2016 Honda CR-V

Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues

Engine is the leading concern among 393 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 17th highest complaint count among 26 CR-V model years with reports.

Complaints by model year
  1. 393

Of the 2016 reports, 40 involved a crash and 4 involved a fire. 36 people were injured.

Primary concernEngine101 reports · 26% of complaints
Owner complaints393Filed with NHTSA
Recall relationship3 safety recallsNHTSA campaign records

What owners report most often

  1. Engine101
  2. Other or unspecified85
  3. Fuel/propulsion system65
  4. Electrical system64
  5. Power train45
  6. Air bags32
  7. Vehicle speed control28
  8. Service brakes19

Recalls and investigations

  1. 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

  2. EngineMay 4, 2017

    Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2015-2016 Honda CR-V vehicles that recently received a replacement engine. The replacement engine may have been built with the wrong pistons, potentially affecting the engine's performance.

    The reduced performance may result in an engine stall, increasing the risk of a crash.

    Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the engines and replace the incorrect components, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began June 20, 2017. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is KF6.

    Campaign 17V305000 on NHTSA.gov

  3. Air bags, frontal, driver side, inflator moduleOct 29, 2015

    American Honda Motor Company, Inc. (Honda) is recalling certain model year 2016 CR-V vehicles manufactured October 12, 2015, to October 19, 2015. The metal housing surrounding the driver's air bag inflator in these vehicles may have been manufactured incorrectly.

    In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver side frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall began in November 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda'a number for this recall is JV9.

    Campaign 15V714000 on NHTSA.gov

Representative owner complaints: engine

103 reports, newest first. Show all

  1. Other or unspecified, Engine, May 29, 2023

    I was driving on the Interstate when my car suddenly lost power and I was put in an unsafe position of trying to get my car into the emergency lane. The warning lamps flashed on the dash and in particular the engine light., The car dropped speed from 70 to 20 mph and would not accelerate. Upon trying to accelerate the engine made a loud noise and would not accelerate. I had it towed and the car corrected from limp mode but I still don’t know if it will reoccur. I’ve had it looked at by my dealer and was told the car went into limp mode but they said they couldn’t pinpoint why. my car is available to be inspected.

  2. Electrical system, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Nov 27, 2022

    These cars have had this problem for years according to an independent Honda garage. Wife complained the car wouldn't accelerate when the accelerator pedal was mashed. I thought it was a mistake she had caused. A week or so later, I experienced the same issue. I mashed the gas, entered a 4 lane 45 mph street & the car wouldn't accelerate. With cars bearing down, I don't know what I did, but managed to finally get the car to move. I've taught defensive driver training, road raced in SCCA & have well over a million miles behind the wheel, NEVER have I had this occur before. I'd heard of unintended acceleration, but I had just experienced non-intended acceleration. I talked to 4 different Honda service writers at different dealers, none admitted being aware of this problem. After multiple occurrences of the same issue, I went into an independent Honda garage, started explaining what had happened. The owner's wife came out from behind her desk, picked up 1 of 5 boxes on the counter & said, "This is your problem & why we keep this many cause it's a common & frequent problem," The box contained an Accelerator Position Sensor. She explained it is a common problem with Honda vehicles equipped with these position sensors. I've reported this problem before & wrote a letter to Honda America. I haven't heard of a resolution to replace these defective electronic sensors. If someone with my experience is almost hit by oncoming vehicles due to these defective accelerator position sensors, I wonder how many people have been injured or killed because their Honda would not accelerate when needed. It is something NHTSA needs to investigate. Enlist independent garages to determine how much of a problem these sensors pose, dealerships are not viable responders As a result of this continuing problem, we wanted to get rid of the vehicle, had an opportunity to sell the vehicle & did.

  3. Power train, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Oct 12, 2022

    Car will shut off when still cold or at a complete stop and then when you press the gas to accelerate either the car will shut off and stall or will not go anywhere. Usually when that happens I put car in neutral and drive to go or put it on neutral rev it a few times then I can either drive or reverse. Already had this car serviced last year at the dealership was told faulty fuel injectors. Car drove good for about a year and now back to either stalls or doesn’t move. Really frustrating and a potential hazard especially when trying to make a left turn or right turn and stalls or doesn’t move.

