2020 HONDA PILOT Engine Problems

2020 Honda pilot will sporadically turn off at highway speeds and at stop lights and will not turn back on until placed in park with foot on the brake. This is not to be confused with the start/stop feature used to save fuel. Additionally the 2020 pilot will lurch forward (like stuck in drive) while still in park.

There was a snap like sound under my hood while driving. Shortly after, the check engine light engaged and the vehicle lost all ability to accelerate. This happened while merging onto a fairly busy road, with rolling hills. If there were vehicles around there would have been potential for an accident. If this happened on the freeway in a middle lane, the vehicle would not have been able to successfully exit without causing extreme danger to the passengers and other vehicles. The vehicle stopped on the side of the road. When the ignition was briefly reengaged, there were rolling error codes, including vehicle stability, all wheel drive failure, etc. The engine was noticeably knocking. The vehicle was towed and inspected by an independent mechanic. The 3rd cylinder in the engine will no longer hold compression. I now need to get the vehicle to an engine specialist for further inspection and repair.

Transmission is sluggish and the RPM’s fluctuate between 1200 and 1400 at any speed going back and forth so the car has a back and fourth motion. Engine failure on 12/3/25 car stopped while driving. Makes a loud knocking sound. Most likely faulty bearings due to poorly engineered camshaft. White pear paint peeling since I purchased car. Capital Honda in San Jose unable to address any issue saying nothing is covered under warranty. These issues where taking place even while under warranty.

Auto start/stop problems with car. When at a stop, car shifts into neutral and cannot get back into Drive. Sometimes I cant turn off car. And when I do it's the only way to get car back into drive. Absolutely dangerous especially with kids in the car. Has happened on several occasions dating back so when car had only 50,000mi. Has had transmission replaced at 60,000mi. Still have engine idle issues till now.

When I am driving my car and stop at a stop light sometimes the car will fail to start up. It goes into neutral and then will take at least a minute to restart which is very dangerous. Its something with the start/stop feature and I had this problem two years ago and after many times dropping off my car at the Honda dealership and them telling me nothing is wrong with the car I finally said there had been a service bulletin on the start/stop system and they finally fixed it. Now two years later the same thing is happening. It is very dangerous as it happened when I was at a stop light getting off the highway and a car was coming from the highway and it took a couple minutes to restart and I almost got hit. Honda refuses address the issue and says there is nothing wrong. In fact they told me I needed to replace the mechanism with the park, neutral drive which I did for $1100 and then picked it up and the same thing happened again then they said it was the battery which was less than a year old so I replaced that and again same problem. This happens at least twice a week. This is dangerous!

The auto shut off has been not working properly and the vehicle wont restart after it shuts off. My wife was at a traffic light, and the vehicle shut off. When the light turned green, it did not restart. As a result of this she about got taken out by a semi that was coming in behind her. This could have been a deadly accident as it is raining and wet. She was stuck at the light on a busy highway for 3 minutes before the vehicle would restart.

The auto stop/start idle function does not re-engage after stopping the engine. This has happened at least 4 times in the last 3weeks with my vehicle. When stopped in traffic or at a light and stop sign the engine idle engages and stops running the engine, when releasing the brake pedal the engine does not turn on as it should and the car stalls. This requires the operator to engage hazard lights, shift into park and repeatedly try the push start button to turn on the vehicle to proceed. The passenger safety of myself and children are of concern. While having to wait on a car function, that is the core operation of the vehicle, it is dangerous to shut off a vehicle while in operation. Having other vehicles honking and trying to pass or even stopping at a highway entrance ramp then trying to engage the car to meet highway speeds is a dangerous time for an engine to stall and not re-engage. Yes, the issue has been reproduced and a dealer has already addressed the issue with a software update. This update has not resolved the issue. There are no current recalls on my vehicle. There are no warning signs or messages or the ability to turn off the function permanently. In addition, there a times during the operation of the vehicle where the engine stop/start function works after many stops but then randomly does not start. It is an inconsistent feature.

Engine auto off at an intersection. Would not restart. Burned up starter. Towed to Honda dealership. Rod bearing spun causing catastrophic damage to engine. Honda Care Extended warranty is covering at least part of the cost to replace either the shortblock, or possibly replace entire engine. No decision on which just yet.

While stopped at red light the auto off feature engaged and the car stalled out when restarting. This has happened multiple times since buying the vehicle

Rough Shifting at lower speeds when accelerating and deceleration. Very hard jerk while driving with family in the car. Hard jerk happened occasionally and produces no codes. Dealer and mechanic say they can't do anything without codes.

I have a 2020 Honda Pilot (VIN [XXX] ) and have experienced RPM fluctuations when trying to maintain speed. I'm concerned these issues may be related to ODI investigation PE25008 and further use of my vehicle without having it inspected may result in a crash, fire and/or complete engine failure. The engine has not operated smoothly for months, and my mechanic has not been able to figure out why. It feels like the engine is struggling to maintain a steady RPM, leading to bouncing or surging in power. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The bearings went out on cylinder number 5. The engine is torn down at the present time at the dealership. There was no warning. It is our understanding that other 3.5 l engines have had this happen. Our vehicle just wasn’t included in this recall. I think the recall needs expanded.

