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:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
24,778 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.
Hi, today my 2016 pilot elite stop working on a red light. Once the brake pedal was released, the engine stop and warning lights appeared on the dash board: Neautral message light and Battery light. My wife and two daughters were scared and helpless. Cars were honking. After around 2 minutes and at least three tries to turn on, it finally did. We are happy to know that Honda is working on this matter, thanks.
2016 Honda Pilot touring Model Issue: Idle-stop Feature While driving the vehicle and comes on the intersection/stop light when you hit brakes the idle-stop feature will turn off your engine but once you release the brakes the engine wont turn on. To able to turn on the engine, you need to turn off the vehicle by pressing ignition button then you need to press it again to turn on engine (is like starting the vehicle again). Here some stances happened while this idle stop didnt work well. Driver at the back, you're using cellphone, start honking and when they by pass you yelling stop using cellphone. Or simple honk you and when you look they're confused as we're you what's going on. Honda or other people saying its related to battery but even with new battery this still happened. If this will not be fix or resolve soon, this cause an accident. either remove this feature or fixed this issue.
My 2016 Honda Pilot has been experiencing an issue with the auto start-stop system, in which the vehicle's engine fails to restart after a stop and/or the dashboard indicators flash on and off with multiple error codes displaying. This has happened many times on the highway and on streets, one time where it would not restart on the highway and cars were going around me on both sides which was very dangerous. I reported this to Honda corporate and opened up a case, which was open for many months while the Pauly Honda dealer in Libertyville, IL and the Muller Honda dealer in Gurnee, IL tried to diagnose the problem. They ended up trying several fixes, including replacing the battery, but nothing has fixed the issue. The dealer also contacted the engineers at Honda Corporate, and they indicated that they were not aware of the issue and have not been able to provide any fixes. This is still an issue today, and the only workaround I have is to disable the auto start/stop function manually, every time I start the car. Dates: - I checked and we actually brought our car into Muller Honda of Gurnee in September 2021 where we reported an issue where "C/S (customer) feels like it wants to die coming to a stop. Dash lights turn off like vehicle died. All displays go dark." They felt that it was "Caused by: Technician verified keyless remote system problem light on dash. Tech found code B12C5 stored in system. Corrected by (Y9300) (6S100) Warranty extension. Keyless start system error with DTC B12C5. BulletinS". This did not fully resolve the issue. - Then in October 2021 we brought the car into Pauly Honda of Libertyville where we again reported the same issue where "Customer states in eco mode the center screen now goes blank then cycles and comes back on." This did not fully resolve the issue. - Then in the spring of 2022 we brought it back to Pauly Honda as more severe issues started occurring. I also opened up Case #13103604 with Honda Corporate.
On multiple occasions, the engine fails to restart after the auto start/stop function has engaged. I have previously had this addressed by a Honda Dealer at which time they replaced some parts having to do with the ignition system. The problem is still occurring and the only remedy is to manually shut off the auto start/stop function each time the vehicle is driven.
Auto idle stop malfunctions regularly without any warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms before the malfunction. This causes the vehicle to restart automatically or it requires the driver to restart the vehicle manually. An error message appears on the console screen for less than one second at the time of the problem, but no warning or error messages before or after. This presents a safety issue (i.e., risk of collision) to the driver and other passengers when attempting to accelerate when a traffic light turns green, proceeding after a stop sign, or turning left in front of oncoming vehicles. Service technicians at multiple Honda service centers have reproduced the problem, with the only solution being to replace the battery on two separate occasions (Jan-2020 and Sep-2022). However, the issue pre-dates Jan-2020 but the Honda service center did not perform any repairs after the diagnostic scans.
- Grapevine, TX, USA
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My car often does not start back up at stop signs/traffic lights. I feel very much in danger. It is difficult to get my car to start back up after it fails to start back up. I usually have to press really hard on the brake and even this is difficult to get it to restart. This is supposed to save fuel but I-??m so afraid that someone is going to crash into me and put us all in harms way. Please help!
My 2016 honda Pilot Touring model won-??t restart after idle stopped. I have to place car in park and restart using the start button. Issue occurs only when can idle stops. This has happened to us about 5 - 6 times over a course of 1 year. Detailed says they are unable to find the issue after a software scan. This is a serious safety concern.
This like the third time this has happened where the stop-start feature on my Honda Pilot almost have gotten me into a serious accident. It has happened during stop and go on I95 when I was heading to Maine and I stopped and it literally almost shutdown after I got ready to go forward. Most recently it happened 4 Sep 2022 at about 11:05am EST and was in a turning line in Chelsea, MA and it when it into stop idle shutdown feature but then completely shut off and it took about 2 to 3mins to get it to start back up. The car behind almost hit the back thinking I was pulling off but my Honda Pilot shutdown right when I was getting ready to take off. This is serious danger and defect in this when I see other vehicles operate with no problem with this feature. This could cause someone to get into a serious accident especially in Massachusetts.
