Honda Pilot Complaints (2020)

493 consumer complaints on file.

#11474549July 18, 2022
ENGINE
Once the engine stops (idle engine auto stop feature) on the intersection when I yield to another vehicle before a left turn and auto-starts but teh car refused to move - was solved by shutting down the car and starting it again. All that on a busy intersection in the middle of the road. Very uncomfortable and unsafe situation to be in.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474401July 17, 2022
ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I have owned the 2020 Honda Pilot Touring since Jan.2020. Up till now, theses similar situations have happened 4-5 times. It always happens when I am gradually slowing down to a complete stop at crossroads. Then suddenly a beep sound appears, then the engine shuts down to only the radio is playing, gear shifts to N by itself and I’m unable to restart the car. After about 1-3 minutes of unable to control the car, sitting in the middle of the Highway, then I was able to shut off the engine completely, then restart the car. When it happens, the dash board would have the battery light on and commend would say “you can not start the engine, shift to Park”, but it was on P, and I couldn’t shut of the engine anyway. It was not controllable. My car drives great normally and no messages would pop up on the dash board. I brought this issue to the dealership, left my car there for a total check. I even said I have it in video when it happened. They didn’t want to even watch it. They said the computer will tell them, so they don’t need to see my video. They returned with nothing wrong, they could not find the problem. Since they did not see anything wrong, there is nothing to repair. They ask me to bring it back next time it occurs so they will have it on record. They did not solve any problem for me. I was frustrated and worried when it would happen to me again. It is a hazard for me to drive on fast traveling highways not knowing when this will occur and the worst part is that the dealership isn’t willing to go above and beyond to solve it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11473435July 11, 2022
ENGINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Vehicle shut down and failed to start at stoplight. It was as of it shifted off or in to neutral. Battery light showed red when initially tried to restart. Finally engine started after tuning off and back on again. I believe it was a failure of the auto engine stop system currently under investigation. It has had repeated issues lately getting going at stop lights but this was the first couple shutdown
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11472771July 7, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
This malfunction has been described to the dealer (s) on multiple occasions. They stated that is how it functions. I disagree. These typically happen on 2 way remote highways not multicar lane express ways. If on a two way roadway and you are turning right. Your vehicle sees and oncoming vehicle in the other lane and Emergency braking happens. The emergency braking system also has gone on when travelling straight for no know reason. It happened recently on a 2 way back road in Washington olympic area and my daughter was driving. The brakes just went on and she could not see why? the car in the rear had to emergency brake as well to prevent rear ending us. It has happened multiple times for no apparent reason? It is aggravating and not safe. Honda seems to not believe me so I thought that I would bring the issue to a higher authority.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11472590July 6, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
On multiple occassions, my Engine Auto Idle Start/Stop has malfunctioned. In particular, when the car goes into idle while stopped at a traffic light, there are times when the car completely shuts off. This is dangerous at any time because it has been unpredictable. The problem gets more frequent until finally the car won't start. Upon taking the car to Keating Honda in Conroe TX twice for the inability to start the car, I have had my battery replaced twice within the last year. They have not been able to identify any parasitic drains to the battery. At 39,000 miles, my 2020 Honda Pilot Elite required it's 3rd battery. The problem has been labeled battery failure, but frankly the problem has been the Engine Auto Idle Start/Stop feature and I am certain this feature is directly related to the battery failing.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11472189July 3, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The radio began making crackling noises. After a week or so, the entire system (navigation, clock, charging ports, dvd, radio/ sound system) stopped working completely. Shortly there after, the battery became completely drained. The dealership refused to honor the 100 month battery warranty, so I was forced to purchase a new battery. The radio & electrical system began to work again, but only for a week. Then the crackling sound began again, followed shortly thereafter with the entire system not working again.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11471946July 1, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
This has happened since I bought this vehicle brand new. whenever I am on a 2 lane road, the brake warning light and brake warning chime activate fairly often but intermittent when traffic coming from the opposite direction. if I am on a 4 lane road and in the lane that is closest to the oncoming traffic , it will send a false brake warning and brake warning chime. I have video taped this and sent to waltrip Honda in Franklin, TN. their technician verified the problem and replaced the radar unit on the vehicle, but it is still doing this even after the new part has been replaced. feel free to call me [XXX] or email [XXX]. thank you [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11471955July 1, 2022
ENGINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
My Pilot has approximately 25,000 miles. I was stopped at a red light, my vehicle has the ignition shut off feature, which engaged while I was stopped. When the light changed and I went to accelerate, instead of the engine restarting, the entire car stalled and would not restart. There were a variety of flashing lights and the car appeared to have power but the engine would not turn over. I immediately turned my hazard lights on, but each time I tried to restart the car, the hazards would turn off which was particularly concerning. The police responded and we looked for options to get the car into neutral so we could move it out of the intersection but there appears to be no option for a layman to manually override the transmission and place the car in neutral. As a result I was stranded in my vehicle for nearly 3 hours in an intersection while I waited for a tow truck. There had been no prior indication of any issues with the vehicle. It was purchased used and I have only put approximately 2,000 miles on it since purchasing. The vehicle was towed to the dealership and is awaiting inspection. While my experience was terrible, I am terrified to think of how much worse this could have been if I had stalled in traffic on a highway or with my children in the car.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11471305June 28, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC, AIR BAGS