The idle engine turn back on feature has not turned on several times. It has happened a couple of times upon turning it back on after a complete turn off in a parking lot. Also, it has happened in traffic at a stop light on busy roads where I was sitting there dead stopped in the road unable to get the car started. Another time, it did not turn back on as I was pulling out of my neighborhood and we almost got hit because of it. The battery seems to be involved and seems to have to recharge for a few minutes and then it will turn back on. I've called 911 to help me get out of the road, have taken out the battery and put it back, and had it checked at the dealership. I have to remember to use the button that turns off the idle engine turn off feature or it will happen. It doesn't have any pattern or reason to it.

I’m reaching out regarding a persistent and hazardous issue with the Auto Stop/Start function on my vehicle. The system routinely fails when stopping at lights and stop signs, causing the engine to shut off and not restart. On several occasions, the vehicle has shut off while in motion—on highways, at intersections, and in the middle of roadways—putting me and others at serious risk. I brought the vehicle to John Eagle Honda of Dallas on Wednesday, June 5, 2024. The dealership diagnosed two recall-related issues (Recall #23-008 and #21-012), temporarily resolving the problem. However, the failure returned just five days later and has persisted ever since. I purchased the vehicle in May 2020, practically new from the dealership. This issue began roughly a year after purchase and has only escalated. I’m requesting further review and a permanent resolution, as this continues to be a severe safety hazard.

Vehicle auto start / stop system intermittently will not restart the engine after turning off at a stop.

Engine stall while at stop light. This happens probably 1 every 50 times

my car shut off at red light and wont restart .Even though i had it repaired under the recall.

My 2020 Honda Pilot has 53k miles on it. I have have the vehicle for 8ths and 8k miles. The vehicle engine light suddenly began flashing and the vehicle began running rough. A loud knocking sound was coming from the engine when accelerating. The vehicle was taken to a Honda dealer and analyzed. The testing showed that the camshaft and cylinder #2 rod bearing was damaged to the point of the engine needing replacement. Upon research of the problem and damage found by the dealer, it matches a major issue found on many Honda's and Accura's. A manufacturing defect in the crankshaft leads to excessive wear and failure of the connecting rod bearings. This problem can cause the engine to suddenly seize or fail. Honda is currently refusing to cover the repair cost because the VIN of my vehicle isn't on the recall list.

Our 2020 Honda Pilot has 96,000 miles on it. We were traveling on the interstate and the engine light came on and an immediate grinding and knocking sound was heard. We pulled over on an exit ramp. We called AAA and had the vehicle towed 35 miles to the nearest city. The vehicle was determined to have a connecting rod bearing failure that required the engine to be replaced. I understand there is a potential recall for this issue for Honda vehicles, that includes the 2020 Honda Pilot. I wanted to provide this information to support the NHTSA's findings that there are issues with this engine that should not occur.

The auto start/stop on my car will cause my car to not restart when I’m at a stoplight. This has happened multiple times. I have to remember to turn off the auto start/Stop function every time I get in the vehicle. It will shut my whole car down and take several seconds for me to be able to turn the car back on putting me at risk when I’m stopped in traffic. It has happened multiple times since May 2024.

The car's engine randomly stopped working and required jump start twice. Despite replacing the valve adjustment and battery, the problem persisted. The Honda dealer we approached did diagnostic testing twice, stated that it could be a problem with the car's Auto Idle Stop system, but did not offer a definitive solution.

[XXX]: While driving on [XXX] in Pennsylvania, my check engine light illuminated in a tight construction zone with jersey barriers & speed limit of 55 mph during inclement weather. I chose to remain behind a tractor trailer driving under the speed limit for the remainder of the construction zone approximately 1 mile. Once out of the construction zone, I attempted to pass the truck in front of me; however, when I moved into the passing lane, my vehicle would not accelerate to pass the truck placing myself and my 2 children in danger on [XXX] in inclement weather. Fortunately, I was able to safely return to the travel lane & then exited at the next exit which was about 2 miles away. I proceeded to a pull off right after the exit ramp & called my spouse. When he arrived, we decided to attempt to drive the vehicle home an alternate route; however, while driving about 2-3 miles the check engine light remained on & I was not able to accelerate beyond 35 mph. We decided to pull into our HS parking lot where I shut off my car for about 5 minutes. When the vehicle was restarted, the check engine light was no longer on, so we drove around the parking lot & the vehicle appeared to be operating normally allowing acceleration to occur, so we attempted to return home. While driving about 3 miles, the check engine light once again displayed as well as a series of other warnings. The vehicle began to shake and various noises were produced from the front end of the vehicle including what sounded like metal on metal grinding. ASAP, I proceeded to a parking lot to ensure safety for myself & children to stop the car and have it towed to a local mechanic, then to a Honda Dealership. After initial diagnostics, we were informed our engine failed & needed replaced due to what they suspected was a connecting rod bearing issue. Our engine is currently being replaced, but we informed them we wanted the defective engine held to be available for inspection for this investigation. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATIO

The engine stalled when I did not disable idle-stop. When I slowed down and stopped my Pilot 2020 due to traffic or traffic lights, the idle-stop activated. The engine was then stalled occasionally and the system requested me to step the brake and push start button to restart my Pilot. However, when I tried to restart it, the battery warning sign lit up and it made restart unsuccessful. I will then have to wait for a minute or two and tried again. I found this problem a few months after I bought my Pilot 2020 and I had reported the problem to my Paul Miller Honda service at West Caldwell, NJ. Honda service identified the problem but they do not know what is the exact cause of the symptom and suspect faulty battery. Honda service helped me to change batteries several times already and last time was Dec 10, 2024.