  4. Vehicle speed control, Other or unspecified, Engine, Jul 30, 2022, crash

    I reported engine stalling after purchasing my 2016 in 2018 they serviced it and never fixed the issue I am wondering if that was issue in my accident

  5. Engine and engine cooling, Power train, Jul 6, 2022

    The contact owns a 2016 Honda CR-V. The contact stated that while driving at an undetermined speed, there was an abnormal odor of smoke detected. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where they informed her the coolant had mixed with the CVT transmission fluid. The vehicle was diagnosed and it was determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who informed her that the catalytic convertor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was taken to another local dealer where they informed contact the vehicle was working as designed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. While driving from the dealer, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The manufacturer was notified but no additional assistance was provided. The approximate failure mileage was 74,879.

  6. Engine, Jun 28, 2022

    The pistons and piston rings have failed, and the engine burns oil rapidly. There is no indication by the vehicle of the issue as far as any dashboard lights, etc. I brought my vehicle into the Honda dealership over a year ago with a noise the car was making. I was told by Honda that my car had burned oil, and to do an oil consumption test and the results would be submitted to Honda corporate. Honda corporate forced me to do multiple oil consumption tests for over a year while my car was still in warranty. Now that my car is out of warranty, Honda corporate will not pay for my car to get fixed. This is a huge safety issue because this car in that year's make & model will burn oil to the point without making the driver aware of it until the engine combusts and can destroy the engine entirely. Anyone with this year make & model should not have to worry about their car having a factory defect and the dealer refusing to pay for it. There is nothing I could have done to cause the piston and piston rings to fail. Especially for the fact that I am the first owner of this car.

  7. Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, May 20, 2022

    Oil stick smells heavily of gas, the engine which my car has is known to inject too fuel in the oil. I have had it checked at the honda dealership and was informed, it was normal that there is nothing wrong, however when I check my oil stick it is very apparent that there is gas in the oil compartment. (my dipping stick should not smell like my gas tank) I will be having a second dealership look at the oil tank again.

  8. Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Feb 18, 2022

    Gas in the oil 2016 2.4 l

  9. Electrical system, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Jan 29, 2022

    I have submitted this complaint before. We sold the car rather than deal with a potential t-bone accident. When starting from a stop, as you would accelerate into a traffic lane the car without warning would suddenly act as if the key was turned off, ceasing to accelerate. Exiting our neighborhood onto a thoroughfare with typical 35-50 mph traffic, my wife & I both had frequent instances of this failure to accelerate or dead throttle response. With 50+ years of driving, 5 years of SCCA road racing, 5 years of teaching defensive driving, I'm still not sure what I've done to get the car to accelerate & avoid getting t-boned. Several Honda dealerships have acted as if this is an unknown situation/condition. Actually talked to 5 different Honda service writers who all denied that the problem existed. Went to an independent Honda garage who had 5 boxes of the offending part-Throttle Position Sensor-on their office counter. I was told it is a common problem, as evidenced by the number of TPS boxes they had. This is an extreme hazard & danger to anyone driving a Honda that uses this particular piece of hardware. I would urge a recall to force Honda to re-design this sensor to eliminate the potential non-acceleration issue.

  10. Vehicle speed control, Service brakes, Engine, Jan 16, 2022, crash

    I bought this car from Honda and I had to bring it back three times within the first 30 days for them to fix a window that was making a noise I also asked him if he could please take a look and drive my car because whenever I break or I’m trying to speed up my car seems to stall and the engine can’t catch up and then all of a sudden it bucks forward of course they said they cannot find the issue they will call the manager and no one has ever called me back to fix this issue I looked up recalls I don’t know if there is one on this vehicle or not but I need some help

  11. Suspension, Other or unspecified, Engine, Nov 23, 2021

    my car started to feel like it rides rough and uneasy. I herd a loud pop inside from the engine when reversing out of my parking stall. It sounded like something inside the suspension or the engine: The engine also feels off and not running like it should. The tire warning also keeps coming on and i replaced all the tires already.

