2016 Honda Pilot
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 1,706 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the highest complaint count among 23 Pilot model years with reports.
Of the 2016 reports, 23 involved a crash and 10 involved a fire. 20 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Structure, frame and membersJun 4, 2026
American Honda Motor Company (Honda) is recalling certain 2016-2022 Honda Pilot, 2017-2023 Ridgeline, 2019-2023 Passport, and 2014-2020 Acura MDX vehicles that were sold in Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, or Wisconsin. The rear subframe may corrode at the suspension mounting points, which can result in rear suspension component failure.
Failure of rear suspension components, such as the rear control arm, can cause a loss of vehicle handling and control, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.
Dealers will inspect the rear subframe and install a rear subframe reinforcement kit and, as necessary, repair or replace the rear subframe components, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed July 27, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final remedy is available, anticipated in the fall of 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are AOU and AOT. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning June 10, 2026.
Campaign 26V365000 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
Engine and engine cooling, engine, hard parts internal/mechanicalNov 13, 2023
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Acura TLX, 2016-2020 Acura MDX, 2016 and 2018-2019 Pilot, 2017 and 2019 Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 Odyssey vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error, the connecting rod bearing in the engine may wear and seize, damaging the engine.
A damaged engine may run improperly or stall while driving, increasing the risk of a fire, crash, or injury.
Dealers will inspect and repair, or replace the engine as necessary, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed March 28, 2024. 2016-2017 Acura MDX owner letters were mailed November 1, 2024. 2016-2020 Acura MDX owner letters are expected to be mailed in mid-December 2024. Honda began mailing owner notification letters as of March 18, 2024. 2015-2016 Acura owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-December 2024, 2018 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed the end of March/early April 2024, 2019 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-May 2024, 2020 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-June 2024, and 2016-2020 Acura MDX owner letters are expected to be mailed January 27, 2025. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XG1 and GG0.
Campaign 23V751000 on NHTSA.gov
Structure, body, hoodNov 29, 2021
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2019 Passport, 2016-2019 Pilot, and 2017-2020 Ridgeline vehicles. The hood latch striker may become damaged and separate from the hood, which can result in the hood opening while driving.
A hood that opens while driving can obstruct the driver's view and increase the risk of a crash.
Dealers will either repair the hood latch striker, or replace the hood if necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 18, 2022. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is PBV.
Campaign 21V932000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, storageMar 30, 2017
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2016 Honda Pilot 2WD and AWD vehicles. The affected vehicles have fuel tanks that may leak.
A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source can increase the risk of a fire.
Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel tank, free of charge. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is KE8.
Campaign 17V219000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, storage, tank assemblyJun 9, 2016
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2015 Acura MDX 2WD and MDX 4WD vehicles, 2016 Acura MDX 4WD vehicles, 2015-2016 Honda Odyssey vehicles, and 2016 Honda Pilot 2WD and 4WD vehicles. The affected vehicles have fuel tanks that were manufactured with insufficient welds which may separate and allow fuel to leak out.
A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source may result in a fire.
Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel tanks, free of charge. Owners may contact Honda/Acura customer service at 1-888-234-2138. The recall began on July 29, 2016. Honda's numbers for this recall are KA9 (Honda vehicles) and KB0 (Acura vehicles).
Campaign 16V417000 on NHTSA.gov
Electrical system, instrument cluster/panelOct 16, 2015
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2016 Honda Pilot 2WD vehicles manufactured May 4, 2015, to September 8, 2015 and 2016 Pilot 4WD vehicles manufactured May 7, 2015 to September 4, 2015. In the affected vehicles, when one of the safety systems such as tire pressure monitoring, anti-lock braking or electronic stability control malfunctions, there is potential that the instrument panel will not illuminate the corresponding warning light, however the warning lamps will illuminate when the ignition is turned off and then turned back on. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 126, "Electronic stability control systems", number 135, "Light vehicle brake systems" and number 138, "Tire pressure monitoring systems".
If a safety system cannot immediately warn the driver when needed, the driver may be at increased risk of a crash.
Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the instrument cluster software, free of charge. The recall began on December 11, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is JV7.
Campaign 15V668000 on NHTSA.gov
Seat belts, rear/otherJul 6, 2015
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2016 Honda Pilot vehicles manufactured May 4, 2015, to June 5, 2015. Due to an assembly issue, the third row seatbelt may be trapped between the rear seat and the rear sideliner.
If the third row seatbelt is trapped, the occupants may not be restrained properly, increasing the risk of injury.
Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and repair the rear third row seat belt, free of charge. The recall began on August 6, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-310-783-2000. Honda's number for this recall is JS7.
Campaign 15V424000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: electrical system
579 reports, newest first. Show all
Electrical system, Jun 10, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that after stopping the vehicle and then attempting to accelerate, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle restarted however, there was a delay in the proper functionality of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed; however, the mechanic found no failure with the vehicle. The contact stated that an unknown part of the instrument panel was replaced however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not contacted or notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 20,000.