We were driving down [XXX] in Columbus, Ohio and the cars started to lose power and felt a explosion or slip, right after all the dash board warning lights came on and oil light stating no oil, as I pulled over you could see tire width of oil 1/2 mile down the interstate and showing where I pulled and engine has seized up, I turned engine off , all lights stayed on and dash board, and engine was smoking bad, I got out until help arrived. husband opened hood and oil was everywhere, and car would not start. It was towed to Honda Dublin, Ohio and they inspected. Stated the engine had a hole in it and rod bearing had overheated and shot out of the block destroying the engine. WHY ARE THERE NO RECALLS. THIS CAR IS A 2020 UNDER $100K NOTHING WAS WITH IT AND STILL OWE $18K YET CAN'T BE DRIVEN. HAS THERE BEEN ANY SOLUTIONS? [XXX] if anyone else has experienced this please email me on what the end result was please. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Honda Pilot AWD EX-L 2020 Engine Failure Incident Report October 5, 2024 Check Engine light went on 294 IL Tollway while traveling in left lane. Began to feel a slowing of the vehicle and just a wrong feeling, proceeded to move towards right lane in busy traffic and ~0.5 to 0.75 miles later check engine light started flashing as we proceeded to exit. Planned to make it to rest area or tollbooth but felt it was too far away; check engine light flashing, pulled over to shoulder short of the tollbooth. Shut down all extraneous items (radio, A/C) and pushed the ignition button to turn off vehicle. Could hear some clanking sounds (which we have later researched and found audio/video of mechanics speaking about oil pump failure and loud clanking sounds, which was exactly what we heard).Vehicle didn’t seem to respond (not shutting off), pushed button again and now several red light warnings popped up in succession, these are the ones I recall seeing: (Oil pressure low and Low oil), I believe there were others, but they were cycling fast and didn’t put them to memory, but clearly the codes had been unleashed. Pushed button again and engine shut down. Opened hood and checked oil and did see oil on the dipstick (though level was not clear, seemed to have oil on upper and lower part of reading area, but not in the middle); Called dealer and agreed sounded like an oil pump failure, which in theory could mean there is still plenty of oil in the engine and moving to a safe location. Attempted to start engine again and it struggled and didn’t really start, had a clanking sound again, so hit the button to shut it off for good; and called for tow. Diagnosed with engine failure, quoted replacement $16k, negotiated after documentation and provided good will from Honda with deductible out of pocket $4917.75. Upon posting of investigation now approaching Honda Corporate for reimbursement request.

Engine developed a knocking, then started to sputter and ultimately stalled. No codes showed. Sent to dealership, they said I need a new engine, but could not tell me why. Again No codes drove car for 1 day, engine completely failed.

Piston rod blew out the side of the motor, was checked out at the Honda Dealership. My young daughter and friend were driving when it happened, which could have been bad. Dealer confirmed motor blown. I'm not sure if this was inspected by the manufacturer, but the dealer looked at it. There was no warning whatsoever prior to motor blowing.

The vehicle had an engine bearing rod failure but was not included in the 23V-751 recall. The repair is covered under warranty but because there is no recall, I have to pay for car rental myself and the repair could take weeks to months.

Approaching a 4 way intersection and traffic lights. I applied my brakes to stop as the light turned red. With my right foot on the brake and the engine stopped while waiting for light to change. When the light turned green, I took my foot off the brake and started to press the gas pedal to continue traveling out of the intersection. The engine did not restart and I looked at the dash and saw my indicators were on and the transmission had gone into neutral mode. I tried repeatedly to get the car to engage into drive mode with no success. A 18 wheeler behind me started to lay on his horn to get me to move. I tried to get my transmission to engage in drive again, then park but nothing happened. I had no control. I next put my hazard lights on. The only thing I could think to do in this situation was to try to shut off the car by pressing the start/stop button. All the cabin lights and indicators went dark. I then prayed as the vehicles behind me and around me blared their horns and tried to get around me. Thank God, when I pressed the start button I heard he engine start and my indicator lights came on and I was in park. I pressed the drive mode and was finally able to get out of the busy intersection. I continued on my way without any other problems.

Started experiencing engine hesitation while driving during May, 2024. Dealer refused to accept that it is not related to the Recall (2016-21 Pilot Fuel Pump Mtr Saf Recall Exp2 NHTSA Recall Number23V-858), instead suggested for a fuel injector cleanup. I ended up spending $500 because my wife and kids drive this vehicle, I want them to be safe. Now, the problem is occurring again after a 3 months. What should I do?

idle-stop system fails to restart the engine when I release the brake pedal, the vehicle inoperable and undriveable wherever it comes to a stop—whether at a red light or stop sign, in the middle of a busy intersection, or on a highway entrance ramp. I have to wait a minute of two before I can restart my vehicle.

