2021 Honda Accord
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Electrical system is the leading concern among 234 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 23rd highest complaint count among 25 Accord model years with reports.
Of the 2021 reports, 14 involved a crash and 1 involved a fire. 8 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Air bags, sensor, occupant classification, front passengerMay 21, 2026
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic hatchback, 2016-2020 Civic coupe, 2016-2022 Civic, 2017-2022 Accord Hybrid, and 2016-2022 Accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.
Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.
Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BOL, WO9, OOA, WOM, XOH, NOC, POD, BOE, UOF, POB, EOG, AOI, QO8, TOJ, DO7, and SOK. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24V064. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 29, 2026.
Campaign 26V332000 on NHTSA.gov
Air bags, sensor, occupant classification, front passengerFeb 1, 2024
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX, 2020-2022 Acura RDX, and 2020-2021 Acura TLX vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, failing to suppress the air bag as intended.
An air bag that deploys unintentionally during a crash can increase the risk of injury.
Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2024. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XHP and VHQ.
Campaign 24V064000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, delivery, fuel pumpDec 18, 2023
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX vehicles. The fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will replace the fuel pump module, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 6, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KGC and KGD. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall numbers 21V-215 and 20V-314.
Campaign 23V858000 on NHTSA.gov
Seat belts, rear/other, retractorNov 18, 2021
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2021 Accord Sedan, Accord Hybrid, CR-V, Ridgeline, 2022 Insight and CR-V Hybrid vehicles. The automatic locking retractor on the second-row center seat belt assembly may deactivate improperly, which can result in an unsecured child restraint system. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
An unsecured child restraint system can increase the risk of injury during a crash.
Dealers will replace the second-row center seat belt assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 14, 2022. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138.
Campaign 21V900000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
234 reports, newest first.
Forward collision avoidance, Jun 18, 2023
Honda accord breaks unexpectedly for no reason. It’s an automatic break or slow down without us pressing the break. The car has an automatic emergency break system and it seems to break when nothing is I front of us. Happens many times and dealer can’t figure out what is wrong. They tell us car is running well.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Jun 13, 2023
I was driving home in the rain and felt the car automatically braking when there was no car or object in front of me. The car was also slow to accelerate because the brakes were automatically applied. 5 miles later numerous warnings appeared on the dash and the following error messages came through my Hondalink app: Electric Parking Brake Problem, CMBS Problem, Adaptive Cruise Control Problem, and RDM Problem. Several times during this drive home the brakes automatically applied without any intervention from me or roadway object. I almost got rear-ended once when a car behind me had to slam on its brake when my car automatically braked without me doing anything. This is a very dangerous condition that should be looked further into as multiple drivers have reported brakes being applied without driver intervention or an apparent road hazard. How many complaints will it take before a recall is issued so other Honda drivers do not need to be put at risk?
Forward collision avoidance, Jun 9, 2023
I was driving on the freeway going 65mph when the automatic safety brake system slowed my car down abruptly for no reason at all. Luckily there wasn’t any other vehicles anywhere near me or it would have caused an accident. This wasn’t the only time the safety system activated without reason either. It also happened two other times in similar situations.
Power train, Jun 3, 2023
Check engine light came on regarding power train system. The very next day it went away.
Forward collision avoidance, May 18, 2023
The collision mitigation brake system continues to come off, and today it made my car spin, and I almost crash into the media.
Electrical system, May 18, 2023
Vehicle safety concern, door lock actuator FAILS to lock or unlock. Hardware affected: Electrical Door Lock Actuator Vehicle has a recorded mileage of 30,000 miles when incident occurred. Description of issue, unable to lock/unlock using the key fob, unable to lock/unlock using the door switch, walkaway function inoperable, no audible beep when locking/unlocking, remote start inoperable, unable to open the door using the inner/outer door handle. Safety concerns for owners of this vehicle. - Driver and occupant safety is at increased risk with unknown integrity of the door lock actuator and its ability to securely lock the vehicle door(s). - Owners and insurers of this vehicle are at increased risk for vehicle theft due to the vehicle door(s) lock being inoperable, and vehicle failing to indicate that a door lock has failed to actuate. - Potential risk of children passenger(s) inadvertently opening vehicle doors while vehicle is in motion do to the door lock failing to actuate. Reported problems associated with this vehicle issue. - Lock/unlock inoperable with the key fob - Lock/unlock inoperable with door switch (driver/passenger) - Walkaway auto door lock function inoperable - No audible beep when locking/unlocking - Outer door handle inoperable Vehicle that is associated with this incident has not been inspected by original dealer where vehicle originated from. The vehicle associated with this incident provides NO FAULT or indication to driver displays that a door lock has failed to actuate.