Electrical system, Engine, Jun 9, 2022
The vehicle’s Auto Stop/Start feature routinely fails to restart the engine when releasing the brake, turning the steering wheel, or selecting Park. In order to start the vehicle, it must be placed into Park, turned off, and then turned back on by holding the Start button. This has worked on most occasions (approx 90% of occasions thus far); other times a jump start was required. Attempts to resolve from Honda have required several purchases of a new battery and denial of there being a larger issue. There is no indication or warning that the feature has failed until attempting to resume driving (or the vehicle attempts to restart itself based on the vehicle’s self-monitored parameters). The failure to start leaves the vehicle stuck in traffic risking collision and/or personal injury as a result.
Electrical system, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Jun 9, 2022
While at a stop light, with the engine "Auto Start/Stop" switch engaged, I released my foot from the brake, and the car died. I was totally confused as to what occurred. After a minute or two I was able to restart the car. I was very concerned about being re-ended as when the light changed to green is when the car died. I had no advance warning of a problem, and it just died unexpectedly as I released my foot from the break. No lights on the dash either. I notified my dealer, who had never heard of this happening, and said when I can, please bring it in. In as much as the incident occurred in May 2022, and hadn't happened since, I did not take my car into the dealer. I can take my car in at any time to be examined.
Electrical system, Engine, Jun 8, 2022
I recently saw an article that NHTSA is investigating Honda vehicles 2016-2019 regarding the idle stop/restart of the car and want to corroborate that this issue does exist. My husband and I bought a 2016 Honda Pilot Elite in late July of 2019. We believe we are the second owners of the vehicle. All was fine except for occasionally, the idle stop/restart feature would not work: the car would cut off at a red light, but when taking my foot off the brake and expecting a restart, you would see and hear all of the electrical turn off--radio, a/c, etc. and sometimes the car would not restart. I would have to wait 30 seconds or so, then restart the car as normal. The most harrowing experience with this happened on a six-lane highway where I was the last in line at a red light. The light turned green, all cars accelerated and left, but the idle stop did not restart, the car cut off completely, and it would not restart at all. I had to wait for a minute or two to re-try several times. This was a 55mph highway, I was in the middle lane completely stalled out with no other cars around me, and my children were in the car with me. I was afraid someone would come barreling along at the speed limit and hit us. We took the car in to our local Honda dealership on 11/21/19 and still have the paperwork, which reads "BMS no supplying proper voltage for auto stop function to operate properly", "Install new battery management sensor", "Battery test bad" and "replaced battery". We all figured it was the car's battery. A year later, we asked and they still couldn't disconnect that feature for us. I have made it a habit to hit the button to disable the idle stop whenever I drive the car. Just last week, my husband drove with the rest of us in the car, he did not disable the idle stop at a red light, and the car briefly cut off all electrical (but quickly turned back on) when he lifted his foot from the break. We still have the car. Please do inspect it. There are no warning signs.
Fuel system, Gasoline, Electrical system, Jun 8, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the Auto START/STOP fuel-saving feature malfunctioned and the vehicle would not immediately restart after lifting off the brake pedal. The contact indicated that the failure had occurred on multiple occasions. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who was unable to determine the cause of the failure and no service was performed. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 22,000.
Engine and engine cooling, Electrical system, Jun 8, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while driving 50-55 MPH, the vehicle started jerking. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact depressed the brake pedal and continued driving at slower speeds. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred while driving. The contact also stated that the vehicle lost motive power while reversing. The contact was able to restart the vehicle after several attempts. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that there was an oil leak. The oil pan, rear main seal, the engine mount, the crankshaft speed sensor, the spark plugs and the transmission mount were replaced. The contact stated that other unknown repairs were completed. However, the failure persisted. Additionally, the contact stated that the hood of the vehicle would fail to remain open as needed and would close independently. The contact stated that the failure occurred intermittently. The contact also stated that she smelled a strong gasoline odor inside the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 160,000.
Electrical system, Jun 8, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the Auto START/STOP function had failed. The vehicle would suddenly stall and shut off. The contact stated that the failure recurred at various speeds and also while the vehicle was idling. The vehicle would also shake and jerk. The contact would restart the vehicle and turn off the Auto START/STOP function. The contact had not taken the vehicle to the dealer to be diagnosed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 81,000.
Electrical system, Jun 8, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that the AutoStart function failed to engage temporarily when attempting to drive from a complete stop. However, the AutoStart feature was designed to engage automatically while depressing the accelerator pedal. There were several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times, where it was diagnosed that no issues were found. However, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.
Electrical system, Engine, Jun 8, 2022
The engine in my vehicle fails to restart after coming to a complete stop. My car stalls out and can take several attempts to try to restart the car. This has been very dangerous. It can occur whether I'm stuck in traffic on a major highways or even just at a stop sign. It always occurs when the start/stop function is engaged. I have taken the car to the dealer multiple times to deal with this issue and even tried to get the start stop function removed. Unfortunately, they have never been able to fix the problem.