Car shuts off when going into idle when at a traffic stop or in traffic. Does not restart. Completely shuts off goes into neutral then park and have to press brake and start the car again. Has happens 4 times in last 2 weeks.

On August 12th, 2024, we were driving North on New Jersey Turnpike at 65mph surrounded by traffic when the vehicle suddenly and unexpectedly stalled (no dashboard warning lights or system messages prior, nor any signs while driving prior). The surrounding cars were unaware of this mechanical failure and thus it created an extremely dangerous situation for all on the highway. Fortunately, I was able to navigate safely to the side of the highway without incident. Having towed it to the nearest Honda dealer, they diagnosed the root cause to be seized timing belt idler pulleys, causing the engine to lose timing and stall. This failure also resulted in damage to the cylinder heads, valves and associated components. While the dealer has repaired all of this damage under warranty, they have not adequately justified how or why these components failed extremely prematurely (4 year old vehicle with 35k miles). Additionally, Honda has not provided reimbursement for the resulting expenses incurred - hotel, rental car, towing, etc.

The car goes into neutral automatically when idle. It then needs to be shut down and restarted. This happens in traffic at a light or intersection. Although, I received the idle stop start recall software update the issue persists. The dealer was unable to reproduce the issue and there were no codes when diagnosed.

When the vehicle comes to a stop and the auto-engine-start-stop feature is engaged, the vehicle will shift itself into neutral and will not disengage until you shut off the vehicle and turn it back on.

My fiancé and children were driving our 2020 Honda pilot on May 2, 2024 when she started hearing a clunking noise and the vehicle, lost power as she was driving on interstate 70 she was able to get the vehicle to the side of the road safely, but the Indian was making loud clocking grinding sound with very little power to move This was very unsafe in a scary situation for her and the kids The car is not safe to drive like this

Since I bought the car in 2019, Movie CD does not work all the time. Fixed once. Automatic emergency breaking. It does not stop. Have taken it to the dealership at least 4 times and they say they are not able to replicate the problem. Set the cruise speed control and it does not work. Currently not working for over a month. The engine transmission does not stop the car and if it does work the car does not stop totally and car jumps 2-3 feet while foot is on brake. Dealership say they can not duplicate the problem.

Auto high bean is not working and no sign of auto( headlight on with letter A) on dashboard is not show. Trying to reset by holding high beam for 40 seconds still not working ( only blinking once), meaning still not working. That problem had after came back from recall on cracking sound inside speakers. Recently brought the car to Honda Beltsville, MD on January 15, 2024 about when stopping at traffic light when pressed the brakes hard the auto on/off engine is not working. Message on dashboard show that( the auto engine idle stop unavailable ). With my vehicle had 2 problems 1- light is not working on auto high beam and no sign on of auto headlight with letter A showing on dashboard. 2- auto on/off is still not working when stop at traffic light( Auto engine idle stop unavailable) massage on dashboard Please check this out, thank you.

While driving the vehicle, it would randomly lose power. This has occurred 6 times in the last 7 months. All of them at an Interstate. Each occurrence has happened when the vehicle has been driven 2 or more hours. While driving, all of a sudden the gas pedal would not produce any power. IE. Could be driving 70 mph, then all of a sudden the gas pedal would stop responding. Each occurrence, would have to pump the gas pedal (1-3x). Eventually the power would kick on and the vehicle would go, sometimes launch you as if the gas pedal is being ‘floored’. After which, the vehicle drives normal again. However, there’s no certain moment to know when the power would cease. It could happen at any time.

On four (4) separate incidents, my car has either abruptly stopped running (waiting at a stoplight) or not been able to start. When I push the Engine Start/ Stop button to restart the car, it does not start and several random warning and dashboard lights flash on and off like crazy. These incidents occurred twice before the recall was fixed and twice AFTER the recall was (supposedly) fixed. Please help as I don’t want to be stranded AGAIN! This car is only a few years old. Thank you

When stopping at a red light, my vehicle completely shut off (engine stopped, all lights went out, radio went blank) for a few seconds. The car turned back on (except for the engine). I was able to restart the engine after about 10 seconds, but I was stuck in the middle of traffic. I disabled the engine idol-stop feature.

The engine failed to start after being stopped at a red light. I engaged the gas and the entire car just shut down. I was stuck at the light in the middle lane with cars honking all around me. I attempted to put the car in drive, neutral, park and nothing worked. Somehow I was able to restart the car after many cycles of the light. This came out of nowhere; i.e. - it's never happened to me prior and is a HUGE safety issue. After doing some research, it seems this is an issue many Honda owners are complaining about. The incident occurred to me just as many others are detailing the exact same issue. To date, no one has inspected the vehicle but an appointment with the dealership has been made. There were no warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms prior to this occurring.

Honda Auto-Idle Start/Stop system does not restart. Auto-Idle system will engage and sometimes not restart. This happens while at intersections (red lights/stop signs) and in traffic. Vehicle cuts off and can take several minutes to get the vehicle to turn back on. When it happens, it puts my safety at risk, along with any passengers, and any other vehicles nearby that might not notice my vehicle is disabled. Dealer is unable to replicate the issue. Honda America is aware of the issue. First occurrence 9/17/2022. 6/24/2023, 7/19/2023, 8/16/2023, 8/23/2023 all additional occurrences of same issue. Several of these I have video evidence of.

