2021 Honda Pilot complaints

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed, and the vehicle lost motive power. The contact heard an abnormal rattling sound coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact continued driving to the destination, parked the vehicle, and checked under the hood. The contact checked the oil level, which was normal. The vehicle was towed to a dealer. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle and determined that a connecting rod had failed and damaged the engine. The contact was advised by the dealer that the engine oil level was very low. The dealer determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact researched online and related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, neither the VIN nor the model year was included. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 72,000.

The 2021 Honda Pilot would randomly flash brake, which would lock up the steering wheel, electronic warnings going off when nothing was there, and then all of the CMBS warnings came on. Dealer charged for diagnosis, and requires $2,300.00 to fix the sensor. The vehicle was never in an accident, and various ghost electronic issues would be present over the last few years before the system failed with multiple warnings.

Auto engine idle keeps stalling When I press the brake the engine cuts off idle and when I release the brake engine stall

There is already an active recall , OHB 24V-064, on this vehicle for a seat weight sensor circuit board. I have made numerous inquiries at two local Honda dealerships in Phoenix over the last 9 months about getting this fixed, but they never have the part(s) available. One dealership, Bell Honda, promised six months ago to call me when they got the parts; I have not heard back from them. I went to another dealership, Right Honda in Scottsdale, yesterday for some other maintenance. They just told me that the parts were not available and could not tell me when or if they would have them.

1. ABOUT A YEAR AGO THE ENGINE STOP/START FUNCTION STARTED TO FAIL INTERMITTENTLY. I WENT TO THE HONDA DEALER WHO THEY CHARGED US ABOUT $500 FOR A BATTERY AND NEVER MENTIONED A RECALL OR REPAIR. 2. ABOUT SIX WEEKS AGO THE AUTO ENGINE STOP/START FUNCTION FAILED TO RESTART THE ENGINE AFTER STOPPING. I THOUGHT IT WAS THE BATTERY AGAIN AND WENT BACK TO THE HONDA DEALER. THEY CHARGED ABOUT $1,500 FOR VARIOUS THINGS BUT STATED THAT THE AUTO STOP/START FUNCTION SOFTWARE HAD BEEN UPDATED AND IF THERE ANY FUTURE PROBLEMS TO RETURN. 8/19/2025. WE WERE ON THE INTERSTATE HWY IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC. WE WERE STOPPED IN THE LEFT LANE AND THE TRAFFIC STARTED GOING AGAIN. THE CARS IN FRONT OF US STARTED GOING AND WE WERE LEFT BEHIND. THE CARS BEHIND US WENT AROUND AND WE WERE LEFT STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSTATE HWY. AFTER A FEW MINUTES I GOT THE CAR RUNNING. BEING STALLED ON THE INSERSTATE HWY IS A LIFE THREATING ISSUE! I TOOK THE 2021 HONDA PILOT TO THE HONDA DEALER ON 8/20/2025 WHO STATES THAT THEY CANNOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. PLEASE NOTE THIS THE THIRD (3RD) TRIP TO HONDA FOR THE SAME ISSUE. NO RESOLUTION THERE HAVE BEEN MANY OTHER TIMES WHERE THIS OCCURED AND I JUST TURNED THE FUNCTION OFF WHICH ONLY WORKS TILL THE NEXT TIME YOU DRIVE THE CAR. PLEASE HELP WITH THIS ISSUE BEFORE SOMEONE GETS HURT...

I purchased my vehicle approximately 8 months ago, and recently all of the warning lights on my dashboard began coming on randomly while driving. I immediately brought the vehicle back to the dealership where I purchased it. At that visit, I was told the cause was unknown and that it might possibly be related to the battery. Unsatisfied with that explanation, I took the car to a second authorized dealership for another opinion. After inspection, I was advised that there was nothing wrong with the battery and no clear cause was identified for the warning lights. Despite taking the car to two dealerships, I have received no resolution or effective support. The issue remains ongoing, and I am now left uncertain about the reliability of my vehicle. Warning lights are designed to alert drivers to serious problems, and when they come on without explanation, it creates a very real safety concern. I do not know if my car is safe to drive. My concern is heightened by the fact that I have since learned this vehicle model has been subject to a recall in the past for the same issue. This raises the possibility that my car may be experiencing a known defect that was not properly resolved. As a consumer and driver, I should not be left to guess about the safety of my vehicle, especially when a documented recall exists. I am formally requesting immediate assistance: a complete inspection by a qualified technician, confirmation of whether my car is covered by any recall, and repair of the de