When you start the car it is always in economy mode so that the engine can shut off when you are stopped. I like to turn this feature off manually as a few times if I don-??t the car has stalled and also goes into neutral. Happened while I was on California highway 80 in stop and go traffic which was pretty scary as I was in the center lane. This was about two months ago. It happens about 10% of the time when I am in this mode if not completely stalling it splutters and feels like it won-??t start or delays to restart. Happened yesterday at a light. Became a safety issue as cars tried to go around me by getting into the next lane which was flowing freely. Basically if I don-??t turn the function off when I first start the car it is not safe. The dealer took a look about a year ago and found nothing and said they had not heard of the issue. I pointed out I had read about the issue in Honda forums they could find them easily it however they had no interest, maybe because they focus on known issues? Love the car apart from this issue.
My 2016 Honda Pilot is displaying a "Keyless Start System Problem". There is a Service Bulletin 20-117 that extends the warranty for affected vehicles so they can be repaired under the warranty for free. The Service Bulletin states that ALL Trim levels are affected vehicles, however, my vin #[XXX], does not come up as an affected vehicle. My vehicle needs to be included in and covered by the Service Bulletin 20-117, which will extend the warranty so I can have my vehicle repaired. Please address at your earliest convenience. Thank you. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
The auto engine idle feature malfunctions. When stopped in traffic and at intersections the auto engine idle feature turns off the engine; however fails to restart. I can put the car into park, but the brake remains engaged and the ignition button blinks white. I have attempted many different things to 'reset' the computer. Putting the car in park, waiting, unlocking seatbelt, open/shut door. The last time, i had to walk away from the vehicle with the key fob in traffic. Locking and unlocking the car seemed to reset the computer. This placed me in dangerous traffic. It has happened in a construction zone on interstate, at intersections several times, during rush hour when it was impossible to leave the vehicle due to high speed traffic, and once while towing. Each episode has generally taken about 15 minutes for computer to shut down/reset. There is no message on the dash before, during or after. I now disengage the auto engine idle button when driving due to fear of being stranded in dangerous traffic situations. If I forget to turn it off, it is likely to malfunction. I have contacted the dealership about this problem before. There was no code, so the problem was deemed a mystery and remains unresoved by Honda.
On multiple occasions when the auto idle engages the car stalls. The dashboard looks like the car is running by its not. In order for me to be able to drive it I have to put it in park, turn it all the way off, and then restart. This has happened at dangerous intersections where I-??ve almost been in an accident. I read that it-??s a known problem but Honda isn-??t doing anything about it The last time it happened is noted below
After turning a corner vehicle turned off, in the middle of the road, stated put in park and press engine start button, had to press 2x for the car to start
My vehicle is equipped with with an Automatic Engine shutoff. The vehicle shuts off at traffic lights and then fails to turn back on. I have contacted Honda but only told that there is not currently a recall and it would cost 200$ for a diagnostic test to be ran and if they don-??t find the problem I am still responsible for the 200$ charge.
The engine fails to restart on its own from a complete stop at a traffic light or road intersection with the auto/start stop function. This happens intermittently, but has put my family in danger on several occasions. When the light turns green, the car turns off, and has to be put in park and restarted. I have come close to being rear-ended during these situations, as approaching vehicles have to stop suddenly because my car is disabled. I have taken a video of these incidents, but Honda is unable to recreate the issue and has not offered a solution.
While stopped at a stop light the car totally shuts off when you go to start to move again causing you to have to put the car in park. Then start the car back up a begin to drive. This has happened 8 times now. There are no warning lights. The engine just seems to shut totally off in mind stream. What am I supposed to do with this issue that causes this to happen.
The stop/start system Isn-??t working properly. When I stop at a light or stop sign the car will stop and the engine will stop like it is supposed to. But when I take my foot off the brake the car doesn-??t start back up. The lights on the dash light up. The dash then tells me to put the car in park and press/hold the start button. It will then start. This has been going on for over a year now. I normally just try to remember to disable it by pressing the button but I shouldn-??t have to.
My car shuts off and goes into Park at intersections or highway while stuck in traffic if the Auto Engine Idle is not manually disabled. It can take up to 3 minutes to restart my car.
The auto stop on my 2016 honda pilot is causing the car to not restart and have to put in park, restart and then put back into drive. If it doesn't stall completely, everything with shut off (AC, radio) and then start back.
When coming to a complete stop, the vehicles' start/stop feature was engaged and the car's engine turned off. Instead of turning back on when the brake was released, the car did not turn back on. Hitting the ignition button also did not start the vehicle back up immediately. This happened to me two times in the past month. Both times, I was stopped at a red light and the car left me stranded in traffic. After a few attempts of hitting the ignition button, the car would start back up. The vehicles start/stop feature malfunctioned and it would be available for inspection upon request. This put my family's safety at risk because the car left us stranded in the middle of a busy intersection. The vehicle has not been inspected yet. There were no warning lamps prior to the problem.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Santa Ana, CA, USA