2018 HONDA ACCORD HYBRID Engine Problems

The engine head gasket failed due to design flows. I have to put coolants and oil on a daily basis to keep the car running to avoid overheating.

At approximately [XXX]. Pacific, I was traveling southbound in the fastrak lane of the [XXX] departing from Pleasant Hill, California headed to Pleasanton, California. As I began to accelerate, the engine began to sputter. Immediately, the check engine light flashed on, then the dashboard reported a number of issues ranging from brake failure, TPMS failure, power assisted steering failure, vehicle stability assist failure and a number of other issues that I have never encountered since purchasing the vehicle. The sudden deceleration almost resulted in other cars impacting my car as this occurred during the morning commute. I was able to safely navigate off of the freeway. I was on speakerphone with Honda when this occurred. Had I not acted swiftly, a potential high speed rear end collision was likely to have occurred. I immediately took the car to Concord Honda. The team at Concord Honda performed a diagnosis and advised me that my head gasket was leaking water into the combustion chamber which resulted in the sudden loss of power. I was and continue to be dissatisfied with the handling of this issue by Honda as my car has never been handled by another mechanic. My car has a perfect or near perfect maintenance record and should not have a blown head gasket at 80k miles especially since my car is meticulously maintained and serviced by Concord Honda. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Subject: Safety Complaint – Premature Head Gasket Failure in 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid (VIN: [XXX] ) Dear NHTSA Representative, I am submitting this letter as a formal complaint regarding a serious and premature mechanical failure in my 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid (VIN: [XXX] ). At approximately 96,000 miles, the head gasket failed, resulting in major engine problems and potentially unsafe vehicle performance. I am the original owner of this vehicle and have maintained it consistently in line with Honda’s recommended service intervals. The engine has never been overheated or misused, yet the head gasket has failed much earlier than expected for a modern vehicle, especially a hybrid model. After researching online, I have found multiple reports of similar issues involving 2018 Honda Accord models experiencing premature head gasket failure, many of them under or near 100,000 miles. I am concerned that this may point to a widespread defect that could compromise the reliability and safety of these vehicles. A sudden head gasket failure can cause the engine to overheat, lose power, or even stall — all of which present potential risks to the driver and passengers, especially at highway speeds. I respectfully request that the NHTSA investigate this issue further to determine whether a safety-related defect exists and if a recall or manufacturer action should be issued. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Please feel free to contact me if any additional information is needed to support the investigation. Sincerely, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

About two weeks ago, I could have been killed on the New York State Thruway when my 2018 Honda Accord suddenly lost all power. One moment, I was driving normally—then, without warning, my check engine light came on, I had zero ability to accelerate and was forced to pull over as my car rapidly lost speed. II had my vehicle towed to Morehead Honda where they ran diagnostics and told me my car needed nearly $6,000 in repairs due to coolant leaking into the engine, which caused cylinder misfires and valve damage. But here’s the kicker—this same issue has happened to other Honda Accords of the same model year, yet Honda refuses to recognize it as a widespread problem. Morehead Honda admitted to me that they’ve seen this issue before in other 2018-2020 Honda Accords and 2017-2018 CR-Vs. In fact, they said Honda quietly fixed the problem in newer models (2021+)—but they still won’t acknowledge it as a defect in mine. That means my engine failure is not some one-in-a-million fluke—it’s something that has happened to multiple owners of the same model and year. But Honda refuses to take responsibility, leaving me on the hook for an absurdly expensive repair. Many others have had the same or similar issues. Below are some: 2017-2020 Honda Accord owners who have reported coolant leaks, cylinder head cracks, head gasket failures, or related issues: 2018 Accord 2.0T owner blew a head gasket, with a potential cracked engine block. The dealership diagnosed the issue on cylinder #3, with coolant mixing into the engine oil. A 2018 Accord EX-L 2.0T owner experienced a coolant loss leading to a blown head gasket and coolant leaking into cylinders 2 and 3. A 2018 Accord 1.5T owner had dashboard warnings and the car failed to accelerate. The dealership diagnosed a blown head gasket, with coolant leaking into cylinders 3 and 4. A 2020 Honda Accord owner suffered a blown head gasket at 58,000 miles. The dealership confirmed it was the fourth such case they had seen.

Mileage: 99,169

Car has been throwing check engine light codes for different things for the past three years. First, the spark plugs needed to be replaced, then the electric coolant pump. After each repair, the check engine light came back on as soon as 4 days after but as late as a month after. Most recently, while driving on the highway the car check engine light came on and began flashing and the vehicle would not accelerate past 20mph. I took the closest exit and parked the car and had it towed to the closest Honda dealer where they informed me that there is an active recall and they are waiting for a call to see what they can do to help but that there is a head gasket issue as well as a fuel pump code. Previously when the check engine light came on and it took it to get checked I was told there was no code holding in the system.

