US government investigates 1.7 million Honda cars over phantom braking

Washington, D.C. – March 6, 2022 – The U.S. government auto safety regulator is investigating Honda (NYSE:HMC) vehicles that may unexpectedly brake on their own. This increases the risk of a crash and injury. 

If the investigation leads to a recall, it could affect an estimated 1.73 million of the following vehicles:

  • 2018 – 2019 Honda Accord
  • 2017 – 2019 Honda CR-V

Investigation summary  

The regulator, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), opened an investigation on February 21, following at least 278 complaints about phantom braking. 

Based on the complaints, the vehicles’ Collision Mitigation Braking System (MBS) may cause the vehicle to start braking sharply in the absence of any visible threats and without any prior warning.

The Collision Mitigation Braking System, or CMBS, is the automated system that monitors the road ahead and stops the vehicle to avoid a crash if there is an obstacle.

Risks

A vehicle that slams on the brakes hard and unexpectedly may be hit from behind. In addition, the sudden braking may confuse the driver and cause him or her to lose control over the vehicle, amplifying the risk of a crash.

In fact, six people have already been involved in crashes and injured due to this issue, according to NHTSA’s information.

Other Honda recalls 

There was a Honda Accord recall in December, caused by a faulty child restraint system, as reported. The recall also included CR-V, Ridgeline and Insight vehicles.

In April of last year, there was a large Honda CR-V recall due to faulty fuel pumps that may result in the vehicle stalling on the road. The recall spanned over 600,000 cars and also affected Acura, Civic and Odyssey vehicles.

Is your vehicle part of a recall?

This phantom braking investigation may eventually lead to a Honda brake recall, possibly affecting over 1.7 million vehicles. To see if your car is subject to a recall, please use MotorSafety’s free vehicle lookup tool.

Bojan PopicUS government investigates 1.7 million Honda cars over phantom braking

Honda recalls over 600,000 cars that may stall

Torrance, CA – April 6, 2021 – Honda (NYSE:HMC) has expanded a previous recall to include 628,124 of additional vehicles with faulty fuel pumps that may cause the car to stall. The pumps are manufactured by Denso, (OTCMKTS:DNZOY) – an auto parts maker that forms part of the Toyota Group – that is behind this and other recalls by major car manufacturers starting last summer.

 This recall includes:

  • 2019 Acura ILX 
  • 2019 – 2020 Acura MDX
  • 2019 – 2020 Acura MDX Sport Hybrid
  • 2019 – 2020 Acura RDX
  • 2019 – 2020 Acura TLX
  • 2019 – 2020 Honda Accord
  • 2019 Honda Accord Hybrid
  • 2019 – 2020 Honda Civic
  • 2019 – 2020 Honda Civic Hatchback
  • 2019 Honda Civic Type-R
  • 2018 – 2019 Honda CR-V
  • 2019 Honda Fit
  • 2019 Honda HR-V 
  • 2019 – 2020 Honda Insight
  • 2019 Honda Odyssey
  • 2019 Honda Passport 
  • 2019 Honda Pilot
  • 2019 Honda Ridgeline

Recall summary  

The Denso fuel pumps at the center of the recall have a small plastic component, called an impeller, that sucks gas from a car’s fuel tank to pump it into the engine. Some of the impellers were manufactured in a way that can cause the plastic to weaken and become misshapen, causing the whole fuel pump to malfunction. Without a pump moving fuel into the engine, the car might not start or could stall while driving.

Background of the recall

The original Honda recall was announced in May of last year and included some of the model and model years listed above. Overall, Denso had manufactured over two million defective pumps which has caused Toyota. Honda and Subaru to recall their cars starting last summer.

Warning signs

The driver may be alerted to the fuel pump malfunction if he or she notices that the malfunction indicator light (MIL) or the master warning indicator come on. Additionally, the engine may run “rough” when the car is started or idled. This means that you may hear weird noises or feel the car vibrate or shake. Take the car in for repair as soon as you notice these signs to keep the situation from getting worse.

Risks

You can read more about the risks posed by these faulty fuel pumps in our article about Toyota’s Denso fuel pump recall.

The repair

Honda and Acura dealers will replace the fuel pump assembly for free. Notifications with more information about when and how to seek repairs will be sent to owners starting on May 18.

Is your vehicle part of this recall?

Over 628,000 vehicles are included in this Honda and Acura recall. To see if your car is one of them, use MotorSafety’s free vehicle lookup tool.

Rebecca RandHonda recalls over 600,000 cars that may stall