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 had the manufacturer's safety recall (recall: 13-026 vsa system unexpectedly activates) work done recently. Approximately a week after I had this service done, I experienced sudden acceleration when I made hard left turn. Sudden acceleration persisted for about 3 to 4 seconds. I could not control the vehicle during that time and eventually it subsideed. I am supsecting this has something to with the safety recall fix that was done. I had slightly overshot the left I had to make and made a hard left turn then I realized that vehicle went into a sudden acceleration. I am certain that I did not have my foot on the accelerator.
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."
I was driving my 2005 Honda Pilot probably around 40mph, a noise, I turned on the closest road to get out of traffic and was heading up hill, the RPM dial moved erratically, the vehicle did not want to go, there were no engine lights on, the temperature gauge was normal. The vehicle shut off. I had no steering control, because I was on a hill I had to use the emergency brake to stabilize the vehicle. The vehicle had died. I turned the ignition to the off position and then tried to restart since we were on a 2 land road with no guard rail and a steep drop off beside the passenger side. When I tried to turn it on, a light came on the alt temp. I was unable to get the vehicle down and had to wait for assistance. We lifted the hood and it was not hot coming from inside but there was a fluid leaking. My vehicle was towed to the Honda dealership. I was told that this has happened to several other Honda Pilot. We could have been killed if we were on the highway when this vehicle died with no warning or lights. I was told that they think something when with the radiator which leaked fluid into the transmission. They don't know yet if the engine is dead until the work on the rest of the vehicle. The customer service person from Honda, [xxx], is not willing to assure me that if my vehicle is repaired it wont happen again and that we will be safe. My family feels that this is a faulty design that cause the vehicle to have a catastrophic break down. We have own Honda's for over 25 years and have never had a complaint. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
When accelerating the vehicle begins to shudder, jerk and lose power while accelerating from 0-40mph. Steering wheel begins to shake, acceleration seems to stall. At higher speeds on freeway there is some shuddering but not as noticeable. Braking or reducing speed does not immediately stop the shuddering. Its almost predictable at low speeds. Loss of power during acceleration feels as if the vehicle could stall especially when turning left with on coming traffic approaching.
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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The vsa light and warning light come on within a minute of the first movement of the vehicle. When the light comes on there is a loud clunk noise and the front brake and steering locks for a fraction of a second. It has happened more than once on the highway nearly causing me to be hit from behind.
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.
I have a 2005 Honda Pilot sometime shuddering between 30-40 mph. To make the shudder stop, I press or release the accelerator briefly. After checking on line about this problems with over 300 complaints. They all state that the torque converter cause the vibration. Honda still not recall. Couple of times someone almost rear end me. Please look into this problem.
Driving on the highway at approximately 45 mph, my Honda Pilot abruptly pulled to the left. It felt like the anti lock brakes actuated. The vsa and triangle light illuminated. The Pilot was pulled off the highway where it stopped. The ignition was turned off and on an the condition cleared.
Beginning 12/06 the car would slam it's brakes on, independently, when making a left turn. It happened a couple times and the dealer could find nothing. After having it happen yet again, and after detailing how this problem nearly took my life, Honda agreed to take the car and the service rep. Would drive it. I was fortunate and it happened to him very quickly. Under warranty, 1/25/07, a ABS/tcs/vsa modulator was replaced. Now five years later the car has decided that if it can't independently slam it's breaks on, well, it will just independently speed up instead. Again, when making left hand turns. Guess what, now we are out of warranty and Honda is out of caring. I would be very curious to know how many people Honda has hurt or killed, just no one figured out why in the world the driver sped up or suddenly slammed on the brakes.
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.
I saw on the news that the NHTSA was investigating a brake issue on the Honda Pilot 2005. I experienced a similar issue but thought it was a glitch as it only happened one day (although it happened twice that day). I've finally gotten around to filing an official report both with Honda and NHTSA to hopefully aid in the investigation. The braking issue happened on two separate occasions on the same day, roughly 2 months ago. The first incident happened on the freeway. I was going the speed limit when all of a sudden I felt like the car completely lost power. The lights on the dashboard flashed, my speed decreased suddenly although I still had my foot on the gas. It only last a few seconds and then I regained control of the vehicle. An hour later, when I was off the freeway, it happened again, but this time I was going 25 miles an hour driving on city streets. Same exact issue where it felt like the car computer shut down with no power for a few seconds. It hasn't happened since, but I'm very scared that it may happen at any time again. We only have one car and have a 1 year old. I hope Honda and the NHTSA make progress into identifying the issue. Please let me know if I can contribute any more information. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
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.
This has happened several times to my wife and daughter over the past month or so. They are driving along at any rate of speed and all of a sudden the car looses all power and the vehicle abruptly slows down and then recovers and begins running again. During this time the lights on the dashboard go out and flash and there is a popping sound at times. The last time it happened there was loss of all electrical to dash board system including the radio. The radio needed the code reentered which is normal for when all battery power is lost to the vehicle. I had this checked by a mechanic and they were unable to locate any problems. They checked the alternator, battery, connections and the system for any errors and nothing can be found. This is consistent with all other complaints associated with the esa, vsa/vsc and electrical systems as reported on this forum. I believe there is a major and dangerous bug in the system causing the car to loose power and control and any rate of speed. I also informed Honda customer service but they said that they are unaware of any problems (or I should say owning up to any of thier problems) and to issue a complaint through this forum. I'm afaid it's going to take a major accident and a loss of life, which is bound to happen based on the fact that the car comes to an abrupt halt, in order for Honda to own up to thier responsibility of spending the effort to identify this problem and issue a recall and get this fixed. I've been a Honda owner (currently 3 cars) for over 23 years. I'm beginning to loose loyalty and faith in the company and will definately strongly consider making a change to another make on my next purchase. Please Honda own up to the problem before someone is killed!
Intermittent vibration in the front passenger side when accelerating, at about 30-35 mph. Sometimes just slightly noticeable and sometimes significant enough so that the entire vehicle vibrates for a few seconds. We just purchased it used yesterday and did not notice the vibrations while test driving it.
While driving at 40 mph, the vehicle suddenly brake to about 10 mph. There was a vibration in the front end like the ABS system was working--even with the foot on the throttle. Drove about 2 blocks to a parking lot. Vsa and triangle with "!" was on display. Stopped the vehicle and turned the engine off. After 5 minutes, the vehicle was started and driven back home. There were no display lights or sudden braking. The speed of the vehicle was now 35 mph. After driving for 10 minutes, the vehicle suddenly braked again and decelerated to about 10 mph.the vsa and triangle w/"!" display lights reappeared. There was a groaning sound coming from the car and the vibration returned. The more the throttle was pushed, the more the braking effect increased. The vehicle finally made it back to my home. The vehicle was parked at home where it was later towed to a repair facility.
The contact owns a 2005 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that upon stopping and shifting into park, the vehicle suddenly accelerated while the brake pedal was depressed. The vehicle continued to accelerate until crashing into a cement median and another vehicle, resulting in extensive damages. No injuries were reported, but a police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an insurance company, where it was awaiting repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 70,000. The VIN was unavailable.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- North Mankato, MN, USA