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.
I've just brought my 2005 Honda Pilot in to the Honda dealer to have the recall fixed but now it seems like the random breaking with the vsa on is more frequent after the fixed. The recall for the Honda Pilot 2005 with the vsa did not fix my vsa trouble. The trouble I getting is still the same after the fixed. "if the control unit was damaged, the vsa system may apply a small amount of breaking force even if the driver has not pressed the brake pedal."
The brakes suddenly applied while cruising along the interstate at 75mph. The vehicle was able to be directed off the road then the brakes locked up and vehicle would not go forward. Vsa light came on. This happened several times later at lower speeds and the brakes would lock up and vsa light would come on. Mechanics could not determine the problem, since it was an intermittent problem. Honda dealer told me that no recalls or alerts were on vehicle. The front brake rotors were machined in Feb 2012 because they were "warped" and then had to be replaced a year later because the brakes were pulsating. Since Nov. 2009 I have had to machine the rear brake rotors that were "warped" twice. I am now using the vehicle with the vsa off.
While exiting a driveway at approximately 5 miles per hour the brakes locked without the driver applying pressure. The driver was able to get the vehicle to the center painted median with extra gas and still under unwanted braking. Once the car came to a complete stop for 30 seconds or so the brakes released. The driver then drove the vehicle at a slow speed along the curb to our house within 2 miles. It's now parked as we are afraid to drive it. A call to metro Honda in montclair was of no assistance. They said my vehicle was not effected by the recent Honda recall on the issue. The vsa light remains illuminated as well as the system warning light.
While driving I went to apply my brakes to begin slowing down, I only applied a very small amount of pressure when a grinding noise started and lasted only a few seconds then a slight jerk as if my car was braking on its own and then a warning light turned on (exclamation inside a triangle and the vsa letters appeared) this stayed on until I turned off the car. This has occurred now 4 times. Fortunately I only have to drive 5 miles to work. Firstly, I am afraid to drive any distance especially on the highway should this get worse and secondly I have grandkids that I Transport and am concerned that I could possibly be putting their lives in jeopardy!! I do hope that something is done or a recall is made so that this can be fixed.
Long story but I believe it is all related. Based on my understanding the anti-lock brake system and vsa are all part of the same system in a 2005 Honda Pilot. We were having a "noise" that was believed to be caused by a random anti-lock brake system self check. This would happen at any speed and appeared to be activated by any small bump in the road. This was more of a nuisance than anything but we thought we would have the dealership look into it. More on this later. In addition we also had the vehicle stability assist (vsa) engage once and the results were a little scary or violent at best. The problem occurred when traveling at approximately 70 mph under windy conditions. The vsa system engaged, the brakes were heavily applied, and the vehicle was put into a control mode that pulled the vehicle left and right. We had very limited control of the vehicle when all of this was happening. We were able to pull the vehicle over without incident and deactivate the vsa to finish our trip. What our dealership found was a cracked electrical connector on the main engine wiring harness where it connects to the anti-lock brake and vsa module. The connector is located under the engine shroud in an area that isn't accessible during normal or routine maintenance and we have never had any service done on anything in this area. Our guess is that it was cracked during the original installation or it fatigued over time. The Honda technician thought the root cause of the problem was moisture entering the control module via the damaged connector. This in turn caused damage to the printed circuit board that controls the braking and vsa system. We stopped investigating the repair at this point because of cost. It was over $2000 to get the harness and control module replaced. I wanted to share this because of all the recent news on 2005 Pilot.
- Bridgman, MI, USA
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First incident, my wife was driving approximately 45 mph when 2005 Honda Pilot began to vibrate and make a "groaning" noise or a noise almost like when you drive on a gravel road. 2005 Honda Pilot was also (while vibrating and making noise) abruptly slowing down/ stopping without depressing the brake pedal. It would also do this while applying the accelerator. Second incident was later that same day. I picked the 2005 Honda Pilot up from my wife as she was now to afraid to drive it. After about 10 mins of driving, I was doing about 55 mph and the 2005 Honda Pilot made the same noise and vibration as described above and also slowed down abruptly as if I hit the brakes(which I didn't). About another half mile was a traffic light as I began to slow down for light I applied the brakes gently and as I applied the brakes the brake pedal left my foot and the 2005 Honda Pilot came to an abrupt stop. This happened two more times so I pulled into a parking lot because I did not feel safe driving at that point. When I stopped in the parking lot I noticed my vsa indicator light was on. It would not turn off until I turned the 2005 Honda Pilot off. Same day I took my 2005 Honda Pilot to the local Honda dealership and they have not been able to reproduce the symptom.
