Table 1 shows one common steering related problems of the 2023 Honda Pilot.
| Problem Category | Number of Problems |
|---|---|
| Steering problems |
The car is making a knocking sound while driving at low speeds (ex. Pulling into the garage, reversing into a parking spot) while turning the wheel. The 2023 Pilot is currently at the dealership being inspected. I have come across many other posts, with video, confirming this exact sound with the same assessment - all pointing to the steering rack (although some fixes only being temporary so the part itself might be defective). This is a newer lease and I am not convinced it is safe to drive in with this issue.
When trying to drive my vehicle I noticed the steering wheel became hard to turn. I was able to get a tow truck to drop my vehicle off at the dealership to get it looked at. The dealership is telling me that it is due to a steering problem needing a rack and pinion part. This vehicle is a 2023 Honda Pilot which was just purchased by me in April. There hasnt been any issue until now.
At about 9700 miles I noticed a popping noise in the steering wheel when it was turned left or right after driving for a few miles and it could be felt in the steering wheel. The popping sound got worse and on July 7, 2025 I took the car to the Honda dealership I bought it from at 11, 900 miles and the master mechanic confirmed the sound and stated the steering rack needed to be replaced. That was done over 4 days but several months later the popping sound that could again be felt in the steering wheel returned. I contacted the georgia attorney general lemon law division and was advised that because it was a safety defect I should give Honda a final repair opportunity notice under the GA lemon law which I did on oct 24, 2025. Honda ignored the notice and the attorney general accepted the case for arbitration which is set for may 29, 2026. In preparation for arbitration, I discovered that at least 3 other complaints have been filed with the NHTSA about the exact same safety issue I have experienced. I do not know how these complaints were resolved but concerning one of them, the steering rack was replaced like mine and the popping sound from the steering returned. Honda therefore knows of this safety defect but has continued to ignore my lemon law complaint and request for discovery of internal Honda information concerning this defect. I have severely limited driving of this vehicle to short trips at slow speeds to my law firm and cannot drive it at highway speeds for fear of steering failure.
Clicking and groaning noise when turning the steering wheel. Happens at any speed including when stopped. Randomly started happening one day.
The contact owns a 2023 Honda Pilot the contact stated that while driving on the highway at approximately 50 mph the contact attempt to accelerate when all of a sudden the following lights illuminated on her dashboard, "brake system, brake hold system, problem, apply break when stopped, see your dealer" "electric power steering system problem" "steering assistance reduced see your dealer" "vehicle stability assist system problem" and the brake light had illuminated. The vehicle also began to deaccelerate and the steering wheel seized. The contact was able to bring her vehicle to a stop, and she proceeded to restart her vehicle and the steering wheel unlocked, however the warning lights continued to stay illuminated on the dashboard, and the speed of the vehicle would only accelerate slowly. The contact was able to drive her vehicle to a local dealer where the vehicle was diagnosed. The contact was advised that they were not able to find anything wrong with the vehicle, besides resetting the system, and returning the vehicle to her. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 28,000.
Dealer is replacing power steering rack. Making noise when turning left an right.
Steering makes noise, safety concern. Steering rack replaced at 5,000 miles in July 2024 (10 months after purchase). Noise came back at approximately 7,500 in October 2024 (13 months after purchase). Was told initial steering rack was defective and the replacement may have been defective too. Honda replaced the steering rack a second time on October 28-29, 2024. Not sure of this is a permanent fix.
Power steering went out while driving, car would not accelerate and several warnings showed up on dash. Warnings advised to see dealer and only drive at low speed. Dealership states at there is no problem so there is nothing they can do about it.
I have reported the issue once before. Took it back to dealer for service. Serviced by rock Honda on may 28, 2024. They swore issue was resolved and I had to pay out of pocket. Same problem. Loss of all wheel drive function, car nearly stalls out while at highway speeds and on surface streets (loss of power and bucks hard). Warning message appears for awd system advising no power. I am convinced that I got a lemon. This car is absolute trash. Daily occurrence with this problem.
My 2023 Honda Pilot has had persistent issues with the steering system since it was purchased new. The problems manifest as knocking noises in the steering column, although no warning lights appear. The Honda dealer has replaced the steering rack three times. A rattling noise is now occurring in the steering column, and the dealer is advising replacement of the steering column. The dealer was in contact with Honda engineering each time to solicit advice and obtain approval for the repairs. The replaced parts are not available for inspection, and only the Honda dealer has inspected the vehicle. I am concerned for my safety. I am afraid that the steering will fail while I am driving at highway speeds and cause an accident. I contacted Honda corporate, and they essentially told me there is nothing they can do because the vehicle is considered “fixed” after each repair.
The contact owns a 2023 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. There was an abnormally loud grinding sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the power steering system needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure persisted. Additionally, the contact stated that the driver's seat was moving whenever the brake pedal was depressed. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to another local dealer, motor werks of barrington (1475 s barrington rd, barrington, IL 60010); who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 8,468.