  12. Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Nov 13, 2021

    On Sep 10 2020, when I drove the CR-V uphill on Crenshaw southbound near Indian Peak, it could not accelerate and get into "limp" mode. No engine light was on. Once I was able to use momentum to pull over, restarted the car, it was driving as normal. I drove it to the nearest Honda dealer and left with them for a week. They could reproduce the issue by driving exactly to the same spot. They investigated and replaced the whole tank of fuel, suspecting water in the gas tank. On Sep 19 2021, my husband was driving on Lancaster 14 north bound (uphill). The CR-V go into "limp" mode and could not accelerate. Engine light turned on soon after. He was able to cruise to the shoulder and restart the vehicle. Once it was restarted, the engine light turned off, the car could go again, and he drove and left it to the nearest dealer, they could not find any issue. On Nov 7 2021, as I am driving on 73 toll road north bound (uphill) near Catalina View Toll Booth, CR-V traveling around 65 MPH started to get into "limp" mode and I could not accelerate it pressing the gas pedal, then the engine light turned on. I was able to cruise by momentum and pull to the shoulder. I stopped and restarted the car, and it was able to travel again. All through my trip afterward (405 NB), the car felt "choked" and "stuttered" when I tried to accelerate.

  13. Power train, Engine, Oct 18, 2021

    The car vibrates so much my hands will shake on the steering wheel while idling and at time while driving. Any items in the car will shake. Complained to service department everytime vehicle brought in for service. Was told nothing could be done to fix issue and vibration is normal.

  14. Engine, Sep 15, 2021

    Car is burning oil very quickly, no apparent leaks. Bad noise coming from front end when going up and down hills caused me to investigate this problem with mechanic. Notice many complaint on the internet regarding this problem with the Honda CRV 2016.

  15. Engine, Aug 10, 2021, fire

    Honda CRV E-XL bought in 2016 from Coral Springs Honda, FL and always maintained at Honda Dealership died on freeway on 08/06/2021 in approximately 5 years. When towed in nearest Firestone they routed to Honda as they suspect the coolant has breached into 4 cylinders. Honda Dealership (First Texas Honda Austin ) is quoting around $10000 for a new engine replacement for 3 - 4 grand for an older engine of similar miles. My question is does Honda engines typically dies at 50k mile marks. I trusted Honda to last for 200k plus. Does Honda need to instrospect the engines manufactured for 2016 CRVs. What went wrong to this engine does it requires Honda to recall 2016 Honda CRV as I would have met an accident due to my car dying all of sudden on a freeway. The car started giving fumes from AC vent and all the warning light flashed on the dashboard. Please please help me getting my car fixed as I cannot afford that much of money. Honda Case Number: 12418365.

  16. Structure, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Jul 14, 2021

    1.CAR IS TOO MUCH BUMPI FROM DAY1 2.EVERY TIME STAR WITH SHAKE 3.GAS PADDEL NEED TO PUSH TWICE TO RUN THE CAR 4.ALL INJECTORS AND SPARK PLUGS ARE CHANGED NEW (BOUGHT FROM HONDA} 5.STILL GIVING CODE P0172 SYSTEM TOO RICH BANK 1, 6.WENT HONDA SERVICE CAN NOT GUARANTEE THE CAN FIX BUT THEY TOOK 140 DOLLAR FEE. 7.SOMETHING LIKE UNKNOWN BECAUSE EVEN HONDA CAN NOT FIX IT 8.CAR MILES 126000

  17. Engine, Jun 25, 2021

    Vehicle stalls when driving, power steering, tire pressure, and check engine light all come on, but when mechanic checks there’s no codes popping up. Then vehicle stalls again.