Malfunction Indicator Light (MIL) on with the DTC P030X (Cylinder Misfire Detected) stored. Experience engine running rough. - There are multiple misfiring cylinders. available for inspection upon request. - My safety and the safety of others was put in immediate risk when the engine started to jerk violently back and forth on the freeway. - The problem been reproduced and confirmed by a certified local Honda dealership. - There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure.

Engine overheated and turns out we have a blown head gasket. The problem escalated quickly from and "your engine may be warm" messages to "Do not drive!" messages. We tried to stop and cool it off when that message happened. To me the safety issue comes with the experience of needing to urgently find a place to stop while driving on a busy road (interstate for us) so the engine doesn't get much worse. Car is currently at a Honda dealer to assess the damage to the engine.

Failed: 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid 67,966 miles - Headgasket replacement needed (Determined by dealer DCH Honda Paramus, NJ / Reconfirmed by a private mechanic) Yes, the vehicle is available for inspection. Safety issue: The engine can suddenly overheat/seize and become inoperable. Warning message: Engine Temperature Near Limit. Avoid Heavy Acceleration and High Speed. A warning message appeared on [XXX] Other details: After searching via Google, YouTube, [XXX], and other sites, the issue seems to start as early as 60~70K miles. The most probable source of the issue appears to be a weak rod or with pressure. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

This has occurred on two separate dates. While using ECON mode and driving on the highway I went to accelerate to pass another vehicle and the car started shaking and the check engine light started flashing. I could no longer accelerate with traffic traveling at speeds of 70 behind me. I was able to safely maneuver my car to the should of the highway. I turned it off for a few minutes and turned it back on and it operated perfectly fine with no engine light on anymore. The second time it happened the car forced the ECON mode off while flashing the check engine light, but kept shaking until I pulled over and turned off the car for a few minutes. I will be taking it to the dealer. Had there not been a highway shoulder I would’ve had to force my way across 4 lanes on a 70mph highway while being unable to accelerate or come to a complete stop in the fast lane which is a major safety issue.

My vehicle is a 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid with 12,075 miles on the odometer. I was driving to work in the morning of 09/22/2021. The condition was dry and the outside temperature was around 60 degrees. I was merging onto the interstate in sport mode when all-of-the-sudden my car went into a limp mode. The check engine light began flashing and car lost 90% of its power. The engine made a knocking noise and began to shudder violently. I tried to switch it out of sport mode to get it back into Eco but the message displayed on the dash said something like "Unavailable at this time." I was about a mile and a half away from work and was able to creep along the road to make it there as it was losing more and more power. When I got to work (with the engine still running) I lifted the hood and the engine was still shaking hard. I scheduled an appointment with the local dealership to have it looked at that afternoon at 2:00 pm. When I drove it to the dealership 3 miles away, the check engine light was no longer flashing and the engine seemed to run fine. When I called the service advisor later that afternoon to check the status of my car he told me, "The technician drove the car around with the scan tool plugged into it and it drove fine. He wasn't able to pull any codes from the PCM." I find it to be odd. In my experience, whenever the CEL illuminates, a malfunction code will be stored in the PCM until it is cleared. Why would Honda program the PCM to reset and hide the malfunction code so that we're not able to diagnose the issue? I did take the car into the dealership earlier this year to get a warranty battery replacement and to perform 2 recalls (one was an emission recall and the other was for the BCM).

LOUD HUMMING/WHINING NOISE OCCURS WHILE DRIVING AT SPEEDS BETWEEN 35-50 MPH. THE ONLY WAY TO STOP THIS EAR SPLITTING NOISE IS TO CRACK A WINDOW. ACCORDING TO THE DEALER, IT IS A KNOWN-ISSUE WITH THE AUTOMATIC NOISE CANCELLING SYSTEM IN 2018 HONDA ACCORDS AND LATER. HONDA HASN'T BEEN ABLE TO FIX THIS ISSUE IN OVER 3 YEARS. IT IS EXTREMELY DISTRACTING TO THE DRIVER, NOT TO MENTION UNSAFE TO HAVE TO DRIVE WITH THE WINDOW OPEN IN FREEZING TEMPERATURE AND RAIN. IT HAPPENS TO ME ALMOST EVERY TIME I DRIVE, ESPECIALLY IN TEMPERATURES BELOW 50 DEGREES.

