CarComplaints.com Notes: It's worrying when the top category for 2016 Honda Pilot problems are transmission problems. Owners report jerking when accelerating. Also as the first model year of the redesigned 3rd generation Pilot, it's not a good sign.

Honda released a TSB on October 29 2016 that's possibly related. The TSB deals with a "a judder from the torque converter lock-up clutch ... while driving between 20 and 60 mph" due to deteriorated transmission fluid resulting from "specific driving conditions". In the TSB, Honda states they are developing a software fix to try to keep the transmission fluid temperature within spec.

We are keeping a close eye on this defect trend because if certain driving conditions can affect transmission shifting in the first year of ownership, we'd hate to think what 10+ years will do.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
4 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
18,967 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.

2016 Honda Pilot engine problems

engine problem

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2016 Honda Pilot Owner Comments (Page 13 of 23)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #203

Jun 032022

Pilot

  • miles

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

Auto Start/Stop function fails constantly. When coming to a stop light, the engine will stop as designed, but will not then re-start when pressing on the accelerator. Sometimes after this happens, it will take 30 seconds or more for the engine to actually start back up. At busy intersections, this creates a dangerous backup with a lane being blocked by a stall which is created by this issue. Took vehicle to repair shop and they replaced battery, but a new battery was installed less than 7 months ago from same dealership.

- Wauconda, IL, USA

problem #202

Jan 102022

Pilot

  • miles
Vehicle died when auto start/stop was activated at a stop sign. The vehicle had to be jumped to restart. My wife and 8 month old baby were in the vehicle alone in heavy traffic and nearly caused an accident.

- Mckinney, TX, USA

problem #201

Jun 072022

Pilot

  • miles
My vehicle came equipped with a feature that shuts the car off at stops/stoplights. It is supposed to restart immediately once the gas pedal is pushed. My vehicle, however, doesn't always start right away and often dies altogether. To restart, I have to put the car in park and restart and even this sometimes doesn't work. This has happened at several red lights and I have almost been rear ended by cars who have to swerve around me while I'm trying to get the vehicle started. I have taken it to Honda and their answer is to always push the button to override this feature, but if I forget to push the button, I'm in danger. This feature is suppose to save fuel but it's a complete hazard and needs to be remedied.

- Argyle, TX, USA

problem #200

May 282022

Pilot

  • miles

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

Every single time I get in my car to drive. I experience julting when I am speeding up but it mostly happens in between 30mph and 50mph. Sometimes in between 70mph and 80mph as well. It has been going on for a year and a half and no one can figure out what it is. There needs to be a recall because it is dangerous for myself and other drivers. To the point where I am going to sell this car and get a different make

- Dyess Afb, TX, USA

problem #199

Apr 232022

Pilot

  • miles
Last Fall I was driving, exiting freeway, I slowed down before I got to traffic light, then my vehicle stalled. I looked down and push the drive button (i had the auto idle-stop on), then pressed on gas, but car would not move. I pushed the start button twice and nothing happened. After a few minutes I pushed the start button gain and the vehicle started. I was in the middle lane and thankfully no one was behind me when this happened. Similar issue happened to my husband last week after car was picked up from Honda dealer for Transmission fluid exchange ( I in passenger seat). We were exiting the freeway going into another freeway, we slowed down because there was bumper to bumper traffic when the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was on auto idle-stop on. My husband pushed the park button, then the drive button but noting happened. Then pushed the start button twice and the car started again, he pressed on the gas and the car moved.

- Mesquite, TX, USA

problem #198

Apr 282022

Pilot

  • miles
Vehicle stalls and shuts off at a stop when engine idle stop is enabled. All lights on dashboard are illuminated and vehicle automatically sets to N gear. Upon attempting to restart engine, It takes several attempts to put vehicle back into P gear and start engine by pressing the push start button as well has having foot on the brake pedal. After doing so, the vehicle will start up right away and can be driven off normally with no warning lights illuminated on dash. This issue has happened numerous times. When engine idle stop is disabled, it does not happen. Battery has been replaced as well as push start button switch per service bulletin 20-117. Software update for TCM/PGM has also been performed as per set DTC P2638 (torque management feedback signal A range/performance) U1211 lost communication with shifter, U0404 invalid data received from shifter. Dealership has not been able to duplicate the problem.