I was stopped at a stop light with my auto-idle system engaged. When the light turned to green the auto-idle would not disengage leaving me stalled in traffic. When I pressed on the gas I got an error message about the 'anti-collision system' being offline. I had to restart the car to resolve the issue. The dealer/service center states no known issues.

When auto start/stop feature engages at times vehicle does not restart and will not restart. This has happened 5-6 times in heavy traffic leaving the car dead in the middle of the road until we repeatedly try to reset and restart.

July 21,2023 Pulled of highway and car went idle at a light car turned off completely and didnt turn on car turned on after 2 minutes. August 13, same situation happened car didnt turn on for 3 minutes. In May car was serviced forr idle recall and I never had this issue until now. The dealer says its a weak battery. But it only happened when it was on idle and not when I turn it on. I had kids in the car and just got off highway. I could have had an accident. The 2nd time it happened it said to put the car in park and restart the car. There were no issues prior to the failure.

The stop/start function for the engine engaged 3 times now when stopped at a stop sign on a hill incline. When I released the break for the car to start back up, the car went into neutral and shut off. I immediately put my foot back on the break so I did not roll backwards into another vehicle. This has happened 3 times now with near collisions so I am trying to drive with the feature turned off which is an inconvenience to turn it off every time I start the vehicle.

Car completely shut down while in drive. Towed to dealership where I was told there was a software update that needed to be done. Car working fine now.

The Auto Idle Stop system was engaged at a red light after exiting an expressway. When the light turned green, and I removed my foot from the brake, the transmission moved to neutral, and the engine would not start up again. I was unsuccessful in getting the car to start again by either pushing the start/stop button or adjusting the transmission to park. The battery indicator light was illuminated during this process, but no other errors were displayed. I connected a battery-powered jump starter within 3-5 minutes of the failure, and the vehicle started on the first attempt. The Auto Idle Stop system had worked as expected earlier in the drive and there were no other indications of any issues with the vehicle prior to the incident. My entire family's safety was at serious risk since we were stalled on a busy 6 lane road with no ability to move the vehicle to the shoulder and I had to avoid traffic to get to the trunk and under the hood and spend time connecting the jump starter and subsequently attempting to start the vehicle. We are yet to bring the vehicle to the dealership for inspection.

One six different occasions the vehicle has shut off while sitting at a red light. On four of the occasions I had the auto off but disengaged. When foot removed from brake car shuts down, dash lights up with every indicator light and a message to shift to park and restart. It takes about three minutes with repeated attempts to engage park to get the vehicle to restart. Dealer service has performed a “computer update” that was suppose to fix. Incident still occurring, more frequently. Taking car back to dealer again.

My Honda Pilot when in the start/stop idle mode is completely stalling at stop lights. in these cases, I’m having to put the car in park, hit the button to turn it off, turn it back on, which takes up to 30 seconds and then I’m able to put it in drive. I can turn off the automatic idle, but it has to be done every time I get in and turn it on so it’s easy to forget. This is a safety concern for myself, my children, my spouse, and others on the road

My 2020 Honda Pilot Touring was not starting the engine back up after stopping at the traffic light and having the start/stop system stop the engine. I took my car to the dealer, and they disabled the start/stop system. This temporarily resolved the issue. But if a recall is issued for this problem, I’d like to have my start/stop system fixed, since it is part of the emissions system. Thanks, Carlos.

We parked the vehicle in a hospital parking structure in order to meet an appointment at the hospital. We were in the hospital for about an hour or so when we headed back to the vehicle in the parking garage. We were stopped from getting there because of police and fire trucks. Then we got a call from the local police on our cell phone, telling us that our vehicle was on fire. We couldn't get into the parking structure because no one was allowed, but we did get to talk to the police and some fire personnel. Apparently, the parking structure had its own sprinkler system which was able to keep the fire under control until fire trucks and personnel arrived. The vehicle was a total loss, as per the insurance appraiser and our insurance company.

While driving with auto-idle on the car, I stopped at the red light on the left lane by stepping on the break and Auto-idle comes on and the engine stopped while continue to step on the break. When the green lights comes back on, I release the break, but the car completely shut down and require me to power off the car completely and push the start button on the car again. It took a few tries for the car to start. All while there were trucks passing by and cars behind me are honking at me for stopping at a Green light, by the time I got the car to start again, the light turned RED again. I feel like it is very dangerous for me as all the cars behind had to go around me to continue their way, as result, accidents can easily cause because cars on the right side are driving faster than the left lane and cars in the left lane had to move to the right lane in order to continue. With more blind spots on the right of all cars, it is more dangerous to shift lanes where right lane are going faster.

Issue with auto start-stop. Upon being stopped at a light, the auto start did not reengage and upon starting back up again the radio defaulted to an AM station and would not allow us to change anything.