Vehicle speed control, Forward collision avoidance, May 5, 2023
The contact owns a 2021 Honda Accord. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently decelerated. The contact veered off the roadway. The contact then stated that she carefully drove the vehicle to her residence. Additionally, the contact added that on a separate occasion while the accelerator pedal was depressed, the vehicle inadvertently jerked without the brake pedal depressed. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 17,000.
Electrical system, Lane departure, Apr 24, 2023
Hello, i want to report an issue with my honda accord 2.0t 2021. When i drive in rainy or snowy day all lights come up on dashboard and probably 70% of the futures gets disabled. Things that gets disabled: Back up camera, line assistant, trunk doesn’t open, A/C doesn’t work, windshield wipers spray doesn’t work, high beam doesn’t work, horn gets stuck and beeps and the only way to shut off is to stop and disconnect the battery, otherwise it beeps non stop. I record a video and here is the link. Thank you https://youtu.be/ABoYlunVNVo
Vehicle speed control, Apr 21, 2023
We were traveling on California Interstate 5 North. About 5 miles south of Junction 152 the car started malfunctioning. Suddenly there was acceleration beyond my control. I pushed the brake as hard as I could. It felt like the car was going to explode. Somehow miraculously the car landed on the shoulder of the freeway. It missed hitting any other cars or trucks. This was a rental car from Avis. I, my wife and another passenger came very close to death. For several minutes we were just shivering. We decided to slowly get back on the freeway with the hazard lights on. We didn’t was to be stranded in the middle of nowhere. At speeds of under 50 mph we eventually reached our destination. The next morning we again put the hazard lights on and took the car to Avis where we explained what happened. The agent gave us a replacement vehicle and said that they would put the malfunctioning vehicle out of circulation. Speaking to others we found out that Honda vehicles have had runaway acceleration.
Service brakes, Apr 20, 2023
On four occasions I was required to slam in my brakes to avoid hitting a car in front of me on major highways in Virginia. When engaging the brakes the antilock brakes did not engage, the idle system (such as when you come to a red light and brake cuts the engine idle) kicked in and I lost the ability to steer. I had to release the brake for the idle to re-engage then hit the brake again. I finally was able to stop but left approximately 6 feet of skid marks on the highway. I have reported this to my dealership for them to say brakes are performing as designed and they did nothing. My car has been at the dealership for 2 weeks and I’m driving a loaner. Rear brakes have high pitch noise when backing up but dealership said they can’t recreate it therefore will do nothing. I had one service manager say he did recreate the noise and was fighting to get rear brakes replaced but then called back to say “I misspoke and Honda did not hear the noise so not replacing rear brakes. All phone messages are recorded on my cell phone. I have filed a complaint with Honda Corporate and also called local law enforcement to see where liability falls if my brakes fail again and I hit someone (faulty equipment charge). Was informed by police to have all service orders in the car to confirm I did all I could to get my brakes fixed. So three trips to dealership, almost 4 accidents, and car has approximately 24k miles on it. No idea if this is a sensor problem or several interactions between all the different systems but this is a major problem. Your engine shouldn’t cut off and cause steering problems when you brake the car and are still moving forward. No one can give me options with this car other then trade it in and get something else. This is not acceptable. Someone could be seriously injured. I don’t want to be that driver.
