Equipment Problems of Honda Passport - part 1

Don’t have the exact locations,date or time but this has happened around 5 times where I am driving and comes to a come a complete stop and my engine wouldn’t start,I had to put on my hazard lights turn off the vehicle then restart it.

See all problems of the 2020 Honda Passport 🔎.

The push button gearshifting. I have accidentally hit reverse about 100 times since I’ve owned this car in six months. It ended up in a rear end collision with a parked car. Then when I tried to drive forward, I backed up again. The first time was intentional backing and I didn’t see the car behind me… the second time I was attempting to drive forward and I hit the reverse button again. It was instinctual. I hit the car twice.

See all problems of the 2023 Honda Passport 🔎.

Having problems with sudden braking and not accelerating after stopping at lights or stop signs. No warning lights came on. I dropped it off at dealership. They are keeping the vehicle due to safety concerns while driving the vehicle.

See all problems of the 2025 Honda Passport 🔎.

Burnt oil smell inside cabin (when heater is on high) I frequently notice a burnt oil smell inside the cabin, especially during the first hour of driving in the morning with the heater set to high. My local Honda dealership inspected the vehicle but did not find a specific cause, attributing it instead to a “Honda smell. ” they demonstrated a similar odor on a new Passport and suggested using a charcoal cabin filter. However, I remain concerned about a potential fire risk. Auto idle start-stop feature unavailable the auto idle start-stop system rarely functions properly—it has worked approximately 10% of the time I’ve owned the vehicle. After each service visit, it temporarily resumes operation, then soon displays the message “auto idle start-stop feature not available. ” blank center display / ‘most net off’ message the center display intermittently goes blank or reboots repeatedly, showing a “most net off” message. This makes it difficult and distracting to navigate while driving. I understand a previous recall was intended to resolve this issue, but the problem persists.

I own a 2019 Honda Passport. There is a safety concern when it comes to the idle stop feature. If I do not immediately turn this feature off after starting the vehicle, the car will shut off at a traffic light and stall. It takes up to a minute for the vehicle and operator to register that the vehicle is no longer operable. The vehicle must be manually put into park, restarted, and then put into drive before the vehicle can be driven. This has happened so many times that this stop feature is now destroying my starter and will have to be replaced immediately to avoid being stranded at an intersection or somewhere not safe to exit the vehicle. My 18-year-old daughter had a panic attack, not knowing what to do, and became very upset when she was not able to drive after a light turned green. Vehicles behind her continuously honk at her and drive aggressively around her. The Honda stop idle must be listed as a recall immediately to eliminate a potential fatal risk due to a misunderstanding at an intersection. My daughter refuses to drive this vehicle until the feature is repaired. I feel Honda should be held responsible for a feature that is not necessary to operate a vehicle. It's an option that is an inconvenience to the owner/operator. I am looking for this part to be added to a recall so that I can have the part replaced at no cost to me.

See all problems of the 2019 Honda Passport 🔎.

On Sunday 10/19/2025, estimated 11:15 a. M. , while traveling on the 215 west in riverside, California, my 17 year old granddaughter, riding in the passenger front seat of my 2025 Honda Passport, and I, heard an explosion overhead and immediately could hear the sound of wind. I knew immediately something had happened to the sunroof. I looked into the rear view mirror and traffic around me was unaffected, proof that nothing was flying thru the air needed to be avoided. I exited the freeway at the 1st available off-ramp. My granddaughter and I were quite shaken. We each began taking photos in disbelief. There was a large hole in the mid-section of the sunroof, and yet no sign of the piece that was blown out. I immediately thought of the missing piece of glass, if something had hit the sunroof from overhead, the glass would have fallen in as well as the object falling on it. The pictures also show a pattern of glass being lifted/ blown from inside out versus outside in. I began researching and found exploding sunroofs to be something known about since 2019. In addition, I found a facebook group where other Passport owners have experienced and posted pictures of the same damage to their sunroofs - some have had Honda cover the costs, and others, like me were denied. The service representative where I purchased the Passport reached out to what he referred to as “his Honda rep” and was told Honda would not cover the $1k+ repair cost. This is a manufacturer/workmanship issue, not a customer issue. Please advise on my next steps of reporting.