Accelerating at relatively low speed, usually just after stopping, heard audible "pop" through car radio, ABS and emergency brake lights came on. Car braked rapidly, even though foot was on accelerator and not touching the brake pedal. Forced car to almost a complete stop. This same sequence of events happened three times within 30 minutes. Pulled car into parking lot and called Honda service dept. They had never heard of this happening and car was towed in to run diagnostics. Service dept drove car around for over three days and was unable to duplicate issue. They had some ideas to cause, but since they couldn't get it to repeat, could not fix anything.
While driving, airbag, (!), vsa, vtc and brake lights all lit up. Horn stopped working as did all controls from steering wheel (cruise, radio airbag light). I pulled over, everything seemed to work but lights would not turn off. Went to Honda in ft pierce, fl. Was told it's probably a low battery. Replaced battery, lights all stayed on. Contacted johnston Honda in stuart, fl. Head mechanic told me he had no idea what would cause this and if he ran it on diagnostics, it could take 8 hours at $80 an hour and he still may not find the problem. Brought this lemon to local mechanic who ran on diagnostics for 2 hours. Could not find problem so he did not charge. As almost all other complaints above, while driving at 35 to 40 the car starts to shudder as though it will turn off. Was told it's possibly defective motor mounts. I have contacted american Honda motor works in California with these issues and they essentially told me to 'gfy'. stated car is not their problem.
The contact owns a 2005 Honda Pilot. While driving approximately 40 mph, the vsa warning indicator illuminated and the brakes began to lock without applying any pressure to the pedal. The vehicle pulled to the left on its own and was then maneuvered to the side of the road. The engine was turned off and upon restarting, the vehicle resumed normally. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that a vsa trouble code was detected. The manufacturer was notified of the defect. The vehicle was also taken to an authorized dealer where a trouble code was not detected. The vehicle was not repaired. There was an open and closed investigation under NHTSA action number DP12002 (electronic stability control). A preliminary evaluation PE12-028 was opened. The approximate failure mileage was 90,000
The contact owned a 2005 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the driver was traveling at an unknown speed when the vehicle unexpectedly began to pull to the left before crashing into an oncoming vehicle. The driver and passenger were killed as a result of the impact. A police report was filed of the incident. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to a savage facility. The vehicle was inspected by an independent engineer and informed the contact that the failure was possibly related to a faulty electronic stability control. A defect petition was opened and closed under NHTSA action number DP12002 (electronic stability control). There was a concurrent investigation associated with NHTSA action number PE12-028 (electronic stability control) that could possibly have been related to the failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the incident or the defect. The failure mileage was unavailable...updated 02/25/13
I was driving under slightly wet conditions at a fairly low speed (approx. 25 - 30 mph) and the car seemed, momentarily, as if the left front tire had gone flat and an indicator light with a triangle and an exclamation point and the vsa light simultaneously came on. I pulled over, checked the tire, turned the car off, restarted it and everything was fine for the rest of that day. The next morning, I experienced the same thing after the car had sat all night. After turning it off and back on, the indicator and vsa lights were out, but then came back on less than 30 minutes later while idling. The weather conditions this day were cold, but dry. I made an appointment and took the car to leith Honda. I experienced the same condition while driving it to the dealer. The service advisor told me that there was no indication of a problem and the car's computer didn't indicate that the vsa had even been on. I picked the car up that night, after they had closed, and experienced the problem less than 15 minutes after I left the dealer. I then experienced it again the next day, after a cold start, and then again today, also after a cold start, but this time while idling. This is a scary and potentially dangerous situation and there are lots of reports about this problem floating around the internet. My particular experiences haven't been as bad (yet) as others have described, but the symptoms are the same (front brakes momentarily locking and steering pulling, in my case, to the left).
Vsa warning light and ! light come on at the same time when vehicle is in motion. Lights come on after approximately 5 minutes and stay on until the vehicle is turned off and restarted. This problem began about one month ago and happens almost every day. The warning lights seem sensitive to the cold as well. The on board diagnostic computer has no registered any malfunction codes. Fortunately have not yet experienced the intense braking of other owners but there seems to be a significant problem with the vsa system on 2005 Honda Pilot.
We recently purchased this car used from anderson Honda of palo alto. On several occasions the vsa has engaged for no apparent reason at speeds ranging from 10-35 mph. The vsa engaged at slow speeds when turning and at the faster speeds on the straight-A-way. When the vsa engages the vsa light and warning light turn on. The lights do go off after the car has been turned off and at rest for a few minutes. Most often when the vsa engages the car shudders slightly, both the brake and the gas pedal shudder and vibrate. The car feels like it is slowing momentarily. In the most recent episode on Nov. 27. the car was traveling 35 mph down hill and the steering pulled slightly to the left.