The contact owns a 2020 Honda Pilot. Upon purchase of the vehicle, the contact heard an abnormal, screeching noise emit from the front driver-side tire. The contact's husband took the vehicle to a dealer where they found no defect with her rotors or tires. The contact stated that while in stop and go traffic, the brake warning light appeared on the instrument panel as the vehicle independently came to a sudden stop; the contact was able to resume normal operation after the failure. On a separate occasion while traveling downhill at approximately 20 MPH, the brake pedal depressed to the floorboard without warning. The contact panicked and pumped the brake pedal but to no avail. The contact steered the vehicle into the grass to avoid oncoming traffic. The contact hit a neighbor's mailbox and then a tree, which stopped the vehicle. The airbags did not deploy upon impact. The contact nor her daughter were physically injured by the accident but both have suffered traumatic mental anguish due to the failure. A police report was filed. The vehicle was initially towed to an independent tow yard and was later towed to an independent body shop for repair by insurance. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and offered no assistance. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 28,000.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
2
Deaths:
0
#11469364June 15, 2022
ENGINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Incident happened 3 times in 1 week (June 8th, 11th, & 15). When stopped at a light or in traffic the car shuts down. The engine does not restart when it's supposed to, leaving us with a dead vehicle. The car had to be jump-started to get the vehicle moving again. In worst cases, the battery doesn’t even hold a charge. Other issue would be when pressing the gas the car would stall sometimes before accelerating.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11469070June 13, 2022
ENGINE
Start/Stop function engaged at a red light, stopping the engine. Engine would not restart. Car and driver were stranded in the middle of a busy intersection for almost 2 hours until car could be jump started. Car would not restart on its own, leading to a very dangerous situation for driver and other motorists.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11468757June 11, 2022
ENGINE
When engine auto-shutoff was on (as it is automatically every time the car is started) I came to a complete stop and the vehicle turned off completely. I was in the middle of the road on every occasion this occurred. The vehicle would not restart for at least 30 seconds.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11468624June 10, 2022
ENGINE
Auto start/stop feature; engine failed to restart from a complete stop at a red light, happened on multiple occasions. I would have to press on the brake and accelerator and press the start button to start the car and be able to drive.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11468211June 8, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION
The contact owns a 2020 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing hard starts. Additionally, the contact stated that the Auto START/STOP function failed to engage automatically while attempting to drive from a complete stop. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure recurred and the vehicle turned off while at a complete stop. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the battery was replaced; however, the failure persisted. Additionally, the contact stated while driving through an intersection, the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to restart the vehicle after several attempts. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the battery needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11468027June 7, 2022
ENGINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Auto Engine Idle engaged and the vehicle died and would not restart. The vehicle has died a couple of times in the past in similar circumstances but always restarted until the most recent incident. This left us stranded in the middle of the road at an intersection with no way to put the vehicle in neutral and push it to the side of the road which is another unrelated safety complaint. The car cannot be taken out of park when not running. The component has not been inspected as of the time of this complaint but is being scheduled for review by the service shop. There were no warnings or messages prior to the incidents occurring.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11460283April 9, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Automatic Emergency Braking engaged while I was driving on the highway with no cars and no warning brake light on dash. There were no cars in front me ( this is the second time). Periodically the Braking light flashes on the dash if I’m driving on a two way road in the curve part of the road.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11459885April 6, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The infotainment screen in the vehicle which includes the backup camera display, navigation, radio, Bluetooth and other important vehicle functions and settings, shuts down and reboots in a continuous loop and sometimes turns off (blank screen) completely. This results in a backup camera function that is no longer useable as the screen does not/cannot display the camera image behind the vehicle. This is an SUV with a large rear blind spot that cannot be viewed simply by turning your head especially if there are short/small objects below the view of the rear glass. The other functions that rely on the screen also do not work and this constant rebooting/flashing is very distracting to the driver. There are also strange noises emanating from the sound system regardless of whether the system is on or off. This appears to be a widespread problem with this vehicle that still does not have a permanent solution. Several repair attempts by the OEM have not fixed this issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11459133March 31, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
When the 2020 Honda Pilot sits for over 3-6 days, the battery goes dead. I have brought it to the Honda Dealership and they have checked out the battery and alternator and say it's working properly. I have jumped the Honda Pilot 6 times because of a dead battery and had the battery replaced once. Never had a vehicle ever do this before. Very dangerous for anyone parking and flying from an airport. Unbelievable!!!!!! This has been going on since we purchased NEW!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11457942March 23, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, LANE DEPARTURE: WARNING
I passed a walker on my side of the road by slowly moving over the center line to the other lane to give the pedestrian a wide birth. The lane departure migration system was turned on. I did not use a turn signal. There was not a car behind me or approaching me in the opposite lane. The car started to warn me I was going out of my lane by shaking the wheel and flashing a brake/lane departure warning at me. I ignored it since I didn’t want to hit the pedestrian and continued to move into the other lane. Then the car took over the wheel, braked and brought me almost to a complete stop suddenly. If a car had been following behind me, I would have been rear ended. I no longer trust the lane departure warning system. If I forgot to use a turn signal on the highway or suddenly had to leave my lane on the highway to avoid a car or object, this system could cause a serious accident. Thank you!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11455985March 10, 2022
ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Over the last few years, after a long highway drive of approx. 20 miles when I stop and sit and idle, a strong gasoline smell is entering the vehicle via the HVAC Heating system. Also, after the same longer drives, when I return home, turn off and park the suv in my garage, shortly after my garage smells of gasoline as well from the Front Passenger side of the suv nearest the hood cowl. It does not happen 100% of the time but this winter it has occurred more frequently (a few times a week) during our Mon-Fri commutes.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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