To preface: all of these issues only occur when the engine idle feature is on. I have not experienced any of these problems when the feature is off. Question #1: when I release the brake with the engine idle on, the vehicle will sometimes completely shut off. When this happens, the steering wheel and brakes lock up, and I am unable to restart the vehicle for at least 60 seconds. Question #2: on one occasion, my wife, our 8-month-old child, and I were stuck at a green light for about 60 seconds while unable to restart the vehicle. Cars were passing by at over 50 mph, and we were relying on other drivers to notice us in time. This situation has happened multiple times and poses a serious safety risk to both us and others on the road. Question #3: I have not taken the vehicle in for service because the issue is difficult to reproduce consistently. That uncertainty is part of the problem, along with the anxiety of not knowing whether the car will suddenly shut off. Question #4: for the same reason, I have not been able to demonstrate the problem on demand. However, the main concern is that I should not have to worry about my vehicle stalling when I go to accelerate. Question #5: the vehicle has completely shut off four separate times over the past year. On one occasion, after releasing the brake, the engine struggled to reach normal rpms and the check engine light came on. I pulled over, turned the vehicle off, restarted it, and it seemed fine afterward, although it had noticeably less power while the check engine light was on. Lastly, there have been several instances where the engine did not completely shut off when the idle feature was on, but when I released the brake to accelerate, I heard a clicking sound and the vehicle seemed as though it was about to stall. It then resumed operation normally as the idle system re-engaged. Since this happens intermittently, it has been difficult to recreate during a diagnostic inspection.

See all problems of the 2021 Honda Passport 🔎.

I am submitting this report regarding a serious safety issue with my 2025 Honda Passport related to the auto stop/start feature. When this feature is enabled, the vehicle frequently struggles to restart smoothly after coming to a stop. The engine often hesitates and sounds as if it may not start at all. On September 26, 2025, the problem escalated into a complete failure. While turning left at an intersection, the auto stop/start feature engaged, shutting off the engine. When I attempted to accelerate, the vehicle failed to restart and became fully disabled in the middle of traffic. This created an immediate and significant safety hazard. Law enforcement was called to the scene, and a tow truck was dispatched. However, due to incorrect information and safety concerns, I did not proceed with the tow. Fortunately, the police were able to jump-start the vehicle, allowing me to drive it directly to the dealership. The dealership confirmed that there is an issue but has been unable to replicate the complete failure. They have performed two battery tests, both of which returned normal results. While they acknowledge the problem, they have not been able to formally diagnose it. I have since learned that similar issues and recalls have been reported for earlier Honda model years, suggesting that this problem may still exist in newer vehicles, including the 2025 Passport. Since the incident, I have been disabling the auto stop/start feature every time I drive in order to avoid being stranded again. However, hesitation during restarts continues to occur daily when the feature is active. Given the severity of the safety risk and the inability of the dealership to diagnose or resolve the issue, I am requesting that Honda conduct a formal investigation into this malfunction and take appropriate corrective action. This issue should be fully addressed under warranty, as it directly affects the safety and reliability of the vehicle.

The cmbs alerts braking despite there being no obstacles in front or around the vehicle. Also, the at stop lights when the engine shuts off, on several occasions the car has completely turned off and will not let you do anything (place in park or drive) until you manually start it again.

While driving the sunroof exploded for no apparent reason. Honda dealer said that it was not their problem and not covered under warranty.

My vehicle shut off during idle for energy compensation. It failed to restart and allow the vehicle to be in drive causing the car to stall out and not turn back on.

The shifting. The vehicle will shift to neutral without touching the brake. I had my puppy in the car with me and because of it being buttons he kept stepping on neutral and throwing my car into neutral almost causing a wreck when I was attempting to turn due to someone running a red light. Since you don’t automatically know that the car has been put into neutral and you just know that it is not accelerating it causes a major safety issue. My puppy should not have been able to accidentally put my vehicle into neutral without my awareness. I tested this later to see if I was just not aware that he did it while I was stopped and in fact I was able to put the car in neutral without having my foot on the brake.

