Service Brakes Problems of Honda Pilot - part 1

I was driving with my cruise control on, at the speed around 50 mph, thank goodness no other cars were around us, all of a sudden my car slammed on the brakes, a warning flashed but I happened so fast I wasn’t able to see what it said.

See all problems of the 2025 Honda Pilot 🔎.

The vehicle's collision mitigation braking system (cmbs) is triggering 'phantom braking' at 50mph when there are no vehicles or hazards ahead. This occurs consistently on roads with dark asphalt patches/crack sealant. The braking is severe enough to cause a potential rear-end collision. I have reported this to Honda corporate (case #16338446) and have an appointment with a dealer, but the issue persists and is a major safety risk for my family.

See all problems of the 2024 Honda Pilot 🔎.

Each time my battery has died the brake starter has also stopped working. I have had to get the starter replaced three times in 4 years. The starter for the Honda Pilot 2022 is faulty.

See all problems of the 2022 Honda Pilot 🔎.

This car on April 2nd, 2026 did not stop. I had pulled into a parking lot. Parked in the same space I have parked in for the last 12/13? years. Upon driving into the space . . I pressed my brakes down for the car to stop. It did not stop. The car kept going/rolling my husband the passenger told me to stop. I heard him plainly say. I told him I am stopping. But the car would not stop. It kept going and rolling into a brick building at the end of the parking space. We braced ourselves. What else do you do when your car won’t stop I was probably goingb8 mph. Nothing fast. Not on the phone. 75 degree perfect weather in [xxx] I’ve had this car about five months. No problem at all until this incident never in my life had I ever had brakes to fail me. Well the brakes failed. Technology is built by men and programmed by men. I am a nine car Honda owner. This car has a brake technology problem. With all the technology, it should have stopped on its own. It didn’t. When brakes are applied technology should work. In this case technology failed. This car has a brake defect technology problem. Brakes were applied a car doesn’t have to have a recall on it for it not to have a technology problem. These cars are not perfect. Programmed and built by human hands. Imnsurevifvmr. Soichiro Honda sat down with me and did this problem with one of his cars. . He would surely say” I’m sorry that happened to you” I’m sorry you’re brakes did not work and they did not . American Honda needs to recognize accountability. I wish they would experience what I experienced. It would be a scary situation that is if you survived yrs, I’m sure if it happened to them. No car is perfect. This one sure isn’t. I no longer am an owner of this 2025 Honda Pilot. Death trap it’s gone to somebody else. My life is worth living sincerely, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

On April 2nd, 2026. I was driving this car into a parking space. I had to be going 5 mph. Or slower. Probably even slower. Pulling in. . I applied the brakes of course. The car wouldn’t stop. My husband/passenger told me to stop. I did stop. This car kept rolling and crashed/smashed/ hit the brick red building in front of us. No brake hold was displayed. . No nothing. No brake stop. Nooooo nothing. The car wouldn’t stop. I never in my life have ever experienced this.

I just drove into a parking lot at first united methodist church parking lot. [xxx] . This is where I work. Approaching a parking space very near. Driving into the space, applying brakes like I’ve done for the last 12/13 years…. The car would not stop. I applied the brakes fully down to the floor( which I’ve never had to ever do at any time) the car kept going. . Rolling on. My husband the passenger told me” stop”. I did stop. I was applying the brakes as soon as approaching the parking space. The car kept on going as I said. No warning like” brake hold” which has worked another other time when getting according to this cars brain. . It would show some kind of warning. It did not. No sound, no nothing to brake the car. It rolled right into the red brick building I was pulling into. Their parking space. The building has about a two foot gash on it. The car did this …what kind of car doesn’t stop. With all of the sophisticated sensors or etc. It has…why, what happened? my granddaughter was in the back right passenger seat. The impact caused a gash above her forehead. A real cut, mind you. I don’t know what else to see. I’ve never experienced this. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The contact owns a 2025 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while attempted to park the vehicle into a park spot occupied with her husband and granddaughter in the vehicle, the vehicle acceleratored independently causing the vehicle to crash into a brick wall. The contact stated that no air bags were deployed in her vehicle. The contact stated her granddaughter sustained a cut near her right eyebrow. No medical attention was required. The contact stated that a police report was filed. The contact mentioned that the vehicle was towed to a collision center. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and they are investigating the matter. The approximate failure mileage was 10,000.