When stopped at a stop light the auto idle stop turned the car off. When we tried to go at the green light the car wouldn't move. The transmission shifted to neutral and was stuck. We couldn't put the car in park, we couldn't turn the car off, we couldn't put it in gear. We considered calling the police for help since we were stuck in an intersection. The car eventually turned off and we tried pushing all the buttons to do something it finally allowed us to turn the car 100% off and restart it. Then we could go.

While driving on the highway, I heard a loud whirring noise then my vehicle started to decelerate. After continuing to push on the accelerator, an error message appeared that stated something to the effect of "move vehicle from neutral to park". I tried to put the vehicle back into drive but my car had thrown itself into neutral and would not go back into drive. Another error message came up and indicated something about the transmission and that I should pull over to safety and put the car in park (or something of that nature). I was able to pull over but the car was frozen and I could not put the car back into drive, only into park. The vehicle was towed to a dealership where I was told the car needed to have the transmission replaced and that the Carfax report showed the transmission fluid had never been changed/replaced. The car is only four years old and I have never received an error or warning on the vehicle that there was an issue with the transmission fluid.

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that after coming to a complete stop, the START/STOP function activated and turned the vehicle off; however, while attempting to drive from the stop, the engine failed to restart. After waiting 5-10 minutes, the vehicle was able to restart and returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were 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 44,000.

The USB port of connection for apple CarPlay, yes it is available for inspection. Distraction is caused from disconnection of directions while driving. Meaning directions will disconnect when in use putting others at risk No No Yes, “ to use Apple CarPlay, check the settings on your vehicle and iPhone and connect a compatible iPhone to the USB port”. Although the settings are fine and it is compatible because it connected five seconds ago.

My 2021 Honda Pilot SE FWD would not restart after the auto off/on turned my engine off at a stop light. Of course this happened at a busy intersection causing backup and an unsafe environment to get out and inspect the vehicle. The car had to be jump started by a kind individual.

The car's steering wheel got locked out and air bags came out suddenly while car is still moving on the road and driver blocked and not able to do anything and hit the parked car on the street due to car's system malfunction. Since incident happened in the housing community area with speed 20-25 miles and not majorly hit anyone but reported to and inspected by city police inspected. This was the first time this situation happed and however, had other incidents with the car auto feature malfunction, when stop on the red signal and suddenly the card shutdown with lot of beeps. This mentioned to the service center where normally go for servicing activities like oil change etc.

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while stopped at a traffic signal, the vehicle independently shifted into neutral(N). The contact shifted vehicle into park(P) and turned off and restarted the vehicle and shifted into drive(D). There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle with a faulty brake switch and determined that the 12-Volt battery needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred, and the vehicle independently shifted into neutral(N). The contact stated that the failure had occurred while stopped with the vehicle still in drive(D). The vehicle was taken to the same dealer however, the dealer was unable to duplicate the failure or determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 38,000.

All I did was simply change my battery. Up until this point the car had run perfect and no issues or warnings. Now after placing the correct AGM battery the dash has lit up like Christmas. I am getting ACC, LKAS, Auto Head light, forward collision and Brake System warning lights. I was informed that this is a very costly repair, a camera needs to be replaced and recalibrated, $2000 estimate. This should be a recall based on the other numerous complaints I'm seeing. I reached out to Honda with no response as of yet.

As I was driving, I had to press on my break fairly firmly for about two seconds due to a car in front of me making a left-hand turn. I released the break, and the car in front of me was completely out of my lane. There was about a 2 to 3 second span of time ,after I released the break and in which I was coasting, before the automatic breaking system pressed hard on the break for at least one second and then it released. I had not placed my foot near the brake or accelerator at that time.

Screen stopped working suddenly. will randomly flash bright blue or a gray static, then go back to black.