I purchased a used 2021 Passport the end of may 2025. While driving, the 'collision mitigation braking system' or cmbs would activate the braking system and would intermittently just brake, causing panic for not only myself, but I'm sure drivers behind me for suddenly braking with no imminent threat in from of me. This happened multiple times without receiving any warning or notifications, just suddenly. It would happen without warning, or sometimes nearing a bridge or a cover plate on the road, which almost caused accidents multiple times to get rear ended. I have driven for decades and never felt anxiety until I drove this vehicle for a few months. I felt scared driving this vehicle, feeling uncertain when it would suddenly just brake. Eventually after a few months of driving, I got a reading that said cmbs problem on the screen. I scheduled an appointment with the dealer. The dealer suggested a near $3000 replacement for a camera (on a 2021 vehicle). At the appointment, I ultimately returned this vehicle to the dealer where I bought it and unfortunately lost out on thousands of dollars after having the vehicle about 6 months. I have always liked Honda, and have had 2 prior Hondas, but with this vehicle purchase, I felt the most unsafe I have ever felt in a vehicle, and moving forward will not feel comfortable purchasing Honda.

First new car in my life and I’m 70. When we bought the car, within a week the entire dash board lit up with warnings. Call the dealer, they towed it to their shop and “calibrated” the collision mitigation front facing camera. This service was completed but within the next 2 years, the situation repeated itself over and over but would always go away. The last time the system failed (with all of the bells and whistles) I went back to Honda and they informed me a replacement was required. $1500 later the front facing multipurpose camera was replaced. The car’s 3 year warranty expired 2 months before the needed replacement. The dealer told me that these cameras have been a significant problem, and are replaced often. The replacement camera has a different part number from what was installed on the car when built. This indicates that Honda knows of this problem, and has upgraded the camera but left it to the owners to replace if it is out of warranty (even 2 months). As a retired degreed engineer, I think this is a significant safety issue…. . To have all of the alarms activate while sitting in the drivers seat.

See all problems of the 2022 Honda Passport 🔎.

We always keep this vehicle parked in our garage and I have been noticed strong smell of gasoline when entering the side door. I know that they have recalls on previous models with gas filler detaching but does not show in any recalls for this SUV. I will make sure that it will not be overfilled as I only fill until pump stops itself. We love this SUV and I am just worried for my family's safety. Honda had always been great about recalls. Hope that this was not an operator error. Will call dealership and report if it keeps happening.

First issue was I was in need of a transmission while only having the car for 1. 5 years. I reached out to Honda corporate and I was unable to receive any help with goodwill. Secondly I am now experiencing issues with my alarm going off suddenly, and frequently. The dash board lights up and flickers. Upon doing research I have found that 2019 Honda Passport has had major issues with transmissions, keyless modules controls and electronic issues. In addition my radio keeps going off and it says connection is lost. This has also been a very known and common issues upon doing research on the 2019 Honda Passport there’s different dates for events. I will be able to email my invoice for my transmission.

It’s not an incident. Looking out the windshield has a slight distortion, that looking through it, it seems like looking through a low grade prescription glasses. I have reported it to the dealership and they took note of it and mentioned that they will check it. In terms of safety, it puts some strain into my eyes while driving.

Tiny rock hit windshield and immediately cracked the windshield a foot long. Driver side internal upper door panel foam seems to have blistered and created bubbles/hump.

I am reporting a serious nighttime visibility and driver-assistance safety issue with my 2025 Honda Passport. During evening driving, approximately 60% or more of the upper portion of the windshield appears blacked out or severely dimmed, significantly impairing forward visibility. This condition worsens on downhill grades, where an even greater portion of the windshield darkens. Visibility improves when high beams are manually activated; however, driving continuously with high beams is unsafe and inappropriate. This creates an unreasonable risk of collision, particularly on unlit roads and downhill grades, as pedestrians, road curvature, and hazards are difficult or impossible to see without improper use of high beams. In addition, multiple adas systems operate erratically. Adaptive cruise control delays braking on downhill grades until the vehicle accelerates approximately 9–10 mph above the set speed, delays acceleration after braking and resuming, and disengages with minor steering inputs. Automatic high beams operate inconsistently. These issues persist despite recalibration. The condition has existed since early ownership and continues at approximately 20,000 miles despite multiple service visits. A Honda field technician confirmed all systems were calibrated but did not perform a nighttime drive. A dealership shop foreman conducted a nighttime drive but did not share findings, and I was told he was unavailable and had already spent “enough time” on the vehicle. My initial service record included the notation “do not diagnose. ” I was initially told the dealership had never encountered this issue; later I was told they had seen it on other vehicles but did not know how to fix it. A dealership-recommended nighttime comparison drive with a 2026 Honda Passport did not exhibit these issues. I also regularly drive a 2024 Honda cr-v that shows none of these nighttime visibility or adas problems.