Forward collision avoidance, Apr 6, 2023, crash
1.Driving on a straight road at about 45-50 MPH sudden abrupt braking for no reason . 2. Good thing I was wearing a seat belt , it was a very forceful brake action that pushed me forcefully forward, I was struck from behind by another vehicle. Visial minor damage to the rear bumper cover. 3. No it happened today 4-5-23 I plan on calling the dealer tomorrow. 4. The BRAKE message appeared at the exact time of the incident.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Visibility/wiper, Apr 4, 2023
Hello, the car has this issue since i got it nrand new. Every time i drive in the rain or while its snowing, all lights on the dash board comes up and at least 50% of the options gets disabled. Like back up camera, windshield vipers, horn beeps non stop until you disconnect the battery and more. I see there is lots of people reporting same issue but honda dont want to help me with this issue. Went to homda dealer and they said $169 for diagnostics, then called and said its gonna be 2 hours which is $338 and even then saying they are not sure if it will take them 2hrs or 10 and i had no choice to tell them to stop and pay only $169. Please see the video for details Honda case# 13733111 https://youtu.be/ABoYlunVNVo
Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Mar 19, 2023
The electrical emergency brake locked up without warning as I was coming off the highway by the way of off ramp. Almost put the car in the guard rails! Brake has locked up twice now
Electrical system, Forward collision avoidance, Feb 17, 2023
I was driving my 21 Honda Accord 1.5T on the highway and all of a sudden vehicle lost the power and Honda sensing / Emission warning lights came on. It almost cause a major accident and I was lucky enough to exit the freeway without incident. I drove to the Honda dealer and they found out one of the wire harnesses was chewed by a rodent which causes the whole issue. I did some research and found out that Honda was using less expensive Soybean base wire harnesses (instead of Petroleum base wire harnesses) to save the planet earth. This Soybean wires are easy target for rodents. This less expensive Soybean wire harness cost about $3000-3500 to replace and it's NOT fair to the consumer. Honda must re-call this Soybean wire harness before causing some major accident, especially on the freeway ( imaging your car losing power while driving 65-70 mph)
Other or unspecified, Feb 16, 2023
The infotainment system is both unresponsive and self operational. It operates on its own as if it's being pressed (ghost touching) while simultaneously not responding to my touch. Impossible to safely use navigation as screen will pan or switch functions entirely. Same goes for using phone via Bluetooth. I cannot answer or hang up. Radio randomly turns on, changes stations etc. It's a complete mess. All of which is very distracting and adversely affects my ability to focus and safely control the vehicle. Honda insists that it is all software related - doubtful - so they refuse to change it out. They claim a software update is being worked on. Car has now been out for over two years and still no update. So 2 years with no update for a single software issue, yet they were able to design and build an entire new '23 model with multiple new software components in less than a year. Obviously little attention is being given to this, if at all. Please step in. I have some videos available.
Forward collision avoidance, Feb 10, 2023
Automatic emergency breaking system has benn activated in about 6 different ocassions while driving in the highway for no reason. No vehicles or obstacles in front of the car but car suddenly applied brakes stopping the car very suddenly while driving 70-75 miles per hour.
Forward collision avoidance, Feb 7, 2023
in the last 10 days, we there's been 4 incidents where the vehicle suddenly brakes when travelling on high speeds on the freeway out of nowhere. We were almost involved in a serious car accident yesterday where a vehicle behind us narrowly got out of the way. Took vehicle to honda dealership service and they claim they cant find any issues with braking system or sensors and they are not aware of any braking issues with this model. When i told them that i found online that theres an investigation opened last year about this issue in other accords, they had no idea what i was talking about and asked them to google it and they refuse. They refuse to fix the issue and suggest to just keep driving the vehicle since theres nothing for them to fix.
Forward collision avoidance, Feb 1, 2023
This car has randomly slammed on the breaks too many times to count and has been reported far too many times. Today while in the left lane on 95 southbound this car randomly slammed on the breaks so violently the speed was reduced 20 mph with seconds. This is incredibly dangerous, HOW LONG WILL YOU ALL THIS
Forward collision avoidance, Sep 6, 2022
Vehicle tends to turn on brake warning light when there is nothing in the way. Driving with no obstacle in the way and the brake warning sign will display on dashboard. I’ve driven it on the highway with no cars and it will signal me to brake for no reason. I’m afraid the brakes might apply which could cause a serious accident.