Vehicle will randomly display multiple warning lights- usually starting with the braking system, until all warnings are triggered. This has happened about 10 times so far. Happens in a variety of driving situations. When car is parked, it then requires multiple presses on start button to turn the car off. Every time this happens the rear lift gate is completely disabled and unable to open. About 11/15/2023 I have a video of the errors I can provide- it is a large file and can’t be attached with the other photos. The error also occurred one time while driving at about 70mph using the adaptive cruise. There were no vehicles ahead, but one was approaching from behind- the vehicle brakes or the cruise controls caused the car to rapidly decelerate. I had had to push the accelerator to avoid causing an accident with the person behind me. I had the passenger take a photo of the dashboard warnings. About 11/3/23.
Honda Pilot 2023 elite shows 15+ error messages on the instrument panel. Messages indicate emissions systems, breaking systems, power steering and various risk mitigation systems experiencing problems resulting in reduced performance. Errors show up when the vehicle starts and are easy to reproduce. Dealer has looked at the vehicle 3 separate times. Problem occurs again in few days after dealer visit. Dealer based on the system error code diagnosed the problem with the fuel system. So far the dealer has replaced the high pressure fuel pump, injector relay, fuel pressure regulator and fuel rail pressure sensor. Dealer says when the vehicle starts the problem with the fuel system causes the electrical/computer system to go in safety mode; this makes onboard computers believe all systems are failing. Dealers' attempts (in consultation with manufacturer support) have so far not resulted in successful resolution of the problem. Without taking undue risk, I have personally tested some of the safety systems in errors indicated on the cluster panel to actually not work, e. G. Lane departure mitigation system. Importantly, it feels vehicles braking distance has increased and steering is harder compared to when vehicles had no issues. All errors that are displayed are listed below. 1. Emission system problem, 2. Break system problem, 3. Electric parking brake system problem, 4. Break hold system problem, 5. Electric power steering problem, 6. Trailer stability problem, 7. Adaptive cruise control system problem, 8. Road departure mitigation system problem, 9. Vehicle stability assist system problem, 10. Hill start assist problem, 11. Trailer stability assist problem, 12. Hill descent control system problem, 13. Collision mitigation breaking system problem, 14. Road departure mitigation system problem, 15. Low speed breaking control problem.
The vehicle was purchased 7/1/2023. It is a 2023 Honda Pilot. 8 days after the purchase (od mileage: 332), on a major highway, all mechanical systems in the vehicle failed within 2 minutes of each other. The engine, brakes, electrical, airbags, awd, all of the adas systems, etc. All lit up within about 5 minutes of each other. Soon after this happened, the vehicle essentially shut down and was forced to a stop in a turning lane off of the major highway. The vehicle gave no indication that this was coming. The dealership's immediate response was to assume that we had put diesel fuel in the vehicle (this was not the case). As of now, they still have not been able to determine the cause of these catastrophic failures. Completely unsafe! this failure event could have been lethal and no one has any answers. . .
1st incident: I was traveling on country road. I was approaching two bicyclists on the right. With no oncoming traffic, I began to move into the other lane to go around the bicyclists. The warnings appeared on my dash, and the steering wheel pulled the car back towards the bicyclists. 2nd incident: I was traveling on a country road, goin over a hill. The cameras must have lost sight of the lane markers, dash flashed the lane departure warning and the steering pulled the vehicle towards the oncoming lane. There was a motorcycle approaching & I steered the vehicle back to the appropriate lane position. 3rd incident: my husband was driving on a country road. A tractor and farm implement was approaching in the oncoming lane. My husband slowed down & moved to the right of his lane to give the tractor more room. The lane departure warning flashed & the steering pulled the vehicle back towards the tractor/implement. We returned to the dealership & had them shut this feature off.
- there is a clicking noise coming from the steering column area after the vehicle has been driven on the highway for approximately 15 minutes and the vehicle engine has been warmed up. The noise can be heard at low speeds, such as pulling up into a driveway, or turning the steering wheel while parked. - the vehicle is brand new with 2900 miles as of today and the clicking noise coming from the steering column can pose an unknown danger to those in the car and around the car. - the vehicle was brought in to the dealership for service inspection pertaining to the clicking noise and the issue was able to be duplicated and recorded. However, the issue is unresolved and the case is still open. - the dealership service department had the vehicle manufacturer engineer on the phone to aid in the troubleshooting. The troubleshooting recommendation by the engineer was to check if there is a similar clicking noise from another vehicle that is the same year, model, and trim level prior to further investigating; this has not started due to dealership inventory unavailability of the same exact year, model, and trim level. Until the dealership receives the same year, model, and trim level to compare with, the case will remain open. - the issue was first noticed when the vehicle had approximately 2000 miles.