honda is dealing with for my model year.

- Chevy Chase, MD, USA

The Engine completely died and refused to start in the middle of a busy road. We had to call 911 and have a police car stop and re-reroute traffic to ensure that the stalled car didn't cause an accident. We thad the car towed to the dealer and they were able to confirm that the Engine was dead and needed to be replaced. We filed a ticket with Honda (Case #15428329) to have them cover the cost of the repair and they refused. We have since replaced the Engine and the car is back in service. Since they refused to pay, we didn't have much of a choice at the time so we paid out of pocket.

- Maple Grove, MN, USA

We have a 2017 Honda Pilot Touring with the 3.5L V6, and it developed a tick when running, and it turned into a rod knock. Found out about the crank and rod recall, but realized our 2017 is not included. Tore the engine down to find the #6 rod bearing destroyed. I still have the bearing if it is requested. The vehicle left us stranded in the middle of the highway with kids on board. The rod bearing and crank have not been inspected by anyone but me, as I cannot afford to take it into a shop or dealer. There were no warning lights or other symptoms besides the tick that turned into a knock.

- Graham, WA, USA

Driving down the highway started having the check engine light start flashing and a loud clunking noise started in engine. Pulled over and shut off vehicle and tried restarting and it wouldn't. Tried again about 1 hr later and same noise came back. Stuck on side of highway for est 3 hrs. Had it towed to local Honda dealer (70 miles away) and it has a connecting rod/bearing failure and the engine is shot. No indication of the problem until the check engine light starting flashing. Car ran fine. This happened on 7/24/25 and has been at dealership since then because it cannot be driven.

- Appleton, WI, USA

The contact owns a 2017 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated that there was an abnormal smoke odor coming from the vehicle, and the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the following day, there was an abnormal sound coming from the vehicle with several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 107,000.

- Nederland, TX, USA

Teenage daughter was driving in rush hour traffic and the car seemed at have stalled out. She pulled over on the shoulder and manually turned off the car. When she tried re-starting it, it would not start. Electrical came on, but no power to the engine. Something then seemed to have overheated because when fire department was called, they extinguished something that had melted the plastic covering underneath the car. Fire department called due to smoke. No flames seen. We believe the smoke was from the melted plastic under car from something (a fluid) that was leaking. Insurance was called, car was towed to a Honda repair shop and then towed to a local Honda dealership. They say engine seized and is locked up and will not re-start. Other noted repair needed they say is torque converter. No other problems with this vehicle in the past. One of the best cars we have owned. No warnings prior to this happening on the highway. Disappointed that Honda did not have a cause and origin expert determine what happened to the car.

- Richardson, TX, USA

While driving on Interstate 4 in Orlando, engine suddenly seized and all components shut off. We were able to navigate to the shoulder, but vehicle was completely dead. We needed to use an auto transport to bring the vehicle back to Clearwater area where dealership confirmed the engine completely seized with an inability to crank, even manually. Please find Courtesy Palm Harbor Honda's findings attached to this report.

- Clearwater, FL, USA

Unresponsive and delayed acceleration when pressing the accelerator at highway speed. There is no reaction once the accelerator is pressed, engine does not increase rpm and no increase in speed for 1-2 seconds. This lag in any acceleration has caused multiple dangerous situations and needs to be investigated.

- Darien, CT, USA

Auto idle stop system has left this vehicle stranded at intersections on multiple occasions. The auto idle stop is not reliable and has been a continuous problem for years. The only way to not have a problem is to manually disable the feature each time I start the car. There is no way to permanently disable and this feature is causing hazardous conditions. My car has been almost hit multiple times due to being stranded at an intersection when the light changes.

- Darien, CT, USA

The engine fails to restart on its own after a complete stop at a traffic light or intersection with the auto idle mode on.

- Eagan, MN, USA

I feel the engine is failing

- Fort Campbell, KY, USA

I believe my vehicle is impacted by the Honda/Acura related to recall 23V751000(Engine Damage from Connecting Rod Bearing Wear A damaged engine may run improperly or stall while driving). Ticking noise in engine. 2017 Honda Pilot 40,028 miles on it. Dealership has advised that this is not part of the VIN recall, the connecting rod bearing is spun and I now need to replace the engine.