I was driving around 30-35 mph when my car's dashboard lights were flickering on and it then gave me a warning that the collision mitigation system was coming on. The car started braking hard and it swerved me to the left, so much so that I was halfway into the left lane. Thankfully no other car was in that lane. Then my car automatically went into neutral and I had to stop on the side of the road. I took the car into the Honda dealership the same day. They told me that it could possibly be a dirty multi use camera by the rear view mirror and so they claimed to have cleaned it. I'm not certain that was the issue since I had just gotten a car wash recently and it did not seem to have been dirty.

See all problems of the 2019 Honda Pilot 🔎.

“the vehicle experiences phantom braking while driving, where the collision mitigation braking system (cmbs) activates without warning even when there are no vehicles or objects in front of me. The vehicle suddenly brakes on its own, creating a major safety hazard and risk of rear-end collisions. The issue has happened multiple times during normal driving at different speeds. Warning lights related to the collision mitigation system and passenger airbag system have appeared intermittently. The blind spot monitoring system has also failed to properly detect nearby vehicles at times. The vehicle was previously taken to the dealership/service department and remained there for an extended period for inspection and attempted repairs, but the problem was not fully corrected. After getting the vehicle back, the same symptoms and braking issues continued. This issue puts myself, my passengers, and other drivers at risk because the vehicle may suddenly brake unexpectedly in traffic.

Almost every day since new the vehicle will alarm 'brake' on dash while driving on 2 lane back roads that have some slight curves (these are all around our house). At least once a month the car will automatically apply the brakes while coming around a curve or over a blind hill. Both of these scenarios occur 50/50 when there is oncoming traffic or no oncoming traffic. It can happen with someone ahead of me in the same lane, but not as often. In all cases throughout the years there has not be a need for braking. In one instance a few years ago we were driving on a divided 4 lane state highway. Cruise control was on and acc was on. We moved into the left lane to pass a car. When we came within ~20' of the car, the Pilot engaged in automatic braking hard as it detected the car we were attempting to pass as an obstacle in front of us. There was never any danger of hitting the other car. However, a car following us almost rear-ended our car due to the unforseen/not needed hard braking. My wife will no longer use cruise control in this vehicle since this happened. The dash 'brake' warning is easy to replicate if you drive for a while on the roads near my house. The auto braking is not able to reproduced on demand. Now the car is complaining to see the dealer about a cmbs (collision mitigation braking system) error. I'll have to troubleshoot this (or maybe just turn it off), but the entire system has been sub par and accident prone since original purchase new in 2019.

See all problems of the 2020 Honda Pilot 🔎.

My Honda Pilot automatically applied the brakes 2 times while traveling on the interstate at 60 mph when there was no one in front of me and no one even near me. Both times it applied the brakes automatically and suddenly for no reason. It could have caused a bad accident. I was fortunate no one was behind me. Honda denies anything is wrong because it didn’t do it for them when they took it for a drive.

Seatbelt sensors for the passenger second row dinging off and on when seatbelt is buckled. Also the light coming on that says emergency brake unavailable.

See all problems of the 2023 Honda Pilot 🔎.

On Feb. 03, 2026 around 5:30 pm, driving 290 west going 65 mph. No cars on either side of me and the next closest car 6 lengths of me, my car slammed on the brakes and alarmed. The sudden braking lasted 1-2 seconds.

See all problems of the 2017 Honda Pilot 🔎.