  18. Air bags, Service brakes, Engine, May 10, 2021, crash

    STARTED THE CAR IN THE PARKING LOT. THE ENGINE WAS IDLING A BIT ROUGH. PUT THE CAR IN DRIVE. SUDDENLY THE ENGINE ROARED AND ACCELERATED. TRIED TO APPLY THE BRAKE. IT DID NOT WORK. FORTUNATELY DID NOT HIT ANY OTHER CARS IN THE PARKING LOT. THE CAR JUMPED OVER THE CURB AT THE EDGE OF THE PARKING LOT, WENT INTO A DITCH AND HIT A TREE. CAME TO A STOP. THE AIRBAG WAS ACTIVATED. THE ENGINE WAS STILL RUNNING AT HIGH RPM. FORTUNATELY THIS MALFUNCTION HAPPENED IN A PARKING LOT AND NOT ON A BUSY CITY ROAD !!!!! THIS BIZARRE INCIDENT POINTS TO POTENTIAL MALFUNCTION OF THE COMPUTER CONTROLS. FORENSIC INVESTIGATION IS NEEDED TO RULE OUT THIS POSSIBILITY.

  19. Air bags, Service brakes, Engine, May 2, 2021, crash

    PULLED THE CAR OUT OF THE PARKING LOT AND SHIFTED THE GEAR TO DRIVE. EVEN BEFORE I PRESSED THE GAS PEDAL, THE ENGINE ROARED AND THE CAR SPED OUT OF CONTROL. THE BRAKE FAILED. FORTUNATELY WAS ABLE TO AVOID OTHER PARKED CARS AND THE CAR CAME TO A STOP IN A DITCH AT THE EDGE OF THE PARKING LOT. THE CAR MAY HAVE TRAVELED ABOUT 100 YDS BEFORE COMING TO STOP. THE AIRBAG WAS DEPLOYED AND THE DAMAGE TO THE FRONT OF THE CAR MAY BE EXTENSIVE. REPORTING THIS FAILURE TO THE NHTSA IN CASE THERE ARE OTHER SIMILAR EVENTS HAPPENING WITH THE 2016 HONDA CR-V MODEL.

  20. Steering, Power train, Engine, Apr 6, 2021

    ENGINE VIBRATION AT IDLE AND ENGINE NOISE WHEN STARTING IN THE COLD. WHEN HOT, WHINING NOISE INSIDE BY TIMING CHAIN AREA. SENT 5 TIMES FOR REPAIR AT PARAGON HONDA AND THE SITUATION WAS NEVER FIXED AND EVERY TIME SENT, THEY KEEP THE CAR IN THE DEALER FOR ONE WEEK AND AN EXTRA WEEK IN HILLSIDE HONDA. MY CAR HAS 23,700 MILES AND HAVE ALL SERVICES DONE AT PARAGON HONDA AND AT HILLSIDE HONDA AND THE NOISES CONTINUE. I CONTACTED AMERICAN HONDA AND THE SITUATION IS NEVER RESOLVED YET THEY KNOW ABOUT THE ISSUE.

  21. Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Mar 28, 2021

    I SMELL GASOLINE WHILE SITTING IN THE CABIN DRIVING. MY CAR HAS SAT ALL NIGHT AND I'M PARKED IN THE DRIVEWAY WITH THE CAR RUNNING AND I SMELL GASOLINE. IT SMELLS LIKE WHEN THERE IS A SMALL CAN OF GAS IN THE CAR A LAWN MOWER. SPEAKING OF WHICH, THE SMELL IS NOT UNLIKE THE SMELL YOU GET WHEN YOU SPILL GAS ON YOUR LAWNMOWER AND START MOWING THE LAWN. HONDA REFUSED TO DO ANYTHING. I WAS SUPPOSED TO TAKE THE CAR TO A DEALERSHIP BUT THEN THEY WANTED TO CHARGE ME. I CAN'T AFFORD IT. MY SON READ OF THIS PROBLEM IN HONDA CR-V FORUM WHERE THEY TALKED ABOUT THE OIL PAN BEING AN ISSUE. BUT THE CAR MODEL WAS NOT A 2016 AND IS IS SUPPOSED TO HAVE A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT AGAINST THEM FOE THIS ISSUE BUT IT IS COMING. I CAN'T LIVE WITH THIS SMELL.