2021 car manufactured. 10/2022 car purchased used/certified from Honda dealer. 12/10/2023 car would not start. All lights not working. Called roadside assistance. While waiting, approximately 30 minutes later, tried starting the vehicle and it started. 12/11/2023 took the car to the dealership, still under warranty, dealership replaced the battery 5/6/2025 car would not start. Waited approximately 10 minutes, tried starting the vehicle and it started. Dashlights were working, batter light did not come on. 5/6/2025 took car to the dealership, battery not under warranty. Was told they would replace the battery for $400-$500 or I could have a diagnosis performed for $150. I declined both because it has only been 1 year and 5 months since the battery had been replaced. I feel like its another issue and it should be looked into for free. The manager would not meet my request. I left. 5/7/2025 spoke with another manager at the dealership. Explained the situation. Was told I could bring the car in for a battery test for free. I declined because I didn't want to purchase a battery or other services from the dealership at potentially higher cost than a don-dealership mechanic. 5/8/2025 brought car to local mechanic. Battery test performed, cranking/starter test performed. Both were in normal ranges. I did not receive any other service at the mechanic. Approx 1/2024 stopped using the auto-idle stop feature due to feeling unsafe at stop lights. Occassionally, when auto-idle goes off then restarts the car feels like it is struggling to restart and dashlights briefly dim. I now manually turn off this feature each time I drive. These problems have been reported to the dealership, holler Honda. The problems have not been reproduced or confirmed at the dealership because they have only happened twice. The vehicle has not been inspected other than during recalls and oil changes. No warning lamps or messages have appeared.

The forward-facing mulitpurpose camera has failed on numerous occasions. This causes failures adaptive cruise control (acc), collision mitigation system, auto high-beam, road departure mitigation, and lane keeping assist. There are numerous incidents of the same failure across most Honda models for the same issue, documented in various forums.

Vehicle stuck in neutral at stop light, unable to turn off or move vehicle for several minutes. This has happened three different times.

Car won’t turn back on after coming to a complete stop at a red light or stop sign. It has happened multiple times and I have taken it to the dealership a few years ago and they couldn’t help me out. The car goes into neutral mode and I have to completely turn the car off and restart it. It keeps happening so I have to turn the idle stop button off when I plan to drive anywhere. It happens off and on.

I have had several incidents where my car does not restart after auto-idling at a stop light. When there is a delay in restarting, a warning flashes briefly that there is an issue with the collision mitigation system. On some occasions, it fails to restart completely and I have to turn off the car, open the door to reset everything, then close the door to restart the car. I have had it inspected by Honda several times and was most recently told it needed a software update, but it has continued to happen since the software update.

On a cold winter day the vehicle would not start. With dangerous windchills this could have been very bad had the vehicle been further away from home. The battery and all systems in the vehicle were good. The Honda dealership diagnosed it as having a frozen starter (see attached doccument). Upon warming up the vehicle inside the dealership garage, it started without issues. The dealership said the starter had froze due to condensation inside the starter and that a new version of the starter is available that prevents this from happening. The new starter cost $1600. As shown in the photos the starters are exactly the same but the new version is better sealed to prevent condensation. I feel this should be a recall due to the original part being defective and not sealed properly which caused failure. I have contacted Honda and they refuse to pay for any portion of this defect.

Sun roof glass exploded without cause, coving the inside of the vehicle in glass. Vehicle was not struck by anything as it was parked at the time under a carport. Sunroof exploding covered the occupants of the vehicle in shattered glass.