Repeatedly there has been a cylinder 1 misfire causing the check engine light to activate. The vehicle starts to shake and idling is rough. It has happened repeatedly over the past 3-4 years. In 2025 it happened in August, October and December despite repeated maintenance. Error codes that have popped up due to the issue primarily include cylinder 1 misfires a known and documented issue related to the faulty vcm system. The problem has repeatedly been identified by multiple mechanics. I use my vehicle primarily to transport my children to and from school. We have all been in the car during these misfires endangering their safety. At many of the times when the misfires have happened my children have been in the car and any engine failure while operating the vehicle puts them in danger. My children are adhd/autistic and during the times the vehicle has broken down while driving it has caused them extreme distress. The vehicle is available for inspection at any time. I have reached out to Honda repeatedly to have the issue resolved however despite repeated promises the vehicle would be fixed due to recalls and extended warranties Honda officials have repeatedly made erroneous claims and insist my vehicle's VIN needs to be approved for any repairs. This is a well documented known issue for this make and model due to the faulty vcm system causing oil to get into the cylinders leading to the misfires and piston ring wear and corroded spark plugs. All I am requesting is for Honda to make the necessary repairs so my vehicle is safe to transport my children. I have kept up with the maintenance of the vehicle. The problems we have experienced are directly caused by the known vcm/mil failures. Also we have consistently had codes come up for the abs as well. Under the magnuson-moss warranty act Honda is responsible for making the repairs.

See all problems of the 2013 Honda Pilot 🔎.

My vehicle has 1,500 miles on it. Last time I drove it from work back home was Friday 11/21 and nothing was wrong. Got back in the car Sunday 11/23 and my engine light was blinking and all kinds of warnings were displaying such as engine, break, and steering problems. My wife and I noticed the car vibrating a lot and I had to drive 20mph. If not the car felt like it was going to shut down.

The contact owns a 2025 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 25 mph, the brake pedal was depressed and the vehicle did not slow down as intended. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. On another occasion, while attempting to park, the vehicle accelerated and drove over the sidewalk and crashed into the stairs to her residence. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a collision center, where it was due to be repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The insurance provider was involved and suggested that the contact call the nhts hotline and file a safety complaint. The contact mentioned that prior to the crash, the vehicle was inspected for an unknown manufacturer recall, where the dealer informed that the brake inspection passed. The failure mileage was approximately 8,000.

Malfunctioned the brake the pedal and the seatbelt it was on Friday to I was driving after I yield drive there was few cars head of me on a distance now I am trying to start slowdown early can't find the brake so I press the pedal with force when the pedal reaches to the floor slim stop right behind the car of me I will say 99% inch away to touch the car in front of me and the seatbelt even help me back and the all way have trying to move to other direction on when driving shifting unstable I don't fell save at all when I'm driving that specially driving to work at night for me that car need to have a state inspection and a complete repair before the dealership sold that car to me.

See all problems of the 2011 Honda Pilot 🔎.

The contact owns a 2005 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that shortly after refueling, the vehicle suddenly experienced unintended acceleration, causing the speed to increase to approximately 45 mph while approaching stopped traffic. While pressing the brake pedal to avoid a collision, the vehicle continued to accelerate and crashed into the rear of a second vehicle. During the air bag deployment, the air was deflated, causing the driver's head to contact the steering wheel. Also, the contact indicated that metal fragments were present during the air bag deployment. The contact sustained a lacerated left wrist and lacerations to the chest area. The driver also sustained contusions and bruised to the head, ankles, and legs, along with neck and back stiffness, which will all require medical treatment. No other injuries were known regarding the second vehicle occupants. A police report was taken at the scene, and the vehicle was towed away. The cause of the failures was not determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failures, but no assistance was offered. The local dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 150,000.

See all problems of the 2005 Honda Pilot 🔎.

El carro tiene fallas con el sistema eléctrico DE frenos y no arranca.

Driving down a 4 lane highway in alabama, warning lamp came on stating “ stop steering assist reduced. Stop driving when safe”. Multiple other warnings lights came on—-brake system, steering system, cruise control, lane departure, stability assist system, hill assist, trailer stability assist system(see multiple photos attached). When it was safe to do so, I pulled over…the steering was very difficult to manage. If I had to make a turn in traffic or had to make a sudden turn to avoid an accident, I would not have been able to do so as there was no power steering. I turned the car off, let it sit for several minutes and the steering assist warning was off and I appeared to have power steering but several others lights were still on. Took the car the the closet dealer and only code found was a low voltage code but nothing repaired as all warnings lights were off by then.