The engine completely shut down in the middle of the road after driving with auto Idle ON after stopping due to traffic. The car's engine would not restart. I had to shut down the car completely to have engine on again. (push the start/stop button to shut it down, and then to start it again). This was during a busy traffic and resulted in cars cutting in to my lane when I had to wait for the car to restart. This has happen a few times on the street as well, when stopping for RED light, but the engine does not auto-start again when ready to drive on GREEN light. Note that, this feature of auto-idle come auto start every time the car starts unless you manually turn it off. I feel like this can be dangerous and can result in accidents due to the fact that the car stopped completely while others might expect you to move as the light change/ traffic free up ahead.

There is a popping and crackling sound that comes from the speakers whether it is on or off. When this occurs the infotainment system, rear entertainment system, and blue tooth stops working. This happens every single time the vehicle is used. This causes distracting driving because the noises happen all of a sudden when driving. Second problem-the car seems to shut off and turn back on by itself after pressing the gas when its on auto idle shut off. For a few seconds when I let go of the brake peddle, instead of turning on from the auto idle shut off it just shuts off, then I press the gas and it turns on. It has done this several times that it is concerning and I fear it can cause an accident if it moves forward when I think it shut off on its own.

The Honda Auto Start Stop system has been taxing my battery through daily use and creates unsafe situations. On more than one occasion, similar to the following, I have experienced the Honda Pilot stop the engine via the A.S.S. System. Upon releasing the brake, the system attempts, but fails, to come to ignition and the electrical system lacks the ability to start the engine, creating a need to re-start (or attempt restart). On 1 such occasion, my family was traveling through a city on the interstate. After driving on the interstate for a few hours we came to a stop light and stopped. At the green light, upon releasing the brake, the Honda Pilot attempted to start again and failed. The car went completely dead in the middle of a 4 lane interstate with my family inside. The car did not start again until the 3rd time attempting to restart the vehicle. Approximately 10 seconds later than intended, we were able to clear our vehicle from the interstate intersection. On normal occasions, such as the course of business with the Honda A.S.S. System, driving in situations that would be categorized as "start/Stop" situations, the Honda A.S.S. System leads to stalled response and delayed lurching into traffic creating situations due to the delay in response. Multiple times this has been reported to my dealer. They acknowledge it as a "Battery" problem. They test my battery per HONDA WARRANTY and tell me it "Passes". They basically are just charging my battery and sending me out the door. The time between vehicle events is decreasing. Please help address this obvious vehicle shortcoming. There is no permanent means to disable it. Thank you.

When stopped at a traffic light my Pilot's engine stops because of the fuel conservation feature of the car. The engine is supposed to restart when I take my foot off the brake. However, 4 or 5 times in the last month the engine did not restart. A message would flash that my car is in neutral (I did not put it in neutral) and that I needed to shift to park. Once I put it in park I have to hit the start/stop button several times to get the engine to restart. The radio becomes inoperable during all of this and even after I eventually get the engine to start again. The radio is inoperable until I drive, park the car, shut it off and restart it. This is a major hazard to me and my family. My car has stalled in city traffic and it takes a few minutes to get it restarted. I'm concerned that this could cause an accident at some point. My Honda dealership is not aware of this problem or how to fix it. I found that there is an open investigation with Honda and the NHTSA. I hope this can be fixed soon.

Stop/start system shutdown the engine and failed to restart while at stop light. It occurred twice on 9/8/2022 and twice on 9/9/2022.

I have owned the 2020 Honda Pilot Touring since Jan.2021. 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. My 2020 Honda Pilot has shut off a few times while stopping at a red light. Each time has been after coming to a complete stop at a red light and sitting there for a couple minutes. Suddenly there is a beep sound and the engine shuts down. Only the entertainment system is left on. The gear changes to N by itself and I am unable to change it to any other gear. With my foot on the brake, trying to change the gear and trying turn off the car for about 3 minute in the middle of traffic with my kids in the car, eventually I was able to shut off the engine completely off. I immediately try restart the car to avoid a car accident. It put itself in N (neural) and the dashboard screen said “Put it in P (Park) and hit bottom to restart car.” The car wouldn’t let me push anything. The power button did nothing and even if you pushed the P for park it stayed in N. The battery light immediately came on when this happened also. And went away as soon as it worked again. I scheduled an appointment after the third time the this happen leaving the car for them to run tests. They ran the tests and when I returned to pick it up, the technician said they tested the battery, wiring, and engine and that everything was good. Nothing was provided to me but they did show me the report as they talked about the results I am sure I can obtain if requested. They almost changed me for the testing but waived the fee which I was thankful. I am concerned and at times scared for the safety of my kids and I. I really hope Honda finds a fix for this and recalls for whatever the issues are as quickly as possible. I like the car but it really is making me want to get a new car and never purchase from Honda again.

I understand there may be an investigation of Honda's stop-start system, the system which is meant to improve fuel economy by shutting the engine off when the vehicle comes to a stop. I experienced this one (1) time while stopping at a traffic light, date unknown. The engine went off, as it was supposed to, but when I took my foot off the brake and pressed on the accelerator nothing happened, the engine had not restarted. I attempted to restart the car by pressing on the start button but since I was in Drive it wouldn't start. I think I tried to shift the transmission into Park (it's been several months since the incident) but I'm not sure if it shifted or not. I turned the car off by pressing the start button, waited briefly and then pressed the start button again to start, which it did. I shifted into drive and pulled away. That was a long time, probably not as long as it seemed, sitting at the light as others were going around me or blowing their horn at me. I have not had any further incidents since that time but wanted to register this one with you.

