10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
11 / 0
Average Mileage:
875 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2020 Honda Odyssey miscellaneous problems

miscellaneous problem

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2020 Honda Odyssey Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #34

Jun 152024

Odyssey

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The Auto-Idle Engine system malfunctions constantly. For example, several times I almost got into dangerous or possibly fatal accidents- I was in stop and go traffic on an interstate. Traffic slowed to a stop. I held the brake. The engine idled. I took my foot off the break and moved it to the gas when the traffic abruptly restarted. The car stalled and shut down. The cars around me expected me to go and had to swerve around me while I desperately tried to restart. There is no way to set a default that the auto idle feature is off when I start the car. I have to remember to turn it off. This also happened at an on ramp with a stop light, I almost got rammed by the car behind me. This feature is a drain on the engine and battery and is dangerous when it is not working correctly. The default should be off or just not have it at all. Honda dealerships aren-??t willing to help me.

- Odenton, MD, USA

problem #33

Jun 192024

Odyssey

  • miles
The rear lift gate fails to hold in the up position, the powered lift gate subsequently and randomly closes on its own without any driver intervention. The powered lift gate closed on me while I was retrieving groceries, almost crushing me had I not forced it back up by force. This has happened multiple times and could be lethal to a child or even an adult. The vehicle only has 39, xxx miles and has been used lightly as a family vehicle. The vehicle is available for inspection by NHTSA officials. Additionally, I have seen other vehicles with the same problem video taped on YouTube. Such links can be provided to investigators. Honda should recall these vehicles and disable the automatic closing of the lift gate that is occurring without any driver intervention. It is beyond reasonable to assume this fault can be lethal or cause serious bodily injury.

- Dearborn, MI, USA

problem #32

Feb 122024

Odyssey

  • miles
Power tailgate module exposed to water due to manufacturer defect in sealing above module. causing various electrical systems to fail including safety features. I do have the damaged module. Tailgate opened and wouldn-??t close, when car in motion. Unable to use vehicle, the amount of electric items, due to fear brakes or transmission would fail while driving minivan full of young children Vehicle had warning light shortly after heavy rain. Was intermittent.

- Palmer , MA, USA

problem #31

Apr 142024

Odyssey

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Auto idle stop. When the auto idle stop is on, when the vehicle is stopped at a light or due to traffic the vehicle while in drive will completely turn off. Unable to hit the accelerator to move as designed. We have to restart the vehicle and sometimes it takes multiple restarts. Extremely unsafe since we are unable to keep up with traffic. It has happened multiple times without warning. We have to make sure make a point to keep the auto idle engine turned off, but when you turn the car on it is automatically turned on. Called Honda, no recalls on this issue.

- Henrico, VA, USA

problem #30

Mar 162024

Odyssey

  • miles
1. Issue: *Multiple (5+) warning lights on dash [i.e. road departure mitigation system problem, adaptive cruise control problem, lane keeping assist problem, auto high beam warning, collision mitigation system problem etc.] 2. Honda Dealer diagnosed & confirmed the issue as "multi purpose internal camera failure" 3. A failed camera affects safety related functionality which affects the safety of both driver and other drivers. 4. The issue first appeared March 16th, 2024

- Frisco, TX, USA

problem #29

Nov 072023

Odyssey

  • miles
A latch inside the driver door of the car broke and my husband was unable to exit the vehicle. There was no reason for this part to break, no collision or rough use of the door. We just drove from our home to our destination without incident and the door would not open when we arrived. The dealership had to replace the broken part.

- Sammamish, WA, USA

problem #28

Nov 032023

Odyssey

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The car stalled when stopped at a red traffic light. This happened on 2 occasions, 11-3-23 and 12-9-23. The second time other cars behind us had to go around us while we tried to restart the car which put them at risk of being hit by cars in the other lanes. There was no warning. I took the car in for regular maintenance a few days ago during which the dealership did a multi point inspection but did not discuss this issue. Yesterday I heard about the fuel pump recall and think this might be the same issue. I called the dealership today but they said our car is not under the recall. Our car is available for inspection upon request.

- Sanford, FL, USA

problem #27

Oct 042023

Odyssey

  • miles
Occasionaly car will not start of up after Idle Stop engages. Collision warning flashes then leaves us stranded in intersection. Very Danagerous.

- Coventry, CT, USA

problem #26

Mar 232023

Odyssey

  • miles
I have had 2 major issues, the idle stop feature has multiple times caused my car to stall. It has even happened on the highway during traffic where the car went into idle-stop mode and would not restart the engine. Last week it happened again on a major road and the only way to restart the car is shift to park in the middle of a busy 4 lane road, turn off the car completely and then attempt a restart. The other issue was with the rear sliding door, my 3 year old son closed the automatic sliding door by pressing the button and his hand was crushed/ stuck until I was able to reopen it. I have called Honda who told me I could have it looked at but it would cost me for the diagnostic and repair if needed due to the fact that it was one month past their 3 year warranty period.

- Cedarhurst, NY, USA

problem #25

Sep 072023

Odyssey

  • miles
my rear entertainment does not show dvds playing however when I Insert a dvd I hear audio but the bluray rear entertainment appears to be stuck in loading setting and does not show a picture. Honda said there is a recall for this issue however My vehicle is not listing the recall. It is distracting to the driver and passengers causing stress.

- Wilmington, NC, USA

problem #24

Aug 212023

Odyssey

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I believe the idle start stop malfunctioned. The three times this has happened, I have been at a stop light and when I released the break and attempted to accelerate, my car turned off. It took several tries to get the car started and I felt very unsafe. In researching online I've discovered that I am not alone and am concerned that Honda hasn't had a recall to address the problem. Are they waiting for someone to die or be severely injured before addressing the issue?