Forward collision avoidance, Sep 4, 2022
Vehicle flashed "brake" on the dashboard and automatically engaged brakes despite nothing being ahead in the road. This occurred on a clear, sunny day around late morning on the interstate. Similar issues have occurred previously where the car flashed the "brake" warning light despite nothing being immediately ahead in the road. With this other incident the brakes were not engaged. This time the brakes engaged, then released, and the car continued. Later on that same trip, the "brake" warning would again flash despite no objects being immediately ahead in the road. The vehicle arbitrarily braking without warning or reason is extremely dangerous as it may cause vehicles behind including much larger trucks to slam into the car. The Honda dealer and Honda customer service were both contacted when the car on a previous occasion flashed "brake" despite no obstructions but neither has returned my messages.
Power train, Service brakes, Sep 2, 2022
the steering wheel shakes extremely when using the brake. especially at 60 to 65 miles on curves it's awful. (2) throttle is slow to react as if losing power. Apart from small climbs when I stop and release the brake the drive tends to go backwards as if it were a car with a manual transmission. Honda Dealer from downy. Can’t find the problem.
Forward collision avoidance, Aug 15, 2022
My automatic emergency breaking kicked in today when there were no cars in front of me. My car began beeping loudly and flashing the word “BRAKE” and the car abruptly stopped in the middle of a very busy road. My daughter and I could’ve been very hurt but were lucky there was enough room behind us that we didn’t get rear ended. Nobody has checked this out yet because it just happened, but I am willing and open to having it looked at. I had a brief warning while the car flashed “BRAKE” and beeped, but there were no cars in front of us, and nothing I could do to make the car not slam on the brakes by itself.
Suspension, Aug 2, 2022, crash
Around 12:30pm last week, we were driving a 2021 Honda Accord on a straight and clear Northbound Freeway. All of a sudden, our car started to swerve left and right a few times, even though my wife tried to keep the car straight. She didn't steer the wheel much, fearing that the car may go sideways or whatever, but she just couldn't make the car straight. I was in the car and saw the dashboard flashing something red and could only remember some words like … hi…lock… In just a few seconds, she hit the barrier/divider separating the Northbound/Southbound freeway. After that, the car went straight and we were able to stop the car on the shoulder. It really put our life in danger but luckily no one got seriously injured. The major damage and concern is: the front left wheel got tucked up into the fender with a snapped lower controller arm connecting the front left wheel to suspension as in the photos. Honda refused to inspect the car because it got into an accident, but it’s clear something of the car likely the front left lower control arm went wrong / defective before the accident. We didn’t see any warning signs before the incident.
Forward collision avoidance, Jul 5, 2022
Honda Accord multi point serviced July 2nd at Hendricks Honda Easley SC. Immediately after I was driving on Haywood Rd. Greenville SC when my vehicle slammed on brakes for no reason. There was no car, animal, pedestrian or debris in road to cause to happen. As a result I experienced whip lash and was seen by a doctor and therapist July 5th. This has caused me to be afraid to drive my own car plus miss work plus enjoy my July 4th. I have reported this to Honda Motor Company and I also returned to Hendricks Honda to have a diagnostic test performed but all they did was put 20 miles on my vehicle and said I would have to bring it in and leave it for 3 - 4 hours. WHY? If you truly checked it out today I don't feel I need to return for them to just tell me anything. I really feel like they wasted time doing nothing today. There diagnostic was just driving my vehicle and adding unnecessary miles.
Vehicle speed control, Other or unspecified, Forward collision avoidance, Jul 2, 2022, crash
Car moving slowly and suddenly races and speeds UP. Hard to STOP it. Has happened twice, 8 to 10 Months apart.. First time was on a small driveway. Was able to STOP CAR , with no damages. 2nd occurrence i was pulling into a parking Space. Foot not on gas or brake and again the CAR accelerated. This Time the CAR hit a handicapped parking sign and pushed it over. The sign stopped the CAR with Assistance from me. There was a small drop in front of the CAR and a tree 10-15 Feet in front of the Hill. The passenger in my CAR would have been in severe trouble had I not gotten the CAR stopped. My husband thought i may have somehow activated the cruise control. But i was going less than 20 miles per hour each time. This could be a deadly problem if a Child or Someone Crossed in front of me.