Mileage: 39,000

DRIVING SOUTHBOUND ON 101 SOUTH ON SUNNY CLEAR DAY 65 DEGREES WITH ALMOST FULL FUEL TANK AND 2 BATTERY BARS (ALMOST EMPTY) AND CLIMBING UP INCLINE ON 7 DEGREE GRADE AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WENT ON AND LOST ALL POWER AND CAR COMPLETELY SLOWED DOWN TO A STOP (LUCKILY WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER WITH NO PROBLEM).

Mileage: 66,752

2018 HONDA ACCORD HYBRID TOURING - LOUD HUMMING NOISE WHILE CRUISING AT 52MPH. READ GOOGLE AND YOU'LL FIND MANY OTHERS HAVE SIMILAR ISSUES BUT NO KNOWN RESOLVE. HAVE BEEN REPEATEDLY ABLE TO REPRODUCE AND IT CAN BE OBNOXIOUS AT TIMES BUT OF COURSE HONDA DENIES ANY KNOWLEDGE OF THE ISSUE AND CLAIMS THEY ARE UNABLE TO REPRODUCE.

Mileage: 45,000

AFTER 3 MONTHS OF NEW CAR OWNERSHIP AND APPX 2000 MILES WHEN YOU HIT 52 MPH THERE'S A LOUD ROARING NOISE THAT ABRUPTLY STOPS. ITS LOUDER IN COLD WEATHER. SAME NOISE ALSO HAPPENS AT LOWER SPEED OF APPX 35 -49 MPH BUT IS MUTED. CAR HAS BEEN INTO DEALER 5 TIMES FOR SAME ISSUE AD HONDA HASN'T BEEN ABLE TO FIX. NOISE HAPPEN ON ANY ROAD WHILE IN MOTION. 1ST DEALER CHECK WAS IN NOV 2018. I FILLED COMPLAINT NUMBER: 11303013 BUT HAVE NEVER HEARD BACK FROM ANYONE. MULTIPLE HONDA HYBRID OWNERS HAVE THIS PROBLEM.

Mileage: 1,000

THE VEHICLE MAKES A DRONE LIKE HUMMING NOISE. DEALER SAYS THEY ARE UNABLE TO DUPLICATE AND I SHOULD REPORT THE PROBLEM TO HONDA. NOISE HAPPENS INTERMITTENTLY WHEN DRIVING CAR AT ALL SPEEDS.

Mileage: 12,000

HONDA ACCORD HYBRID 2018 WITH 7439 MILES. I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY BACK HOME FROM WORK . SUDDENLY CAR STARTS TO FLUSH MESSAGES THAT ALL CAR SYSTEMS FAILS AND IT NEEDS TO BE TOWED TO DEALERSHIP IMMEDIATELY. CAR STOPPED TO RESPONSE TO CONTROLS INCLUDING ACCELERATION AND STARTS TO SLOWS DOWN FROM 70 MPH TO 25 MPH. AT THAT TIME I REALIZED THAT THE ONLY OPTION WOULD BE TO PULL OVER ON THE SHOULDER. I DID IT TO BE ABLE TO STAY AWAY FROM TRAFFIC AND CALL EMERGENCY SERVICE. AFTER APPROXIMATELY 75 MINUTES I WAS TOWED AWAY TO NEARBY DEALERSHIP (MANCHESTER HONDA, CT). AS OF THIS MORNING I DON'T HAVE ANY INFORMATION FROM THEM. I WAS TOTALLY SHOCKED ON CAR BEHAVIOR AND THINK THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE FOR CAR WITH 7439 MILES AND ONLY 7 MONTH OLD.

Mileage: 7,439

I'M BARELY REACHING CLOSE TO 6000 MILES AND I'M ALREADY HEARING CLUNK SOUNDS ON MY SUSPENSIONS WHEN I SLOWLY GO INTO A DIP OR DRIVE ACROSS A BUMP, NOW SOMETIMES THE ENGINE WOULD HAVE THIS RATTLING SOUND WHEN I ACCELERATE BETWEEN 2000-3000 RPMS AND SOMETIMES WHEN I REMOVE THE PARKING BRAKE AND GO REVERSE THE BRAKING SYSTEM WOULD RANDOMLY BRAKE ON ME VIOLENTLY AND PUT IT ON PARK. I BOUGHT THE VEHICLE AT 84 MILES.

Mileage: 5,000

FAILURE OF FRONT CRASH MITIGATION, LANE DEPARURE MITIGATION SYSTEM WHILE CAR IS MOVING. SUDDEN DECELERATION FROM ENGINE TO ELECTRIC AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS.

Mileage: 997