Electrical system, Jun 7, 2022
Was driving the car in a parking lot (thankfully) when the dashboard lights started randomly flickering and clicking like crazy. Then the battery completely drained. The car wouldn't start at all. When I tried to restart the engine the lights would go crazy, flashing every single emergency warning light on the dashboard and clicking sounds for a few seconds then dead again. Had to get a tow truck and finally was able to jump it and drive to the dealer. I've seen so many reports of this same issue occurring with this same model. The dealer told me that its due to a faulty keyless control module that only the dealer can replace for $800 plus labor. The bill is over a $1000 with tax included. The part is on national back order so they said my car will be in the shop for probably 3 months at least. And I spoke to multiple mechanics who said that they can't fix it because the dealer won't sell them the part. I've been without my car for a month already and dealer says no word on the part and it's not covered which sounds crazy because I'm reading of others having this same issue.
Electrical system, Engine, Jun 7, 2022
For the last 6 months (or maybe a bit more) my 2016 Honda Pilot Touring does not successfully re-start after it's auto-idle-stop feature kicks in at stoplight or in stop/go highway traffic. This maybe happens 20% of the time, but more likely on a hot day or when AC/radio all running high or uphill start. When this happen car stalls and needs to be completely restarted which takes 30 secs and a requires a "reboot" by pressing the start button 2-3 times. To add to the annoyance you cannot permanently disable the auto-idle-stop feature. Instead every time the car restarts it is on by default and the user has to manually turn it over ever time. This is happening with the original 2016 battery from new dealer purchase. The dealership claims it's an old/weak battery issue, but the car has no problem starting on a fresh cold start. This is a safety issue if the car stalls and the driver needs to quickly restart to escape danger, collision, etc.
Electrical system, Jun 7, 2022
On multiple occasions the car will stale and not restart when the auto engine off engages. It is left me stranding in the middle of traffic several times. The vehicle has been taken to Honda for service on many occasions and told there is nothing wrong.
Electrical system, Engine, Jun 7, 2022
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.
Electrical system, Jun 2, 2022
alarm going off intermittently, dash board glitching when car is off and parked.
Electrical system, May 29, 2022
Dash Lights flash, alarm sounds and Battery drains randomly.
Electrical system, May 27, 2022
This error keeps popping up. Honda won’t fix it. Keyless start system problem error. This is an known error with the specific 2016 Honda Pilot model. I see 100s of people online with the same error. But Honda won’t fix it for free.
Electrical system, May 26, 2022
Random triggered alarming caused during flickering and clicking of dashboard lights leading to battery drainage. Many reports of this same instance occurring with this particular model. It appears to be a faulty keyless control module that now many Americans have had no choice but to pay $800 to replace in the absence of what obviously should be a recall at this point.
Electrical system, May 24, 2022
Keyless start/stop button does not work. Honda dealership says it is not active recall but switched was replaced at 88000 miles.
Electrical system, Service brakes, May 24, 2022
The Pilot defaults to the automatic engine shutoff when the brake is pressed. Several times, my car would shut off at the stop, but not restart when I took my foot off the pedal. When I'd go to restart the car, pressing the Start Engine button would just turn on accessories - it would never engage the gas/ignition. I'd have to give it a few minutes. I took it to my dealership who replaced the push button ignition. I had googled the issue and saw others had the same issue and warning message about the brake mitigation system, I saw that it was likely related to the brake booster/vacuum hose. I brought it back to the dealer the following month as the shut off had happened again and explained again about finding the brake booster as the issue. They replaced the part and the stall out hasn't happened again. It was never a consistent issue. I don't know what caused it to shut off, as it happened in cold or warm weather. Having to press the brake really hard is not a natural step in driving, so I'm thinking there's something wonky with the system. Even when I remote start my car, I have to press the brake pedal extremely firmly to have it remain started when I go to drive. Otherwise, the car will just switch to the accessory mode. This is a risk because the car defaults to the auto engine shut off when in traffic. If a car is unable to restart when the brake pedal is released, accidents can happen
Electrical system, May 20, 2022
Car went into auto idle at stop light and then didn’t start back up. After about 5 minutes and multiple attempts and restarting it finally started. Very dangerous situation
Electrical system, Engine, May 2, 2022
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.
Power train, Electrical system, Engine, Apr 29, 2022
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.
Electrical system, Apr 28, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while at a complete stop, the vehicle would stall upon the depression of the accelerator pedal with either the Collision Mitigation Failure or Shift to Park and Restart Vehicle messages were displayed on the instrument panel. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer several times for the same failure; however, the dealer was unable to duplicate the failure. The contact stated that upon disabling the auto idle-stop feature, the failure did not occur; however, the feature had to be manually disabled each time upon the start of the vehicle. The manufacturer had been notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The vehicle remained in the possession of the dealer and was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000. The VIN was not available.
Electrical system, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Apr 26, 2022
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
Electrical system, Apr 19, 2022
No accident. Keyless warning light on. nothing wrong with vehicle. you tube full of same complaints. some cars are covered and some not. have replaced batteries etc etc