While driving on the highway at approximately 60 mph the brakes suddenly activated and the vehicle rapidly decelerated. Tires actually screeched due to the rapid deceleration. The brakes pulsed off and on until the vehicle came to a complete stop. Pressing and releasing the brake pedal had no effect. I turned off the car then re-started it and continued on with no further problem. If a car would have been behind me it certainly would have caused an accident as my vehicle stopped so abruptly I surely would have been rear-ended. I have owned this vehicle for 5 yrs and this has happened 5-6 times, the first time about 6 mos after I purchased the vehicle. The date here is the most recent incident. It has occurred at different speeds and happens when the brake pedal has not been touched. It is random and I have gone as long as a year between incidents. I have not yet taken it to a dealer because it is such a random occurrence and not possible to duplicate, and numerous accounts of this problem on-line indicate that Honda does not have a fix and does not acknowledge the problem. My experience is exactly as described in NHTSA action number DP12002 and PE12028.
While driving the braking system suddenly started to activate the anti-lock braking system, violently applying the brakes regardless of how hard or softly I touched the brake pedal. This anomaly has occurred multiple times without warning and for no apparent reason. I could not address this problem because it was unpredictable and went away when I would get the car to a safe place and turn off the key. It would no longer be happening, similar to rebooting a computer. No dash symptom lights would appear during these incidents. Please advise if I have any recourse with Honda since the vehicle is out of warranty. Reference NHTSA action number PE12028.
This problem began earlier in 2012 and was investigated by the dealer in June. While driving at various speeds (45-75mph), the vsa system engages, locking one wheel for a second or two, and pulling the steering wheel as if in a skid. When this stops, the vsa light is on as well as a yellow triangle with an exclamation point. When the dealer 'fixed' this in June, they repaired a TPMS sensor. They also found a brake caliper stuck and fixed that as well as replaced the brake pads. Since June the issue has not occurred until yesterday. It has happened at 3 times in the past 2 days, all at @ 45 mph. This seems to be a widely reported issue and is certainly a safety concern. When this happened in June on the interstate, traffic on both sides of me dropped back because they could tell I lost control of the car.
Approximate date I put was today, but this has happened several times to my spouse within the last few years. Today is the first time I had been able to duplicate it. I just started the car, pulled out of the driveway on my way to work. About 300 yards down the road at approximately 25 miles per hour the car braked on its own twice and stopped the car. I had to get to work so I continued on. It occurred two more times on my way to work. I was never going faster than 40 miles per hour. It happened once while I was braking and two times while I was at a coast. My wife just told me that it happened again to her as recently as 3 days ago. I am concerned obviously because of the safety aspect of this. I have 3 children and god forbid this happen on the freeway or at high speeds. I have seen multiple complaints on the internet of this same occurrence with the 2005 Honda Pilot and they all said to file a complaint with this site.
On three hot afternoons (around 75 degrees) the car repeatedly had problems - mostly when turning. It felt like the antilock brakes went on by themselves even though my foot was not on the brake. The car quickly slowed and made grinding noises. Most of the times that it happened, the stability control warning light came on. It felt and sounded similar to the way it stops on icy roads in the winter, but the slowdown was more severe. The car seemed fine during the cooler morning hours and the problem worsened as the temperature rose. It is currently sitting at the Honda dealership while the problem is being diagnosed.
It was night, and my girlfriend and I just exited the freeway, we just turned onto a side street and made it 100 yards when all of the sudden it felt like my left front tire went flat or I hit something and it dragged, I immediately pulled over to inspect, and found nothing. I did notice the vsa and vsa activation indicators on, turning the car off and then on again reset the indicators. Oddly concerned we circled back to check for anything in the road, there was nothing. It happened again just a few minutes later, and the indicators came back on. It repeated itself a third time, and I drove home very worried it would happen on the freeway. Each instance was momentary and it pulled hard left each time with a load antilock brake type jarring vibration. From reading other stories I can see that this problem isn't one of a kind, and I haven't seen anyone post a fix for it.
While making 2 turns in a parking lot at 10 mph, the vsa (vehicle stability assist) engaged, causing the brakes to suddenly grind the vehicle to a jarring halt---stopped on a dime! a moment later, while driving straight ahead at about 20 mph, the vsa engaged again, causing another sudden grinding braking to a full stop. Honda says they know nothing about this anomaly---despite easily finding numerous blogs on the internet of people having the same problem ---up to occurring at highway speeds. Honda diagnostic equipment did not identify that this occurred nor tell them that there is any problem. I do not consider this vehicle safe to drive!
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Elk Grove, CA, USA