I have photos, but unable to up load at this time. Suddenly, 9 different consecutive warning messages with bell associated with each, appeared on the instrument panel. The barrage of these 9 messages continued until I shut the engine off. I was in a very congested parking lot when this began. The Pilot was subsequently checked for codes and battery condition. The evidence suggests the VSA Modulator. The Messages continue when powered up with or without the engine running. Lane keep assist problem. LKAS All wheel drive system problem. VSA problem. ACC Adaptive cruise control problem problem. Road departure mitigation system problem. Collision mitigation system problem. Collision mitigation system problem. TSA trailer stability assist problem. Hill start assist problem. Power steering system (EPS) problem. Plus: AWD, Brake System and steering caution lights remain on continuously. I am very glad we were not towing our travel trailer this week.

The Auto Idle Stop (AIS) feature on my 2021 Honda Pilot intermittently causes the engine to shut off at a stop and fail to restart. When this happens the vehicle remains completely unresponsive until I shift into Park and manually restart the engine.This has happened multiple times in traffic and at intersections, creating a huge safety risk. I have already replaced the battery and had the latest software update installed at my local Honda dealership, but the issue persists. The problem is intermittent and difficult for the dealership to replicate. The auto idle stop issue is a known problem with Honda even extending a warranty coverage for the starter assembly and starter relays. The NHTSA number EA25004 addresses this yet the local dealership will only update the software and change the battery. They are failing to honor the second stage of the repair calling out specifically replacing the starter assembly, starter relays and adjusting the valves.

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while temporarily stopped at a traffic light or a stop sign, the vehicle occasionally shifted into neutral, or the vehicle shut off unintendedly. There was no warning light illuminated. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 68,000.

As many before me, I urge NHTSA to hold Honda accountable for failure to rectify the "2020-2022 Acura/Honda Multi-model Seat Weight Sensor Recall" announced on February 6, 2024. I received the initial notice in March 2024, followed by a post card stating that the parts were in stock in April 2025. Upon calling Honda the following day, I was told that the parts were again out of stock and that I would be notified when the recall repair was ready. Nearly 17 months later, I am still waiting for Honda to have the part in stock to fix an issue that has the potential to (quoting Honda) "increase the risk of injury" and is so serious that the manufacturer itself has issued a STOP SALE to prevent any further sales of the affected vehicles. To limit exposure to this risk, I refuse to allow anyone to ride in the passenger seat of the vehicle. This has resulted in the loss of use of my vehicle and Honda needs to be held accountable for its delays.

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the idle STOP/START system suddenly activated while idling at a stop sign, stop light, and driving at slower speeds of approximately 5 MPH. The vehicle stalled while the failure occurred, causing the contact to make several attempts to restart the vehicle. The failure was more persistent. There were no warning lights illuminated. The dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the diagnostic test and repair were not covered under the recall. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 62,000.

Recently , I stated seeing CMBC failure in my 2021 Honda Pilot 2wd. My car has 41500 miles in it. I took car to dealer ship and dealer ship says they are no recalls i need to change my camera. i am not understanding it's like brand new car and not driven many miles. i research on google and there are so many pilot owners having same problems. Can this be recall?

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there was an abnormal ticking sound coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the main engine bearings and connecting rods had failed. The contact was advised that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 143,000.

On multiple occasions, when sitting at a stop light and then attempting to drive as the light changes, the engine just shuts off as I take my foot off the brake. It then takes several attempts to get the car started.

The camera in the windshield used for collision mitigation, cruise control, lane keep assist, auto high beams, etc. has been found to have gone bad and need replaced by the Honda service center near me. The dashboard indicates all of these issues and disables the use of these safety features. The cost to repair is $1900 which includes camera, installation, and calibration.

The BCM body control module is not working. My wife is scared to drive thinking it can turn on lights wipers and other components. For being a Farley new car it’s crazy to think it’s defected. I had no warning prior to the incident. Honda dealer says they don’t know what caused it The alarm goes off all the time so I have to have it in the driveway with the battery unplugged Honda charges me $2,100 to fix it which is absurd

While driving the CMBS (crash mitigation braking system) turns on at random timed intervals causing sudden breaking and jerking of the steering wheel towards center. This causes severe safety issues including increasing the chances of a wreck due to wheel jerk movements during turning and sudden breaking. The CMBS error message pops up on the touchscreen and during the episodes of sudden onset the entire digital display both on the gage cluster and entertainment center go black and an audible clicking is heard in the steering column.