- Milpitas, CA, USA

problem #197

Mar 312022

Pilot

  • miles

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

Driving the vehicle started to quickly lose power for about 15 seconds and it stalled while at speed on an interstate. Luckily I was in the right lane and was able to pull out of traffic onto the shoulder. The car had all the lights flash on the dashboard. The check engine, the hill assist, the oil, power steering, etc...i mean all the lights. I turned the car off through its power button and waiting about a meeting and attempted to restart the vehicle. It would not restart. I repeated this action. After two more failed attempts i went and opened the hood to check to see if there was a visible problems or potential a lose sensor connection. The engine looked ok. The main sensors were connected. I again tried to restart the car. The car started and drove about half a mile before losing power again. I repeated all of the above. Again. After about 45 mins the vehicle started even though nothing had actually changed. I didn't do anything. I took the car with the check engine light still on to autozone where they plugged the computer in to tell me my fuel pump wasn't working. Code P0087 registered. The next day the computer cleared itself and has been running. My mechanic said Honda had released a TSB pertaining to the fuel pump with new lines. Unfortunately there is a nation wide shortage of those parts so my car cannot be fixed. I feel unsafe. I dont know if the car will work or not. Its terrifying

- Denver, CO, USA

problem #196

Apr 012022

Pilot

  • miles
Auto idle system fails. Auto idel turns off engine at stops and fails to restart engine when foot is removed from brake. Must restart car. Errors on dash which may be associated with issue: Charging system error auto engine idle stop system problem key fob error

- Orchard Park, NY, USA

problem #195

Mar 162022

Pilot

  • miles
I received a letter in the mail from Honda North America in early 2022 stating that my vehicle/vin was covered under an extended warranty on emissions systems problems. HONDA TSB 20-100. I took my car in to the local dealer, dealer performed a software update, 2 days after software update, all warning lights turn on in dash and do not go away. Check engine light, Power steering problem, hill start assist, vehicle stability control, trailer assist, traction control. Took vehicle back to the dealership. The service advisor takes the car back and when I return a few hours later he states that his technician informed him the injectors must also be replaced when the software update is done. Then I am informed that due to previous salvage history (from 2017) the vehicle emissions warranty extension will not be covered by Honda and I will be required to pay roughly $1,500 for this repair. The TSB states that all 2016 Honda pilots are covered. The faulty injectors were an issue from the factory on every single last 2016 pilot that was produced. The dealership caused these lights to come on and now wants me to pay to fix the additional issues they caused.

- Madison, TN, USA

problem #194

Mar 052018

Pilot

  • 70,000 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the accelerator pedal was depressed and the vehicle hesitated and started jerking. Additionally, the vehicle occasionally stalled and the failure was intermittent. The contact stated that the check engine, emissions, and stabilitrak warning lights were illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and it was determined that the fuel injectors needed to be replaced. The catalytic converter and fuel injectors were replaced by an independent mechanic. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.

- Mckinney, TX, USA

problem #193

Mar 042022

Pilot

  • miles

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

Like most modern cars, the 2016 Honda Pilot has an engine -??auto idle off-?? feature where the engine shuts off when the car comes to a stop. This car has been giving us problems for several years where when you lift your foot from the brake to re-start the engine, the engine struggles to restart or fails to restart at all. When this happens, the driver has to act quickly to out the car in park, and restart the car by pressing the start button. This process does not always go smoothly and you could find yourself in a be panic trying to restart the car while drivers behind you are growing impatient. We had the battery replaced by Honda and they also replaced the engine start button (due to a recall). The issue still persists and is a serious safety issue. When we ask Honda to address this, they simple give up and say there are no error codes and there-??s nothing they can do. This problem represents a huge risk for being rear-ended at a stop light/stop sign.

- Gilbert , AZ, USA

problem #192

Mar 052022

Pilot

  • miles
Engine doesn't start after idle stop. not able to reproduce the issue when we want. engines stop on highways could be a safety issue. Not inspected by the mechanic. check engine light was on briefly and went away when I completely turn off the car and restart again.

- Canton, MA, USA

problem #191

Feb 162022

Pilot

  • miles
It-??s happened a few times now, but at a stop sign or light the auto shut off will kick on, and the. The engine will shut off and not turn back on. I was just stuck blocking traffic when my car refusing to restart after the idle shut off. It-??s very dangerous. It took serval tries to get my car to restart and I was very panicked someone would hit me.