  22. Other or unspecified, Engine, Feb 6, 2021

    THE CABIN IS FILLING WITH ENGINE/FUEL FUMES. I PURCHASED 11/2016 AND BEGAN HAVING DEBILITATING HEADACHES, NAUSEA AND CHEST PAINS OFF AND ON IN 06/2017. I HAVE INCURRED A LOT OF EXPENSE GOING TO NEUROLOGISTS, CARDIOLOGISTS, OPTHAMOLOGISTS TO TRY AND DIAGNOSE THE SOURCE OF THE PROBLEMS. I WAS FINALLY TOLD IT WAS MIGRAINES. I HAVE NEVER BELIEVED THIS, AND THINK THEY JUST SETTLED ON THAT BECAUSE ALL OF THE MRI'S AND CT SCANS CAME UP CLEAN OR INCONCLUSIVE. AND THEY COULDN'T COME UP WITH ANYTHING ELSE. 2 DAYS AGO ON MY WAY TO WORK I WAS OVERCOME BY A WIERD SMELL AND SUDDENLY FELT VERY ILL. I MADE IT TO WORK AND STARTED LOOKING FOR ANY OTHER REPORTS OF PROBLEMS. ITS BEEN YEARS OF MISERY THAT HAD A SUDDEN ONSET AND DRASTICALLY AFFECTED MY QUALITY OF LIFE. I CAN'T FLY OR GO FOR A LONG CARE RIDE BECAUSE OF THE HEADACHES.

  23. Engine, Feb 4, 2021

    THE ENGINE STARTED MAKING A KNOCKING SOUND IN Q1 OF 2020. A TECH STATED THAT THE SOUND HAPPENS BECAUSE OF THE LOW OIL LEVEL IN THE ENGINE. I HAD NOTICED THE KNOCKING SOUND ESPECIALLY WHEN DRIVING UP OR DOWN AT AN ANGLE AND ALSO ON TURNS. THE DEALERSHIP PERFORMED SEVERAL OIL CONSUMPTION TESTS AND THE KNOCKING PERSISTED. IN Q3 OF 2020, THE DEALERSHIP REPLACED THE VTEC THINKING THIS WOULD BE THE FIX. THEN IN JANUARY 2021, WHEN THE OIL INDICATOR WAS AT 35%, THE KNOCKING BEGAN AGAIN. THE DEALERSHIP OPENED UP THE ENGINE AND FOUND THAT THE SPARK PLUGS, PISTONS AND PISTON RINGS ARE ALL FOULED, AND THAT OIL HAS SEEPED INTO THESE ENGINE PARTS. HONDA CORPORATE HAS OFFERED TO PAY FOR A PORTION BUT NOT ALL OF THE REPAIR COST WHICH IS $5400. THEY HAVE NOT OFFERED TO EXTEND THE WARRANTY TO 8 YEARS AND 125,000 MILES WHICH IS WHAT WAS PROVIDED TO CARS IN THE OFFER FOR 2010-2011 CRVS AND 2011 ACCORDS WERE GIVEN BY HONDA ACCORDING TO A MAY 15, 2015 ARTICLE FOR THIS SAME DEFECT. CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT - SIMILARLY A CLASS-ACTION LAWSUIT CONCERNING THIS SAME DEFECT WAS SETTLED IN 2013 COVERING SEVERAL HONDA MODELS. PLAINTIFFS WERE [XXX] AND [XXX] WITH U.S DISTRICT JUDGE [XXX] IN SAN FRANCISCO. HONDA AGREED IN THE SETTLEMENT TO EXTEND THE POWERTRAIN LIMITED WARRANTY FOR UP TO 8 YEARS. FROM; [XXX] IN DALLAS, TEXAS [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

  24. Engine, Dec 11, 2020

    HONDA CRV HAS THIS VIBRATION WHEN I STOP FOR A RED LIGHT.

  25. Power train, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Aug 3, 2020

    2016 HONDA CR-V DRIVING HIGHWAY WITH ONLY 38,000 MILES AND CUT OFF. GOT TOW HOME SCAN OBD2 COMPUTER SAY FUEL PRESSURE I SAW THERE WAS A DENSO FUEL PUMP RECALL FOR HONDA TRYING SEE IF CRV ARE EFFECT PLEASE CALL CONTACT ME BACK I PICTURES OF MILEAGE TOW TRUCK PICTURES