- Midlothian, VA, USA

problem #23

Jul 312023

Odyssey

  • miles
The right-side sliding door for the rear seat row has a recurring malfunction. When the vehicle is locked and not running the sliding door will open a small bit, all by itself. It will remain stuck in this position and the electrical sliding door mechanism will not operate it. No one can exit or enter the vehicle using that door. The door can be forced to the full open position with substantial exertion by an adult male. It will then close and the electrical opening/closing mechanism will work alright for some time until the problem occurs again. This vehicle is available for inspection upon request. The vehicle dealer service department said they had seen this problem before in other vehicles. This component of my vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, or others. When this problem occurs, a warning message is displayed on the vehicle electronic dashboard saying "Right sliding door problem."

- Arlington, VA, USA

problem #22

Jul 092023

Odyssey

  • miles
When at a stop light at a busy intersection the idle stop feature would not restart the engine. The vehicle became stalled in the middle of traffic and I could not restart the vehicle for approximately 8 minutes. A transmission failure warning came on the screen and I was unable to operate anything in the vehicle. This could have caused me to be hit by oncoming traffic or rear ended. The vehicle has been inspected by the dealer and they were unable to reproduce the problem. This has happened a total of 3 times within the last 3 months.

- Morris, IL, USA

problem #21

Jul 012023

Odyssey

  • miles
I purchased my 2020 Honda Odyssey 3 months ago. We did notice that part number 72650-THR-A12 the rear door latch was carroded. The dealer had told me not to be concerned. Well I have been unable to drive my vehicle because I am waiting for that part which is on national backorder. The incident happened two weeks ago my sliding door opened while driving with my kids in the car. I had to pull over to try to close it I thought it was a fluke. Turns out I couldn't get it to stay closed. I had to drive it back home with the warning lights that my door is open. I can't get it to close at all or lock the vehicle while driving. There should be no reason why the inside of my door is all rusted and carroded. Not sure how water is getting in there. This leads to a failed door latch which then leads to the sliding door malfunction. The part is on backorder which makes me think that there are many other people experiencing the same problem.

- Webster, NY, USA

problem #20

Jun 042023

Odyssey

  • miles
While driving down the interstate the van went in Neutral and a message appeared on the screen that it was in Neutral, pull over when it is safe. The lights on the dash dimmed and no other message or warnings appeared. As I pulled off the interstate I was unable to use the brakes. We tried to put the van back in Drive but was not successful. We were able to get the vehicle in park and come to a stop. I turned it off and back on. No other messages appeared. The vehicle drove as expected and brakes worked.

- Millport, AL, USA

problem #19

Apr 012023

Odyssey

  • miles
While driving the infotainment system will go completely out. When this happens you lose all additional safety features (back up camera, lane notifications, etc). This also becomes a distraction to the driver as when the system goes out it make a loud noise or will have a continued crackling noise which is highly distracting to the driver. I have seen a number of complaints online about this issue and have experienced the outages almost daily while driving the vehicle.

- Marshall, VA, USA

problem #18

Dec 212022

Odyssey

  • miles
Stopped at red light. System to stop the engine to save fuel engaged. When light turned green the car would not restart, stranding the vehicle at the intersection.

- Kensington , MD, USA

problem #17

Mar 222023

Odyssey

  • miles
Auto engine idle shut off issue and yes it is available for inspection. Upon exiting stop/start events(auto shut off at stop signs/lights/parking lots), engine does not restart. instead, it shifts into park, lights up all instruments on display panel, and requires a manual restart. vehicle is dead until restarted, posing a hazard to occupants/oncoming traffic. This has happened to me 3 times over the last two weeks. Didn't document date of 1st incident. 2nd incident was 3/22/23. 3rd incident was 3/25/2023. Immediately taken to dealer service center for repair. Dealer told us they couldn-??t replicate the issue, that there are no codes, and no service advisories. We were told there was nothing they could do and to just turn off the feature when driving. The only one to inspect the vehicle was the dealer service center. No warning at all. Car just doesn't start and driver is left sitting and helpless in active traffic until the car can be restarted.

- Spring, TX, USA

problem #16

Jan 182023

Odyssey

  • miles
On 18 January 2023 the tailgate on our 2020 Odyssey refused to open. Neither the inside switch nor the outside switch does anything. I crawled in the back and checked the fuses and both are good. I also discovered that the emergency tailgate release did not function. Took it to the dealer, Greenway Honda in Florence, Alabama, an hour from home, and they weren't able to find the fault with a cursory check and a reboot of whatever computer system is applicable. They said they need to keep it for at least a half day and "really tear into it." But we could not leave the vehicle at that time, having no transportation home. Eventual diagnosis determined the tailgate control module, the tailgate closure motor, and the tailgate latch had all failed. Parts were on backorder and no estimate on availability. After I contacted Honda corporate the parts suddenly became available at the dealership within a few days. Repairs were effected on 27 February at Greenway Honda, Florence, Alabama. We were without the full use of our vehicle for approximately six weeks. Occupants could become trapped in the vehicle if the front doors were disabled in a collision and electrical power was lost, rendering the sliding doors and the tailgate inoperative. The emergency release lever also would not function and this could trap occupants completely. Examination of the tailgate electronic control module shows water infiltration which conceivably shorted the closure motor and jammed the latch, making it impossible to open the tailgate. Photos of the failed electronic module were provided to the dealership and to Honda corporate. The failed parts are in my possession and are available for inspection.

- Lawrenceburg, TN, USA

problem #15

Jan 292023

Odyssey

  • miles
My backup camera is displaying system failure. It is not working. Makes Backing up less safe I contacted a dealer and was told my vehicle is NOT in the recall There was no inspection. It was working when I left the house. And stopped work before I got home. No other warning or other symptoms of the problem.

- Decatur, IN, USA

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