Here it is over two years later and passenger seat switch has not been replaced I was At Gunn Honda in 2/2024 and 6/2024 requesting an update of replacement answer was no parts. Here it is 5/2025 and I have nothing can you get this resolved asap? Recall: #OHB 2020-22 Multi-Model Seat Weight Sensor Safety Recall

I closed my back door and my back hatchback window shattered outwards. It isn’t winter and nothing hit window. The entire window shattered at same time. Not a crack and then shattered.

Auto start/stop feature turned off the engine at a stoplight. When the light turned green and the brake pedal was released, the engine did not restart. There also appeared to be some sort of electrical malfunction since the start stop button would not turn off the ignition system in an attempt to reset the vehicle. This happened on a light regulated highway with a posted speed limit of 55 mph.

No FIRENo INJURIES0 DEATHS0 The collision mitigation braking system problem, adaptive cruise control problem, lane keeping assist problem, road departure mitigation system problem and auto high-beam problem. All these are keep showing on my dashboard. It is stated that this is the Multi Point Camera RADAR avg cost repair 2000.OO

The collision mitigation braking system problem, adaptive cruise control problem, lane keeping assist problem, road departure mitigation system problem and auto high-beam problem. All these are keep showing on my dashboard.

I notice there is an investigation on the Honda Pilot Stop and start shutting off the engine this also happen to my car twice this week and also once prior to this. There are also issue where the radio will restart when the auto stop and start restart. In the report I don't believe the 2021 Honda Pilot was included.

LED Headlight burned out and is not possible to change or remove, dealer indicated it is not something that normally goes out, and wants to charge $2,000

The Auto-Idle-Stop system in my Pilot just shut off my engine and then failed to restart. The engine finally restarted after multiple attempts and finally holding the start button for 5 seconds. This happened in traffic and could have caused an accident.

Vehicle when trying to start locks up, have had the battery alternator starter checked, changed the brake switch and still having issues with hard start to my 2021 Honda Pilot. When this happens all the lights come on. I push the Idle/Start switch when I do get it started so that it does shut off when I’m at a red light or stop sign. Because I’m afraid it will not start. Dealership could not find any issues with the vehicle, I’ve taken it to another mechanic and they could not. It has been put on diagnostics several times. I keep putting money into trying to find out what the issue is!!!

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle made an abnormal, loud rattling sound. The contact stated that her husband had noticed that the rattling sound persisted while the vehicle was parked. The contact stated that upon opening the hood to inspect the vehicle, the contact noticed that the driver's side engine cooling fan had melted. The contact purchased a new engine cooling fan from O'Reilly Auto Parts, and the vehicle was taken to Four Brothers Auto Services, where the engine cooling fan was replaced. The contact stated that while driving on another occasion, the vehicle made an abnormal rattling sound. The contact stated that while idling in line at the airport Arrival and Pick-Up level, the rattling sound became louder, and the vehicle made an abnormal popping sound. The contact stated that the engine started overheating. The contact pulled over to a safe location and inspected the underhood. The contact noticed that the passenger's side cooling fan had separated. The contact was able to drive to the destination. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 86,000.

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked and occupied, while attempting to start the vehicle, the air bag warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the SRS air bag system failure message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and the contact was informed that the SRS control unit and weight sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V064000 (Air Bags); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 41,000.

Last year my Honda dealership, Honda of Harvey in Harvey, Louisiana did the recall of the falling side view mirrors on my 2021 Honda Pilot. This is recall 23V174000. Year later my driver side view mirror is doing the same thing. It is moving around and vibrating. Making it hard to see the traffic to the side and behind me. The service dept explained to me that the glue is coming apart. I told them that was what the recall was for. They said they did the recall once and are not doing it again. So it seems the fix honda had for this situation was not a fix but just a band aid. I did call Honda customer service and they blamed the dealership. No one wants to take the blame for this.