- Elgin, IL, USA

The engine developed bottom end knock. We brought it into the Honda dealership and they opened the engine from the oilpan to conduct an inspection. The dealership confirmed that the crankshaft bearings have scoring and the engine short block or whole engine needs to be replaced. This is the same issue that is being investigated under NHTSA Action Number: RQ24013. There is a recall for this exact same issue for Honda Pilots model years 2016, 2018, 2019, but ours is a 2017 -- the active recall is Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23V-751. The dealership contacted Honda, who is only willing to issue a courtesy discount, so that the cost to fix is $8,000 to $9,000. The car only has 115,000 miles and has been regularly serviced by the dealership for oil changes and all other recommended repairs and service when due, so this is likely a defect with the crankshaft. The dealership that conducted the examination is Muller Honda at 550 Skokie Valley Rd, Highland Park, IL 60035

- Northbrook, IL, USA

Connecting rod bearing failure at 118,000 miles. Followed all recommended Honda service schedules at authorized Honda dealerships. Need to replace crankshaft, main bearings, #2 cylinder connecting rod and connecting rod bearings and all related gaskets, o-rings, seals, etc. Could have been major safety issue if I was driving when the engine failed. Vehicle is at a Honda dealership and Honda corporate told me, sorry, but out of warranty. Worse customer service experience in my lifetime. No vehicle regardless of manufacturer and regular servicing should require this type of repair, ever at this mileage. There is a manufacturing defect since model years on both sides of the 2017 model are currently involved with engine recalls per the information below. Quite the coincidence that my Pilot experienced the exact same failure. No warning lights became illuminated. Engine and engine cooling: Engine: Hard parts internal/mechanical Recall date 2023-11-12 Recall no. 23V751000 Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Acura TLX, 2016-2020 Acura MDX, 2016 and 2018-2019 Pilot, 2017 and 2019 Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 Odyssey vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error, the connecting rod bearing in the engine may wear and seize, damaging the engine.

- Sandpoint, ID, USA

There was a knocking noise from the engine. I took it in for repairs and I was told that it is due to an abnormally worn rod bearing. I looked into this problem and found that there is an open investigation for the Honda Pilot 3.5L V-6 and abnormally worn rod bearings leading to possible engine failure. I mentioned this to the Honda dealership and he informed me that it does apply to my vehicle because there is not a recall on my vehicle. The gentleman in the service department is now denying that he said that the rods are worn, but now he-??s stating the rods are bent. I have the text message from yesterday where he was explaining what-??s wrong with my vehicle and that the rods are abnormally worn. The Honda dealership in Enterprise, AL is the dealership that I-??m working with. They informed me today that they are working on getting my engine replaced with an engine from a junkyard from a totaled vehicle. This doesn-??t seem ok due to the issue at hand with the problems with the 3.5 L V-6 engines and my concern is that it will have the same problems. I-??ve read that Honda Pilot owners are having these same issues even though there isn-??t a recall on their vehicles either. I-??m very concerned and I-??m not sure what can be done about this. I would appreciate any assistance or advice. Thank you for your time

- Enterprise, AL, USA

Engine failure due to connecting rod bearings wearing prematurely.

- Pickerington, OH, USA

I owned the referenced 2017 Honda Pilot vehicle. I was having transmission issues, which there were recalls for. I went to an authorized dealer to have the recall addressed. 6-8 months later same issue or I thought. Honda Dealer told me that the car was no longer in warranty, now I had to pay. What tripe! 6 months later engine blows up. Took car to a non-Honda repair shop. They tell me that there was an issue with the crankshaft and that the rod bearing went through the engine block. NICE. I pay for a used Honda engine over $8,000, NICE! I pick up the car now they tell me the transmission is shot. I take the car back to another Honda dealer complaining about a blown engine and previous trips to the other Honda dealer about transmission issues. Now after a new engine, which this dealer tells me there were no bulletins or recalls, that they'll push back on Honda about the transmission. They get Honda to pay for roughly 60% of a new transmission. Which cost's me another $3,600. Fantastic! I spend almost $12,000 on, at that time a 6 year old vehicle with just 80,000 miles, that I purchased used, in 2019 with just over 13,000 miles. I decided not to push my luck and sold the car to a dealer in 2023. I AM CONTACTING THE REPAIR SHOP THAT REPLACED THE ENGINE FOR A COPY OF THE INVOICE. Now, after almost 2-years, I find out Honda had issued recalls for the same issue I paid for. Do I have any recourse" Can the NHSTA assist with this issue" Anything you can offer would be greatly appreciated.

- Syracuse, NY, USA

Honda-??s Auto Idle Stop (AIS) system fails to restart the engine from a complete stop at traffic lights, road intersection or when stopped in traffic when the Auto Start/Stop function is engaged. This has required the driver to shift the transmission to park to allow the engine to restart, once this did not work requiring a jump start in the middle of a busy intersection. Honda service has stated that a battery replacement was need, which was done, but a new battery has had no effect on the auto start/stop issue. The engine continues to struggle to restart when the AIS system is engaged. The vehicle headlights can be seen flickering when the engine struggles to restart. This is an extremely dangerous defect that puts the occupants of the vehicle in repeatedly dangerous situations. For example when AIS is engaged and making a turn into oncoming traffic, the vehicle will be stuck and inoperable in on coming traffic-??s lane. This issue continues to persist with no resolution or solution from the manufacturer.

- Tewksbury, MA, USA