I can't remember if I reported this already but here goes. My daughter was driving my 2020 Honda Pilot with 41,400 miles on it. She had baby in the back and was in slow traffic in Millsboro Delaware. She thought she smelled something burning. Then she got out of the vehicle, took the baby out and called 911. Fire started coming out of the engine compartment and the vehicle totally burned up.

My 2020 Honda Pilot (Touring edition) has begun having a rough restart after stopping and the Auto Engine Idle function has turned the engine off. Once it seemed to turn the vehicle off and the radio turned off and back on quickly. I've read about the investigation into Pilots with this issue and wanted to add my car to those that are affected. I called the dealership where I bought the car and explained the issue to a service technician and he indicated that he'd never heard of the issue. Since it just started having the issue in the last couple of weeks and so far it happens intermittently, I haven't taken it into the service department yet.

The contact owns a 2020 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while his daughter was driving at an unknown speed when she smelled an odor of smoke coming from the vehicle, then she noticed fire coming from the vehicle. She was able to exit the vehicle safely as it started to burn. The fire department was able to extinguish the fire. No one was injured, and a police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a Collision center. The manufacturer was contacted, and a complaint was filed. The failure mileage was 42,000.

Mileage: 42,000

Vehicle has died when at a stop light, would not automatically restart. Days later the vehicle’s electrical system would not allow the car to start, many code warnings on display. Have had it towed. Battery would not jump and vehicle would not shift into neutral. Found out it needed a specialized tool only the Honda service had.

died and switched into neutral by itself, wouldnt start or switch into drive mode- in the middle of a busy intersection! it was scary and dangerous trunk doesn't open/close properly Infotainment center dies unexpectedly, freezes, won't restart on it's own. Have to pull over and restart car a few times or let the car sit off for a while speakers crackle at random times Took the car numerous times to Marin Honda, the computer they plug the car into showed "no codes" so they said there wasn't an issue. No warning lights of any kind. electrical just shuts down

Upon acceleration up a hill of speeds 10 mph -25 mph the transmission "lurches" causing the RPM to jog up and down. While traveling the speeds of 35 mph - 60 mph, regardless of being on flat ground or not, the transmission has the same "slipping" and "lurching" feeling while jogging the Rpm up and down (can happen on cruise control as well). Both incidents will shake the honda pilot. These incidents havae increased in frequency and intensified in sensation.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

My 2020 Honda Pilot has stalled 4 times in the past two weeks after the auto engine idle occurs at a red light. The engine will shut off automatically, but when I lift my foot from the brake, the car engine does not turn back on, and the car shifts into park, and acts as if stalled. In order to get the car to restart, I have to power down completely, open the driver side door(!!!) and “reset” the whole system before I can apply the brake and press the ignition button. Even then a couple of times it doesn’t start for me doing that, and I have to cycle through the entire process a second time. This happened to me with my 3 children in the car twice on very busy (50mph) roads, and is incredibly dangerous. The second major issue I have noticed, but less frequently (about 3-4 times in the past 6 months), is that the auto braking system will randomly alert and apply the brakes while I’m driving down a straight road with no traffic in front of me! Needless to say, terrifying. This thankfully only lasts a few seconds before I regain control of the car, but also incredibly dangerous. I am scheduling service with Honda to evaluate ASAP, but I have read *many* accounts of the exact same problem online and every single person says Honda has never been able to find any cause. Some say replacing the battery helps, others say the stalling issue remains after battery replacement. If we can’t solve this problem, or have the auto engine idle completely and permanently disabled, I will be selling this car very soon. 16,104 miles driven as of today.

I'VE TAKEN MY VEHICLE IN 4 TIMES NOW FOR ELECTRICAL ISSUES AND THE SENSORS RANDOMLY GOING OFF. TODAY WHILE DRIVING, I GOT A NOTIFICATION OF AN ENGINE SYSTEM PROBLEM AS WELL AS AN EMISSIONS FAILURE AND AWD FAILURE. I PURCHASED MY VEHICLE BRAND NEW FROM THE DEALERSHIP AND THIS WILL NOW BE THE 5TH TIME GOING IN FOR ELECTRICAL ISSUES AND NOW WHATEVER THIS ENGINE FAILURE IS. THE DEALERSHIP IS CLOSED RIGHT NOW SO I DO NOT HAVE A FULL DIAGNOSIS BUT THE WARNING ON THE SCREEN TELLS ME TO LIMIT DRIVING AND KEEP THE CAR OFF DUE TO POTENTIAL FIRE. THIS SHOULD ABSOLUTELY BE INVESTIGATED.