The contact owns a 2005 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving 25-35 mph, the vehicle slowed down unexpectedly, and the brake pedal was hard and slow to respond when depressed. The contact stated that the steering wheel was pulling to the left, and it was difficult to correct the steering wheel. The vehicle was difficult to control. The vsa light was illuminated. There was a triangle with an exclamation mark symbol displayed on the instrument cluster. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the vsa module had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired because the parts were on backorder. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 173,273.

When I started my 2022 Honda Pilot special edition (VIN: [xxx] ) in a parking lot, the vehicle immediately behaved abnormally. As I attempted to turn into a space, the car unexpectedly accelerated and moved in an unintended direction. Despite pressing the brake pedal firmly, neither the standard brakes nor the automatic braking system responded. Shifting into park did not stop the vehicle, and the transmission did not engage to hold the car. The vehicle continued moving through the parking lot, striking property and other vehicles. The entire event felt like a loss of braking and control, with both the brake system and gear selector failing to function as intended. This was a sudden and dangerous incident that could have caused serious injury. The Honda dealer has confirmed there are no open recalls or campaigns for my VIN, but the event aligns with reports of unintended acceleration and brake failure in other 2022 Honda Pilot vehicles. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The vehicle is experiencing persistent dashboard warnings including "brake performance may be reduced," "low speed braking control problem," and "parking sensor problem. " these issues have been presented to your authorized dealer, napleton Honda in morton grove, on three separate occasions with no resolution: September 29, 2025: I arrived at the dealer bay with active warning lights. The service writer instructed me to simply restart the vehicle to clear the lights. I have photographic evidence of the warnings from this date. October 25, 2025: the vehicle was brought in for repair. I provided cell phone photos of the active dashboard warnings, yet the dealer reported "nothing found. " April 20, 2026: the vehicle was again brought in for the same issues. I again provided cell phone photos as proof of the defect, but the dealer reported "nothing found. " despite the dealer's inability to diagnose the cause, my photographic documentation from 9/29/25, 10/25/25, 4/20/26, and 4/25/26 proves these defects are real, recurring, and significantly impair the safety and value of the vehicle.

While driving on u. S highway 521 in south carolina, the vehicle experienced sudden, unexpected braking and violent shaking even though there were no cars or obstacles directly in front of me. The sensation was so strong it felt as if the car had been rear-ended, but there was no impact. The issue has happened multiple times since I purchased the vehicle new in 2023. Each time, traffic was flowing normally, and no immediate hazard was present. The closest car in front of me was several car lenghts away, yet the Pilot suddenly braked on its own. The problem appears to be linked to the collision mitigation braking system or related driver-assist sensors, which seem to be misreading conditions and triggering false emergency braking. This defect creates a serious safety hazard. The abrupt, forceful braking puts me and my family at risk of being rear-ended by following vehicles. It has also caused panic and near-miss incidents in traffic. I am filling this complaint to ensure it is formally documented and investigated as safety defect. This is a serious risk to driver and passengers and could lead to accidents. I am requesting NHTSA to investigate whether this defect affects other Honda Pilot vehicles.

Unknown.

See all problems of the 2006 Honda Pilot 🔎.

While driving straight, my 2019 Honda Pilot activates collision “brake” warnings and applies steering wheel torque when there are no vehicles or obstacles present. The system intervenes unexpectedly and repeatedly. The attached documents show that I reported this issue to a Honda dealership and Honda customer relations (case #16094868). No diagnosis has been completed yet. This is a safety concern.

The vehicle intermittently thinks it is about to be involved with a collision. It illuminates the brake warning lights and slams on the brakes on its own and brings the car to a complete stop. We almost got rear ended by a semi truck the first time this happened and we were on a highway. Traffic had to take evasive action to prevent an accident. Honda is aware of this issue and admits their is a problem and has informed us their is no fix for it yet. Honda case # [xxx] and joel is our point of contact at the Honda outreach program. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6) the vehicle is unsafe to drive and is going to get us hurt or killed or others as well. The vehicle has only 1,700 miles on it and is brand new. The last incident timeframe is listed below but it has happened quite a few times with no traffic present and clear roads.