- Phoenixville, PA, USA

problem #190

Jan 232022

Pilot

  • miles
The engine to my vehicle has just over 108,000 miles and the rod bearings have shown signs of failure according to the dealership my car was taken to for diagnostic tests. The dealership has advised the engine had oil starvation. The car is regularly serviced at the dealership I originally purchased from. My safety and the safety of my family was at risk because the engine rods could have blown through the block and possibly explode into the cabin of the vehicle if we continued driving. The vehicle did not indicate any signs of oil starvation through the onboard diagnostic. The vehicle is still at the dealership pending further inspection at the original dealership that I purchased from. There was no indicator on the cluster to indicate otherwise for low oil.

- Chula Vista, CA, USA

problem #189

Jan 152022

Pilot

  • miles
We just bought a 2016 Pilot that has the auto stop/start idle feature a week ago. It has already stalled twice- once in a drive thru and once at a light. It was really scary both times - the engine shuts completely off and I had to put it in park & restart the engine. It took a few tries to restart it. I have 2 little girls and this seems really unsafe. I looked it up and found several other reports of this happening, but was surprised to find no official recall yet.

- Puyallup , WA, USA

problem #188

Jan 102022

Pilot

  • miles
My 2016 honda pilot has been experiencing a problem with the auto idle stop (AIS) feature. Randomly when the AIS engages the vehicle will shut off completely and switch to neutral. It displays a message to put in park and apply brake and press start. This does not always work and can take several attempts to restart the vehicle. This happens when in the middle of the road in traffic making it very hazardous. This has occurred more than 20 times over the past 4 years. I have had the battery replaced 3 times, yet the problem continues.

- Orlando, FL, USA

problem #187

Dec 272021

Pilot

  • miles
Throughout last trip I noticed the transmission would make jerking shifts. While on the interstate during a pass travelling at 73 Mph the transmission down shifted and made a loud banging sound, engine lost power but was revving high, I could not accelerate to get away from surrounding traffic. A transmission error come up as I maneuvered the vehicle out of the road to avoid being hit by other vehicles. The AWD error came one and later an emissions error. Once the car was out of the road safely I was able to engage the e-brake then put it into neutral then park. AWD and emissions error remained on. After a minute turn car off then on, emissions error remained on and the car could operate. This scared the family as we could have been rare ended in traffic. Honda dealership in my town could not diagnose the issue. This is the second time this has happened.

- Newnan, GA, USA

problem #186

Dec 292021

Pilot

  • miles
There is no way for the driver of the car to put the transmission into neutral if needed with an electrical/battery failure. According to Honda, there is a special mechanical device that tow truck drivers would have that physically attaches to the engine to shift the car into neutral. In addition, the honda mechanic that I talked to today said even if the average driver had one of these devices, they would not recommend they use it due to likelihood of causing damage to the engine or transmission. This is fine if the car is already in park, since it would most likely be located in a parking lot, residence, etc. The two times that would be a safety issue and could very easily cause an accident would be if the car was in drive, stopped at a traffic light with the engine off due to the Auto Start/Stop feature, and suffered a battery failure, preventing the engine from starting. Now the car would not be able to start, but more importantly couldn't even be pushed off to the side of the road and clear the intersection, since there is no way to move it into neutral. Another example could be with an alternator failure while driving, where the battery then surges and drains itself, with the engine and car now shut down. If you are unable to move the car to the side of the road as this is happening, maybe stuck in traffic or stopped at a traffic light, the car is now unmovable until a tow truck driver arrives and installs this mechanical neutral unlock device. There should be a way with an electrical problem to be able to place the car into neutral and move it. Otherwise, this turns a routine auto problem (that has had an acceptable solution) into a true safety issue, both for occupants and other vehicles and their operators.

- Goodyear, AZ, USA

problem #185

Jun 182019

Pilot

  • miles
No prior indications of a pending issue. Stopped at an intersection for a Red Light, Auto Start/Stop feature turned the engine off as designed. When took foot off of the brake pedal and depressed gas pedal to start moving for the green light, which should have re-engaged the Auto Start feature and started the engine, multiple dash warning and caution lights turned on and the car itself never turned on. Result was a stuck car. Required multiple attempts to successfully restart the engine over several minutes, which included a couple of traffic light sequences (Red, Green, Red) around the stuck car. The brake pedal seemed extremely stiff with very little movement during these start attempts. Asked 2 Honda dealerships, they said they never heard about it and could not replicate.

- Goodyear, AZ, USA

problem #184

Apr 082021

Pilot

  • miles
The truck has been very sluggish and it surges especially when accelerating. It doesn't seems to have power to come up to the designated speed limit. It started happening when it came up to the 48,000 miles on the odometer.

- Ithaca, MI, USA

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