See all problems of the 2024 Honda Passport 🔎.

The 2025 Honda Passport has developed an issue where the sunroof produces a popping or squeaking noise when it is being opened.

At speeds above 55 mph, car will make a noise like paper being torn, followed by a loss of throttle response. This lasts for 3 to 5 seconds, then everything returns to normal. This has happened with the cruise control set, or while under foot control. No warning of any kind show up on the dashboard. We have taken our vehicle to the dealership on may 15 2025. They could find nothing after polling the computer or on multiple road trips. This loss of throttle has occurred six times in the last five months. We will keep a written record of these events as they happen, and pray that nobody gets hurt or dies from this.

When the auto-start stop feature has stopped the engine at a red light, the engine will not start sometimes. The problem occurs at random and leaves me stalled at a red light and I cannot start the vehicle. Traffic behind me is held up; horns are honking. If I wait a couple of minutes I can start the 2020 Honda Passport that I bought new. This has been a problem since I bought it new. I brought the Honda into the dealership and they can not fix it. It is a safety problem that the manufacturer will have to figure out and recall the vehicles. These Honda Passports are stalling in traffic without any warning.

Traveling up a hill of 5-degree incline. 20 mph speed limit. Came to complete stop, pushed reverse button. Back over prevention camera did not activate. Did not depress gas pedal. Vehicle rolled backward 35 feet before coming to rest partially in traffic and partially in private driveway. Instrument panel indicated vehicle p for park throughout the entire event. After coming to rest: (partially in traffic) vehicle would not shift out of park. Error messages on instrument panel stated: "stop driving when safe. Transmission problem. See manual. " check engine was not illuminated. Turned off car and back on. Same error message was still present. Gear selector buttons would not respond and vehicle remained in park, partially stuck in traffic. Repeatedly attempted to get vehicle to shift out of park. Eventually the battery positive terminal was removed and reapplied and tightened vehicle started, error message no longer present. Vehicle shifted out of park into reverse. Back over prevention camera activated at this time.

Unknown component failure on 2019 Honda Passport. While operating the vehicle, the engine shut off and automatically placed the vehicle in neutral. The battery light appeared on the dashboard, and instructed, "to start engine: brake + push". The vehicle would not allow me to press the start button unless placed in park, however, the vehicle would not allow me to select park while the engine was off. After a few minutes, I was able to place the vehicle in park, but the engine would not immediately start upon pressing the start button. I then had to manually reset the vehicle by pressing the start button three times before the engine would turn on again. This issue has occurred three times over a span of three months. Once while I was parked. Once while I was operating on the highway, thus posing a risk being rear-ended at a high speed. And once while I was operating through an intersection on the main road, again posing a risk of being rear-ended or t-boned. During these times, the vehicle was rendered inoperable until it was eventually restarted. There were no warning messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the times of failure. It is noted the issue seems to present itself while the speed of the vehicle is decreasing. For instance, while slowing in traffic on the highway and on the main road. The issue was brought to the attention of the Honda service center on two separate occasions. Both times Honda was unable to replicate the issue or identify the component at fault. Honda stated that the vehicle diagnostics and computer system presented no codes or record of the malfunction. The issue remains unresolved.

Both sun visors, driver and passenger are extremely hard to deploy, with significant resistance accompanied by loud creaking noise. They are a definite hazard to when moving. I have reported this to my dealer, and Honda America, as well. As the vehicle is out of warranty, my only option is to have them replaced at my expense. Having owned multiple Hondas (at least 7) of different models, all accruing mileage beyond warranty limititations, and never experiencing the problem, I find the situation most frustrating and perplexing. Honda America dismisses any responsibility on their part as 'normal wear and tear'. The most simple of mechanical features in the unt could lead to traffic accidents. I documented the issue as an incident of 10/21/24, but in fact the issue occurs whenever one drives the vehicle, and has been doing so a long time. I felt certain Honda would address with a safety recall.

The car behind me was very close. I wanted to get up to the speed limit and pressed the gas. The car did not accelerate. I heard.

Backup camera became distorted with colors, replaced at dealership today under extended warranty with a deductible.

Car shut off in the middle of [xxx] in east brunswick NJ. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).