Uncommanded braking at approximately 35 mph. 7-8 instances. All on same 1mile stretch of road.

While driving the car flashes a brake warning on the dash and then automatically begins emergency style braking attempting to bring the car to a stop, but this happens while driving at highway speeds which is dangerous for rear approaching traffic. This has happened before and the dealership could not reproduce the action. This is the third time it has happened.

So I have a Honda Pilot and have been seeing a light saying that my collision mitigation system is broke so I took it in for a diagnostic which I was charged for which is fine and normal I guess but they told me that the system was broken possibly from just driving through construction zones and this causes phantom braking so I have to get it fixed but they want to charge me for the repairs which from my perspective the customer I shouldn't have to pay for a defect like that that can cause injurie or much worse.

I was pulling into a parking space. Hit the brake. Instead of stopping, the car accelerated, jumping a curb and barreling across into another business drive. It hit a sign and a stone garbage can, which caused the car to recognize a collision and automatically go into park which caused it to stop. If it hadn’t been for the stone garbage can, it would have gone through the store window where people were sitting. Luckily at that moment there wasnt a car parked in the space or something coming down the road. Because I didn’t understand what was happening , so I looked at my foot to see if I had pushed down on the gas instead of the brake. My foot was firmly on the brake. I talked to the local Honda dealership. They had never seen that issue before. They said they could do the diagnostic which I would have to pay for, but couldn’t promise it would show what happened. I also called Honda customer service. They started a claim, but also would do nothing unless diagnostics showed the problem and also said it may not. I was very fortunate that I didn’t kill or seriously harm someone. I am now scared to drive the vehicle. If I had not looked at my foot to see where it was placed, I would say possibly driver error; but I know it wasn’t. My foot was on the brake.

See all problems of the 2016 Honda Pilot 🔎.

I was driving down a residential road at about 40 mph. There was no car or other obstacle in front of me, but my car suddenly slammed on the brakes. It brought the car to an abrupt stop for no reason. If a car had been behind me, they would have slammed into me. It was so abrupt, I felt like I had whiplash. It was terrifying. I had taken the car into the dealership to due to the brake pin recall just 3 days ago. They inspected and said the pin was fine. When I called them to report this experience, they said it was unrelated to the recall. I am bringing my car into them tomorrow to inspect what happened with the automatic braking system.

All of the safety features are failing starting about August 2025. Warning lights are lit for collision mitigation, cruise control, high beam, lane departure, braking, everything!!! we replaced the battery but that is not the problem. The transmission was always a problem. The braking assist never worked from day 1. The vehicle is completely defective.

7/25/2025 I was driving my wife’s Pilot between 55 and 60 mph when the vehicle alerted me to several warnings and the braking system stuck at the top of the pedal not allowing the vehicle to slow in a construction zone. I was able to limp the vehicle home but the vehicle was extremely difficult to slow at red lights. The vehicle was towed from residence after sitting and the tow truck driver said the vehicle was not showing any warning signs. The dealership in paducah test drove the vehicle and did not see anything wrong with it. They subsequently checked and there was a diagnostic for brake booster failure. The vehicle has 41,000 miles on it. In addition it went to the dealership at 9,981 miles for electronic parking brake sticking and the ike dealership said there was nothing wrong. There are other reports of woners on youtube who have had this failure or similar with one member having to ditch the vehicle. I almost wrecked and hit a vehicle that slowed in front of me. The system thew error codes to include failure in electronic steering, transmission, hill descent, electronic braking, and others. I recorded the errors on the dash. This vehicle has also thrown airbag error with only a few thousand miles. The vehicle has side panels that have fallen off and and seals on the panoramic sunroof that have failed.

As I was driving, I had to press on my break fairly firmly for about two seconds due to a car in front of me making a left-hand turn. I released the break, and the car in front of me was completely out of my lane. There was about a 2 to 3 second span of time ,after I released the break and in which I was coasting, before the automatic breaking system pressed hard on the break for at least one second and then it released. I had not placed my foot near the brake or accelerator at that time.

See all problems of the 2021 Honda Pilot 🔎.