Mileage: 8,300

PURCHASED MY 2020 PILOT ON 12/30/2019 IN FRESNO, CA. RECENTLY THIS MONTH DECEMBER 2020, I STARTED HEARING A CRACKING AND POPPING NOISE FROM THE SPEAKERS. THE POPPING NOISE HAPPENS WHETHER OR NOT MUSIC IS ON. I ALSO STARTED HEARING THIS WEIRD NOISE THAT ALMOST SOUNDED LIKE THERE WAS A COMPRESSOR IN MY VEHICLE. I DID SOME RESEARCH ON SEVERAL HONDA PILOT THREADS AND IT SEEMS TO BE THE AC COMPRESSOR AND THE SPEAKERS. APPARENTLY THE WIRING HARNESS NEEDS TO BE CHANGED. I'VE LOOKED OVER THE NHTSA WEBSITE AND SEEN MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS REGARDING THE SPEAKERS POPPING ISSUE. I HAVE NOT TAKEN MY VEHICLE TO THE DEALER YET, I DONT COMPLETELY TRUST DEALERSHIP SERVICE CENTERS AND THEY PREY ON CUSTOMERS AND OVER CHARGE AND MAKE YOU THINK THERE'S OTHER THINGS WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. I LIKE TO DO MY RESEARCH PRIOR TO TAKING MY CARS TO ANY REPAIR SHOPS. I ALSO VIDEO AND VOICE RECORDED ALL THE WEIRD SOUNDS THAT THE PILOT IS MAKING. HONDA NEEDS TO FIX THIS, IF THIS IN FACT IS A WIRING ISSUE, THIS CAN POSSIBLY CAUSE A SHORT OUT THUS A SAFETY ISSUE. I WILL BE PRINTING OUT SEVERAL OF THESE COMPLAINTS AND SHOWING THEM TO THE DEALER BEFORE THEY TRY TO SWINDLE ME OUT OF AN EXCESS AMOUNT OF MONEY. ALTHOUGH SINCE IT HASN'T EVEN BEEN A YEAR MY VEHICLE SHOULD BE UNDER WARRANTY.

Mileage: 15,000

BRAKES ARE TOO LOW AND SOFT.IDLING IS ROUGH DURING COLD START.I BROUGHT TO THE DEALER LAST SEPTEMBER 28,2020 BUT DEALER DID NOTHING.TECHNICIAN SAID THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH IT.THE DEALER IS HOLLER HONDA IN ORLANDO FLORIDA.THIS IS MY FOURTH HONDA AND ONLY EXPERIENCE THIS.BRAKES ARE LIKE THAT ALL THE TIME.ALWAYS STOPPING TOO CLOSE TO THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME.

Mileage: 4,100

STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT WAITING TO MAKE A RIGHT TURN. AFTER TRAFFIC CLEARED PRESSED ON THE GAS AND CAR IMMEDIATELY STARTED REVVING REALLY LOUD. LOOKED AND IT SAID IT WAS AT 6000 RPM EVEN THOUGH I WAS BARELY TOUCHING THE GAS. THE CAR THEN STARTED DECREASING SPEED WITHOUT ME TAKING MY FOOT OFF THE GAS. I QUICKLY PULLED OFF THE ROAD AND IT WASN'T UNTIL I PUT THE CAR IN PARK THAT IT FINALLY STOPPED REVVING SO LOUD. I SHUT THE CAR OFF AND LET IT SIT FOR A FEW MINUTES BEFORE STARTING IT AGAIN AND DRIVING. IT THEN STARTED FLIPPING FROM SHOWING THE BLU-RAY INFO TO APPLE CARPLAY REPEATEDLY ON THE INFO SCREEN.

I GOT THIS CAR ONLY 1 WEEK; I HEARD THE NOISE FROM STEERING WHEEL AND THE PROBLEM WHEN I HIT GAS AND SHIFT THE TRANSMISSION. ON JULY 13, I DROP THE CAR TO FIX FOR 2 DAYS. THEN, ONLY 2 WEEK AFTER I HAVE EXPERIENCED CANNOT HIT GAS AND I CANNOT HIT THE BRAKES. THE ALL ENGINE LIGHT, BREAK LIGHT, TSA LIGHT AND OTHER 3 LIGHTS IS COMING. I HAVE TO TOW MY CAR TO DEALER SHOP. THIS CAR IS BAD CAR

Mileage: 3,000

BOUGHT NEW 2020 BLACK EDITION HONDA PILOT ON MAY 2,2020 WITH 11 MILES ON IT. IT CAUGHT ON FIRE ON 6/15/20 AFTER DRIVING ONLY 3 MILES I NOTICED A BAD BURNT SMELL AS I WAS ENTERING A PARKING GARAGE, NOT THINKING IT WAS MY CAR BECAUSE IT WAS NEW AND THERE WERE NO DISPLAY LIGHTS INDICATING ANYTHING. I THEN NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM MY HOOD ABOUT 30 SECONDS LATER. I IMMEDIATELY PARKED AND TURNED ENGINE OFF. GOT OUT OF VEHICLE TO SEE A FIRE BALL DROP FROM UNDER THE FRONT OF MY HOOD. THERE HAD BEEN NO PREVIOUS ALERTS ON THE CAR PANEL THAT ANYTHING WAS WRONG. WE HADN'T DRIVEN THIS CAR MUCH DUE TO COVID, PROBABLY ONLY HAD AROUND 400 MILES ON THE CAR. CAR FIRE IS BEING INVESTIGATED AS FAR AS I KNOW.

Mileage: 400