This is another incident of the auto start/stop system failing to restart the engine after a stop in traffic.

This seems to be an on going problem for many Honda owners according to the forums. My Adaptive Cruise Control, lane keeping assistant, collision mitigation, road departure mitigation, and auto high beams have all gone out after going to the car wash. I have cleaned the windshield but I find it crazy that this is a common problem and there is no recall.

My wife was driving the family down the highway I was a passenger. While we were traveling approximately 70mph down a 4 lane highway there was a loud clunk with a consistent knock and an immediate loss of power. I was able to help navigate her to safety on an off ramp so that my family would be safely off the road. The vehicle was towed to the Honda dealer where it is currently under warranty. The mechanics at the dealership have confirmed a spun bearing on piston number 3 and the motor will need to be replaced. There were zero warning lights and and no notification from any sensors with an OBD tool. Honda America is only willing to replace the motor with a salvaged motor. Unfortunately the VIN from the car with the salvaged motor will not match my current VIN, so if there is an active recall on the engine like on the previous year pilots that are VIN specific, I will not be covered and Honda will have replaced my engine with a known faulty one. I nor should and other family have to take the risk of receiving faulty salvaged Honda parts while still under factory warranty. The attached file is the last service records that are available for the salvaged engine and as you can see there is a noted vibration at the front in as well. Honda refuses to send the information from the salvage yard detailing the engine information including current mileage and the date the motor was pulled from the salvaged vehicle.

We've been having a continuous issue and taken it to out Escondido Honda dealership, to the service department. Our service department advisor named Omar had his tech look at it awhiel ago but they couldn't come up with anything. I recently saw the 2 million vehicle recalls on including the Honda Pilot, which we have a 2021 Special Edition. When I put in my VIN it says that there are no recalls as of right now. However, our vehicle is exhibiting the same exact mechanical failure as described in the NHTSA recall. The auto start stop is failing to reengage when trying to start going after the stop light turns green, it completely dies out and won't restart, leaving us stopped and stranded at the stop light or wherever we are at, at that time. We've also had issues that when it does reengage the auto stop/start it sounds like it was struggling initially before it started to just not reengage at all and started leaving us stranded. Then we would have to press on the button to put it back in park and then push the start/stop button. Which wouldn't always work, then we'd have to keep pushing it and eventually started. Please assist and thank you for your time.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE, FUEL PUMP FAILURE CAUSES THE ENGINE TO STALL WHILE DRIVING.

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that after idling at a red light, the Auto Start failed to operate as designed. The contact had to shift to park(P), and several attempts were needed to restart the vehicle before the contact was able to continue driving. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed that the battery had failed and needed to be replaced. The battery was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 33,000.

The car on multiple occasions (4 separate incidents) after stopping at a red light or stop sign and the auto stop system stopped the engine, once the brake pressure is released, the car would auto start then immediately shift into neutral and completely shut off (engine, electrical, etc). Driver would have to coast/stop at side of road and turn car off and on again. In 2 of the incidents, this happened on a two lane road and completely blocked traffic until the driver could figure out what was happening and restart the car.

The engine fails to restart at times after the auto engine idle cuts the engine off when stopped. The previous recall has been completed. When I returned my vehicle to the dealership to have it checked again because the same issue continued to occur, I was told the battery needed to be replaced. I have since replaced the battery with a Honda battery from the dealership yet the issue still occurs. It seems to be worse in cold weather.

On multiple occasions after being stopped at a red light and the engine turns off it failed to restart. After shutting the car completely off and attempting to restart after a few tries it was able to restart however this is an ongoing issue.

I was stopped at a red light and my engine stopped like normal but then when light turned green and i attempted to accelerate the engine never turned back on. I had to put the car in park. Shut down the vehicle and then attempted to start the car again. It took a few time before I was able to start up the vehicle. This has happened multiple times and initially I thought I may have done something but then as it became more frequent, I started paying closer attention to the stop-start of the engine and came to the realization that it is not the way I was operating but more or less an issue with the engine.

My Honda's engine start-stop system isn't restarting at stop lights. Very frightening when the light turns green and I can’t go anywhere. I have to turn off the car and restart.